Final Capture – Master Splinter

Raphael had nearly reached the end of the narrow sewer run off where he'd left Donatello when he heard a splash followed by a low groan.

Hurrying forward, he cautiously peered down into the tunnel below him and then jumped back before he could be skewered by his own knife clutched tightly in an olive green hand.

"Whoa Donny," Raph called in a low voice. "It's me."

"Raph?" Don's voice sounded thick, like he was having a hard time moving his tongue.

"Coming down bro', don't stick me," Raph said before squeezing through the opening and dropping to the ground in front of his brother.

Don was swaying on his feet, one side of his body covered in mud. Squinting at his brother, Don lowered the knife and Raph reached out, grabbing Don's arm to steady him.

"What happened?" Don asked, blinking owlishly.

"Bishop happened," Raph said. "He made a bunch of clones in his image and sicced them on us. I got ya' away from them after they shot ya' up with something, but they were on my heels so I had ta stash ya' down here and lure them away."

"I was wondering why I woke up to find myself buried under trash and mud," Don said with a grimace.

"You're welcome," Raph replied, grinning.

Don eyed him suspiciously then, his head clear enough to notice that Raph was devoid of his gear.

"Where's your belt and pads? What happened to your mask and weapons?" Don asked.

Raph's lips pressed together in a thin line before he opened them to answer, "My mask is over there." He pointed at the ground near where Don had lain. "I dipped it in water ta try and wake ya' up but that was useless. I ain't putting it on again either; it's muddy and covered in sewage water."

"But somehow it was okay to rub my face with it," Don murmured.

"Don't get knocked out next time," Raph told him. "I pulled off my own pads so I could leave a false trail away from your ass, thank you very much. In the process I got surrounded by those clones of Bishop's and they almost managed ta drag me back to that maniac."

"You fought them off?" Don asked, eyes wide.

Raph shook his head. "Much as I'd like ta be a hero, it was Mikey who got them off of me. He and Leo came down here looking for us. I sent him back ta meet up with Leo so our big bro' would know what the shell is going on. Bishop wanted ya' caught first so ya' couldn't figure out how ta stop him, which means I ain't leaving ya' alone."

"We don't have our weapons, our masks along with all of your gear are gone, we have no way to communicate with each other, my duffel is missing, and Bishop's clones are everywhere. Sounds like your kind of odds," Don observed.

"Don't be a spoil sport," Raph said, chuckling. "I suppose ya' wanna try ta make it back ta the lair."

"That is our protocol," Don said as he glared at his brother.

"If ya' stop giving me the stink eye, I'll give ya' a present," Raph said.

"Unless it's my bo staff, don't think you can bribe me out of my ill humor," Don told him. "That stuff they shot into me gave me a headache."

"Here," Raph handed over the dark glasses that he'd gotten from their youngest brother. "Mikey managed ta get his hands on an unbroken pair. Maybe ya' can figure out why those clones can't make a move without 'em."

Don turned the glasses over in his hand, examining the front and then the underside. Flipping the earpieces up, he noticed that they were wider and thicker than those on a normal pair of glasses, especially the temple tips.

Running his thumb over the tips, he felt a small protrusion and brought them closer to his face, trying to see what it was he was feeling. The light in the tunnel was too dim for a proper examination.

"I really need to take these back to my lab," Don said. "I need a magnifying lens and my tools."

"Mikey said he was supposed ta meet Leo in that electrical room just off Harper," Raph said. "We should head that way too. If they ain't there waiting for us, then we'll go ta the lair. Look around down here and see if there's anything we can use as a weapon."

Together they searched the muddy embankment, kicking aside piles of debris and rodent carcasses. Before long their feet and legs were mud spattered and they were both wet.

"All I've turned up is three quarters of a broken wine bottle," Don said. "Are you having any luck?"

"Nah, there's nothing but trash . . . wait a second," Raph said, squatting next to a pile of soggy newspapers.

Pulling the paper aside, he uncovered a broken and slightly rusty metal shoe rack. The rods that were once meant to hold shoes in place were over three feet long, thin but solid, and there were four of them.

Yanking on the ends that held the rods in place, Raph pulled them loose from the frame. Standing, he handed two of them to Don, who tossed the wine bottle aside.

