- Chapter 86 -

The Creep Takes Manhattan

It was a nice evening in New York, and all seven of the Hamato siblings were just exiting the lair for a night out. They barely made it two steps before Splinter blocked their way.

"And where do you think you're going?" he questioned.

"Dad, we planned this a week ago," Leo replied. "We're meeting Tai and the others for karaoke night."

"Really?" Splinter stroked his muzzle. "Because I believe you will be doing your chores for the week since you all promised they would be done by today. And yet, they remain undone." He pointed back to the living room. "You kids are not leaving the lair until your chores are done. That goes double for you, Donatello; your laboratory is a mess."

"But Dad! I have everything exactly where I need it!" Donnie objected.

"You need your leaning tower of coffee cups?" Hisako questioned.

"And what about the mold colony growing in your trash can?" Raph added.

"Yeah Don, your lab's a pigsty," Karai included. "Every time I open it, I'm afraid something might jump out and grab me."

"Alright, alright." Donnie gave in. "I'll… straighten up."

"Let's just get it over with," Raph insisted. "We all work together, we'll be done in no time."

Everyone split up to tackle the chores. Mikey cleaned the living room, Raph handled the dojo, Leo tackled the kitchen, Vee had the bathroom, Karai vacuumed, Hisako dusted, and Donnie was left to deal with the lab. Sighing, Donnie got to work, throwing his garbage away, taking his dishes to the sink, and organizing the place.

"I am not cleaning those," Leo said bluntly as the dishes stacked up.

"Whatever, man," Donnie replied.

As he continued to straighten up the lab, the purple turtle, without realizing it, tossed a specific jar into a garbage bag, tying it shut. A jar filled with swamp muck and labeled, "The Creep". He tossed a few more jars and vials in as well, most containing reject retro-mutagen samples or other failed experiments.

-X-

Finally, everything was complete, and they met back up in the living room.

"Okay, chores are done," Mikey declared. "Karaoke Duet 35, here we come!"

As they made it topside, Donnie casually tossed the garbage into a dumpster. All of the jars and vials inside shattered on impact, the contents mixing, and the bag began to glow and shake ominously…

Just outside the Karaoke Duet 35 bar on 35th Street, Kagome, April, Casey, and Tai's group waited. Their patience was finally rewarded when the Hamato family showed up.

"Finally!" Casey exclaimed. "What kept you guys?"

"Knowing them, they blew off their chores till the last minute, and Splinter made them do 'em all before they left," Kagome remarked with a chuckle.

"Hit the nail on the head," Raph confirmed.

"I am so psyched for this!" Hana declared. "I've got so many ideas for songs!"

"Mostly classical shit," Jade said.

"What about you guys?" Tai asked. "Got anything set up?"

"Oh boy, do we," Mikey said with a grin. "I've been workin' on a song all week!"

"You write music?" April questioned.

"Mikey may be a bit of a dork, but he's got a good singing voice," Leo remarked. "He never got the chance to sing during the Christmas party, and he's planning on making it up with this new song of his."

"And even I have to admit, this one's a fun one," said Raph.

"Dare I ask what it's called?" Kagome asked.

"Pizza Power!" Mikey replied with a grin.

"He's had all seven of us rehearsing for days," Hisako added.

"Hang on a sec." Mizuki turned to Karai. "They roped you into it?"

"I was threatened with endless water balloons if I didn't comply," Karai explained with a tired, but genuine smile. "Besides, it's kinda fun."

"Well, let's do this, guys!" Makoto exclaimed, clapping his hands.

-X-

They all entered the bar, taking turns on the stage. Makoto was first, and everyone winced as he massacred Justin Bieber's "One Less Lonely Girl" in a high, screechy voice.

"So…" Raph muttered, hands over his ears, "that's what it sounds like when you put bagpipes through a woodchipper."

"He's not… that bad," Erika said uncertainly.

Everyone looked at her blankly.

"You're kidding, right?" Donnie asked incredulously. "He sounds like a moose giving birth to an elephant!"

"The elevator music in Mirage Industries sounded better than this," Hisako grumbled.

Jade hummed casually, and everyone saw she had earplugs in. April waved a hand, yanking the plugs out. "If we have to sit through this, so do you."

Finally, Makoto finished, and everyone sighed in relief.

"Okay, I admit he sounds like someone strangling a cat," Erika confessed. "He just needs some practice."

"More like a miracle," Hana deadpanned.

"Simon Cowell would have a field day with this," Karai remarked, getting laughs from everyone.

"Okay, me and Mizuki are next!" Tai declared.

The two went up, both singing Barry Manilow's "Mandy."

"Tai likes Barry Manilow?" Leo questioned.

"He gets it from our folks," Erika answered.

"At least he's better than Makoto," Vee said, getting a dirty look from the younger boy.

