Interwoven
VII.
The three turtles all exchanged looks before Michelangelo spoke, "We really blew it tonight, guys."
Neither of his older siblings could find it in themselves to correct him. Michelangelo was right, the moment they finally had their brother back they had pushed him away.
Purposely avoiding the youngest's eyes, Leonardo straightened his belt holding his swords before turning in the direction of the nearest manhole, "Let's go home guys."
Both siblings obediently followed their leader, but Michelangelo continued to grumble, "This totally blows. We came so close to having Raph back and then boom! He's gone again." As Leonardo lifted the manhole cover, the freckled turtle gave a particularly dark look to his remaining sibling, "Why did you have to be such a jerk, Donnie?"
"I'm the jerk?!" The purple-clad turtle snapped, as he climbed down the ladder before hitting the pavement below to shout back at his descending brother, "He's the one who ruined our chance to live forever!"
"I never pinned you for the Holy Grail type, Don." Leonardo returned before the youngest could interject.
"That's because I never thought immortality to be obtainable, Leo." Donatello's eyes became dreamy as he continued, "Just think of the possibilities eternal life could allow. The millions of scientific discoveries I could do! The inventions I could make! There are never enough hours in the day to do all I want, but if I was immortal, I would no longer have to worry about time!"
"I guess that's true…" Leonardo seemed hesitant, "But didn't you hear what Raph said? That becoming The Soul Collector means he will spend eternity paying his debt. Pretty sure that a guy who genuinely wanted to live forever wouldn't complain about that…"
"Not to mention the whole universe-ending-if-we-had-stayed-immortal thing." Michelangelo added.
"I'm sure he was just over-exaggerating." Donatello griped.
"Uh dude," The youngest countered, "Did you see how upset he got? Pretty sure Raph was telling the truth. He had no other choice!"
"Hmph." Brown eyes furrowed angrily, "How can you be so naïve Mikey? How can you just trust the guy who kicked us out of his life, took our memories, and stole our immortality just like that?"
"He's our brother, Donnie!" Michelangelo snapped back, "I would trust Raph with my life!"
"I just can't believe that meathead runs the universe now." Donatello shook his head as he spoke, "I mean of all the people who could have ended up with the job, Raph is the worst fit!"
Leonardo had been quietly listening to his two youngest siblings argue throughout their journey towards their subterranean home. Before Michelangelo could retort against Donatello's comment he stepped in, "Maybe the old Raph would have been a less-than-ideal fit, but the being that Raphael is now is not the same brother we once knew. I mean, you yourself calculated it Don, he's almost six hundred years old now! And years aside, even just one look in his eyes – and I'm not talking about them glowing – gives away how much he has been through.
"Plus… Back there we accused him of hiding stuff from us, but that's not really the case, is it? Raph's tried to be as upfront with us as he could be from the get go. Remember when he had us in his quarters shortly after we showed up at the Soul Nexus? Raphael mentioned something about a tapestry then…" Leonardo frowned as he tried to remember the details of the conversation, "I was just so busy with being pissed at him that I didn't really pay attention to that part."
"Which is understandable because he did have you almost slice Mikey's head off." Donatello replied drily.
"Yeah, but he was upset!" Michelangelo jumped in, "He was worried about those other god guys toasting us and we all know Raph can have a temper."
"That's an understatement." Brown eyes rolled under his purple mask in response.
Leonardo meanwhile was still trying to dredge up what details he could of the conversation back in the Nexus, "He mentioned something about a Herald setting him up and his predecessor messing with the Tapestry of Fate causing it to be damaged… But earlier tonight he said the previous High Council had something to do with it as well." He shook his head, "This all seems a lot more complicated than we realize. I think as awful as it is, Raphael really must have had his shell in a corner. I don't think he meant for any of this to happen."
"B-but," The geeky turtle stuttered as he tried to find the words to convey his convoluted emotions, "If he hadn't take our immortality we could have helped him! He wouldn't have had to face all of this alone!"
"Except we would be floating in the void unable to help him, let alone anyone, if he hadn't changed us." Michelangelo retorted. "Remember? He said that we would have ended up in oblivion if he hadn't taken our immortality."
Donatello didn't have a chance to respond, because as they jumped over the turnstiles to the Lair, they were met but one Casey Jones charging at full speed towards them, "Guys, you will never guess who I saw earlier today!"