Raph tried one of the rods by pounding it against his open palm. "Not the best weapon; it'll probably break after a few good hits, but it's better than nothing."

"Are we going back up through there?" Don asked, indicating the sewer run off Raph had come from.

"Not unless ya' wanna run into some more clones," Raph said. "If we follow this tunnel west we'll have ta go miles out of our way ta get back ta Harper. I'm pretty sure if we go east we'll come up on another run off about a mile and a half from here. That one will take us straight ta Dover, which is only a half mile from Harper."

Don glanced down at the swiftly running water. "We're going to get a lot wetter."

"It's better than getting caught," Raph said, slapping Don on the shoulder as he started walking.

It was difficult to walk fast through the tunnel with its steep sides and piles of debris. There was finally no choice for the brothers but to step into the water, which ran thigh high and was very cold.

They were both relieved to see the run off pipe up ahead of them; the thin trickle of water spilling from it a good indication that it wasn't flooded. As they drew closer, both of them heard the distinct sounds of something much larger than a sewer rat splashing in the water towards them.

Don and Raph looked at each other and began to jog through the water, their legs weighed down by its turbulence. Just as they reached the pipe, a figure shot around a bend in the tunnel, racing straight towards them.

Raph stepped in front of Don, the metal rods lifted in defense as he prepared to meet this newest onslaught.

"Don't hit me, don't hit me!" Mikey yelled, plummeting into their midst.

"What the shell?" Raph exclaimed. "Where's Leo? What the fuck are ya' doing down here?"

"Move, I'll explain later," Mikey said. "They're right behind me."

As if on cue, one of Bishop's clones barreled around the turn and rushed towards them, followed immediately by another. Both held telescoping batons in their hands, extended and ready for use.

Raph jumped on the first one before the man could swing, striking the man's forehead with his makeshift weapon as his body weight drove the clone under water. The clone thrashed beneath him, churning the water and trying to hit Raph with the baton, but Raph reached down with unerring accuracy and ripped the glasses from his face.

Mikey ducked under the second clone's swing and drove his fist into the man's stomach. When the clone bent over and stumbled forward, Don smacked the back of his head with a metal rod, dropping the man to his knees.

With an almost uncanny speed, the clone jumped to his feet, his dark glasses turning in Don's direction, ignoring Mikey completely. Arms out, he reached for the olive green turtle and Mikey shattered the clone's glasses and his face with a fast sweep on his nunchucks.

When Raph came back over to them, he said, "Did ya' see that? They still want Donny."

"Dude, let's talk about it later," Mikey said. "They've got Leo! There's a whole bunch more behind me; they got stuck waiting for a grate to open. We have to go."

"They've got Leo?" Raph growled, starting back in the direction Mikey had come from.

Mikey grabbed his arm. "You don't understand! There are hundreds of them! Leo said we have to get Master Splinter and we have to get Donny to his lab. He's the only one who can stop them."

Raph pulled away from him, hesitating as he looked down the tunnel. Turning his head, he saw Don leaning against the tunnel wall, obviously still feeling the effects of the sedative he'd been given.

Striding over to the drain pipe, he folded his fingers together and held his hands down in front of Mikey. "You go first. This pipe is narrow so we're gonna have ta crawl out. It's about thirty ta thirty five feet long. Don goes between us. If anybody's waiting on the other end, ya' try ta see how many before we slide out and get ambushed again."

Mikey nodded and stepped into Raph's hands, using his brother as a springboard. Once Mikey was inside the pipe, Don went next, grabbing the lip of the pipe and pulling himself into it.

As soon as Don's feet disappeared, Raph leaped up and caught the bottom edge of the pipe, pushing up with his hands until he could see into the pipe. Leaning into it, he wriggled and pulled himself all of the way in, the pipe a tight fit around his larger body.

None of them made a sound as they crawled through the pipe, each concentrated on getting to safety and finding a way to rescue Leo. When street lights told Mikey that he'd reached the end of the pipe, he carefully peered out.

There wasn't a soul in sight and he climbed out, double checking that the street was deserted before leaning down to look at his brothers.

"It's clear, come on," Mikey told them.

