- Chapter 11 -

A Better Mousetrap

On the outskirts of Manhattan Island sat the unassuming main building of StockGen, a scientific research company owned by Baxter Stockman, a scientific genius with several degrees in both electronic and engineering fields. Stockman himself was in his lab, overlooking a computer relay, overseeing the construction of several small robots.

Stockman was an African-American man in his late thirties to early forties. He was a bit on the skinny side with black hair in a buzz cut, a mustache, and a pair of round glasses over dark brown eyes. The robots in question were knee-high, standing on two legs with razor-sharp teeth. Stockman grinned as he eyed their progress.

"Yes, the Mousers' development is progressing fabulously," he remarked aloud to himself. "Soon, they'll be ready for a proper field test."

Leaving the development to his computer, he went into his office for a small break. As he opened the door, he was shocked to see a figure in bladed armor casually standing next to the window.

"What the-?" Stockman exclaimed. "How did you get in here?!"

"Your security is pathetic, to say the least," the man replied, turning around to reveal he was holding the Mousers file in his hand, flipping through it with great interest. "But these... Mousers... they show much promise, Dr. Stockman."

Stockman took a nervous step back. "Who... who are you?"

The man approached him slowly. "I am the Shredder." He snapped the folder shut. "I have an offer for you, Doctor. One you won't refuse."

The next day...

A sizable white van with heavily tinted windows drove through the streets of Manhattan. At the wheel was Kasumi, with Splinter in the passenger's seat. In the back seat were the Turtles, Hisako, and Kagome. They were all bouncing in their seats, excited to get where they were going.

"After that ordeal with Hob last night, I'd say we're due for some relaxation," Kasumi remarked.

"Thanks for letting us stay over, Kasumi," Mikey said, smiling.

Kasumi smiled back. "It's no trouble, Michelangelo. We're family."

Hisako sighed, her mind on something else. "Do you think Hob's okay? I mean, he wasn't exactly in the best shape when he and Snakeweed took off."

"I don't get why you care, Hisako," Vee remarked. "He tried to eat Raph as a kid, remember?"

"Because I do, okay?" Hisako snapped.

"Easy, girls," Kasumi warned. "I will separate you."

"Sorry Kasumi," both girls answered, breaking it up.

Eventually, the van pulled up a fancy looking driveway, and Kagome smiled. "Well, here we are guys! Welcome to Casa De Lee!"

Everyone climbed out, staring in amazement. The Lees' household was a large white mansion, with a long, cobblestone driveway that was decorated with well-tended trees. A bubbling fountain was in the center of the drive, stone cherubs pouring water from the top of the fixture. The best part was that the entire property was surrounded by tall, ivy covered walls with a wrought iron gate, meaning the Turtles could run around the grounds without fear of being seen.

"Whoa..." Leo let out.

"Certainly a step-up from that little apartment we lived in sixteen years ago," Splinter remarked.

Kasumi smiled. "I wanted to make sure I could entertain your extended family."

"You haven't even seen the best part yet." Kagome grabbed Raph's hand. "Come on!"

She led him off, the rest of the Hamato siblings quickly following after. Splinter let out a chuckle, and Kasumi turned to him.

"Well, while they're busy, let's get to the TV room Yoshi," she suggested. "Our soaps are going to start soon."

"Yes, let's," Splinter agreed.

-X-

"Check out our pool!" Kagome declared as she led the Hamato siblings into the backyard.

The pool looked almost like a natural spring, an outcropping of rocks forming a beautiful waterfall. Trees surrounded the paved stone pool area, ornate lamps illuminating the entire area.

"Whoa..." Hisako gasped in awe.

"Now this is a pool," Donnie remarked.

"Yep, it's amazing," Kagome said proudly. "Mom spared no expense for this place.

"Well, I'm glad we came here," Leo declared.

"Hey, guys!" Mikey shouted. "Last one in hatched from a rotten egg!"

As the Turtles all scrambled to dive in, Kagome turned to Hisako. "C'mon. Let's get changed and dive in."

Hisako nodded, and Kagome led her off.

-X-

After traversing the large interior of the mansion, traveling up at least two flights of ornate stairs, Kasumi finally brought Hisako up to her room. The room was very pink, flower decals decorating the walls. A desk was set up in the corner, the bedclothes were blue and decorated with floral decals, and a TV was set up on the wall adjacent to the bed.

