me: Hello readers! This chapter has a short version of the 2012 episode 'New Girl in Town' and has a different view of what happened during the 2012 episode 'I Monster'. Enjoy!
July 3rd… 2012… New York City… The Lair… 7:25am…
As Master Splinter sat, kneeling in his bedroom to meditate, he began to put fifteen years of practise into it. He had four sons, all loud, disruptive and at times difficult, but through patience and perseverance, he eventually found a rhythm for them but even then, it was difficult to meditate without the noise and the loudness disturbing him.
This morning saw Master Splinter meditating in his bedroom, seeing it was probably the only time of the day where he could meditate in peace before his chaotic sons disturbed the peace. Master Splinter cleared his mind, closed his eyes and let his mind drift into the ethereal planes. He could feel absolute tranquillity, he could see his view change from the Lair to a-
"MIIKKKEEEYYY!"
The peace was disrupted early today and his peaceful meditation came to an abrupt end as his eyes opened as he let out a defeated sigh. For whatever reason now, Raph's voice echoed throughout the Lair, disturbing everyone. Leo was practising his katas and lost his footing, Donnie nearly dropped a screwdriver on his foot, and though Mikey knew it was coming, he was still startled awake from his dreams of pizza and music.
Abandoned Warehouse…
Meanwhile, Casey and Angel just awoke from inside their sleeping bags, wondering what that noise from the Lair down below was just now.
The Lair…
Mikey dashed from his room, realising he was most likely going to get Raph's fist in his face, and when Raph stomped out of his room and spotted Mikey down below, he bolted from the upper floor to once again, do a Tom and Jerry routine with Mikey. As they neared the living room where Leo was practising his katas (or at least trying to), Mikey dashed behind Leo to try and use him as a human (or… turtle) shield. As Raph's angry and pen marked face approached him, Leo easily guessed what happened, and just as Raph was about to shove him aside to get to Mikey, Leo instead stood his ground and held Raph back,
"Raph, I know you're mad but- "and then Raph shouted and interrupted,
"Damn right, I'm mad! Mikey glued my mask and now I can't get it off!" Raph shouted and when Leo looked at Raph's pen marked face, he realised that Raph didn't yet notice. The drawings consisted of: pen marked tears going from his left eye and down his left cheek, three hearts on the other cheek, a stringy moustache just above his lips, eyelashes just above his eyes, thick bushy brow eyebrows, fat lips around his lips and the words 'Free Kisses' were written on his forehead. Leo took a glance at Mikey behind him and both realised that Raph will find out about his face sooner or later. And for Mikey's sake, sooner was better than later.
And it would probably be sooner, since Leo's momentary glance behind him where Mikey using him as a shield, Raph used that moment to overpower Leo and shoved aside. Mikey let out a nervous laughter as he practically shrunk at Raph's anger, the laughter coming from how Raph's face was.
8:02am…
It was time for morning training, and after fifteen years, Master Splinter should've really been used to how his son's antics would leave them. As he stood outside his bedroom and his four sons kneeled in front of him to begin their morning session, Master Splinter raised an eyebrow at how they all looked. Leo and Donnie looked the same as ever, so they were alright, Raph however had a strange substance on his mask and had pen marked drawings all over his face and Mikey had a comically large bump on his head and was also soaking wet. Master Splinter refrained from pinching the bridge of his nose as he asked,
"Raphael, why is Michelangelo soaked?" Master Splinter asked,
"I just let Mikey know what happens when he glues my mask to my face!" Raph said as he growled out the last few words at Mikey but thought nothing when Mikey continued to grin and also failed to notice how Leo and Donnie were quietly snickering.
"And you didn't wash your mask before our morning training session?" Master Splinter asked, earning a quiet "No…" from Raph, it seemed he forgot to do that.
"Go now, Raphael. Wash it off." Master Splinter ordered and Raph obliged, he stood and walked away from the group and headed to the bathroom. Though he was quietly suspicious when there was a silence coming from his brothers. When he entered the bathroom, and closed the door behind him, Donnie held out his right hand and counted down,
"3… 2… 1…"
"MIIIKKKEEEYYYY!"
