Nina quietly walked out of her room; in her hand was Bello. She looked both ways, seeing no one awake as she listened to the snores. Once she was sure it was clear, she passed their room and looked for the entrance out of the lair. After what happened today, it was time to do something she should have done from the very start. Leave the lair and go back to the surface. She then spotted an entrance leading to the other part of the sewers, not the way to the surface.
She heads there, tiptoeing and keeping Bello quiet till they are out. She stepped to the sewer pipes, walking on the dirty water. She cringed at this; of all places to live, it had to be in a dirty, smelly underground dumpster. She looks around the pipes, hearing the echoing of water drips.
Then she heard Bello chirping at her. She looked down at him, walking forward. "No, I am not going back. We are going back to the surface and getting out of this god-forsaken city!" Her voice raised, causing an echo around the pipes. Bello chirped again, but he sounded sad. Nina stammered. "No, I'm not! I'll… I'll," she stopped, her tears overwhelmed with tears. She softly cried. "I don't want to be here anymore.." she sniffed, wiping the tears off her face.
She resumed her walking forward. She decided to follow them until she made it to a large opening that showed a row of pipes leading to the surface, hoping it would be her way out of the sewers. Nina listens to the echoing drips and the water splat under her feet. She never noticed how massive New York sewers can be, almost like a maze. She was breathing softly, seeing a puff of air coming out of her mouth. Meaning that since it's December, it will get really cold.
She stopped her track, then she turned to the right. But the way led her to an empty pipe tunnel. Bello in her hand was shivering, in fear and the cold. Nina held him close to her shoulder, helping him get warm. She was not ready for him to hibernate. She reached an opening that showed a bridge across to the other end.
Nina walked across the bridge, careful not to slip and fall into the darkness below her. Then, she got out of the bridge and continued forward. Then it was quiet around her, no echoing of the drips or her feet walking on water. It was all quiet and still. She came to a fork in the way, leading to different ends. She decided to take the left one. But it only takes her to an empty tunnel over the bottom of the sewers.
"Great, I think we are lost." Nina breathed. Bello chirped at her, only for her to glare down at him while walking. "We are not going back to those turtles!" She yelled, her voice echoed. Bello chirped angrily at her, making her more mad to see her pet taking their side. "Oh yeah!? If they never meant to harm me, then why did that big-brow freak slap me!?" Bello replied with a chirp. Nina scoffed. "I insult him!? He is just the same! Everyone in this city is the same- Ah!!!" Before she could finish her rant, she took a misstep and tripped. Then she fell down the path and landed on the bottom sewer's dirty water.
Nina swam out of the water and climbed back to the concrete floor. She gagged. "Ah! Gross!!" Nina spit out the water and shivered, disgusted. She grabbed Bello quickly and placed him safely beside her. Bello just glared right at her. Nina narrows her eyebrows. "Don't look at me like that!" She snapped, getting tired of his disappointment.
She picked him up, carrying him in her hands, and decided to continue their way out of here. The bottom sewers are very dark, dirty, and very quiet. No light or life here. Bello pulled himself inside his shell, scared. Nina walked forward, wet and muddy.
Nina's body started shivering, feeling cold and scared. This was not what she expected her plan to lead her. She is now lost and alone. "Bello… I'm scared.." she whispered, her voice quiet and soft.
"Aww..need any help?" A voice asked from behind her.
Nina stopped in her tracks. Was there someone here? She thought the turtles were the only ones down here, and it doesn't sound very friendly either. She turned around and gasped, seeing who was with her.
Walking toward her are the Sando Brothers, crab mutants that were defected by the turtles after they escaped from Big Mama's plans and went into hiding. The one with black hair is Carl, while his bald brother is Ben. The two approach her, trying to look friendly with a smile.
Nina backed away from them, not liking the way they smiled. Seeing they're not what they are claiming themselves to be.
"Hi there!" Carl greeted her, waving. "Are you lost?"