"Wow, this is a lot bigger than my room," Hisako remarked. "Brighter, too."

"Eh, not to toot my own horn, but I'm quite proud of my room," Kagome lightly bragged.

She then walked over to her closet, opening it up before going through several various swimsuits. She mulled them over for a minute before finally settling on a yellow bikini.

"You can have one of mine since you don't have one," Kagome offered, searching for the perfect suit for her. "In fact, I think I have the perfect one in here somewhere."

Hisako eyed all of the bikinis hanging from the racks, rubbing her arm uncomfortably. Whenever she'd gone swimming with her siblings, she usually just jumped in with her clothes on. The idea of wearing a revealing swimsuit made her skin crawl, and her various scars tingle.

"Uh, Kagome?" she began. "I appreciate the offer, but-"

"Found it!" Kagome declared, pulling out a short-sleeved wetsuit. Hisako looked at the suit as she took it from Kagome. It was black and green with a high neckline and sleeves that came to her elbows and the tops of her knees. "What? You think I'd force you into a bikini? No way. Besides, I figure with your wrists and ankle straps being waterproof, you'd be able to enjoy swimming without putting certain elements on display."

Hisako sighed in obvious relief, holding the suit close. "Kagome, you're the best."

-X-

Back at the pool, Leo, Donnie, and Vee were happily splashing in the pool. Near the edge, both Mikey and Raph got a running start.

"CAN OPENER!" Mikey shouted, performing a cannonball into the pool.

"SHELL SOAKER!" Raph yelled, retreating into his shell before splashing down.

Everyone shielded themselves as the dual splashes created a tidal wave in the pool. The two turtles surfaced, both of them laughing loudly.

"Having fun?" Kagome asked, giggling as she and Hisako approached the pool.

Everyone looked up at their arrival, and Raph's jaw nearly became unhinged at the sight of Kagome wearing a sexy yellow bikini. Vee sighed and closed his mouth with her hand.

"Seriously, dude, show some dignity."

"Nice wetsuit, Hisako," Leo complimented.

"Thanks. I like it too."

"Well don't just stand there, come join us!" Mikey called out.

Hisako grinned, adjusting her ponytail before taking a few steps back.

"COWABUNGA!" she shouted, performing a perfect swan dive into the pool.

"Cowabunga?" Mikey repeated as she surfaced with a grin. "How old school."

"Better than Booyakasha," Hisako retorted. "What does that even mean?"

"I dunno. But it's fun to say."

"You coming, Kagome?" Leo asked.

"Or are you just gonna keep short-circuiting Raph's brain?" Donnie added.

Kagome grinned and jumped in. Soon, the seven of them were all happily splashed about, enjoying the pool.

"Hey, I got an idea!" Mikey declared as they swam about. "Why don't we see how long we can hold our breaths underwater?"

"That's hardly fair, Mikey," Kagome replied, floating on her back. "You guys are turtles. You can practically breathe underwater."

"That's true," Donnie admitted. "I've tested us, and we can hold our breaths for up to thirty minutes."

"I max out at two," Hisako added.

"Well, there is one more super-cool thing around the house," Kagome said, pointing in the distance. "See that little shack off in the distance?"

The others followed her finger to see a wooden, Japanese-style house on the edge of the property. The others gaped at it.

"Is that... an onsen (1)?" Leo asked.

"Yep!" Kagome grinned. "Our own little patch of Japan."

"We are so checking that out when we swim," Vee said.

"Agreed," Everyone else declared.

Back at StockGen, Shredder was still having his chat with Stockman, who continued to oversee the development of the Mousers.

"So," Shredder commented, "you intend for these Mousers to hunt down and kill rats?"

"That's the cover story, yes," Stockman replied with a hidden smirk. "You see, Mousers is an anagram for Minefield Ordnance Unarming System Enhanced Robots. Or Mobile Offensive Underground Search Excavation and Retrieval Sentries if you want to include the 'S'. I intend to use them to steal valuables and rob banks."

Shredder raised an eyebrow. "You do realize you could easily use them to make money legitimately."

"True. But where's the fun in that? Either way, they do have basic rodent hunting protocols should anyone nosy enough to look came snooping." Stockman mulled over his own words, glancing over at Shredder curiously. "By the way, I have to ask: what's your interest in my robots?"