Right on cue. The bathroom had its own mirror and when Raph roared, it meant he just saw his reflection. Mikey could no longer contain his laughter and with the comically large bump on his head gone, his laughter echoed everywhere in the Lair and drowned out Leo and Donnie's snickers and giggles. Master Splinter pinched the bridge of his nose and wondered if there was ever going to be a moment of peace at the Lair. Though one thing was for certain; there was never a dull moment at home.
July 5th… 9:03pm…
For Master Splinter, there were two types of silence: one where his sons were at home and he could enjoy what silence he could get when they were at home with him. But the second silence he dreaded, one where his sons were out patrolling the city and he was alone in the Lair. He dreaded this silence because he feared it would be permanent as any patrol could be met with at least one or all four coming back with life altering injuries.
As he sat, kneeling and silently praying for his sons to return home safely, his ears caught the sound of the TV on. He thought it was suspicious that his sons were back home so early and when he exited to his room to find only Leo sitting and watching a cartoon on the TV, he doubted he was here with his brothers,
"Leonardo, where are your brothers?" Master Splinter asked as he approached Leo, who still had his shell to him as he watched the TV,
"I have no idea." Leo said, still with his shell turned to Splinter. It was the first time Leo had said something like that about his brothers, and it appeared that Leo forgot that part of his role as leader is to know where his brothers are at all times and how there are doing at all times. Splinter didn't approve of this sudden change in Leo's attitude,
"What do you mean, you have no idea?" Splinter asked, getting more unsettled as this progressed,
"Raph thinks he can lead the team better than me, so I let him." Leo answered almost nonchalantly and still with his shell to Splinter. To Splinter, this was unacceptable.
"That is not your decision to make." Master Splinter said, now speaking in a tone that demanded full attention. Leo picked up on this and stood up and when he turned to his sensei, they were only a few feet away from each other.
"Why not, sensei? I've had to make every over dangerous decision and I'm tired of it. Those guys have no idea what kind of pressure I'm under and all they do is complain. Is it too much to ask for a simple 'thank you'?" Leo said and it was clear from his complaining that he needed a reminder that only he could lead his brothers effectively, and Splinter would be the one to remind him of that, he tightened the grip on his cane and slammed the tip to the ground, the slight shock that emanated from it made Leo quit his complaining and listened,
"Of course, it is!" Master Splinter said in a tone that meant Leo felt like he had to listen, "Leadership is not about being appreciated, it is about responsibility. It doesn't matter that the burden is heavy, it matters that you carry it. Now go find your brothers." Master Splinter ordered and unlike last time he did this, this time he wasn't blinded by fear, this time he was stern for all the right reasons. Leo didn't fight back, he felt he didn't have the right to this time, and though he felt otherwise, he still left the Lair via the elevator to begin searching for his brothers without a word.
As soon as Leo was out of earshot, Master Splinter let out a tired and almost defeated sigh.
"We all have much to learn." Splinter said to himself. He would continue worrying about his sons some more now. Their own trials will and have put them in more trouble than they would like and once again, Master Splinter silently hoped that they would pull through together and they would return home to him, safe and sound. But he still couldn't help but feel like something was wrong.
9:34pm…
"HELP!"
One of the few words that Master Splinter dreaded to hear when any of his sons came rushing in to home. Master Splinter quickly dashed from his bedroom and saw Raph and Donnie carrying Mikey to the living room couch. Mikey looked to be in terrible shape, he had a massive bruise on his face, nothing he couldn't recover from, but the groaning he emanated and his closed eyes showed him he was in pain.
"Set him down." Master Splinter ordered and the two brothers followed the order and set Mikey down onto the couch. Master Splinter approached Mikey and examined him along with Donnie. He also had a question that needed to be answered,
"Where is Leonardo?" the fact that Leo didn't return, it meant that they hadn't regrouped yet.
"I don't know, Master Splinter…. Ah… this is a disaster and it's all my fault! I don't know what happened. I just froze up. I mean I have no problem risking my own life but… risking my brothers…" Raph said and Splinter seemed to get a grasp on the situation. Donnie was there as well and what he witnessed, he decided to let Raph know exactly what happened to him that he 'froze up',
"I know what happened, Raph. You had a panic attack." Donnie said and when Raph turned his head to make I contact with Donnie, he realised that that the look Donnie had as they made eye contact meant that there was no joking or overthinking. It was clear and it was correct. Raph tried to say something but before he could, Master Splinter took a breath and ened up catching a whiff of something that came from Raph. When Raph turned about trying to think of something, Splinter saw what the smell was coming from. It was on Raph's shell, a yellow spot on his shell, like pollen or something to the like. Splinter wasn't one to take sides between his sons but in this case, he had to take Leo's side of the argument and also to make sure that Raph left the Lair.
