Errata: Someone deftly pointed out that I still called Bradford "Dogpound" a couple of chapters ago. Technically, I should have actually called him Rahzar, since all of this takes place after "Slash and Destroy," but I kind of forgot. I guess I'm slipping.
The sound of combat dragged Mei out of unconsciousness. Blearily, she sat up. Her vision was a blur, but she heard the sound of someone crying. April was a short distance away from her, clinging to Kirby. Dizzily, Mei held the blanket close around her and crawled over to April's side.
"He won't wake up," April moaned softly. She gasped when she saw Mei's face. "Oh, Mei."
Shaking her head to clear her vision, Mei checked Kirby's pulse. It was steady. "He's just unconscious," Mei rasped. She leaned back to sit more comfortably, but she sat on something hard. Groaning, she reached down to pick it up. She squinted at it. "Is this—a gun?"
"It's my Dad's," April said. "I guess it didn't do him any good."
"No!"
Mei jumped at the shrill scream. A charge of adrenaline caused her vision to focus. Her insides froze at what she saw. Shredder was holding Karai captive, his blades to her delicate throat. Splinter and the turtles all shouted.
"How would you like to see your daughter die, Splinter?" said Shredder. "Unless you want her blood spilled all over your home, you will let me go."
Mei looked back down at the gun in her hand. It looked similar to the one she had used in an Advancements, Inc. self-defense class. With shaky hands, she pressed a button on the side; the magazine popped out.
"You coward!" shouted Leonardo.
It still had two bullets in it.
"What are you doing?" whispered April.
"Perhaps you would rather I just kill her anyway?" Shredder growled.
"Tosan, please!" Karai gasped. "Please—Tosan—I loved you!"
Mei slapped the magazine back inside and racked the slide to be sure a round was chambered. The previously chambered bullet fell to the ground.
"I only care about one woman's love," Shredder hissed. "And thanks to Hamato Yoshi, she is dead."
Rage flared inside of Mei, bringing her to full consciousness. "Tang Shen is dead because of you, Oroku Saki!"
Shredder turned his head as Mei raised the pistol.
Front sight. Exhale. Pull.
The first shot sent Shredder's helmet flying; startled, he dropped Karai.
Front sight. Exhale. Pull.
Skull fragments and gray matter exploded everywhere. Shredder collapsed to the ground.
Mei panted in triumph. "I told you it would only make killing you more satisfying, you son of a bitch."
For a few moments, April, Splinter, Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael all gaped at Mei.
"Dude. That was awesomely horrifying," whispered Michelangelo.
Suddenly, Karai burst into tears and ran into Leonardo's arms.
April helped her father down the steps into the den and was assaulted by the smell of bleach. "Wow, you guys have really gotten it cleaned up in here!"
Raphael looked up from his mop bucket. "Shredder is unusually hard to clean up after," he said grimly.
"Raph, don't—Karai might be listening," Leo said, pouring shards of glass from his dustpan into a trashcan.
"How is Karai, anyway?"
"She's talking to Master Splinter," Leo said. "I don't think it's sunk in yet. But what about you, Mr. O'Neil?"
"Well, the doctors said I had a 'mild' concussion, if there is such a thing," Kirby said. "And some bruised ribs. And whiplash. But they gave me some painkillers, so I suppose I'll survive. They didn't need to keep me for anything."
Leo nodded, then frowned. "What about Aunt Mei?"
"It's going to be a while until they release her," April said. "A police investigation has been started. We didn't want to put her through it...but without Donnie, there's no way we'd be able to set her bones properly."
"Bones?" Mikey said, raising his eyebrows. "As in, more than one?"
April's dad frowned. "Yes. Skull fracture, jaw fracture, three broken ribs, fractured clavicle, fractured pelvis..."
A dark cloud gathered over Raphael's expression. "She didn't shoot him enough times."
Leo hung his head. "Fractured pelvis? So then—did he—"
"It's probably best if we don't talk about that," Kirby said hastily.
April gave her dad's hand a quick squeeze. The less everyone knew about the extent of Mei's injuries, the better. At this point, it would only make them all miserable.
Especially Karai.
April tried to imagine what Karai must be going through. It was the kind of earth-shattering thing that someone would need the help of a psychologist to figure out. It was any wonder that she hadn't completely lost her mind. If Donnie hadn't been able to figure out the retro-mutagen to get April's dad back, April wouldn't be the only one going through psychological upheaval without professional assistance.
Donnie! April hadn't seen him since they found him hiding under a baseboard in the dojo, and then she and her dad had left to take Mei to the hospital. Besides, she was eager to change the subject. "Where's Donnie?"
"Master Splinter has him right now," Mikey said.
"I want to see him," April said, heading for the dojo.
"No, April," Leo said. "Master Splinter is talking to Karai. We need to give them space."
"I'll only interrupt them for a moment," April said, ignoring him. She'd been worried about Donnie for hours; even though he looked all right before they left, she was still concerned. She would just go in, grab him, and then leave again. She ignored Leo's continued protests.
When she walked in the dojo, she was greeted by the fragrance of matcha. Karai and Splinter sat on the floor holding nearly-empty cups of the brilliant green tea, but April didn't see Donnie anywhere. "Sorry guys—is Donnie in here?"
