- Chapter 50 -

The Invasion

Shredder sat alone in his throne room, contemplating Krang's offer. His thoughts drifted to Karai, mutated and alone, and of the ones he believed responsible escaping vengeance.

"Master Shredder?" Shredder looked up to see Tiger Claw enter and kneel. "The hour grows late. Have you reached your decision?"

"Krang is a dangerous ally," Shredder confessed. "But he has given us much technology, asking little in return."

"Krang will betray you," Tiger Claw warned. "You know this. He cares nothing for the human race."

"Nor do I," Shredder replied after a minute, dismissing Tiger Claw with a wave. "Leave me."

Tiger Claw turned and left, and Shredder pressed a button on the communicator, summoning a hologram of Krang.

"General Krang," he greeted.

"Shredder. Have you had time to consider my offer?"

"I have. And if I help you, will you uphold your end of the bargain?"

"Of course. I'll find the cure for Karai once you find her, as long as you assist me in my attack tonight. I give you my word."

"Very well then," Shredder decided. "You have yourself a deal, General."

Krang grinned evilly. "Excellent."

It was a snowy night in New York, and at the O'Neil household, the Hamato septet, Splinter, Kasumi, and Casey joined April's family for a Christmas dinner. Donnie, however, couldn't relax. He glanced around at his family, who were all helping to decorate or prepare the feast.

"Is now really the best time for festivities?" he asked.

"Dude, right now we need a little Christmas cheer," Mikey insisted.

"Um, hello!" Donnie shouted. "Krang's invasion could be happening any time now!"

"And when it comes, we'll be ready," Vee said flippantly.

"For now, let's just try and enjoy ourselves," Raph said.

"Yeah, it's our first holiday with April and Casey," Hisako pointed out.

"Donatello does have a point," Splinter admitted, turning to him. "What plans have you devised to stop Krang?"

Donnie grinned and unfurled a blueprint, displaying a massive, turtle-like robot.

"I give you my latest invention, the Turtle Mech!" he boasted, speaking like he was in an infomercial. "Armed with flamethrowers, missiles, and an electro-harpoon! Guaranteed to stop a massive alien invasion army, or your money back."

Leo looked over the blueprint and sighed. "Donnie, you've been watching way too much Super Robo Mecha Force Five. There's no way we can use this thing. It's too big and bulky."

"Besides, we're ninjas, not Power Rangers," Hisako added. "We work in the shadows, not in something from a sci-fi cartoon."

"Ninjas adapt to their surroundings," Donnie replied. "Mortu finally gave me what I needed to power the mech. It's our best bet at fending off Krang."

"Not gonna happen, Donnie," Leo said firmly. "That thing could cause more damage to the city than Krang does. Our best bet is to gather as many allies as we can and establish a second base outside of the city."

"There's no time, Leo!" Donnie insisted. "The Turtle Mech is our best bet. If I were leader-"

"But you're not the leader, Donnie!" Leo cut him off. "I am!"

"Okay, enough!" Kagome called from the kitchen where she was stuffing the turkey. "I don't know how we're gonna do this, but we're definitely not gonna beat Krang if we spend more time fighting each other!"

"She's right," Splinter said. "Your bickering is pointless."

"For now, we're having Christmas dinner," April insisted. "I don't wanna hear another word out of this from anyone for the rest of the night. We are going to sit, relax, and eat!"

The Turtles and co. immediately shut up and sat down. Kagome finished stuffing the turkey, then facepalmed, realizing something.

"Damn it," she let out. "I forgot the eggnog."

"I'll go," Leo told her, pulling on a blue snowsuit. "I could use the exercise."

"Be careful out there!" Splinter told him as he made for the window. "It's cold out there, and you are still an ectothermic reptile."

"Don't worry," Leo assured his father. "I'll be there and back before you can say Jack Robinson."

"Jack Robinson," Casey quipped.

Leo rolled his eyes. "Smartass."

With that, he went out the window and into the night.