"Now you understand the price of leadership. Responsibility." Master Splinter said. This made Raph speak up in agreement for Leo,
"Yeah… I hate it…" Raph said,
"So, you understand Leonardo's burden?" Master Splinter asked which earned a nod in agreement from Raph,
"We need him back… I… need him back…" Raph said in defeat. He had learned his lesson tonight.
"Then go get him." Master Splinter ordered, but Raph stood still as Splinter left to fetch some medical supplies for Mikey.
"But, Sensei, I don't know where he is." Raph said and immediately after, Donnie spoke up in response as he held up his T-Phone,
"This is partly the other reason why we have our T-Phones, Raph. I can track him down if he has it." Donnie said and as he left Mikey to go to his lab,
"Great, you go do that then. I'll… keep an eye on Mikey for now…" Raph said and inadvertently set Donnie up for a retort,
"First good idea you had all night." Donnie said a bit coldly. Those were the exact same words that Raph said to Leo during their argument. This struck a nerve on Raph and rather than argue with Donnie about it, he just sat next to Mikey, thinking he deserved those words.
10:28pm…
It was a hectic hour. Donnie had tracked Leo's T-Phone and sent Raph out to Leo's location, and would update him if Leo changed locations. Raph eventually found Leo and ended up getting ambushed by Snakeweed. After a hectic battle, Leo and Raph managed to freeze Snakeweed with a type of quick- freezing gas and shattering him into pieces.
Now back home, the two turtles entered the Lair and the relief on everyone's faces said it all. Mikey had recovered a little while earlier, thanks to Splinter and Donnie's efforts and despite the aching headache, he seemed to be in good spirits. Splinter approached the two,
"I see that lessons have been learned tonight." Splinter said earning him a nod from Leo and Raph, before he continued, "I say that to all four of you." Donnie and Mikey looked to each other and though they agreed on it, they said nothing. For Splinter, they needed to voice out what it is that they learned,
"And what is it that you all learned?" Splinter said and though the four of them were a little reluctant, one of them spoke up, and to most everyone's surprise (minus Splinter) it was Raph who spoke first,
"That risking your brother's lives is horrible… Leo… I… I'm sorry I called you the worst leader. I now know that I could never do what you do…" Raph said. When the two fought against Snakeweed earlier in the night, Raph realised that his orders got them a severely injured Mikey as a result, and when he saw Leo again, something clicked inside his mind and was then able to see Leo in a different light. Leo was the leader, the one who had to shadow the burden of making sure all four of them returned home alive and in one piece.
Leo looked a little stunned by Raph's apology and after a few seconds of staring at him, he acted on the need to step forward and wrap Raph in a hug. "It's okay, Raph…" Raph was a little stunned by this move but made no move to fight back. When Leo unwrapped his hug, he stepped back and felt a little sheepish as he placed a hand on the back of his neck and tried to not make eye contact with Raph,
"I'm sorry too… for letting you hold a burden that you weren't ready for. I should've put up more of a fight. Leading the team is my responsibility, whatever happens to you guys is on me." Leo was effectively taking the blame for Mikey's head injury and though Raph wanted to protest he quickly realised that it would lead the two of them in circles. Though one thing was clear from that night; lessons will have to be learned if they ever hoped to remain as a group of four brothers.
July 8th… The Lair… 4:36pm…
Practise. We all need more practise. Even for Masters of their art or lifestyle, they too need to keep practising or they will eventually lose their mastery over what they do. This includes Master Splinter, a master of ninjutsu to keep practising what he does. Without the walls of a dojo (yet), it was becoming a common sight for the four mutant students of ninjutsu to see their Sensei practising and training.
