I do not own the TMNT characters or themes

Chapter Three; February Twenty-Ninth

"Great. One costumed freak was enough, this is ridiculous." One of the men grumbled, slapping his bat into his palm.

"Hold it!" Another gang banger held up his hands as if he were stopping an argument, "I know who the Nightwatcher guy is, but who are you?" He pointed his crowbar at the new guy.

The figure stood heroically with his gloved hands on his sides, "I am-" He announced.

"Shell-for-brains boy." Raph muttered in his helmet.

"The Turtle Titan!" was the brilliant introduction. A breeze seemed to come out of nowhere and caused his cape to flutter.

This announcement met with silence. "Who?" One of the gang members asked. The Turtle Titan's cape lost its unseen wind.

"Never mind." He muttered, somewhat depressed at not being recognized.

Turtle Titan quickly rebuilt his stamina, "I am here to help the Nightwatcher to stop you wicked young men from performing your nefarious acts on the innocent citizens of this beautiful city!" While the titan monologued Nightwatcher let loose with his spinning manriki. The weight caught one of the men in his glass jaw; a jerk on the chain pulled it to the side as it retracted, knocking another out cold. "You shall not harm the proprietors of this fine establishment so long as I, the Turtle Titan, am here!" Another of the gang members attacked the vigilante, swinging his bat for all he was worth. The blow was easily deflected and the Nightwatcher yanked it from his grasp. He used it to sweep the man's feet out from under him. It took little more than a love tap on the skull to send him off to dreamland. "So attack me if you dare!" The remaining two men were watching the Nightwatcher, when the black gloves gestured an invitation for any takers they turned and fled out the door. "Yes! I knew I could still strike fear into the hearts of evil men!"

The sound of slow, obviously sarcastic, clapping shook him out of his superhero ego trip. The Nightwatcher sat on his bike next to the man he had rendered unconscious during the Turtle Titan's little speech. The turtle under the mask saw what had just happened and cringed, "Eh-heh, whoops."

Nightwatcher just shook his head and revved his engine again; he took off out the doorway just as the sounds of police sirens began to fill the air.

Michelangelo was left standing in the store feeling foolish. He looked around; this clearly wasn't his work and he wasn't about to go and steal anyone else's thunder. Pulling his grappling hook from his belt the Turtle Titan decided it was best to disappear into the shadows. It momentarily crossed his mind that there was something familiar about the costumed figure he had just encountered, but he pushed it out of his mind as the hook went flying through the air. Obviously the guy looked familiar because Mikey was such a big fan of his.

Just as the last of his cape disappeared over the ledge of the building opposite the demolished store the police cars arrived. Mikey couldn't resist sticking around to watch the cops start picking through the store front, guns drawn. After they were sure the location was secured they began looking for clues as to what happened. Their radios reported that the caretaker of the store had been found. A couple officers returned to their vehicle and started for the apartment complex that had been named. Hoping that maybe there was a way he could still help, the Turtle Titan stood up and started across the rooftops.

…

The store's caretaker, Nora Papalona Carlton, was in hysterics. She explained in detail how her husband had disappeared shortly after a local gang began harassing his store for some reason or another. She did not know how to run a business but had tried her best for the sake of her son, Peter. That evening the gang members had come demanding she hand over Peter. She had tried to make them leave, but they had trashed the place entirely and were advancing on her and her son when "the man in much leather and metal" had rescued her. Nora then explained about how as she was fleeing to her friend's apartment, which she was now in, one of the gang members had chased her down and stolen her son.

The cops assured Mrs. Carlton that everything possible would be done to find her son. She often repeated the reminder to the police officers "Please remember, my son, he is sordo y mudo!"

Out on the fire escape hid the Turtle Titan. He felt a huge weight in his stomach and tried to think fast, not his specialty. After more than two years of essential retirement he was more than out of date on street smarts. There had been radical changes in the gang communities and he hadn't even recognized what gang had attacked the woman's store. He needed help if he was going to find the woman's son and there was only one person who could help him.

The Nightwatcher!

The Turtle Titan hurried to the building's roof and started running, he had to find the Nightwatcher fast! The last time he had found the Nightwatcher he had gotten lucky. He hadn't even been looking for anything bigger than a purse snatching or something on his first night back in the cape, then he had first seen the dark figure on his bike. Mikey's heart had nearly jumped out of his throat in excitement and he could just feel the superhero team-up coming! But now he didn't have a clue about where to start looking.

He jumped the gap between two buildings and landed easily, but an unseen newspaper underfoot caused the Turtle Titan to slip and fall clumsily on his shell. The paper drifted gently down onto his face.

"Great, just great." He muttered, sitting up and pulling the paper off. He barely afforded it a glance before tossing it, then froze. It was an article on fan clubs for superheroes meeting at a convention. Who would be the most likely person to track down the Nightwatcher? His biggest fan! And just who was the Nightwatcher's biggest fan? Why, Hamato Michelangelo of course! Mikey grinned and hurried down to street level, quickly jumping into the sewers.

He had just the thing for finding Nightwatcher back in his bedroom!