All three turtles were shocked to see how fast and agilely the human was moving. None of them had seen Casey move like this since before he had broken his leg, even after he was out of the cast. Not waiting for their response, the human plowed on, "Raph! He showed up to my office and set off the fire alarms so we would have privacy. Then once everyone was gone, he did something, and I suddenly remembered everything! And get this," The former vigilante raised his right leg waving at it in the air while he hopped on the left, "He fixed my leg!"
"No way!" Michelangelo was immediately at the human's side examining the limb. Casey pulled up the pant leg allowing the turtle a better look, "Bro you can't even see the scar where the bone was coming through!"
"I know right!?" Casey finally put his leg down to further demonstrate by jumping up and down on the spot, "It's like it never got hurt in the first place! Hell, I think it hasn't felt this good since I was sixteen!"
Although Casey's boisterousness garnered much of the room's attention, Leonardo did not fail to see the appearance of his sensei across the room. It was not lost on the eldest the look of joy that graced his father's features. Leonardo had not seen Master Splinter this happy in a long time. Leaving Donatello behind to sulk as Michelangelo and Casey continued to ogle at the miraculously healed limb, Leonardo approached his father, "Good evening, sensei."
"Good evening, Leonardo."
Knowing what his father's answer would be before even asking it, the blue-clad turtle inquired, "Did Raphael appear to you as well?"
"He did indeed. Based on Mr. Jones' estimation, he appeared to me before visiting him at his place of work."
"He met with us as well." Leonardo admitted, "And we were planning on all coming back together but…" Splinter patiently waited for his son to continue, "We might have blown our chance to reconnect with him."
"Oh?" Master Splinter lifted an eyebrow in question, "And why is that?"
"We – well mostly Donnie – got a little upset about Raphael taking away our immortality." Rubbing the back of his head self-consciously Leonardo tried to elaborate, "I mean Don spoke the words, but we didn't exactly try to correct him either."
"Ah." The rat nodded as though he had expected every word his eldest son had spoken, "And I imagine because you do not remember your time as Raphael's retainers you cannot fathom what brought him to make such a decision."
"His retainers?" Leonardo tilted his head in question, "What do you mean, sensei?"
"It is understandable that you do not recall the details." Splinter resumed, "You three were a vital component of your brother's transformation and so when you lost your immortality all your memories of him as The Soul Collector were lost as well. I however did not share this same fate because I was never chosen as one of his retainers."
"Wait…" Blue eyes widened, "So now that Raph has returned your memories you can remember everything up to the point where he cut off contact?"
"I do indeed." The rat nodded sagely, "You may not remember, but I very clearly recall the anguish and stress your brother endured when he discovered the decision he had to make."
"So, he was telling the truth?" Donatello had made his way over to their conversation. He spoke with guilt lacing his speech, "He really had to take our immortality in order to keep us and the world safe?"
"That's what I tried to tell you on the rooftops earlier." All but Master Splinter jumped when they heard Raphael's voice coming from one of the couches. Sitting there, acting as though he hadn't just materialized on the spot, was The Soul Collector himself.
"Raph!" Michelangelo and Casey exclaimed in unison. Heading straight to where the turtle sat, the human immediately engaged his friend with an arm grasp followed by a fist bump while continuing, "Good to see you again dude!"
"'Sup Jones?" Now standing, Raphael grinned, "How's the leg feeling?"
"Man, it's completely unreal. It's like I never broke it in the first place!" Casey beamed at the turtle, "I seriously owe you one Raph."
The green-eyed turtle shrugged nonchalantly, "Don't worry about it, Jones. I owe you way more than you owe me at this point."
"Pshaw," Casey returned, "Yeah right dude. You're a god now; you don't owe me anything." The human tapped his chin in thought, "Although I never have gotten to see your palace and that would be pretty sweet to check out."
Grinning at his friend, The Soul Collector responded, "I can probably arrange that."
Raphael turned to address the others, "I mean, you all could come to my Soul Nexus if you want. I've made sure my familiars have restocked the kitchens so there's plenty of food now. Plus, time moves much slower here on earth than there. A few days there is basically equivalent to a few minutes here, which means you wouldn't have to worry about leaving the city unprotected for long." That thought did ease some of Leonardo's concerns about taking off again.