Earlier that day saw their Sensei sparring with all four of his sons in another session of randori with the unexpected of result of Leo just managing to get the upper hand on Splinter and landing some good hits on him as well. Eventually, the inevitable happened and Master Splinter defeated Leo by flinging him into a wall. But it still impressed everyone that Leo temporarily got the upper hand on Splinter, showing them all that they were making progress.
"Join me… join me…" a voice echoed inside Splinter's head, taking him completely by surprise as he screamed, dropping his sword and keeling over on his hands and knees. It was a sight and sound that took his sons completely by surprise and they wasted no time in scrambling to their Sensei's side.
"Master Splinter? Are you okay?" Donnie asked with worry all over his voice as Splinter struggled with an answer,
"…I …am… fine…" Splinter replied weakly and no-one was buying it,
"Are you sure…? You don't seem- "but Leo's worried question was interrupted by the sound of singing birds sounding from Donnie's T-Phone,
"Hey, that's April's ringtone!" Donnie beamed and was then joked on by Raph and Mikey making kissing noises at the sound, much to Donnie's annoyance, he pushed them aside though that didn't stop them from giggling about it as Donnie answered his T-Phone,
"Hey April! I mean… hey, April! I mean- "Donnie tried to sound suave but just came out silly as he kept trying to woo her but was instead interrupted by April,
"Donnie, stop talking. We need your help. Angel, Casey and I are having a little… pest problem." April said and in the background, Donnie heard lots and lots of mice-like squeaks behind the sound of Casey complaining of his hatred rats and comparing them to Hun and he also heard Angel trying to tell Casey to be quiet.
"She needs us, guys! You have to help her!" Donnie said but this made Leo reluctant to go,
"But what about Sensei?" Leo asked as he knew that something was more than wrong with Splinter, but that didn't stop Splinter from trying to comfort Leo's worries by placing a hand on Leo's shoulder.
"I will… be fine, Leonardo. Go, April, Casey and Angel need your help." Splinter ordered. Leo was reluctant to follow Splinter's orders but did as he was told. Once his sons were gone and he was left alone, he soon found that whatever was going on, it was giving him the worst headache/ migraine he has ever had. He needed to relax, but somehow his own bed didn't sound as appealing as the sofa right now, and so he slowly went over to the sofa. The moment he sat down on it, he was suddenly overcome with the need to close his eyes and drift off into sleep, which he didn't resist.
?... ?
Dark. It was usually that way a person keeps their eyes closed but in this wasn't the case with Splinter. He was wide awake but he knew that wasn't the case either, he had drifted off to sleep, which was unusual for him since he almost never napped during the day. But even though he looked around in this dark plain of nothing, he somehow got the feeling that he wasn't alone.
"Splinter…" it was that voice again and unlike earlier where it echoed inside his head, this time it seemed to echo throughout whatever plain he was in. Which was probably inside his head again.
"Splinter…" whoever this was, this person clearly wanted Splinter for something, but he wasn't going to give it to him.
"Who are you? What do you want with me?" Splinter demanded. It was a bit of a cliché line from movies, but Splinter didn't watch those and he didn't care about it either.
"I am sure your sons know who I am. But in case they don't, I am Falco. And I want you, Splinter. You are a great warrior. You are exactly what I am looking for." The voice said clearly. Splinter then felt a headache coming on and if he had a mirror, he would've seen his own glowing red eyes. He knew this headache wasn't a normal one, he knew that whoever this is was causing it, and did his best to concentrate and will it away. But this was a foe that wasn't going to let that happen.
"Why fight it? You know in your heart that you belong to the Rat King." His headache was getting worse and he was started to get worn down but at this moment, even though he was unaware of it, his eyes stopped glowing red.
"Leave me. I am not one of your rats to control!" Splinter said defiantly but felt the headache continue as the Rat King spoke again,
"You're right. You are so much more. We are so much more and together, we will be unstoppable." This was more than just a voice now as a corpse like person wearing a black cloak and a large rim hat appeared as a giant in front of Splinter.
"No! You and I are nothing alike!" Splinter once again spoke defiantly but his head was started to get worse.
"We both lost all we held dear. We've both chose to become outcasts from society to live in the darkness." As soon as the Rat King said this, he suddenly disappeared and rather than leave Splinter alone in the dark, he showed him a vision of a Japanese style garden and of a man kneeling and holding the bloodied body of a woman in his arms, crying as he did so. As Splinter looked on, shaking, the only thing that he saw was red. Lots and lots of red.