Ben got close to Nina, looking at her face. "Yeah. You look like those troublesome turtles." He added, pulling away from her.
"What are you talking about?" Nina asked them, and she put Bello down. Bello popped out and ran to an empty box and hid there.
"The turtles. We know them, and we hate them." Carl explained to her. "They always ruin our plans and get in our way." He added that part. Most of the time, the turtles always find a way to stop them.
"Can't imagine why.." Nina mumbled quietly. She sees why. Those brothers are too stupid and outsmarted by the turtles.
Unfortunately, Ben has heard her mumble. He got to her face, glaring at her. "What did you say?!" He shouted.
"N-Nothing!" Nina gulped.
"Being a sass are we?" Ben pulled away from her, cracking his claws like knuckles.
"Oh, I hate sassy turtles!" Carl complained. "Let's teach this brat a lesson!" He opens his claws; both brothers are ready for a fight.
Nina rolled her eyes. This was going to be easy for her. She swung her leg and kicked Ben in the face, making him yell in pain as he backed away and covered his face. "Ah! My face!" Ben whined.
Then she punches Carl on his chest, and the impact of it causes him to hit the wall. "Ow! You little brat!!" Carl hissed.
The brothers got themselves back up and charged at her. Nina kicked Ben right in his stomach as he screamed in pain. She even blocked Carl's claws with her arm and kneed his stomach as well, causing him to groan in pain. Each time they get themselves back up, Nina always knocks them down. They were no match for her skills and strength.
Till Nina froze in her tracks, her body started to feel weak. Her face felt hot, and her body was getting cold as well. Her breath was gasping, not understanding what was happening to her body. But she had no time to solve this as Carl had punched her in the chest, making her fall. She groaned and shivered while lying on the floor.
Ben then picked her up by the chin of her face and held her up. "Not so tough now, are you!?" He taunted her. "I am in the mood for some good old turtle soup!"
"Oh, finally!" Carl grinned. Ben raised his claw, opening it and ready to give her a final attack.
Nina whimpered in fear. This was it for her; she was going to die here at the bottom of the sewers, and no one was going to find her body. She closed her eyes tightly, waiting for the kill. At least she can finally be reunited with her father in heaven. He must be waiting for her after so many years. She hopes Bello will find a new home where he will be loved and cared for. She listens to the sound of the claw.
But instead, she heard a loud yell of pain and a fight. She was then dropped to the floor and screamed in pain. She opened her eyes. She spotted Carl had fallen on the ground with his back on the floor as he tried getting back up, and Ben rubbed his nose as he got hit as well. She was confused. They were trying to end her life, but they got beaten by some unknown forces. She looked up and gasped, surprised to see who was with them.
Standing with his back to her was Donnie. He held his Bo staff firmly as he glared angrily at the brothers; he put his mask on along with his goggles, battle shell, arms and legs wraps, his marks glowing purple as a spark of purple lightning flickered on his staff and markings. He must have followed her when she left the lair. She stared at him, confused about how he managed to find her.
Donnie huffed out, clearly not happy with the sight he had witnessed before. It's a good thing he managed to knock them away from her. He swung his staff in a circle, then came to a stop. "Haven't anyone taught you two about not harming a lady?" He questioned them in a taunting manner.
"You meddling reptile!!" Ben raged.
Carl pulled himself up, clearly not happy. "That was not cool!"
"Get him!!" Ben roared. The brothers charged at Donnie.
Donnie's staff turned into a hammer with his ninpo powers, swinging it and hitting the brothers, causing them to land on the wall. Ben got up quickly and punched him, only for Donnie to dodge him and hit him in the face with his staff. Ben landed on the floor, right on his back.
Carl raised both his claws, ready to pound him. Only for Donnie to create a shield to block his claws. Then the staff changed into a rocket, it launched and hit Carl. Carl flew and landed back on the wall.
Both brothers pulled themselves up and prepared to pound him hard, but unfortunately for them, Donnie kicked them both, making them stumble a bit before his staff formed into a rocket hammer, swung it, and brought them to the wall, breaking it into pieces.