"Yeah." Mikey turned to Makoto. "Why Justin Bieber anyhow? Everyone hates his guts."

"Not everyone," Makoto said with a shrug. "I like some of his songs."

"While I don't share your opinion, Makoto, I respect it," Kagome told him.

Applause sounded as Tai and Mizuki finished and both got down.

"Okay Jade, let's knock their socks off!" Hana declared.

They went up, singing Adam Lambert's "If I Had You" and nailing it. Everyone was sucked into the song as it went on.

"Wow…" Hisako said in awe, "Hana sings like an angel."

Tai looked at Jade's smiling face as the song continued. "Man, I don't think I've ever seen Jade this happy."

"Hana's probably the best thing that ever happened to her," Leo mused.

As the song finished, Jade suddenly leaned in and gave Hana a peck on the lips. Hana blushed but nonetheless smiled, and everyone applauded loudly. The two sat down and Mikey turned to Jade, wondering something.

"Jade, I'm curious. When did you, y'know…"

"Come out of the closet?" Jade offered, getting a nod. "When I was eight, actually. I was watching Gone with the Wind with Sumi and wanted to sweep Scarlett off her feet. That's when it hit me."

Her voice grew somber for a minute. "It was... hard at first. My parents took a while to accept it." She snorted derisively. "Pretty sure Dad still hasn't. But Sumi was always there."

"Sorry," Mikey said quickly. "I didn't mean to-"

"Mikey, it's okay. I'm not gonna break. I don't regret coming out. I don't have to pretend to be something I'm not. I don't care what other people think of me."

Hana slugged her on the arm, making Jade quickly chirp out "You're the exception, Hana."

Hana nodded, smiling slightly.

"Well, my turn," Kagome declared, standing up. "Have I got a good one for you."

She went up on the stage, singing the solo version of "Defying Gravity" from Wicked. Raph was totally enraptured, his jaw-dropping as Vee sighed, closing his mouth.

"Raph, remember what we said about showing dignity?" she reminded.

"Pretty damn good, I gotta say," Casey remarked.

"Yeah…" Raph added. "Real good."

The song ended and everyone applauded. Erika, April, and Casey weren't able to decide on a song, so Mikey jumped up excitedly.

"Alright, our turn!" he declared, running up to the machine with his own disk and popping it in. The Hamato siblings all gathered on stage as a rock tune began to play, Mikey first on the mic.

" Growing up in a glass bowl / With chameleons, lizards, and tadpoles / It hardly enters your mind / That there's something better than this. "

He passed the mic to Leo, who took over seamlessly. " Lettuce leaf and a carrot / maybe a seed from a parrot / believe me when I tell you / the word gourmet just don't exist! "

The next part, apparently the chorus, had all seven of them singing in unison. " But pizza power / A flying saucer food delight / Pizza power / Oh, that's what makes us feel alright! "

By this point, everyone was clapping along to the song as Donnie began his part. " But then we all began changin' / Our size was all rearrangin' / It led us to discover the kind of food that we like best. "

"Tell it, Raph!" Mikey declared as the red turtle began his part.

" It isn't burgers or French fries / That work with turtles of our size / Ice cream, cake, or apple pie- "

" Don't even pass the test, dude! " Mikey sang.

" But pizza power, " all seven sang in unison, " Is the thing that keeps us goin' / Pizza power / Is the food worth asking for / Pizza power / We take great comfort in knowin' / That pizza power / Can be delivered to your door! "

Vee took the mic at that. " Pizza power / makes a turtle's bell start ringing / Pizza power / any size or any way. "

Hisako took her turn there. " Pizza power / is the reason we are singing / pizza power / eat it any time of day. "

Karai was next on the mic. " Pizza power / When it comes to food that's what we say / Pizza power / Always better the next day. "

Mikey took the mic for the final line. " Pizza power / Pizza power makes us feel alright. / Pizza power makes us fe~el alri~i~ight! "

The song ended and the entire bar erupted into cheers as the seven bowed happily.

-X-

Later, the group exited the bar, all of them excited after the song.

"That was epic, you guys!" Casey exclaimed. "And Mikey came up with it himself?"

"Eyup," Vee said. "He's a lyrical genius."

"We oughta do this again… sometime…" Leo trailed off, seeing something in a nearby alley. His eyes narrowed, and he went into the alley and froze up.

"Leo?" Karai asked, following him along with the others. "What's-"

Everyone froze up at the sight before them, Hisako gagging and vomiting on the ground. The sight was the body of a dead homeless man, his head smashed in completely. Kagome covered her mouth in horror.

"Oh my God…" she gasped.

His face pale, Tai pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed a number.

" 911. What is your emergency? "

"I need to report a dead body…" Tai answered solemnly.

-X-

Within minutes, the NYPD had the area cordoned off, CSI snapping photos and collecting evidence. The clan was off to the side as Kara approached.