"And we've both come to see the world through the eyes of rats." The Rat King said and just as Splinter's eyes began to glow red, he quickly closed them and shook his head in an attempt to try and shake the Rat King out of his head.
"No! I am a man! I am Hamato Yoshi!" Splinter declared but the Rat King just scoffed,
"Do not delude yourself. You are a nobody. You yourself saw to that." Splinter started to breath heavily after the Rat King spoke those words as the plain he was in soon got darker and darker.
The Lair… 5:15pm…
After Donnie's reckless idea of literally catapulting them all to safety, with bruises on their bodies, it still meant that all seven teens arrived at the Lair safely.
"Master Splinter?" Leo called out but there was no response but when Casey turned his head to the living room sofa, he spotted him.
"…er… guys?" Casey pointed to the sofa and the other six saw what it was he was pointing to and so moved their way over to the sofa where Splinter was lying on. In fact, he was sprawled all over it like a couch potato complete with Splinter's right leg hanging off the sofa and the rest of him just strewn haphazardly on the cosy furniture. The sight alone nearly made Mikey laugh as they had never seen Splinter turn into a couch potato like Mikey does a lot of the time. April paid it no mind as she crouched down next to him.
"Is he okay?" April asked. When they rescued April, Casey and Angel, they were on top of a power line making sure that a river of rats didn't eat them alive, and after the rescue they all concluded that whoever was behind this can control every rat in the city. Every rat. The concern that Splinter could be next made every worry,
"Donnie you're the smart one. What do we do?" Raph asked and Donnie answered nervously,
"M-m-maybe we should… poke him…?" it was daft plan and he knew it, but Leo nodded in agreement,
"Good idea." He then swiftly turned to Mikey, "Mikey, poke him." The order made Mikey flinch.
"No way, I'm not poking him! You poke him!" Mikey demanded but was met with his three brothers looking at him nonchalantly,
"Okay then, we'll put it to a vote. All in favour of Mikey poking Master Splinter say 'Aye'." Leo said and immediately after,
"Aye."
"Aye."
"Aye."
"Aye."
All from Raph, Donnie, Casey and Angel.
"That's five votes in favour of you doing the deed, Mikey." Leo said, frustrating Mikey,
"No fair! I want a recount!" but his demand was ignored as Donnie handed him his staff. Mikey reluctantly took hold of it. "Fine…". As Mikey sheepishly and nervously held the staff with both hands and pointed one end at a seemingly sleeping Splinter, Mikey remembered first and foremost; do not wake a sleeping ninja, warrior, master, sensei or father figure. Trying to wake up a sleeping master ninja warrior sensei and father figure, he might as well as have fought against the Shredder himself alone, it was going to end badly for him. Mikey was shaky as he pointed the staff as his brothers nervously peered over his shoulder,
"Easy! Easy…" Donnie said as a backseat advisor, "Be careful not to release the- "but Mikey ended up releasing the part of the staff that turned it into naginata and very nearly stabbed Splinter's head. The four brothers all screamed at the top of their lungs at the near accidental fatality and Mikey quite understandably threw the staff against the ground. Taking a moment to collect his breath before Donnie picked up his staff and handed it back to Mikey. The three humans that were watching didn't scream but they still flinched.
"Okay, let's try it from the other end." Donnie said as Mikey took the staff again and nervously approached the still sleeping Splinter before Donnie shoved him forward. Now holding the staff from with the other end pointed at Splinter with no way of accidently killing him, Mikey tapped Splinter's chest with the staff and just as quickly stepped back thinking that Splinter would suddenly wake up from it but he didn't wake up. Feeling less nervous, he once again approached and poked Splinter and after he didn't wake up he poked Splinter several times in multiple places.
"Wow, he is totally out of it." Mikey commented and then he poked at Splinter's nose while giggling, "Dudes, check out the nose nuggets!" Mikey commented again and Donnie merely face-palmed at Mikey's brave but stupid antics.
?... ?...
Unaware of what Mikey was doing, Splinter was getting worn out from trying to fight the Rat King out of his mind and before he knew it, he was on his hands and knees as his headache worsened.