The Sando Brothers rose from the broken bricks, glaring at him. About five seconds later, the two turned around and ran off with their tail behind their backs. They are an absolute no match to him and his mythical powers. So, like the coward they are, they run away to save their own skin.
Once all was calm, Nina pushed herself up. But she got slightly wobbling; her body still felt weak and tired, too. She placed her hands on her knees, trying to let her body regain strength. She was almost close to Death's door if Donnie hadn't come in and stopped them. She straightens herself up and sighs softly.
But she was not out of the woods yet. Donnie placed his staff behind his battle shell and marched to her; a stern expression was shown on his face, and he was clearly not happy. He stood before her with his arms crossed. "What were you thinking!?" He fumed, talking like an angry parent after getting their kid out of trouble. "Running away without a guide!?"
Nina rolled her eyes. "I don't need anyone's help." She scoffed.
"Are you crazy!? You could have died!" He scolded.
"Better be dead than live!" She barked back.
Donnie rubbed his face. Now was not the time to get into another fight. He is tired from both the nightmares and the fight. He let out an annoyed growl. "Come on! We're going back to the lair!" He grabbed her arm, dragging her away and returning the way they came from.
But she struggled and managed to pull her arm out of his grip. "I'm not going back!" She spat. She raised her arm to punch him in the chest, only to have him block her punch. She uses her head to headbutt his head, only for him to back away from her.
Nina kicked him in the shin, making him yell in pain, and she gave him a swift kick on the leg, making him fall. Donnie gets up quickly before she steps on his chest and dodges her kick. Nina groaned angrily, raising her fist to punch him, but he just got out of her way. She was starting to get pissed now.
Nina could feel herself getting tired and hot, too; her vision started to get blurry, and her face was sweating. But she is too angry to rest now. She punched him, but he moved out of her way again. Each time she tries punching him, he ends up moving away from her like she is a virus. She screamed in rage; her body was starting to get very weak.
Nina runs to him, ready to give him a headbutt. But she started getting very dizzy as her vision started going black. She fell to the floor and passed out. Bello spotted Nina down and ran to her, worried for his owner.
Donnie rushed to her the moment she fell to the floor. He turned her over and saw sweat on her face and her cheeks gone red. He checked her pulse; it was faint. He can feel her body temperature going high, making her feel hot. She must have gotten a nasty fever. He got to get her back in the lair quickly before her fever got worse due to the climate down here.
He grabbed Bello, set him on top of his battle shell, and picked up Nina in a princess style. He ran straight to the tunnel, heading back to the lair.
Nina was laid on a bed inside Donnie's lab; in her arm was an IV that was filled with fluid. She was sound asleep, breathing soundly. Over her was a body scan as it scanned her, and her image was shown on Donnie's computer screen, showing the inside of her body in a section.
Donnie expanded the results. So far, no body damage has been seen. But he detected something else. He checked the results and gasped in shock.
Nina has developed pneumonia, as well as some illnesses that she had failed to get a vaccine for. It would explain why she feels so hot. She is starting to get sick and with failed medical care. Why didn't she tell him about this? That she was unable to get vaccinated? He could have helped her get better and strengthened her immune system. He is not going to like this, but he can't let her die from pneumonia.
He turned to Bello, who was looking at the screen. He knew this and couldn't out of respect for his owner. Donnie rubbed Bello's forehead, making him look at Donnie. "She's gonna be okay." He told him in a comforting voice.
Donnie rolled his chair to his desk with a chemistry set and the genetic chemical locked in a glass case. He got to create the vaccine for Nina and her illness. He began his work, putting a mask on and sliding gloves over his wraps.
He poured chemicals inside a vial held over a heater very carefully and cautiously. One wrong move will be over for good. He looks at the periodic table, reading their effects and carefully mixing them. He wasn't much of a chemist, but he was the scientist of the group and the most reliable on health. He heard a tired voice as he was about to put in the final touch.