"I still want to hear the whole story first." Donatello looked down struggling to make eye contact with his divine brother.
"I think what Donnie is trying to say," Leonardo stepped in, his blue eyes serious, "Is that we're confused. We don't remember everything. You've only given us bits and pieces to fill in the gaps, but I think we deserve the truth." His stare intensified, "All of it."
Raphael did not hesitate to meet his eldest brother's gaze, but no anger was present. Luminous green eyes only held sorrow and regret, "Alright, I'll tell you everything on two conditions. One: you aren't allowed to interrupt until I finish and two: I'm not telling this story twice, which means we need to go to the Soul Nexus."
Leonardo tilted his head in question, "Why do we need to go there?"
"Because April is there already." Raphael simply returned.
"Why is she there?" Donatello's frown deepened.
Years had passed since the purple-clad turtle had been formally turned down by April. Donatello knew she would never return his feelings and had more-or-less gotten over her rejection. However, despite this, he still was protective of the redhead and a little prone to jealousy. Raphael wasn't totally in the loop and although he knew the two had never hooked up, he was still a little nervous of revealing his new relationship with her. It hadn't even been twenty-four hours and they both had a lot of things to iron out, but he wasn't about to hide his feelings to spare his brother. Maybe it would be wiser to not strain things more, but Raphael figured if his brother was already pissed at him, what was the point in holding back these new details?
"She needed time to study for her finals and like I said before, time moves a lot slower here than at the Nexus. By bringing her there, I bought her several extra weeks to study, which she really needs. We also…" He purposely took a breath before continuing, "Have feelings for one another."
Silence fell through the Lair and The Soul Collector yet again found himself the center of the room's attention. Surprisingly, it was Michelangelo who spoke first, "Uh that's a little weird dude. Aren't you like 500 years older than her?"
"He's 561 years older than her." Donatello's voice had more than a little steel in it.
Raphael did not bother to correct them. Because he had spent almost a year working things out in the Nexus post absorbing the Soul Gate, he was actually now 584 years old which meant he was 562 years older than April now. He really didn't want to stoke that fire more. Instead, he folded his arms over his plastron and responded coolly, "She's ok with it."
"Is she?" Donatello retorted, "Does she really know how old you are now?"
"I didn't give her the exact number, but I told her almost 600." Raphael answered before taking several more purposeful breaths to keep the coil of frustration in his gut at bay. "Trust me, I'm as shocked as you that she even feels the same way, but she does."
"Unbelievable." The purple-clad turtle held his forehead in his hand as he turned away before circling back muttering under his breath all the way.
Refusing to give his brother more fuel, Raphael stood there wordlessly watching his pacing. As the awkward silence continued, Casey interrupted, "Anyway… I would still be game to go to this Soul Nexus place if the invite still stands?"
Although unable to summon a smile, The Soul Collector turned and acknowledged his human friend with a curt nod, "Yeah, it still stands." He then unfolded his arms to gesture to the others, "It goes for you guys as well. Up to you."
Admittedly, Leonardo was no where near as invested in the conversation regarding Raphael's relationship with April. He perked up now that talk had gone back to the prospect of returning to the Soul Nexus, because going back to the Nexus meant Raphael telling them the rest of the story. Then Leonardo would finally be able to understand everything that had happened to bring them all to this point. Deep down, Leonardo felt that Donatello probably felt the same way, but these feelings were obscured by his own hurt at discovering the newfound relationship blossoming between Raphael and April. "I would still like to go, especially if it means finally hearing the whole story."
For the last few minutes, Michelangelo had been uncharacteristically quiet, but Casey's excitement had been infectious and managed to buoy a new sense of enthusiasm in the youngest turtle, "I gotta bring my board this time! Casey, you can totally help me build the most epic of skate parks once we're there!"
The human beamed as he lifted his leg, "Yeah man! I gotta test out my leg!" He thumbed at the roller blades that he had abandoned earlier when he had arrived at the Lair, "I skated here but that's got nothing on shredding a half pipe!"
The two of them then bolted over to the bedrooms where Michelangelo could gather anything he thought he might need while at the Soul Nexus. Meanwhile, Master Splinter, although maintaining his usual stoic appearance, could not quite hide the joy behind his eyes at being allowed back into his second eldest's life, "I am honoured that you so willingly open the doors of your home to us, Raphael."