"We have evolved beyond humanity. We have no need for them. But we can help each other. Join me, and you shall hide from the surface no longer." As the Rat King made Splinter's headache worse with his words, Splinter once again shook his head and his eyes stopped glowing red again.
"No…" Splinter replied and he then weakly tried push away the Rat King but instead the Rat King disappeared in a puff of smoke, like he was never there. After which, he fell onto his hands and knees again as he breathed in and out heavily.
The Lair… 5:17pm…
Mikey now saw poking Splinter with the staff as a game as he moved Splinter's lips with the staff and spoke doing a bad impersonation of Splinter.
"Michelangelo is awesome!" Mikey said as he impersonated Splinter (badly), "He is the smartest, handsomest, butt-kicking-est of all my- "but at moment Splinter suddenly awoke and grabbed the staff in one swift motion, startling Mikey before throwing Mikey across the Lair and landed shell first against the side of the bridge in the middle of the Lair. "…sons…" Mikey finished before he fell into the water below. Splinter lifted himself up weakly using Donnie's staff to help keep him upright, with Leo and Donnie worryingly approached him,
"Sensei, are you alright?" Leo asked, concerned for his father as was everyone else.
"No, Leonardo, I am not. It would appear that our former adversary, Dr Falco, has returned." Splinter explained, and it was then that Mikey emerged from the pool and just in time to hear Splinter mention Dr Falco.
"Falco's behind this? How is that possible?" Donnie asked, he knew first-hand what Falco was capable of and he was as sure as anything that he didn't employ rats.
"Somehow, he has acquired a telepathic connection with every rat in this city. And he now calls himself 'The Rat King'." Splinter said as Mikey joined his family and friends, taking on a look of irritation,
"Oh great! So now were letting the bad guys name themselves? We gotta take him down!" Mikey said with a determined look on his face, but it was mostly from Falco naming himself and not Mikey doing it. He suddenly found that he didn't like it at all. Splinter then gave up on trying to stand up as he felt too weak, and he sat back down on the sofa, handing Donnie back his staff, with April sitting next to him,
"Yes Michelangelo, you do. The Rat King will not rest until he has total control of this city… and my mind…" Splinter feared this as he spoke those words,
"Sensei…?"
"I have so much I have to lose… you four, my sons… and…" Splinter paused for a moment to collect his thoughts before speaking again, "… the Rat King must be stopped quickly… if he has me under his control… I…" but just then, Splinter felt the Rat King again, worsening his headache and gave out a pained moan. Leo quickly went to Splinter's side,
"Fight him, Sensei." Leo said with as much encouragement as he could in this situation.
"Don't you worry, Sensei. We'll stop him!" Raph said as he pounded his fist into his other hand,
"But we gotta find him first." Donnie pointed out,
"When the Rat King attempted to take control of me, I could see into his mind. You will find his lair in an abandoned utility junction beneath Herald Square." Splinter said, now that had a location,
"Let's go play exterminator!" Raph announced and once again, Splinter felt his headache worsen again. He held his head,
"Hurry. I will fight him off for as long as I can." Splinter ordered,
"It's okay, guys. You go after the Rat King. Casey, Angel and I will watch over Sensei." April said. As his brothers left for the elevator and waited for him, Leo felt the need to get something first, thinking it would help at some point. He went into Splinter's room and a second later, he emerged from it and not wasting a second longer, joined his brothers in the elevator and exited the Lair.
Thinking that Splinter probably wouldn't hear him if he whispered, he quietly whispered his worry to Angel,
"So, should we be worried and on our guard that the 'Rat King' is capable of taking control of a mutant ninja master who could kick all of our butts in less than a minute?" Casey whispered to Angel, who nodded in agreement. April couldn't hear him even though he was in the same living room as was Splinter, but he had a more acute sense of hearing and he himself worried that exact scenario. But that worry grew even more as his headache caused him to drift off into sleep once again. April made sure he stayed upright on the sofa and got up to head towards the kitchen.
"Casey, Angel, watch over him. I'm just going to make some tea for him." April said and then headed into the kitchen.
?... ?
In the dark once again, and he was on his hands and knees again, quickly disliking this position. And with the Rat King being the cause of the dark, his headaches and this living nightmare, Splinter disliked this darkness. He always taught his sons as he was taught, that darkness and shadow are their friends, but at this point, he quickly learned that darkness and shadow can hide monsters like The Shredder and recently the Rat King also.