"You're using it wrong.." Nina's voice cracked. "The correct way is pneumococcal polysaccharide…" she added.
"Oh. Thank you." He grabs the correct chemical and pours it in. He blinked, turned around, and saw Nina awake and sitting up straight on the bed. "How did you know chemistry?" He asked her.
Nina ripped the IV off her arm. "I took classes in chemistry, along with biology.." she gets off the bed, her body wobbles, still weak and hot. She saw the image of her body scan on the screen, showing her sickness results. Her face turned pale, and her eyes widened in fear.
Donnie took off his mask and threw the gloves in the trash. He stood up and faced her. "Did you know you failed to get a vaccine?" He questioned her.
"I did," Nina answered. "But it's not important."
"If you already knew, why didn't you go to a doctor?" He was interrogating her.
Nina looked away from him, arms crossed and a frown. "It's not important." She repeated her answer.
"Not important?" Donnie gapped in disbelief at her answer. "You could have died from both the crabs and pneumonia if I didn't come!!" He yelled at her.
"I could have taken care of it myself and found my way out of the sewers," Nina argued, facing him with a glare. "I am capable of looking after myself."
"Arianina!! I told you you can't survive in your way!" He shouted at her, mentioning what she told him.
"I can, and I will if I had to!" She shouted back.
Donnie shook his head. "No, you can't!" He scolded. "You need to stop acting like you need to survive! You need to live your life!"
Nina glared angrily. "Live my life!?" She yelled. "You don't understand my life!"
"Cause you never told me about your former human life!" He added. Never since she's been living here has she ever explained about her human past life. "I want to help you!"
"I don't need your help!" She huffed. She began to turn around and make her way to the door, only for the door to slam shut and lock, preventing her from leaving. She tried to pull the door open, but it wouldn't budge.
Donnie was pressing a finger on his wristband; he was the one who locked the door. He is not letting her leave without an exclamation. He lifted his finger from the screen and placed both hands on his hips. "You are not leaving till you talk to me about what is going on." He told her.
Nina was still pulling the locked door. But her sick body was too weak to lift anything. She growled in frustration. "It's not for you to know!!" She shouted at him, still pulling the handle. She was starting to get pelt up.
"Nina! Your life is in danger without proper medical treatment!!" Donnie exclaimed, getting fed up with her stubbornness. "You need help!! Serious help!!"
"SHUT UP!!!!!!!!!!!" She wailed loudly, letting the handle go and covering her ears like a scared child. Then she let out the loudest wailing sob that echoes in the lair.
The wail had woken everyone from their sleep. Everyone left their room, confused about what was going on. They turned their attention to the closed lair door.
Nina suddenly knelt on the floor and began to sob uncontrollably. All the years of the pain and suffering she had to put up with had finally broken, and she let it all out. She does need help more than anything in the world.
Donnie started to get nervous and uncomfortable with this. This was too much for him to take. "H-hey Nina. Nina, calm down." He tried to calm her down.
Nina only sobbed very loudly, screaming as well. "I can't!! My mom refused to take me to a doctor ever since Daddy died!!!" She sobbed. "She can't let them know she was abusing me, or else they will arrest her!!!" She wailed out her reasons.
Donnie blinked, unexpected by this. "Wait, what?!" He was surprised. "Your mother abused you?" He asked her.
"Both her and my stepdad!!" Nina cried, feeling so much pain in her heart. "They beat me and hurt me like I am nothing but a punching bag!!" She sobbed loudly. "I can't get the care I need!!" She cried the tears ran down from her eyes.
Donnie stood in complete shock and horror at this. So that's why she got those bruises and those cuts. She was a victim of domestic abuse from her parents. They must have scared her so badly to keep her quiet. He watched her sobbing, letting out a wail, and her tears leaking from her eyes. He wants to calm her down enough for her to talk and explain everything. But she could barely speak a word without having a breakdown. Then he got an idea, but it would have to get him out of his comfort zone.