It wasn't long before Leo exited the grocery store, a bottle of eggnog in hand. Unbeknownst to him, Tiger Claw watched him from afar with binoculars. Tatsu stood beside the tiger, waiting for the right moment.

"Master," Tiger Claw reported into a walkie-talkie, "Leonardo is in sight."

"Excellent," Shredder replied. " Lure him into position."

Tiger Claw snapped his fingers, and multiple Footbots jumped over them after him.

-X-

The Footbots surrounded Leo, who rolled his eyes and drew his swords.

"You boys picked the wrong night for this," he muttered.

The Footbots charged forward at the turtle. Leo sliced off the head of one Footbot before stabbing one behind him before spinning around and slicing it in half. He quickly ducked under one Footbots sword before rolling on the ground and springing up and slicing the Footbot in half. A chain suddenly came from out of nowhere and wrapped around his hand, pulling him towards a nearby wooden fence. He quickly cut the chain with his sword, freeing himself as more Footbots came running at him.

Leo quickly leapt up onto the fence and onto the other side, landing in the middle of a construction site. The Footbots on the other side of the fence were joined by the Footbots leaping over the fence, all of them aiming their weapons at him. Leo glared at the Footbots before looking upward, noticing Shredder standing atop a girder overhead.

"Leave it to you to spoil a turtle's Christmas," he growled.

"Joke all you want, Leonardo," Shredder retorted. "Nothing will stop your demise tonight."

As Leo was surrounded by Footbots, Shredder went on.

"Krang will uphold his end of the bargain!" he swore. "I will have my daughter back!"

"You still think she's your daughter?!" Leo demanded. "You're delusional, Shredder!"

"I gave her everything!" Shredder snapped.

"You took everything from her!" Leo shot back.

"I raised her, trained her to be the best!" Shredder went on.

"Then you locked her up and mutated her!" Leo argued.

"Silence!" Shredder howled as he snapped his fingers, causing the Footbots to swarm at Leo. "Now, I will make you suffer."

Leo braced himself as the Footbots came towards him. He sliced two heads off before leaping into the air and brought his swords down on two more. He took out some shuriken and threw them at three other oncoming Footbots, taking them out instantly. A group of Footbots began firing arrows at Leo, but he just rolled out of the way and deflected every second he got an opening, he jumped up onto the platform they were perched on, charging forward and spearing them all on his sword. With all of them impaled, he threw them to the ground, causing them to crash in a heap of scrap metal. With the last bot defeated, Leo pointed one of his swords up at Shredder.

"Y'know, I always knew you were nuts, but teaming up with Krang?" He questioned. "Just how stupid are you? Who do you think's gonna be left standing as soon as Krang doesn't need you anymore? I can tell you, it's not gonna be who you think."

"I am no fool, turtle," Shredder spat. "I am aware of the nature of my deal. In the end, it will be Krang that will be begging for mercy from me."

"You're a fool if you think you can beat him," Leo told him. "Your own ancestor became his puppet. What makes you think you'll fare any better?"

"Ah, but you forget," Shredder pointed out. "Koga Takuza outsmarted Krang, the 'Tetsu-Oni,' and stole the Sword of Tengu from him. The alien isn't as smart as he thinks he is."

"He's still smart enough to be dangerous!" Leo retorted.

"You don't need to worry about it, Leonardo," Shredder retorted. "Because you won't be around long enough to see it!"

Back at April's apartment, Kasumi looked out the window with concern.

"Leonardo has been gone quite a while now," she mused. "It shouldn't have taken him this long to return from the grocery store."

Mikey petted Klunk, who was sitting in his tub on the kitchen counter. "I'm sure he's alright. Probably just enjoying the snow."

He leaned in to take a lick of Klunk, but April smacked him in the head with a wooden spoon.

"No licking the cat until after dinner," she admonished before hesitating. " That's something I never thought I'd say."

"Awww…" Mikey moaned.

"Now put Klunk back in the freezer before he melts," Donnie ordered.