"Why do you cling so hard to this life?" it was the Rat King again, and Splinter was getting weaker, which was evident in the way that he spoke, weakly.
"I am needed here…" Splinter said weakly as if he were fighting a losing battle and feeling the effects of it. Oh wait. He was.
"By who? Even your so called 'children' have begun to stand on their own without you." The Rat King then showed him images of Leo furiously snapping at Splinter a while ago and then Leo sparring with and landing some hits on him.
"And there is no point in lying to me or to yourself. You know that somewhere in the back of your mind that you blame your friends, the 'Utroms' for the deaths of your beloved wife and daughter." Splinter would never blame them he thought, it was the Shredder who killed them, but he also couldn't help but think, 'If I was never an Utrom Guardian, maybe the Shredder would never have been involved…'
"And soon you will be all alone. Come… we are your family now." Splinter's eyes glowed red and he once again held his held with both hands.
"Nooooooooooooooo…" Splinter's cries echoed and dimmed until he himself could no longer hear his own voice.
(Splinter's POV)
?...?...?...?
Is it dark here? Or are my eyes closed? I can't tell. Did I open my eyes? Or are they still closed? I can't tell. I feel like… I don't know… but I feel something… in my head…? What is it? I should check…
…
…
I can't move my arms. Maybe walking can help…
…
…
I can't move my legs. I can't be dead… can I? No. I don't know why, but I'm not. Wait…
…
No… still dark… or my eyes are still closed… I don't think I can… am I still thinking…?
…
Yes. I can't be dead yet… maybe…?
…
Hm? My hand…? I feel… hurt there… what happened? And… my other hand… am I holding something? I can't see… but I can feel… what is it. It feels very familiar… what is it? I feel like I should know.
…
Hm? What is this? I feel something wiggling… moving… is it mine…? I don't know… but it feels like… it needs more… less… I don't know… but I can feel it below my back… what is it… I feel that… wait… do I know it's there…? No. That's not right. What is it…?
…
Hm? My hand…? It's still holding something… I don't know what but… It feels like… something keeps hitting… what it is I'm holding… but I can't see anything…
"Come… my brother…" brother? What is a brother? Wait… why does that word…? I felt this before… have I? I don't know…
"Come to me now." But that voice…?
…
…
…
Am I… I feel… something… warm… familiar… but… why?
"Here." That voice. It wasn't the same. Was that… my voice? Am I talking to someone…? …or… but…
"S-, s—p –t -f i-." that voice… it isn't mine but… I feel… do I know… Yes. I do know. I feel it. I know it.
"You waste your words. This is where I belong. With my brothers." My voice again. I feel pain in my chest as my voice said that. That can't be me? Can it…? No. I feel… I shouldn't say that… but why?
"Splinter, kill them." Kill? I don't know… but I… despise that word. Why though? What does it mean? But I feel… no. I know it is a horrible word.
"S-s-i d—'t!" that voice again… it was louder… a bit more clear… is he… pleading…? Why…? Is he talking… to me…? I should listen. Aargh! My head! Did my head just… feel like a weight on it…? Wait… that's not mine. I know it. But…
…
…
I feel… did he say something again? I heard… Sensei? That word… I feel… wait. Did he try to call me that before? Why is it only clear now…? I don't know…
Did I just touch someone? Some people? Wait. I know them. Their touch, I know them! But… why…? Hm? My hand… it's still holding something… did something hit it again? And again… something keeps hitting it.
Hm? That voice… it's… different… someone else… I don't know why, but I feel like… he needs my… help…? What with? … Did I just hit him?
"Do—i-!" another voice. Another different one. I feel like I know him as well. What did he call him? Do… Don… I feel… wait… something is touching my… what is it though…? …did I just hit someone again…? Why? I can't be doing this… I know I shouldn't!
"No—dy hi- Mik-y bu- -e!" another voice…? Their voices are getting clearer… but why…? Hm…? My foot…? Did I just kick someone?
"Sen-, pl—se!" that familiar voice again. He sounds… desperate… why…? No. I feel I know why. Hm? I hear… metal against metal and something is hitting my… sword…? Is that my… yes. That is my sword. And something is hitting it repeatedly. Are we doing that?