The three turtles wasted no time racing back to their home, though they kept a cautious eye out for more of Bishop's clones. On the way, Mikey filled them in on what had occurred from the time he and Leo had realized something had happened to their brothers up to Leo's capture.

Somehow none of them was surprised to find Master Splinter anxiously awaiting them when they burst into the lair.

"What has happened? Where is Leonardo?" Master Splinter demanded.

"Donny, you go work on those glasses, I'll explain everything to sensei," Mikey said.

Don nodded and went straight to his lab, closely followed by Raph. Setting the glasses on his worktable, Don flicked the switch on his large magnifier lamp and swung the arm down so that he could peer through the lens as he worked.

Raph was pacing; waiting always made him edgy. Finally he said, "I'm gonna call Casey and get him ta check those roofs we were on. Maybe he can find your bag and our weapons."

"Mikey said he didn't find anything but my mask," Don said without looking up. "If you need something to do, you could grab my spare mask from my room when you go up to get yours."

"I'm still gonna call him," Raph said. "Mikey was worried and maybe he missed our stuff. Maybe those clones shoved them into a storage shed. That was my favorite pair of sais."

"If you call him, Casey will want to go with us to rescue Leo," Don said, opening a drawer to reach the case that held his more delicate tools.

"Mikey said there's hundreds of those clones; maybe thousands," Raph said. "You got any problem with having an extra pair of hands when it's butt kicking time?"

Don glanced up and then back at what he was doing. "None whatsoever."

Raph left the room to make his phone call and to grab his extra gear, leaving Don immersed in the mystery of the dark glasses.

As Don worked, a part of his mind processed what he had observed about Bishop's newest clone creations. They were fast and strong, they were self-healing and nimble, and they worked well together. Almost too well; as though they thought with a collective mind rather than as individuals.

Don's agile brain worried that concept like a dog worries a bone; something about it seemed to hold the clue he needed. That and the fascinating piece of equipment he was discovering hidden inside a dark pair of glasses.

Outside the lab faint sounds reached him; Mikey's voice mingled with Master Splinters, something falling over in the rooms on the upper floor, the sound of Raph's voice calling to one of the others. Don attached no significance to any of them; lost in his mental world the background noises were normal in a house full of family and were somehow soothing.

Don had no idea how much time had passed when Raph came striding into the lab. He didn't bother trying to stay quiet because surprising Don was never a good idea, neither did he loudly announce his presence.

Instead, in a conversational tone of voice, Raph said, "I got hold of Casey; woke him up actually. He'll meet us back here after he goes up ta . . . . "

Raph stopped talking when Don looked up at him, the excitement on his face telling.

"This is amazing," Don said as his voice slightly trembled.

"What is? What's amazing?" Raph asked, staring at the glasses that had been systematically dismantled by his brother.

"This appears to be a miniaturized Tesla coil. Why would Bishop be using an electrical resonant transformer hidden in the temple pieces of a pair of glasses? Is he trying to manipulate electromagnetic functions of the brain through a wetware interface?" Don queried rhetorically.

Raph screwed up his face as he listened to Don's ramble. "Could ya' save the fan girling for later? We gotta rescue our bro'."

"You don't understand, Raph," Don explained eagerly, his eyes barely flicking over to Mikey and Master Splinter as they walked into the lab. "If this is how Bishop is controlling and directing his clones, I think I can rig up a way to disrupt the magnetic field that Bishop's device is giving off. The device Mikey told us the clones were hooked into. Even if the clones have been wire headed, a higher frequency alternating current should interrupt the signal from their glasses."

Raph glanced over at Mikey and back to Don. "I don't get half of what ya' said, but I think you're telling us ya' can bust up the signal that Bishop's sending to his clones. How long will it take ya' to make something that'll do that?"

"Wait," Mikey said, drawing his brother's attention. "Hey, Donny, if you could interrupt that signal, couldn't you somehow make yours strong enough to take control of Bishop's clones? I mean, it'd be nice to just shut them off, but we're still going into Bishop's strong hold and he's got real live humans working for him too."

"Your brother has a point," Master Splinter said. "Nullifying a portion of your enemy's defenses is advantageous, but turning his own forces against him is the straightest path to victory."

"I wish I knew more about his transmitter," Don said. "I know the glowing object that Mikey described has to be a larger, more powerful Tesla coil. It's the primary transformer that is sending signals to the smaller coils inside the glasses. But there has to be another device relaying instructions through that main circuit."