Mikey obliged, and Kirby looked over at Kasumi.

"It's cold out, Kasumi," he said. "Leo probably stopped for a bit to warm up."

"Remember when we took the Turtles to the park during that blizzard?" Splinter asked. "They played in the snow, then hibernated for a month. I'm certain he is taking measures to prevent that from happening again."

"I remember that!" Vee piped up. "Mikey was so upset because we slept through Christmas."

"Still am," Mikey added. "But at least we have this year to make up for it."

Leo continued clashing with more Footbots, his snowsuit in tatters as he glared upwards at Shredder, who had been joined by Tiger Claw and Tatsu.

"Stop hiding behind your metal bodyguards!" he demanded. "Get down here and face me, you pathetic excuse for a ninja!"

"Why would I do that?" Shredder retorted. "You are beneath me, turtle. Worry not, though. I have plenty of warriors worthy of finishing you off."

On cue, Tiger Claw and Tatsu jumped down to face him.

"Let us see how well you fare against us, boy," Tatsu taunted.

"I will tear that shell from your body for taking my eye," Tiger Claw vowed.

"Bring it!" Leo challenged.

The two warriors jumped down and clashed blades with the blue turtle. Eventually, Tiger Claw kicked Leo in the gut, sending him rolling down the embankment and into the ice water collected in the pit below him. After a minute, Leo pulled himself out of the water before laying on the ground for a minute to catch his breath.

"It seems even mutant turtles cannot handle the cold," Tiger Claw mused.

Chilled and exhausted, Leo turned back to the two, unwilling to give up.

"Finish him!" Shredder ordered.

Tiger Claw and Tatsu charged. Leo fought back, and amazingly enough, he managed to defeat them both in less than ten blows.

"Is that all you've got?!" Leo demanded.

"No," Shredder said.

He then jumped down and punched Leo in the face, sending him flying backward. The turtle slammed hard into a steel girder behind him. He was unconscious before he hit the ground. Tiger Claw got to his feet and searched Leo's belt, drawing his T-Phone from it just in time to see a text from Kagome asking where he was.

"The rest are at April O'Neil's house," he reported. "They wait for him there."

"Bait them out and destroy them," Shredder ordered.

Kagome looked over her phone, chewing her lower lip in concern.

"He's not answering back," she reported. "You don't think he froze or something, do you?"

"No way," Raph insisted. "This is Leo we're talking about."

"Want me to see if I can get in contact with him?" Hisako asked, tapping her head.

"I wouldn't worry too much," April said. "He'll probably be back any minute-"

At that very moment, Leo's body came flying in through the window, sending broken glass flying everywhere. He landed heavily on the dining table, smashing it to splinters, and crumpled, a bloody, unconscious mess.

"LEO!" everyone screamed, running over to him.

Leo had been beaten black and blue, bleeding in about a dozen places. He forced his head up, his eyes glazed.

"Shredder…" he wheezed. "Ambush…"

That was all he managed to say before he passed out.

"Shredder?!" Raph shouted. "Oh, damn…"

Hisako slid her fingers into Leo's head, gleaning what information she could out of his unconscious mind. "Shredder made a deal with Krang. Something about demutating Karai if he helps him with the invasion."

Raph gently hoisted Leo onto his back, while Mikey grabbed Klunk out of the freezer and stuffed him into a cooler.

"We gotta get outta here!" Kagome shouted.

"Uh, problem with that," Hisako piped up. "He's not gonna let us."

"Who-?" Vee tried to ask.

"Come out, Turtles!" Tiger Claw's voice came. "We know you're in there!"

"Him," Hisako said simply.

"Dandy," Raph deadpanned.

"Leave it to Shredhead to ruin Christmas!" Casey cursed.

Kagome kicked open the door, gesturing for them to run.

"C'mon, people!" she shouted. "Move, move, move!"

They all ran out into the streets, and were soon ambushed by the Foot. Before they could do anything, a loud whirring sound reached their ears, and everyone looked up in shock to see the fully-repaired Technodrome hovering in overhead.