Shredder walked over to him. "If you can program them to hunt down any species, say... turtles, for example, then I will finally be able to weed out an ancient enemy of mine."

"Uh, okay..." Stockman remarked, albeit confused. "Why turtles?"

"That is not your concern," Shredder replied matter-of-factly.

"Of course, of course. Just... One last question. What's in it for me?"

Without warning, Shredder's tekko-kagi claws pierced the wall mere inches from Stockman's face. It all happened so fast that the doctor barely had time to blink as it happened. He glanced over at the blades as he gasped in shock and horror.

"Your life," Shredder answered, calm but cold.

Stockman gulped nervously, deciding to go with it. "Turtles, you said?"

Shredder smirked evilly behind his mask, withdrawing his blades with a single nod.

Later, the seven, still in their swimsuits, went into the onsen, marveling at the interior. It was something straight out of Japanese history, bamboo walls surrounding a stone paved hot spring. The water was steaming slightly, the scent of freshly burnt incense filling the air.

"Holy shit," Vee said. "I may just decide to move in with you, Kagome."

"If investors, stock brokers, photographers, and other people weren't coming in on a regular basis, I'd say you all could move in," Kagome replied. "We were lucky to get today to ourselves."

"Then let's take advantage of it!" Mikey exclaimed as he ran toward the edge.

"Mikey, no, wait!" Kagome screamed. "You need to be-"

Mikey jumped into the spring, completely ignoring Kagome's warnings.

"-careful..."

Almost immediately, Mikey surfaced in a panic, feeling as if he was being boiled alive.

"YEEEEOOOOOW!" he screamed, scrambling to get out off the spring. "Hothothothothot!"

The other six laughed as Kagome shook her head, giggling.

"Would it be in bad form to say 'I told you so'?" she asked.

"Never stopped me," said Raph.

"Careful, Mikey," Hisako warned, snorting slightly. "Hate for you to become turtle soup."

"Just get in slowly," Kagome advised. "Acclimate to it."

The seven took her advice, slowly sinking into the water. Donnie passed around washcloths, which they all placed on their heads as they enjoyed the spring.

"That's better," Mikey said, sighing.

"Yeah," Hisako agreed. "This is what absolute bliss feels like."

"No kidding," Vee sighed. "This is paradise."

Suddenly, the ground began shaking noticeably. Everyone snapped to attention, the washcloths falling off their faces.

"What's going on?" Leo demanded. "An earthquake?!"

"In New York?" Donnie replied. "Possible, but unlikely."

Jumping out of the hot spring, they ran outside to see something burrowing through the yard from below.

"What the hell?!" Raph declared, backing away from the ever approaching objects. "Hisako?"

"I got nothing!" Hisako replied. "There's no brain patterns or anything for me to sense!"

A hole appeared in the yard, and a little two-legged robot with sharp teeth popped out.

"A robot?" Kagome shouted. "One of Krang's?!"

"No." Hisako shook her head. "It's not one of his. I'd have seen it before."

More holes popped open across the yard, and more of the robots began popping out. They kept showing up, slowly surrounding the septet.

"Jesus, it's a freakin' robot revolution!" Raph yelled out.

"Our weapons!" Vee demanded. "Where are our weapons?!"

"Someone thought it was a good idea to leave them at home!" Raph remarked, glaring at Donnie.

"Hey, how was I supposed to know we'd be attacked by rabid robots?" Donnie snapped.

"We'll just have to improvise!" Kagome said.

"She's right!" Leo ordered. "Kagome, is there anywhere around here that we could find a weapon?"

They all ran around the yard, dodging the robots until Kagome spotted a godsend: the gardening shed. "There!"

The seven dashed inside, digging around in the shed for anything useful. Mikey grabbed some gardening rope and ran out.

"Where are you going?!" Raph demanded.

"To make myself some nunchucks!" Mikey replied as he dashed away.

"No time to be picky!" Leo said, grabbing a pair of gardening shears. "Just grab whatever you can!"

Donnie grabbed a shovel, Vee a folding chair, Hisako a hose, Kagome a pool net, and Raph a pair of hand rakes. He looked at their choices in disdain.

"Leo, we can't fight with these!" he objected.