Feeling his cheeks warm at his father's words, the addressed turtle found himself hesitating to meet his sensei's eyes. Although it had never been spoken aloud, at some point Master Splinter had interwoven his words with a new degree of respect that Raphael was not accustomed coming from his father. He couldn't identify the exact nature of this change, but he had no doubt that becoming The Soul Collector likely had something to do with it. Yet, to Raphael, it did not matter if he was a god or not. Master Splinter would always be his father, his mentor, and his sensei. Anything less than that just felt wrong. "Of course, sensei."
And besides, Raphael was well aware he had hardly treated his family with the respect they had deserved when he had cut them out. He had a long way to go in order to regain their trust. So, the fact that Master Splinter so willingly gave it as though Raphael's act of concealing their memories had been no big deal at all, made The Soul Collector even more uncomfortable. His brothers' reactions, as much as it hurt, made perfect sense. Splinter's on the other hand, was downright confusing, and so at some level, Raphael wondered if his sensei was acting this way as some kind of lesson. It was the only reason The Soul Collector could wrap his head around Splinter's unquestioning and instant forgiveness. Raphael could only hope that with his father at the Soul Nexus he would be able to finally learn the truth of his intentions.
Luminous emerald eyes met the deep and steady brown of his sensei's as he continued, "I know I screwed up big time." He then purposefully looked at both Leonardo and Donatello, "With all of you. This isn't something where I can just say 'sorry' and act like nothing happened. I know words aren't enough here and let's be honest," He gave a small dark chuckle, "I have never been great with those anyway, but if you'll give me a chance I want to try and make it up to you guys. I want to be a better brother." His attention returned to Splinter, "And a better son."
His master's dark brown eyes held something that Raphael couldn't quite pinpoint. Was it pride? Love? Or something else? He refused to poke around at his sensei's thread to find out and instead waited patiently for the rat's response, "I am pleased to hear you are so willing to try to make amends, Raphael." Master Splinter then turned to pointedly meet his other two sons' eyes, "If you are so willing to try, then surely, we can at least attempt to meet you halfway. Would you not agree, Leonardo? Donatello?"
Not daring to break their sensei's stern look, both addressed turtles responded in unison, "Hai sensei."
"Well then." Master Splinter turned towards the dojo, "I have a few things I would like to pack as well. Leonardo and Donatello be sure to gather whatever you need. I would hate to have your brother make multiple trips just because you forgot something."
"Oh well…" Raphael tried to object, "It's really not a big deal for me to teleport somewhere, sensei. So, if they forget something we can always come back."
"Nonsense." Master Splinter was already walking away, "You are already being our host. I would not dishonour you by making you play the role of an errand boy as well."
"I'm not… I won't…" But Splinter had already disappeared into the dojo and likely his rooms attached. Sighing, Raphael turned to his remaining two siblings, "It really isn't a big deal if you need to come back for something. I can always send a familiar if we need."
Not sure how to respond to this uncomfortable Raphael before them, Leonardo and Donatello merely shrugged before heading to their respective bedrooms, leaving The Soul Collector alone in the common area. Trying to relieve his anxiety while he awaited the others, Raphael tried to keep himself busy by focusing on the unending task of plucking threads as he guided the multitudes of souls in the universe into the next steps of reincarnation. He even took a few sips of energy here and there to try and give himself a small boost to help revitalize himself before his family returned. Part of him could not deny he was relieved that Casey and Michelangelo had been the first two to return.
Long ago, Casey had started storing spare gear and clothes at the Lair. Whether it was because a mission went too late into the night, or because it simply was not safe due to Kraang, Foot, or one of their various enemies milling about, it did not take long for the human vigilante to learn that wearing several-days-worn clothing got old real fast. Strapped over his shoulder was one of his older hockey bags likely filled with stuff supplied from this very stash. Michelangelo meanwhile had his board strapped to his shell with a backpack slung overtop of that. As they approached where Raphael stood awkwardly waiting, the youngest continued to prattle on about the various things he had seen the last time he was at the Soul Nexus, "And there are all these little smoky dudes running around that kind of reassemble animals. They're basically like Raph's servants. They're pretty cool actually and some of them have some killer moves on the board! Like this one lizard dude hardcore grinded down the entire banister of one of the giant staircases in the entrance hall and made it look like it was the easiest thing in the world!"