"No…" Vee let out. "No… no way!"

"No!" Hisako shouted, wide-eyed and pale. "It-it can't be!"

"Hello, citizens of New York!" Krang boasted through a loudspeaker. "Your future ruler has returned!"

Krang was beamed out in the midst of Times Square, and suddenly, his exosuit expanded, growing to gargantuan size. A tank of mutagen formed on his back, which connected to a cannon on its right arm.

"The terraforming of your world is about to begin!" he declared as he began spraying mutagen all over the place.

The group quickly took advantage of the chaos and slashed through the Footbots.

"Go! Now!" Splinter ordered.

"And leave you?!" Mikey demanded.

"Just take Leonardo and run!" Kasumi insisted. "We'll catch up!"

They hurried to where they parted the Shellraiser, stopping short to find it a burnt-out husk, smoking and fizzling from what was undoubtedly multiple laser blasts. To add insult to injury, the tires had been stolen, the rims resting on cinderblocks.

"MY BABY!" Donnie shrieked, hands going to his head.

"Great!" Raph snapped. " Now how are we supposed to get out of here?!"

"C'mon!" Kirby shouted. "I have an idea!"

Hesitant, but knowing they had no choice, they followed Kirby to an old, 1970s-era van.

"Um, what the hell is that?" Raph asked.

"It's my old Party Wagon from back in my hipster days.," Kirby explained, making a peace sign. "Groovy."

"Nothing about this is groovy!" Hisako shouted. "The city's being invaded! Leo's unconscious! And- LOOK OUT!"

They all jumped back as a spray of mutagen came shooting in, but Kirby wasn't so lucky. He was drenched in the mutagen, and emerged as a monstrous, Utrom-like zombie monster.

"DAD!" April screamed in horror and grief.

They threw the doors to the van open and piled in. Casey grabbed April's arm.

"April, c'mon!" he insisted.

"But Dad-!" April began.

"We can't do anything for him now!" Donnie insisted, not unkindly. "We need to go!"

Reluctantly, they got in and drove away.

"FUCK!" Hisako shouted, slipping into full panic mode as she clutched her hair. "This can't be happening! What're we gonna do?! WHAT'RE WE GONNA DO?!"

"We need a plan!" Mikey insisted. "Who's got a plan? Leo's usually the one with a plan! So what do we do without Leo to come up with a plan?!"

"We need to get back with Sensei and Kasumi," Donnie insisted. "They'll know what to do."

At that moment, they heard a loud BANG!, and turned to see Krang get shot with an RPG. They looked to see multiple tanks, Humvees, and several armored men, all wearing armbands reading "EPF". The leader stepped forward.

"Earth Protection Force, move!" he ordered. "Get into formation! Flanking maneuver! Go, go, go!"

"Earth Protection Force?" Vee repeated. "Where the fuck were they when Krang attacked last time?!"

"Such primitive fools," Krang remarked, chuckling. "Ground forces, attack!"

Multiple Krangdroids charged forward, clashing with the EPF soldiers. While the two forces clashed, the Turtles and co slipped down a nearby manhole, leaving Casey and Leo behind in the Party Wagon.

Elsewhere, Splinter and Kasumi fought their way through the Krangdroids when they heard a loud roar. Leatherhead charged through, ripping the Krangdroids apart savagely before standing still.

"Leatherhead!" Kasumi shouted. "Stop!"

Leatherhead's eyes cleared and he turned to the two ninja masters.

"Splinter… Kasumi…" he let out. "Where are Oracle, and the rest of your children?"

"Lost in this madness," Splinter replied. "Will you help us find them?"

Leatherhead managed a smile. "You don't even need to ask."

As they hurried down the street, they passed by the construction site. Kasumi and Splinter stopped short, seeing Shredder standing there, his arms crossed.

"Greetings, my old friends," Shredder said casually. "Enjoying the holidays?"

"Saki…" Kasumi said, her voice cold and her gaze hard.