"It's Bishop dude," Mikey said. His family looked at him in surprise and he said, "I saw him put his hands to his temples just before this really loud noise came out of that machine overhead and the clones started to come alive."

"Ya' know, that makes sense in a cockeyed Bishop kind of way," Raph said. "He's a control freak, why would he allow anyone else ta order his clones around?"

"Agent Bishop would not require a device inside his head in order to control his clones," Master Splinter said. "His mind is capable of concentrating thoughts in much the same manner as we achieve during meditation. He has had many, many years to perfect the technique."

"Donny can do that too," Mikey said. "Remember when the Triceraton's took him captive?"

"If Donny's mind was strong enough ta reach through space ta call on Master Splinter for help, then he should be able ta override Bishops' control," Raph said.

"I was more than a little motivated by pain at the time," Don reminded them. "Maybe Master Splinter should be the one to take control of the clones."

Their father held up a hand. "No, I do not wish to be in charge of this device of yours. If past experiences have taught us anything, they have taught us that manipulating machinery is your 'thing', not mine. You will find the mental strength necessary to defeat Bishop because you are motivated this time by love for your brother."

Don frowned but didn't argue the point, realizing that it would take too long to explain to Master Splinter what he would have to do once he put the glasses on.

"Give me about twenty minutes to change this into a transmitter," Don said.

"Here," Raph handed him a clean purple mask and his spare bo staff. "Wish I could give ya' your bag too, but that's probably long gone."

"Don't make any bets on that," Casey sang out from behind them.

Turning, the family saw their human friend standing in the lab doorway, triumphantly displaying Don's bag, his bo, and Raph's sais.

"Where'd ya' find 'em?" Raph asked, eagerly accepting his weapons and looking them over for damage.

"Remember how ya' told me they carried Donny down that stairwell? I tried the alley entrance and it was still unlocked, so I took the stairs ta go up ta the roof. This stuff was sitting on the first landing," Casey said.

"Come, let us prepare for our fight and leave Donatello to finish his work," Master Splinter said, ushering the others out of the lab.

Raph hung back after everyone had left, his eyes on Don as his brother turned his attention back to the glasses. A couple of minutes passed before Don looked up again and read a question on his brother's face.

"What is it, Raph?" Don asked.

"Ya' shouldn't have dived in front of that net," Raph fussed in a low tone. "That was a crazy, dangerous thing ta do and ya' got yourself caught."

"My first instinct was to save you," Don explained fiercely. "You would have done the same if our roles were reversed. As it was, your fighting style was more effective than mine, so the decision was a judicious one."

Raph couldn't help but smile slightly at the forceful look on Don's face. "I'm gonna go look up that word, 'judicious', and get back ta ya' on that."

Don's expression altered and he made an attempt to smile back. "Sorry. I'm just really worried about Leo."

"Me too, bro'. Me too," Raph said as he left the room.

A little over a half an hour later, the team of five had entered the tunnels through the little electrical room where Leo had earlier asked Mikey to rendezvous with him. Don had supplied them each with new communication headsets that utilized a frequency that wasn't blocked by Bishop.

"We should try not to separate," Don said as he handed them out. "Bishop has had more practice controlling the clones and can probably see and hear everything that they can. There's no time for me to acquire that skill level, so I'm going to concentrate on controlling the ones I can see and that means I need to see you guys too."

Mikey grinned at him. "You look funny in those glasses, Donny."

"Thank you, Mikey," Don replied. "That was very helpful."

They walked in silence back towards the sewer run off where Raph, Don, and Mikey had their last encounter with Bishop's clones. Although they fully expected to run into more of them, they found the tunnels to be completely devoid of life.

"I can feel the energy being given off by the Tesla coil," Don said, his eyes masked by the pair of clone glasses he was wearing. "It's pretty powerful."

Master Splinter heard the edge in his voice and touched his arm reassuringly. "Let the energy flow through you, Donatello. Do not fight the nature of that power, allow your ki to embrace and merge with it."

One by one they dropped into the tunnel where Raph had hidden Don and stared into the darkness that lay in the direction of Bishop's secret facility. The splash and gurgle of the swiftly moving water echoed around them, adding another layer of eeriness to the surroundings.