…hm? I feel something on the bottom of my foot. Am I holding someone down with it?
"WAIT!" that was the clearest I've heard. But why…?
"Finish him." That voice again. That awful voice…
"Rem-er -ho yo- -re! Hamato Yoshi!" Hamato Yoshi? That name… its mine? Wait. My head… it feels… lighter and… that image! Is that me…? And those two with me… that woman… that baby… my head… my heart… my…
"Donnie, Raph, Mikey, NOW!" Donnie? Raph? Mikey? Such familiar names… I know them… I…
"Ple-se… fath-r… we n—d yo-." Now I feel multiple ones all over me. This restraint… I don't it to end… I want it… help me?
"Don't listen to him brother. Your place is with me." NO! I will not listen. Leonardo! Raphael! Donatello! Michelangelo! My sons! I am here for you!
"My place… is with my SONS!" I shouted as I charge from where I stood, my head clear, my spirit is clear, my foe in front of me, I jab my fingers into his abdomen and using the spiritual energy I honed over the years, I blast him with a blast of wind that shot out through my fingers and I blasted the Rat King across the room, he slammed into the wall with the force of an uncontrolled rhino and landed just as hard on the floor, cracking both. The Rat King is down. And I am with my sons again.
"Sensei!" my sons said at the same time as they all rushed over and captured me in a group hug. All were happy see me again, and I couldn't be happier. Then, a river rats flowed over the Rat King's unconscious body and he disappeared along with them.
"And that's the last we'll see of 'Count Ratula!" Michelangelo said. My other sons gave him disapproving looks while I simply shook my head and smiled. Oh, my son…
"Yeah, fine. It's 'Rat King'. But I'm naming the next one!" Michelangelo said as his naming of Falco was shot down. And yet despite this, all of us let out heartfelt laughter as we exited the Rat King's lair.
(Normal POV)
The Lair… 7:06pm…
Splinter wasn't at all surprised that upon entering his home, Casey and Angel were a little cautious around him. April explained to him what happened and though Splinter initially understood the caution, he still felt guilty that it was his own face and body that attacked the three of them. But April assured him that will be passed and forgotten by tomorrow or the next day.
It was after that, that the three humans left the Lair and Splinter sat in lotus position outside of his room and let his mind wonder through meditation. It felt so good to meditate again without the feeling of someone trying to invade his mind this time. He stopped his meditation though when he sensed Leo approaching him. Leo still looked concerned for him,
"Sensei, are you sure you're okay?" Leo said. Although the Rat King reminded Splinter about Leo yelling at him, he still smiled inwardly that his son still showed concern for him. He stood up from lotus position and answered Leo,
"I am fine. Thanks to you. You did well, my son." Splinter said as he placed a warm and comforting hand on Leo's shoulder. Leo was assured then that things were going to go back to normal. Well… as normal as things could get for them. He grinned at Splinter,
"Well, you did hesitate! And hesitation leads to vulnerability!" Leo smirked as he said this, using Splinter's own wise words of advice against him, that he himself used on Leo earlier that morning.
"We did pretty good too, huh?" Mikey said as he, Raph and Donnie appeared from behind one of the pillars.
"Yes. I am proud of you all." Splinter praised.
"Who knows, maybe one day we will all be a better martial artist than you." Leo said. And he was right, maybe one day that would be the case. But not today.
"Remember, my son, everything you know I have shown you." Splinter said and then the next thing everybody knew…
*SPLASH*
Splinter just threw Leo into the pool. Leo looked surprised as he didn't even see it coming as he climbed onto the edge of the pool but not yet getting out.
"But, I have not shown you everything I know!" Splinter said with a cheeky smile. He knew that one day, his sons will surpass him and one day best the Shredder. But for now, they were going to have to deal with him kicking all of their shells on a daily basis until then.
me: hey there! You may have noticed already, but just in case you didn't, I didn't introduce Karai to the turtles for the earlier part of this chapter. Instead, I am going to save her for later. The reason why will make sense in the future chapters. I also thought of what was happened to Master Splinter as he was being controlled by the Rat King and decided to do what was probably happening inside his mind at the time. Hope you guys liked it! Until next time!