Shredder looked at Splinter, smirking behind his mask.

"I'm going to enjoy beating you, Splinter…" he said, "just like I beat your son."

Splinter scowled. "I'll make you wish you never laid a hand on my son!"

Splinter then charged forward at Shredder, Kasumi close behind.

"That's the second child of Yoshi's you've harmed!" she shouted. "I'll tear you to shreds, Saki!"

"You will die trying," Shredder retorted.

They fought brutally, blade on blade. Neither could get a hit on Shredder, nor he them. Still, it was clear who held the advantage, a face that caused Shredder to chuckle darkly. He easily blocked each blow dealt with him before uppercutting Splinter back and trying to strike Kasumi, but she quickly blocked the attack and tried to jab him. Shredder however grabbed the arm and twisted it.

"You both grow tired," he mused. "Your skills have become weak. Yet I am stronger than ever. Fueled by anger, by rage!"

"No, Saki!" Kasumi declared. " You're the weak one!"

Just then, Splinter came up and punched Shredder, knocking him back into a bulldozer.

"Besides, rage is a fuel that burns out quickly," Splinter added.

Shredder scoffed. "Always the wise one."

He threw kunai at them, which they dodged before Shredder ran in, backhanding Kasumi aside and kicking Splinter into a machine. The impact knocked loose multiple lead pipes, which buried Splinter and pinned him down. Shredder advanced on Splinter as Kasumi stood up.

"Saki, stop!" she cried out. "Take me instead of him!"

"You don't seem to understand," Shredder said coldly. "There is no 'instead.' Just first and second. And if you go first…" He popped out his blades, "you won't get to watch Hamato Yoshi die."

Before he could bring the blade down, Leatherhead burst in.

"You will not harm them!" the mutant crocodile shouted, chomping down on Shredder's midsection and shaking him around before tossing him aside.

Kasumi ran to help free Splinter, Leatherhead joining her moments later.

"Are you alright?" Leatherhead asked.

"Look out!" Splinter cried out.

Shredder managed to get up, attacking Leatherhead and hitting him with multiple pressure point attacks. The croc stumbled before Shredder kicked him into the pit.

"How can you still be moving?!" Kasumi demanded.

Splinter let out a roar of anger before throwing the pipes off of him. Kasumi quickly grabbed Shredder, holding him in place with a full nelson.

"Now!" she shouted. "Let him have it, Yoshi!"

Splinter ran in with a jump-kick, hitting Shredder right in the gut and knocking all three combatants back into the pit after Leatherhead.

The Hamato septet, alongside April, hurried into the lair, looking around.

"Mom?" Kagome called out. "Splinter?!"

"Where could they be?" Raph asked.

"All of you, gather one meaningful thing you want to take with you," Donnie ordered. "First we find Splinter and Kasumi, and then we get out of town."

They all scattered to do this as Donnie let out a sigh. "I should've listened to Leo."

"You didn't know this would happen, Donnie," April said gently.

After a bit, they came out, Hisako clutching Kagome's old stuffed turtle, Mikey stuffing enough frozen pizzas to keep Klunk cold in the cooler, Vee holding an old Sherlock Holmes book, and Raph holding a picture of Spike before he mutated.

"Wherever you are, I hope you're safe, Spike," he muttered.

"It'll be cramped, but they'll keep you frozen, okay Klunk?" Mikey assured, getting a mew from the ice cream cat mutant as he closed the cooler.

"We need to find Mom and Splinter," Kagome insisted.

"Where do we even start looking?" Mikey asked.

Suddenly, Hisako and April groaned, clutching their heads.

"Splinter and Kasumi…" April managed, "I can sense them!"

"They're close!" Hisako shouted.

They grabbed hands, immediately glowing.

"They're fighting Shredder," they reported in unison. "We need to hurry!"

"Lead the way!" Donnie said.

Still glowing and holding hands, they took off down the tunnels.