Splinter looked up with concern. "April! Yes, he is over by the tree. But how is your father? How is Mei?"
April glanced nervously at Karai. She didn't want to tell Splinter everything with Karai listening. Karai already looked like she had been through hell and back, and the last thing April wanted to do was make her feel even worse. "Um...Dad's okay. Mostly bruises and whiplash, but he had a minor concussion."
Splinter stood up. "And Mei?"
April stared at the ground. "She had seven different bone fractures. And she was hurt badly enough that the police started an investigation."
Splinter sighed and closed his eyes.
"Does that mean that they'll find all of you?" Karai asked, her eyes wide with alarm.
"No," April replied. "Mei said that she would be able to throw them off the trail. It will just become a cold case."
Karai folded her arms. "April—can I talk to you?"
April squirmed internally. "Well, I don't want to interrupt..."
"I will go boil some more water," Splinter said. "Take all the time you need." With that, he left the room.
April grinned nervously. She really did not want to be alone with Karai. She walked over to the tree and scooped up Donnie. "So, uh, what did you want to talk about?"
Karai hung her head. "What you said about my father—the Shredder—"
"Forget it, Karai," April said. "Just forget it."
"No." Karai stood up. "I can't—I just found out that Shredder was a monster. If he—and I helped him..."
"Look, what happened to me wasn't your fault," April said. "You were just doing what Shredder told you to do. It's his fault. You know, you only did it because of what Shredder made you into."
Tears spilled out of Karai's eyes.
Great, April. Just great. That sounded way better in my head.
"I don't even know who I am," Karai said. "I've never been more confused. But I'm sick of having the truth hidden from me. I need to know what my actions led to."
With a sigh, April sat down. "Shredder was planning on raping me. He almost did. But the turtles got me out in time, even though Mikey almost died."
Karai sat back down again, her face tense. "Leo said that you were really traumatized."
April folded her arms. "Leo doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut." She shook her head. "Well, yeah, I was traumatized. Really badly. But it's still Shredder who did it, not you. You should really talk to Mei when she gets back. Mei kinda blamed herself for the whole thing, since she knocked me out and all. She's really helped me a lot."
Karai rested her head in her hands. "How can I talk to Mei? What happened to her—that was my fault. You can't say it wasn't. You yourself called me a traitor."
"You were only doing what you thought was right," April said, wishing she could be anywhere else.
"The thing is," Karai said, with a sniff, "I wasn't sure what was right. I—everything felt wrong, out of place, but I still did what I thought Shredder wanted me to do. I trusted him—without even finding out both sides of the story. Even though I could see with my own eyes that Mei looked like my mother. You're right. I am what Shredder made me to be."
April grasped for the right words to say for a moment. While she was thinking, Donnie nibbled gently on one of her fingers. It gave her an idea. "You don't have to be. You have a choice now. We're more than the sum of our parts. I mean, think about Donnie. He should never have been more than a dumb turtle mutated into some kind of monster. He wasn't just what the mutagen made him. He was himself."
"That makes no sense," Karai said flatly.
"Yeah, I know," April sighed. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that we're more than a product of our environment or our birth. We are who we choose to be."
"So who am I?"
"Who do you want to be?"
"I don't know. I don't even know what's right or wrong. Everything's upside down. I don't even know my own name anymore."
April's pity overwhelmed her discomfort. "How about we start here." She extended her hand. "You are my friend."
Karai's eyes widened. "You're joking. After what—you'd just forgive me like that?"
April shrugged. "It's what I choose."
A shadow of a smile crossed Karai's face. She took April's hand and squeezed it. "Thank you."
April was startled by the sensation of emotional well-being that swept over her. Shredder was gone. He had hurt so many people, but now the healing could truly begin. They would all need each other in order to heal. "No problem. You know, my dad's a psychologist. He'd be happy to help you figure stuff out. He's not a counselor per se, but he knows all the basic theories."
Karai nodded. She looked at Donnie for a moment, then patted him gently on the head. "I'm really sorry about Donatello. But—if it hadn't been for him, none of this would have happened."
April started. "What do you mean?"
"If he hadn't un-mutated himself by accident, Leo never would have come to me for help. I might never have talked to Mei. I would still be living the lies that Shredder told me. I wouldn't even be here right now."
April looked down at Donnie with a sense of wonder. His un-mutation had not been on purpose...but had it really been an accident, or was it fate?
Wasn't it just an accident that Mei moved into April's apartment building? An accident that April's father attacked her? It had been an accident that he was mutated in the first place, but if that hadn't happened then Mei never would have become friends with April. Was it an accident that April had been captured? Without that, Karai never would have seen Mei or become curious about her in the first place. If April hadn't been traumatized, would Donnie have worked as tirelessly on the retro-mutagen as he did?
The coincidences stretched on and on. Was it coincidence that her father had just bought the gun that killed Shredder? Coincidence that Mei woke just in time to take the shot? Coincidence that Mei even knew how to operate the gun in the first place?
Every single thing that had happened—an accident or coincidence in its own right—all pointed to this. Shredder defeated. Karai freed. A decades-long feud finally ended.
April picked Donnie up and gave him a hug.
Maybe there are no accidents.