"Yes, we can. Remember what Splinter taught us."

"In the hands of a ninja warrior..." Kagome began.

"Anything is a weapon!" Vee finished.

Bolstered by those words, they burst out of the garden shed. Kagome brought her net down over several of the robots, pinning them down long enough for Donnie to come in. He began smashing them into scrap with the shovel, acting as if he was playing a game of whack-a-mole. Hisako used the hose in her hands as a makeshift bullwhip, slinging it around the robots. With practiced wrist movements, she slammed them against the ground and each other.

"I feel like Wonder Woman," she remarked.

Mikey came back at that moment, wielding makeshift nunchucks he had created using the gardening rope, as well as some sticks and rocks.

"Nah, she uses a lasso," he pointed out, swinging his new weapons with a grin. "I'd say you're more like a female Indiana Jones or Simon Belmont."

Hisako shrugged. "I'll take it."

"Nice chucks," Vee complimented, smashing one of the robots over the head with her chair. "Let's see if they hold up!"

Leo clamped his garden shears around one of the robots' neck. Squeezing with all his might, he severed its head from its body.

"Guess these things aren't that durable," Donnie remarked.

At that moment, one of them latched onto the shovel with its teeth. Donnie struggled to pull away, and fell back, looking at his shovel and gaping at the sizable chunk bitten out of it.

"Yikes..." he yelped before turning to the others. "Guys! Don't let them bite you! Their jaws are strong!"

"Duh~! Really?!" Raph said flatly as he pierced through one's head with his rakes.

The fight continued on, but the robots showed no signs of slowing.

"We need help!" Hisako shouted.

As if on cue, the back door burst open, and Splinter and Kasumi came running out.

"What's going on here?!" Kasumi demanded.

"Killer robot attack!" Mikey shouted.

Splinter and Kasumi charged forward, Splinter drawing the sword hidden in his cane and chopping them up. With their help, the robotic menace was soon dealt with. The group caught their breath, looking around at the robot pieces strewn across the yard.

"What the shell are these things?" Mikey asked.

"Whatever they were," Raph scoffed, kicking one irritably, "they're junk now."

Donnie picked up a still-intact robot head. "I'll examine this back at the lab. Maybe we can trace it back to the source.

Vee turned to Hisako. "You're super sure it's not Krang?"

"Positive," Hisako replied with a nod. "They're nothing like his bots."

"Then this is something new..." Leo remarked. "Someone new."

Later...

Donnie examined the robot's head under a magnifying glass, everyone sitting nearby. Eventually, he found a small logo on a panel in the back of its head.

"StockGen?" he said aloud.

"Gesundheit," Vee let out.

"No, StockGen. That's the logo on this thing."

"StockGen?" Kagome asked. "The fancy science company in Manhattan? Founded and run by Baxter Stockman?" Everyone looked at her in confusion. "Baxter Stockman is a super-genius and respected scientist. Specializing in electronics and engineering. He's got 18 patents and 5 PhDs, and is said to have graduated from MIT at age fifteen."

"How do you know about him?" Raph asked.

"He's tried to approach Mom for deals in the past," Kagome replied.

"I turned him down because I didn't find him trustworthy," Kasumi replied. "Looks like I was right on the money."

"But why would his pets attack us?" Mikey asked.

"More importantly, how does he even know about us?" Leo added.

"There's only one explanation," Hisako remarked. "Someone must have told him."

The realization hit them all like a lightning bolt.

"Shredder!" they all exclaimed.

Leo turned to his father. "Sensei, what do we do?"

"Yoshi, we have to do something," Kasumi insisted. "We can't just sit idly by while Saki threatens our families."

Splinter mulled it over and nodded. "And we will not."

Kasumi nodded in determination. "Then let's be sure to arm ourselves. Properly this time."

"Agreed," Splinter said. "It is clear that the Shredder is a problem that will not just go away."

He and Kasumi turned to the Hamato siblings and Kagome.

"So prepare yourselves, my children," he told them. "Because as of this moment... we are at war."

Author's Note:

(1): A Japanese hot spring; the term also extends to cover the bathing facilities and traditional inns frequently situated around a spring.

All information on Kagome's home was taken from her creator's journal on Deviantart.

Next chapter: the Shredder strikes!

Please R&R. Until next time.