"Wait 'little smoky dudes?' What does that even mean Mikey?"
Michelangelo looked at Casey waving his arms trying to explain, "I donno! They are made of smoke or something, man. Like one can be standing there and there is like a constant stream of black vapour coming off of them."
Casey shook his head still confused, "I'm going to have to take your word on that one."
"Back me up, Raph!" Big blue eyes turned to his brother for support, "Tell Casey about your little smoky dudes."
"They are called familiars, Mikey." Raphael quirked an amused eye ridge in his brother's direction, "And they aren't made of black smoke anymore."
"What?! Why not?" Michelangelo looked very confused at this news.
"Well…" Raphael rubbed the back of his head as he thought back to the moment when he removed the spell that had bound all of his familiars for so long. "Turns out the previous High Council had basically cursed them so that they would be unable to tell me how to return to full power. Once I removed the silencing spell, they too returned to their true forms. They are still somewhat incorporeal, but now they are much more colourful and not just entities made up black smoke with red eyes."
"Huh," The youngest returned in a manner-of-fact tone, "Those High Council guys really didn't want you to get to full strength, did they?"
The Soul Collector closed his eyes as he shook his head, "You have no idea, Mikey."
"But you're going to tell us though, right?" Emerald eyes reopened to meet Mikey's gaze. Yet, blue eyes that normally were so innocent in their appearance had a new more piercing quality to them, "The story Donnie and Leo were asking for when we get to your place?"
Raphael had to admit he was impressed. Despite acting so aloof and lost in his own goofiness, Michelangelo was apparently as astute as ever. The red-clad turtle nodded somewhat solemnly, "That's the plan."
"Well, we need not delay any longer." Master Splinter had returned to the common area just as Leonardo and Donatello reappeared, "I do believe we are ready." Brown eyes looked at each of his mortal sons in turn confirming this before returning his gaze to the immortal turtle. "Whenever you are ready, Raphael."
Nodding in return, Raphael took a deep breath, "In order to teleport all of you at once, I can't do it in this form. I have to shed the spell that makes me look like a turtle. Is that ok?"
Glowing emerald eyes searched the others for signs of any objection to this. When no one spoke up he continued, "Right. Just give me a second then."
Examining the webbing he had cast over his heart's harp prior to returning to earth, Raphael prepared to rip it off yet again. He had to admit the number of times he had to recast said spell lately was helping him get a lot better at forming the incantation. Zephyr would be proud. Peeling off the spell's ethereal threads, Raphael was well aware of how the Lair suddenly was awash in the light originating from his body. Towering over the others did not make him feel a whole lot better, but unless he wanted to make five trips taking one of them at a time this was his best option.
Up until now, only Master Splinter had been spared a direct audience with this new version of Raphael, and yet, The Soul Collector was surprised to see that his sensei seemed to be the one most at home with the luminous colossus now standing in the middle of his living room. Meanwhile, Casey just stood there with his mouth hanging open while mumbling something along the lines of how metal Raphael's appearance now was. His brothers, however, were obviously apprehensive about the entire thing. Trying to ignore this, Raphael instead reminded himself to focus on the task at hand, "Ok I need everyone to be within my primary wingspan," He gestured to where the soul cables emerging from his back transitioned from large, more solid-looking structures to ethereal floating wisps. "Then I can teleport us all at once."
The group did as instructed, and gathered as close to The Soul Collector as possible. Even with his size advantage, Raphael felt a little cramped. Once convinced they all were within safe range, he spoke once more, "Make sure you hold onto your stuff otherwise it will get left behind."
The Soul Collector then began to pluck at his heart's harp while also ensuring he had a firm grip on his family's and Casey's own soul threads. Then, suddenly, in less than the time it took for one of them to blink, the group found themselves within the entrance hall.
Stepping away from the group, Raphael gestured, "Welcome to the Soul Nexus, the heart of my domain."
A/N I felt it cheap to not update in so long and basically have said update not offer any more plot progression from where the original chapter 5 left off. So here is chapter 7 too! Not sure when my next posting will be, but hopefully it's sooner than the gap between this last update. Thanks for reading!