-X-

Eventually, they made it to a drainage area, but were blocked by bars and could do nothing but watch as Kasumi and Splinter clashed with Shredder.

"I will tear you both to pieces!" Shredder swore.

"Sensei!" Mikey and Hisako shouted in unison, the latter releasing her hold on April.

"Mom!" Kagome yelled, getting their attention.

"Go!" Splinter yelled. "Leave this place!"

"Fitting your children are here to see you die," Shredder taunted, continuously swinging his claws at the two of them.

After elbowing Splinter aside, he made his way over to Kasumi with his blades drawn back. Kasumi quickly whirled around, punching him in the ribs, knocking him back.

"I've heard enough from you, Saki!" she shouted.

The kids cheered words of encouragement as their parents clashed with Shredder. The two doubled down on their attacks, giving Shredder a hard time to keep up. Thinking fast, Shredder threw a smoke bomb on the ground, disorienting them and clouding their vision. Shredder then leapt forward and tried bringing his claws down on them. Splinter quickly ran forward, pressing his index and middle fingers into Shredder's chest. A massive burst of force sent Shredder flying back and through the concrete behind him.

"Whoa," Raph let out. "How did you-?"

"Everything you know, we have taught you, Raphael," Kasumi said, smiling slightly. "But we haven't taught you everything we know."

"Now, we must leave this place," Splinter insisted.

"LOOK OUT!" Hisako shouted, but her warning was too late.

Shredder leapt out of the hole in the wall, clubbing both Splinter and Kasumi unconscious. The Turtles and co. could do nothing but watch helplessly as Shredder dragged them over to the drainage area, tossing their unconscious bodies into the septic tank and watching them get flushed away.

"NO!" Kagome screamed. "MOM!"

She rammed her shoulder into the bars in a vain attempt to get through. Shredder turned to her, watching her futile efforts for a brief moment before he just turned and left.

"It wasn't enough that you killed my father?! Now you took my mother from me, too?!" Kagome shouted, tears pouring down her cheeks. "DAMN YOU, SHREDDER! DAMN! YOU! TO HELL!"

Raph pulled Kagome into a hug, petting her head gently as she wept into his plastron. That was when the tunnel shook ominously. Everyone turned to Hisako, who was looking at where Splinter and Kasumi had been flushed away in shock.

"No…" she managed. "No…"

Tears were in her eyes as she fell to her knees. She began breathing heavily and glowing as everything began shaking harder. Finally, Hisako let out a primal scream of rage and sorrow that shook the area around them and broke multiple windows above ground.

"Hisako!" Mikey shouted. "Please!"

Hisako kept screaming as the bars bent and the tunnel cracked, until finally, Mikey lunged forward and hugged her. Feeling her brother's embrace, Hisako's scream cut off.

"It's gonna be okay," Mikey reassured her. "Splinter and Kasumi are master ninjas. They're gonna be just fine."

Tears flowed down Hisako's cheeks, but the shaking stopped and she slumped forward, her body limp. When Mikey pulled back, Hisako's eyes were just as they were when she first came to the Turtles; glassy and lifeless, devoid of hope.

"Donnie…" April said firmly, turning to him. "We're not leaving. We're gonna put an end to this."

The Turtle Mech stomped through the streets of New York, everyone but Hisako and Leo on board.

"Dude, this is the coolest thing ever!" Mikey declared as they spewed fire on approaching Krangdroids. "All my Super Robo Mecha fantasies come true!"

"Stay focused!" Kagome snapped. "We're coming up on Shredder's lair. Let's see how he handles this!"

Before they could reach the Foot HQ, a laser hit the ground in front of their feet. Krang stomped out, his exosuit standing a good six feet taller than the Turtle Mech.

"Um," April began, "I think we're in trouble!"

"I have been looking forward to this for a long time, mutants," Krang declared.

"We can do this!" Mikey declared. "Super Robo Mecha Force fought way bigger enemies!"

"Shut up about that stupid show!" Vee snapped. "This is real!"

