Chapter 6: Late Night Ponderings

Staring out at the passing scenery beyond, Wind was deeply lost in his thoughts. With Leo already fast asleep the turtle let his mind wander free as the train journeyed onward.

He could not believe the journey he was embarking on. This was not the type of adventure that he had seen in his immediate future. To say he was apprehensive was a vast understatement. He truly believed Leo's story. He saw the desperation in the turtle's eyes and he knew that the fantastic story he was telling wasn't something he'd made up. What truly troubled him though if he was honest was that he was helping his counterpart save something he did not have the privilege to have. Don't get him wrong, he will still fight to help Leo find and protect his family. His emotional upheaval would not hinder his determination, no its just deep down inside he couldn't deny that he wanted that. Wished that he too had a family to protect.

It was still quite a lot to take in, learning about these other turtles. He knew Leonardo had left a lot out of his story, just as he had his.

He had learned Leonardo and Leo's brothers backstory alongside some of the dangers they had faced. Even the thought made him wince. He'd had run-ins with the Foot Clan in Japan, they were not a force to be trifled with. It made his heart race with worry knowing that his…that these other turtles were facing the dreaded Shredder on their own. That in itself was a daunting task in itself, without adding in other complications such as the Krangg. Just the thought had Wind's blood run cold. He'd seen the destruction the Krangg could unleash, he'd fought them on several occasions both with the Ortaninas and alone and knew how powerful a threat they were.

He was used to having a deeply ingrained honor and sense of justice but he was not prepared for the protective instinct welling up at the mere mention of the trouble these other turtles were in. He didn't even know them! Plus he had no actual proof that there were other turtles. Just a possibility. A hope. Because as much as he wanted to deny it, a hope had stirred deep in his heart when Leo had arrived. A hope that he wasn't the only one. A hope he thought had died long ago. But now..Wind couldn't deny the longing in his soul for a team. For a family.

It had been months since Amos and the others left and each day felt a little more lonely. True he was fairly used to being on his own; he had spent most of his childhood moving around and being away from at least one of his adopted family for months at a time. Their precious circumstances led to them being separated often but this recent separation was different. This time they were not separated by mere miles but instead lightyears of space. Yep. They truly had left where he could not follow. Honestly he'd been departing for months now if he'd made the right choice by staying behind.

He wasn't prepared to leave his home world and everything he knew behind for a people he couldn't relate to and a world that was not his own. Amos and the others had been hiding on Earth for decades escaping an age-old war that had ravaged their spectrum of the galaxy. Like mutants they were unbeknownst to humans and needed to keep a low profile to survive.

It was fate that his and the other's world's had collided. They found him when they were rescuing one of their comrades from the Krangg. Wind himself didn't remember this but had heard the story many times. When saving Mendon from the Krangg the team that would become his family had found a young mutant turtle in the hands of the Krangg, evidently he'd been left behind in an alley fight the only evidence of what had defeated a Krangg robbery of some sort. Not wanting to leave the young one in their hands the Oritians had broken in and abducted him. Wind grew up with the kind folk, never staying in one place long. The Ortianians had fled their planet when the star in their galaxy collapsed, their people taking refuge in various planets. Amos was the leader of this small band who were separated from their original group that was heading to a refugee planet.

If Wind had to compare the Ortianians to any popular cultural references for extraterrestrials he'd say they looked a lot like Vulcans. At least physically when it came to cultural similarities the only thing the Ortianians and Vulcans had in common was telepathy and being pacifists. So yeah, Vulcans who also had deep blue spirals on each cheek and blue bands down their arms. These marks increased as an Ortianian grew. The Ortainians were empathic creatures with telepathic abilities. To say the least it was interesting as a non-telepath to be raised by telepaths. He didn't have the capabilities Amos, Mendon, Traneil and the others had. Wind had been able to hone his use of Chi and with the help of Krangg technology of the amplifier he could communicate on a surface level with his adopted family but beyond basic knowledge and application Wind knew he'd never have the capabilities of his family.

When an Ortainian ship contacted Amos…he couldn't go with them. Yes, he loved Space Heroes even though he'd only caught a handful of episodes throughout the years, but the idea of living in space terrified him. He wasn't ready to leave Earth.

In the end it was Amos who suggested that he stayed.

Now, Wind had a decision of his own to make and just maybe..a chance at a new family.