"I hope they aren't under the water waiting for us," Mikey whispered, eyeing the current.

Raph ignored the comment as he asked, "Ya' remember how ta get back into Bishop's building don't ya' Mikey?"

"Yeah dude, straight down the tunnel until it curves, then in another fifty feet there's a concrete ramp to the right. But Bishop lowered a metal grate across the section of tunnel before you reach the ramp," Mikey said.

"Bishop's clones were after you when you ran into Raph and I," Don said. "That means the grate was lifted. I'll bet it's still raised too, because Bishop knows we'll come for Leo."

"That's why there weren't any clones in the tunnels. He's setting a trap," Raph said grimly.

"One we are forced to walk into," Master Splinter said. "However, it will not be sprung by Agent Bishop."

Mikey grinned as he slapped Don on the shoulder. "Don's gonna do the trapping and it won't be turtles getting caught."

"Just point me at something ta hit," Casey said. "All that sciency stuff gives me a headache."

Following Raph's example, the small group stepped into the water and moved cautiously but quickly. When they passed the spot where they'd escaped, Raph wasn't surprised to see that the clone's bodies were gone.

Just as they turned the bend in the tunnel, the sound of a familiar voice reached their ears. Recognizing it as Leo's, Raph started to surge forward but was stopped by the strong grip of his father's hand on his arm.

"Slowly," Master Splinter reminded him in a low tone. "We are not yet ready to be caught."

Raph took a deep breath in order to quell the urge to rush, instead lifting a hand and spreading his fingers. Behind him his family and Casey spread out in response to the silent order, separating from each other enough to make them difficult targets.

Ahead of them Raph could see the concrete ramp that Mikey had spoken of. Looking up, he spotted the metal grate as well, hanging over the tunnel and no doubt ready to be dropped behind them once they passed under it.

A glance at Don was all that was needed to have the genius turtle digging into his bag of tricks. Stepping onto Mikey's shoulders, Don attached a small explosive device to the railing that held the grate upright and activated the remote that was built into it.

When he jumped down, Don wrapped the detonator around his wrist and gave Raph the thumbs up signal. If they needed to go back out in this direction and found that the grate had been lowered, Don would simply blow it off of its tracks.

Again they heard Leo's voice, this time louder and much closer. Trekking up the ramp and out of the water, the group of rescuers simultaneously spotted a flat screen monitor suspended from the ceiling.

On the screen was Leo, his wrist caught by a thick band that was attached to a wall. The turtle leader was prying at the band with his free hand, but his eyes were focused in front of him, no doubt on the camera that he was facing.

"It's a trap, don't come in the usual way," Leo said, obviously repeating a mantra in the hopes his brothers would hear him. "It's a trap, don't come for me."

"What the shell," Raph whispered hoarsely, "he has ta know we ain't gonna leave him here."

"He knows," Mikey muttered in return. "He's trying to tell us not to go straight for him."

Behind them came the sound of the grate falling into place across the tunnel, the thump as it hit the ground making them jump.

"Too late now," Raph said, moving into the corridor. "Don't blow it just yet, Donny."

"I'll wait for your sig . . . ." Don began to say, but a loud voice interrupted him.

"Well, well, I didn't expect to catch Master Splinter in my little trap," Bishop gloated. "This is my lucky day."

The man stood alone in the center of the corridor to their left. He was exactly the same as always; dark suit, dark glasses, dark personality. Mikey inched over in front of Donatello in order to block Bishop's view of the olive turtle.

Pointing the tip of his sai at the man, Raph said, "Show us where Leo is."

"I'll do better than that," Bishop responded with a smile. "I'll put you in that room with him."

Doors all along the corridor were flung open at his words and dozens of clones poured out of them, effectively surrounding the small group of mutants and their human friend. Casey reached into his bag and extracted a golf club and bat, his mask already pulled down over his face.

"Donny," Mikey whispered.

"Time to try this out," Don said, closing his eyes behind the dark glasses.

"Get them," Bishop ordered.

The clones swarmed towards the group, batons raised. Raph and Casey shouted and dove into their midst, weapons swinging; each strike aimed directly for their eyes. Mikey's nunchucks were out and spinning as he held his ground in front of Donatello, slamming his weapons into the clones as they tried to reach his brother.

