Chapter 2 – The KEY
Three agents, dressed in dark combat clothing and night goggles, walk several layers below the surface through the sewer tunnels. On the back of their thick vest is large letters 'E.P.F..' The trio is searching for something, following the orders from Agent Bishop hours ago.
They follow a beacon into a drop shaft. One of the agents can't help but lean to view the scene over the edge. Rushing sewage water from three tunnels falls into a violent whirlpool at the bottom.
"It's quite the, um, precarious jump." The short male comments in a half-nervous, half-joking manner.
The tall man and young indigenous woman glance at each other unamusedly.
The young lady in the group holds up her tablet and begins to scan the area. It doesn't take long to find the energy they are searching for. Under one of the large pipes, the target item is cleverly blended in with rock and debris behind the cascading sewage water. The scan on the tablet shows an outline of the KEY and sensors all around it.
"Special Agent Bishop, we found it." A female agent announces in her walkie-talkie headset.
"Good," Bishop's voice is heard in the earpiece. "Inform me when you have obtained the artifact.
"Yes, sir," the young woman nods.
The three agents used their extraordinary climbing tech to scale the walls and avoid the sludgy water. It takes a few minutes for them to reach their target.
Extracting the KEY took much work to attain. The agents wondered whom the genius was that managed to place the KEY in such a tricky spot. The tech to hold it in place and the sensors are close to the high quality as theirs. One wrong move and the trap embedded around the KEY could send them hurdling down the drain.
Regardless of the difficulty, the three agents managed to free the KEY and successfully climbed back into the tunnel.
Once they are out of danger, the indigenous woman pulls out her tablet and scans the artifact in closer detail. She instantly taps her earpiece when it shows the information she is hoping for.
"Sir, I can confirm it is the same artifact stolen from our New York base over a year ago."
"Excellent. Bring it to the lab so we may study it," Bishop responds.
"Yes, sir," the woman acknowledges before the three agents leave.
OoOoOoOoOo
Meanwhile, Donatello's computer starts an alarm informing that someone has invaded the drop shaft and stolen the KEY. A sewer rat scurries across the keyboard, instantly shutting off the noise.
"Sheldon, stop messing with my tech," Donnie mumbles as he rolls over and drifts back into REM sleep.
Down the hall, a mini purple robot turtle flashed his eyes when he heard his father's voice. Above him, the title S.H.E.L.D.O.N. 3000 is read. After analyzing the situation, Sheldon determines it is a false alarm. Thus, the metal turtle shuts down again.
OoOoOoOoOo
Once the three agents returned to headquarters from their mission, they headed straight for the lab.
The scenery still overwhelmed them. New York was almost overrun by this alien race and the mutations they created. There are several dead, mangled organic forms of slimy mutants and machines from one end of the room to the other. If the mysterious explosion had never happened, would the aliens have succeeded in taking over the planet?
One of the agents stops and stares at what once was the Foot lieutenant and Brute. He snarls at the appearance of these corpses.
"These alien mutations give me the creeps." The agent comments.
"Remember, these 'mutations' were once human." A female scientist mentions.
She is jotting notes down on a chart based on her studies on these grotesque forms. Then, something catches her eye, and she leans in for a closer look. It is possible that the two creatures displayed were deformed before the Kraang mutation. The clue was purple skin, pointy teeth, and an orange-red footprint on their faces.
"At least most of them were, I think." The scientist ponders.
The agent quickly catches up with his comrades and meets Bishop, who stands in front of a large computer monitor. Showing on the screen are photos of several mutants and Yokai discovered in New York. Under each image, most say their names or unidentified. In captions, the word 'Captured' or 'Unknown Whereabouts' are in bold letters. Included in the latter category are the four Ninja Turtles, Splinter, and Baron Draxum.
"Sir, the artifact." The female agent says, handing him the KEY.
"Wonderful," Bishop takes the ancient carving. He briefly studies it before placing it on the table with other mysterious alien-mutated inanimate objects.
"We will have a look at this more closely later." The tall agent says. "Maybe we can get some answers on why it was stolen and see what connection it had with the alien invasion."
Bishop turns back to his other agents, and with a jester, he escorts them out of the room.
"Come, we need to go over some of the other findings."
Unbeknownst to the agents, the female Kraang watched with great interest. She smirks at the sight of the KEY, which she hoped would arrive.
When she sees she is unsupervised, Kraang Two lifts a tentacle to the top of her imprisoned container. Then, with her ability to squash and stretch herself, the Kraang cleverly slides through a ventilator crack to expose a part of herself to the outside.
She is weakened from her injuries and mainly from the agents constantly paralyzing her with sedation. Otherwise, she would have cracked open the glass casing months ago.
However, this is the opportunity she has been hoping for, and now the target is in sight. The Kraang uses her telepathy to control one of the mutations' lifeless forms. She begins to connect to the Foot Lieutenant first.
His corps staggers to the other table, but his mantis-like pincers make it challenging to grab the KEY.
With a frustrated sigh, Kraang disconnected her connection with the mindless drone and focused on the Foot Brute instead.
The larger mutation rose and stumbled a few steps over. Then, he swung his hand and whisked the KEY off the table. Now that the first task is successful, the next is getting it to the platform – the same platform confiscated from Metro Tower.
It takes a few tries, but the dead mutant lands the KEY onto its proper holster and turns it on.
The static sounds and flashing lights attract the attention of each scientist and agent in the base. But, when most of them got close, a shock wave pushed everyone off their feet, and a portal opened.
The female Kraang laughs maniacally, anticipating what will come through the mystic portal.
It takes a moment before a foot of a mech suit steps forward, and Kraang One moves away from his dimensional prison with a skeptical look. Perched on the mech suite's shoulder, the small Kraang is with him.
The boxy Kraang is slightly charred and mangled with fewer tentacles. He was found severely damaged from the explosion of their technodrome. It was by chance that Kraang One discovered his petite brother in the wreckage, and since then, the two brothers have stayed together.
"Look, brother, we are back." The Kraang One breathes a sigh of relief.
Kraang Three manages an evil grin but does not say a word.
The Kraang Leader notices his second-in-command still laughing and expresses his excitement to see her.
"…And look, our sister is here too. Let's free her from this contraption." He suggests.
Bishop stumbles to his feet, pulls off his dark shades, and with widened eyes, he sees the trio of aliens reuniting.
"What have we done?" He gasps.
