Okay, I'm going to put a warning up for this chapter as there is a flashback scene of a character's death :) ^^ Thank you!
"Here's the plan," April called as the team darted through the forest and headed in the direction of the city. "We break into the Shredder's main base, get to his main control room and find anything which could help to send Donnie back to his timeline. Raph, you and Donnie will stay put while Leo, Mikey and I head in. Wait for our signal and then head in yourselves."
"Got it!" the three older turtles yelled.
"So what actually brought you to our world?" Raph asked Donnie as they ran through the deserted streets of the city.
"The Kraang communication orb," Donnie answered, following the rest of the group as they headed into a narrow alley. "It opened a doorway to this world but it closed as soon as I fell through so my brothers are safe back at the lair, I hope."
"So you're still fifteen, right?"
"Yeah."
"Ah, those were the good days, just being kids and causing trouble," Raph chuckled. "You know, where all of us changed, you never did, Donnie. You were always focused on your nerd technology, always having faith in your machines. We took it a little for granted as kids because we never understood but in the future, your inventions helped us to save lives."
Donnie stared at Raph, stunned. Raph was...complimenting his work? He smiled to himself and then looked up at Raph happily. "Thank you," he grinned. "That means a lot, Raph."
Raph smirked and nodded awkwardly before they came to a stop where the maze of alleyways broke off and left them standing at a short distance of a huge skyscraper surrounded by electric fences and armed soldiers everywhere.
April reached into her pocket and pulled out her tessen, signalling to Raph with it to stay put with Donnie while Leo, Mikey and her went around one of the gate-entrances and began their plan.
"Hey, Raph?" Donnie asked timidly. "Can I ask you something? It's kinda' important."
"What is it?"
"What did-" Donnie breathed out nervously. "What the others do to make you cut off your contact with them?"
Raph frowned at the question and then sighed. "If you really want to know, then fine. It was after our Donatello got injured in that huge explosion while he was working with Leo and Casey. Leo was being the typical I'm-the-boss-of-everybody and Casey had been drinking before they left. Donnie was rushed to the medical ward while Casey and Leo had minor scrapes and cuts but April was absolutely furious..."
"With who? Leo? Older me?"
"With Casey," Raph gritted his teeth and leaned against one of the damp, mossy walls of the alley. "He was sobering up after the mission and April has just come back from checking up on Donnie. April and Casey then had an argument about him not taking things seriously and that he had no responsibility which ended up with him leaving the base and heading out to clear his head.
"I followed him and he headed straight into the city, anger clouding his vision. I managed to get to him and try to talk to him but he was having none if it, telling me that he was sick of everybody. We then found ourselves surrounded by Shredder's Foot ninja and while I was able to fend them off, Casey wasn't," Raph's clenched fists began to shake as he ducked his head:
"You punks don't scare me!" older Casey yelled, throwing one of his broken sticks across the tarmac. "Bring it on!"
"Casey, get away from them!" Raph yelled after punching his way through several Foot soldiers. The numbers increased and the ninjas grabbed Raph by the arms and neck and pinned him to the ground. Raph struggled under the weight and grip but froze when he saw one of the soldiers reaching into his jacket. "What are you doing?" Raph roared as the soldier took out a pistol and aimed it, Raph following the soldier's aim and fighting under the soldiers once again.
Casey had his back to the soldier aiming at him and the last thing he did was glance over his shoulder, his mouth opened in worry when he saw about ten ninja pinning Raphael down and was too slow to react to the gun clicking behind him...
A loud gunshot silenced Raph's screams of anger and protest and he stilled. Nobody moved except for Casey, who dropped to his knees and hit the ground, unmoving. Raph's eyes widened in horror as the gunshot echoed in his head, along with the bullet as it whistled straight through Casey.
"NO!" Raph screamed, finding enough strength to stand and throw the soldiers off of him. He ran over to Casey's body and dropped to his knees, gently turning Casey over so he faced him.
"R-Raph..." Casey wheezed, opening his eyes and grinning weakly at him. "Thanks...for always being there for me...Tell April that I...I..."
"Casey?" Raph's eyes filled with tears. He gentle shook Casey's shoulders, but Casey lay still with his eyes closed as if he were in a deep sleep. "CASEY!"
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"After that I held a grudge," Raph muttered. Donnie looked down at the ground, he and Casey had a friend-rival relationship and often fought a lot, hearing what could possibly happen to him in the future was enough to sadden Donnie. "I completely blamed April for a while because if she hadn't argued with him, Casey would have stayed at the base and would be alive today.
"Mikey, Leo and Donnie all defended her so I left the base because I felt betrayed by them. I guess deep down, I knew blaming the others for Casey's own decision was wrong but..." Raph looked away, "he was my best human-friend and was the only one who seemed to understand me."
"Raphie..." Donnie had to stand on tip-toe to reach up and place a hand on Raph's shoulder. Raph flinched when Donnie called him 'Raphie", their childhood nickname for him, but he was close to tears when he looked in Donnie's warm brown eyes that simply wanted to offer comfort to his brother.
"I'm alright, Donnie," Raph replied eventually, his eye catching on a shine of light. Raph looked up and saw April waving her tessen up in the air, reflecting the light on of the base lights; the signal for Raph and Donnie to join them. "That's the signal! Donnie, stay close and be prepared to fight; breaking into the Shredder's base is a dangerous mission."