Master Splinter weaved his way through the throngs of clones that clogged the corridor, his cane smashing glasses with unerring accuracy as he leaped between the grasping hands of his adversaries. A shout from his youngest son had him spinning back towards his children as a new wave of clones closed in on Michelangelo and dragged him away from Donatello.

Don's back was to the wall, one hand clutching his bo as the clones moved to grab him. The other hand lifted to his temple as he tried to concentrate within the chaos.

Casey bounced off of a clone as he swung at another and his arms were seized from behind and pinned to his sides. Mikey was on the floor, seven clones holding him down as he struggled ineffectually against their combined weight.

As one of Raph's sais pierced the belly of a clone that was in front of him, the man grabbed his wrist and pushed forward, trapping the mutant's hand. Raph swung with the other one, smashing it into the man's temple, but before he could shove the clone off of him, two of them trapped his free arm.

Don's bo was wrenched from the genius' grip and he felt strong fingers close on his wrist. With one last effort, Don opened his eyes and focused completely on the clone that was holding him.

Something that felt like tiny prickles of electricity ran through Don's system and suddenly the clone released him. Concentrating, Don ordered the clone to turn away and push the others back.

Don heard Mikey gasp but didn't take his eyes off of the clone. The man began to shove his fellow clones away from Don and with a rush of adrenaline; Donatello looked towards the clones that were holding Mikey.

Again the surge of energy rushed across Don's body and the clones released Mikey, stood up, and began to pull the clones away from Casey. Don spun around to where Raph stood, still struggling with the clones that had piled on him, and ordered them off of the red banded turtle.

"No!" Bishop shouted, his hands to his temples as he tried to regain control of the clones.

Don felt his pushback and focused his ki, bringing his life energy forward to combine with the resonance of his Tesla transmitter. Unit by unit the clones fell back, redirected by Don towards their look-alike master.

"Fuck yeah!" Raph yelled at the top of his voice. "Take that ya' bastard!"

Bishop backed away from his clones and then two doors opened further along the corridor as armed men rushed to their boss's aid. The clones filled the corridor, forming an impenetrable barrier between Bishop, his men, and the rescue party.

A shot rang out, followed quickly by another. Master Splinter lifted his head and scented the air, ignoring the melee in front of them as he turned his attention back to their primary reason for being inside Bishop's stronghold in the first place.

Reaching towards Raph, Master Splinter quickly unsheathed one of the sword's that the red banded turtle had brought with him. Raph turned to look at his father as he felt the sword slide free.

"Stay here and make sure our path to freedom remains open. I am going after your brother," Master Splinter told him.

With a terse nod, Raph swung his attention back to Bishop's fight with his creations. The clones were pressing forward despite the gunfire in front of them, and now the turtles could see the bodies of some of them lying on the floor. Those who still retained their glasses were quick to stand back up, following the directions given to them by the purpled banded ninja who now controlled them.

Letting his nose guide him, Master Splinter sped along the corridor, finally stopping at a door with no markings on it. He tried the handle, found it to be locked, and used his son's katana to shear the handle completely off.

Leo turned to the sound of the door opening, pulling against the leather strap that was holding him captive. When he saw his father, he leaned away from the wall in order to fully extend the strap.

Master Splinter leaped forward and swiftly cleaved the strap in two, freeing his son.

"Is Mikey all right?" Leo asked. "Where are Raph and Don?"

"Your assistance allowed Michelangelo to escape and he found your brothers," Master Splinter said. "Donatello did something to a pair of glasses and now has control of the clones. We should not tarry; Agent Bishop will no doubt have a way to shut them down completely."

He handed the sword to Leo and led the way out of the room. They had only run a few feet when they heard shouting and Mikey lunged into view.

"Bishop's doing something to the clones and they're dropping like flies!" Mikey exclaimed.

The trio ran as fast as they could back to the others, who were standing at the head of the concrete ramp.

"We've worn out our welcome," Raph informed them, catching Leo's eye and silently turning leadership back over to his big brother.

"The grate?" Leo asked, urging the group down the ramp.

"I'm on it," Don said, pressing the tiny switch on his wrist detonator.