"He's right, though," Raph insisted. "We can take this guy. We have to!"

"For Kasumi and Splinter," April declared. "For Hisako. And for Leo."

Krang knelt down and grabbed them, but Donnie pulled a lever, launching a missile consisting of a barrel of waste right into his face. Krang reeled back, snarling.

"You worthless, ignorant slugs!" he shouted. "Do you think you can stop me?! I was conquering entire planets when your pathetic ancestors were crawling out of the primordial ooze! I used mutagen on monkeys, turning them into lowly humans! I shaped your world into what it is today! It's mine to do with as I please and I will NOT let you miserable mutants interfere again!"

"Oh, will you just SHUT UP?!" Raph snapped, firing another missile into Krang's face.

Krang reeled back, stomping hard.

"I will not be denied!" he shouted.

"What do we do now?!" Kagome demanded.

"We have one last option," Donnie said. "But it might fry the mech!"

"Well, it's not like we're dripping with options!" Raph exclaimed.

"Right," Donnie nodded. "Readying electro-harpoon!"

From the mech's right shoulder fired a long wire that latched onto a nearby utility pole.

"First, we tap into the city's power grid," Donnie muttered before throwing another switch, "then we fire!"

From the mech's left arm fired another wire, which latched onto Krang's face and electrocuted him. Krang eventually fell to the ground, just as all electricity in the city went out.

"We did it!" Vee cheered. "We beat Krang!"

Suddenly, Krang crawled out of the chest plate of his exosuit. He was the size of the Turtle Mech itself, and he was furious.

"...Or not," Vee tacked on.

"You will suffer for this!" Krang shouted.

He charged forward, tackling the mech to the ground and beating on it with his tentacles.

"The mech's fried! We're sitting ducks!" Donnie shouted. "ABANDON SHIP!"

They bailed out of the mech as Krang turned to them, but before he could do anything, the Party Wagon came screeching down the streets. It rammed into Krang at full speed, sending him flying into the wall. Casey threw open the doors at that, ushering everyone in.

"Get in! Quick!" he shouted.

They all piled in and Casey quickly drove off. Everyone looked out the back window, at the destruction of their home and the mutants wandering around like zombies. They then looked in the corner of the van where Hisako was seated. She was still near-catatonic, Leo's head in her lap. Those sights seemed to cement a cruel fact in all their hearts.

"We lost…" Vee realized.

"Leo was right," Donnie lamented. "The mech was a stupid idea. I should've listened to him."

Raph punched the wall of the van in anger. "I can't believe this! Krang's taken the city? Leo's in a coma? Sensei and Kasumi are gone? How can so much shit happen to us in ONE NIGHT?!"

"So… what are we gonna do now?" Mikey asked.

"What Leo wanted us to do," Donnie decided. "We get out of town, and find somewhere to hunker down."

"My family owns a farmhouse up in Northampton," April told them. "I haven't been there in years, and there's no one for miles."

"Then that's where we're headed," Donnie said.

They solemnly drove out of the city. April leaned her head on Casey's shoulder, Vee placed a hand on Hisako's shoulder, while Raph and Kagome clung to one another and Donnie put an arm around Mikey's shoulders.

"I miss Sensei and Kasumi," the orange turtle muttered.

Down beneath the city, Splinter and Kasumi were washed down into the tunnel and into a sewer junction. As they drifted along, a snake-like tail grabbed them both, pulling them out of the water.

Karai looked over her seemingly dead father and his friend, gently touching their shoulders. At that, both suddenly let out gasping breaths, and Karai retreated into the water, swimming away.

Author's Note:

Well, that happened.

Also, yeah, showing that little stinger of Splinter and Kasumi at the end… that's what they did in 2012, so I figured why not?

And just FYI, setting this chapter during Christmas was based on the original Mirage comics, when Shredder attacked Leo and beat him into a coma; it was Christmastime around then as well. It's pure coincidence that I happened to write and post this chapter in the middle of December originally.

Please R&R. Until next time!