So Donnie kneeled down on the floor, grabbed her shoulder, and pulled her into a hug. He wrapped his arms around her back, locking her in a firm hug.
Nina stopped crying the moment she got pulled in for a hug. She was shocked cause this was the first hug she had for ten years. The last person she ever hugged was her father's best friend. Her eyes started filling up with tears; all the emotions were too much for her to bear. She let out a cry, getting emotional, as she hugged him tightly back. She cried on his shoulder.
"Shh, shh. It's okay, it's okay." Donnie whispered in a comforting voice. "You are okay now." He rubs her back, letting her cry it all out of her. He placed her on his lap, holding her close, not letting her go until she fully calmed down.
After ten minutes of sobbing, Nina started getting very tired and ended up passing out from both the breakdown and her fever. She was limp in his arms.
Donnie reached for his wristband and tapped it, causing the door to open and unlock. Then he picked Nina up, carrying her in his arms. He felt her head resting on his shoulder; he let out a sigh. She had a very stressful night, and she really needed to rest. He carries her out of his lab, and he enter his room. Once inside, he gently placed Nina on his bed, put the cover over her, and left, letting her sleep.
Once he closed his bedroom door, he was about to head back to his lab when Leo came out of the medbay, an ice pack on his head.
"D? What is going on?" Leo asked him. "We heard a loud wail."
"It's Nina," Donnie answered, not looking at Leo but staring at the floor. "I believed she was a victim of physical abuse from her parents." He told him.
Leo's eyes widened, and they let out a gasp of shock. The rest have their form of reaction. Raph felt his fist gripping in anger, angry that her parents did this to their own daughter. Ginny covered her mouth in shock, horrified at what Nina had been through. Judi and Julian hugged each other in shock; Julian felt so sorry for her. Mikey looked horrified, never imagining why they did this to her. And Splinter was horrified by this news as a parent who feared for this child.
Leo frowned sadly. "Will she be okay?" He asked, concern.
Donnie looked up and faced him. "She's really sick right now; need to focus on that before we can talk about that topic." He informed him. "Go back to the medbay."
Leo groaned, feeling the headache coming back while holding the ice pack. "Right. Still got that bone-crushing headache." He went back to the medbay and back to sleep.
Donnie returned to his lab, heading to the desk with the heating vial. He looks inside, seeing that it is ready. He took it out of the flames, carefully dipped the syringe needle in, and sucked the liquid inside the syringe. He gave it a good little tap, kicking the liquid off the needle. He hoped this would work; this was Nina's last hope to be healthy again. Not just physically but also mentally as well. The liquid inside was a bright yellow color. He let out a good nod of approval.
As soon as he puts the cap over the needle, he grabs some gloves, an alcohol wipe, and a bandage of Jupiter Jim. He left the lab and headed back to his room. As he opened the door, he saw Nina still asleep, with Bello beside her. Bello snuggled close to her cheek, deeply worried for Nina and her health.
Donnie put the gloves on, ready to begin. He gently grabs Nina's left arm, using the alcohol wipe to clean an area where her vein is seeable. Then he grabbed the vaccine, removed the cap, slowly stuck the needle in her veins, and injected it. He pulled the syringe out and put the bandage over it. Once that was done, he threw the glove and the needle in a trash can. He let out a sigh, hoping it would work.
He watched Nina sleeping peacefully while Bello cuddled next to her. Donnie covers them both with a blanket, helping them get warm. Today was very stressful, and too much stress to deal with. Right now, they need rest.
Donnie then left his room, going back to his lab. He couldn't sleep when he had an awful nightmare, and Nina was sick as well, so the best he could do was keep an eye on her and hope she would be okay enough to explain for tomorrow. He sat on his chair, looking at the computer screen of Nina's body scan.
What does she mean by her mother refusing to take her to the hospital after her father died? What did her mother do to keep her daughter from the world? One thing he knows for sure is that he will stop at nothing to keep Nina from getting hurt again.