The explosion was immediate, followed almost simultaneously by the sound of the grate splashing into the water as it fell.

Plunging into the water, the group raced through the billowing dust, leaping over fallen rock and climbing the section of grate that was still partially suspended above the turbulence.

"Ow, shit!" Casey yelped as his toe caught in the grate. Arms pin wheeling, he tried to stay upright but lost his balance and fell headlong into the water.

"Crap Casey, you're a fucking klutz." Raph reached down and caught his friends arm, pulling him back to his feet.

"Look what I found!" Casey trumpeted gleefully.

Clutched in his hands were Leo's katanas. Handing his spare sword to Raph, Leo accepted his weapons from Casey, a quick smile lighting Leo's face before he turned his attention back to their escape.

Mikey, who had run on ahead of them, called over his shoulder, "Out through the same pipe?"

"Unless you know a faster way," Raph told him.

Once again Mikey took the lead, followed by Master Splinter, Donny, and then Casey. Raph had to yank the bag off of Casey's shoulder and toss it into the pipe before his friend climbed in, watching Casey slither inside while shaking his head at the human.

Leo stood guard over their back trail as Raph jumped up and slid into the pipe. Once his brother was far enough inside, Leo tossed his swords in and leaped in after them.

When Mikey exited the pipe this time, he found several clones had been left on the street to wait for them. All of them were lying motionless on the ground, apparently deactivated by Bishop now that Don had found a way to control them.

Casey split off from his friends once it was apparent their way home was clear, saying he wanted a hot shower, a cold beer, and his bed. The family put several miles between them and Bishop's underground facility before dropping back into the sewers.

There was no further excitement between them and the lair, and they entered their home gratefully. Mikey groaned, dragging himself into the kitchen and plopping into a chair, and Don sat down next to him a second later.

"Dude, you're still wearing those glasses," Mikey said.

"Shell, I forgot I had them on," Don said, removing the dark lenses and tossing them on the table. Rubbing his forehead tiredly, he added, "I've got the beginnings of a really fine headache."

The chair across from him scraped back along the floor and Don grimaced. "Sorry bro'," Raph said contritely, lifting the chair to pull it out so he could join his brothers.

Leo set his swords on the countertop and accepted the chair Mikey turned towards him.

Master Splinter stood near the refrigerator and looked at his sons, relieved that they were all in one piece, though obviously tired. Raph verified that observation a second later.

"Man, I'm beat." Raph rested his chin on his hand as he eyed his brothers.

"I'm hungry," Mikey said. "I'm just too exhausted to move."

"Donny, that was an amazing display of control back there," Leo told his genius brother.

"Yes Donatello, your brother is correct," Master Splinter said, opening the refrigerator door and removing cartons of leftover food. "You showed an incredible level of focus during our battle; your skill at concentration has grown . . . ."

A loud snap cut off his sentence and their father gave a sharp cry as he jumped back from the refrigerator. On his hand was a large rat trap, the wedge of cheese that had been on top of it falling to the floor near his feet.

"Who is responsible for this?" Master Splinter demanded, his voice deep and one eye closed in pain.

Don jumped up from the table and quickly freed his father's hand, checking that no bones had been broken by the device.

Mikey wore an abashed expression as he answered in a small voice. "That'd be me sensei. That's the special cheese I use for pizza and Raph kept eating it."

"Ya' set a rat trap for me?" Raph asked, his voice rising dangerously.

Sliding off of his chair, Mikey edged towards the door, sprinting through it when Raph leaped to his feet and charged after him.

Leo and Don turned back to Master Splinter when they heard him chuckling. As Don reached for his hand once more, the aged rat waved him back.

"Sit down, my son. I am fine. By the time I have finished preparing a meal your brothers will have returned," Master Splinter said.

"But father, what are we going to do about Bishop?" Leo asked. "You know he will try again."

"Our enemies always try again," Master Splinter told Leo, settling a reassuring hand on he and Don's shoulders. "Sometimes, as it was tonight, we are captured by them. Please remember that we have something that is too strong for them to overcome, and because of that, we will be forever victorious."

"Sensei?" Don looked at Leo, then back to Master Splinter, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Family, Donatello. We have family," Master Splinter said.

FIN