"Can't say I'm surprised to see you kids here," she remarked.

"We were just walking home from the karaoke bar, and found that poor guy," Raph explained.

"Any idea who he was?" Kara asked.

"Dirty Harry, one of the homeless guys in the area," Donnie replied. "He was just a bum, sitting around asking for handouts and booze. No idea why anyone would attack him."

"Krang used to kidnap homeless people for his experiments," Hisako admitted. "But this doesn't fit his M.O."

At that moment, a forensics scientist approached. "Detective Lewis, we found something... odd in the body's wounds."

"Odd?" Kara asked. "What is it?"

"Not sure. I'll need to get it back to forensics."

"Alright." Kara turned to the Turtles. "You can come. Something tells me we'll need your help for this one."

The group all followed Kara to the police station and were down in the forensics lab.

"So much for a peaceful night of karaoke," Jade remarked before shrugging. "Eh, that's life."

"Especially in this city," Raph added.

Erika crossed her arms in thought, pursing her lips. "The guy's face was smashed in completely. My guess as a medic? He was hit with a blunt object, maybe a sledgehammer."

"It's possible," Donnie agreed. "Though I suggest we wait until the forensic team looks at the unknown substance they found before drawing any conclusions."

Eventually, the forensics scientist exited the lab.

"What's the word?" Leo asked.

"The substance we found on the body…" the scientist began, "it was... plant matter."

"Plant matter?" Vee repeated.

"Specifically, a mixture of various mosses commonly found in the Northampton area."

"Wait a sec," Kagome piped up. "Moss? From Northampton? You guys don't think…"

They all turned to Donnie.

"Donnie," Leo began, "what was in that stuff you threw out?"

"A few of my failed experiments and reject retro-mutagen batches. Along with…" His eyes widened in shock. "Oh shit! The jar holding what was left of the Creep! I must've tossed him out while cleaning the lab!"

"The Creep?" Mizuki asked. "That freaky swamp monster you mentioned?"

"The one that sucked out the mutagen from Raph's blood and turned him into a plant?" Makoto added.

"And now he's loose in Manhattan," Hisako realized.

Raph glared at Donnie. "Way to go, Brainiac"

"See, this is why you keep your lab more organized, D," Mikey told him. "You're not as likely to unleash a killer swamp monster on New York."

"I'm sorry!" Donnie cried, putting a hand on his forehead. "Damn it, this is my fault. Someone is dead because of me!"

"No, Don," Tai insisted. "The Creep did that himself. You didn't make him."

"But I unleashed him! If I hadn't been so caught up, I could've-"

"Donnie, enough," April cut in. "You made a mistake. But we can fix this."

"April's right," Jade added. "This freaky swamp man's loose in the city, and we need to track him down."

"How do we do that?" Raph asked.

"Giant swamp man. Ugly face. Made of moss with mutagen glowing on his body," Casey pointed out. "Even in New York, how hard can it be?"

Donnie glared at him. "Casey, this is a city of millions of people. Where do we even begin to-" He trailed off, noticing something. "Wait a minute. Where's Jade?"

They all looked around, but Jade had disappeared during their conversation.

"Oh, fuck…" Raph let out.

"Jade, you stupid bitch," Erika muttered, removing her glasses to rub her eyes.

"Is Jade seriously stupid enough to go after the Creep by herself?" Kagome asked.

"Kagome, have you seriously forgotten how she was with Tatsu?" Tai reminded her. "What do you think?"

Hisako pinched the bridge of her nose at that. "Fuck…"

"That monster killed a man," Hana said. "Back in Japan, yakuza assassins and murderers always set Jade off."

"Girl, you have got to keep your girlfriend on a tighter leash," Mikey told her.

"Worry about that later," Leo cut in. "We need to find Jade before the Creep finds her."

"Already on it," April and Hisako said in unison, focusing their power.

As they had deduced, Jade was on the streets, looking around for any sign of the Creep. Eventually, she heard a fearful scream and ran into an alleyway to see the Creep holding a woman up by the throat, a machete in his free hand.

"Back off, fugly!" she yelled, running in and jump-kicking the monster. It staggered back, dropping its terrified would-be victim. "Get outta here, lady! Run!"

The woman bolted as the Creep turned to Jade with a growl, its face hidden by an old hockey mask.

"Wow, the Turtles were right. You are ugly."

Before the swamp monster could react, she charged in, landing multiple punches and kicks, and slowly driving it back down the alleyway. The Creep simply stood there, making no effort to defend itself and taking Jade's every attack. Eventually, Jade wore herself out and collapsed to her knees, panting.

"Alright…" she managed, glaring defiantly at the Creep. "Take your best shot, motherfucker."

The Creep promptly dropped its machete and grabbed her by the collar, pulling back for a punch. Jade closed her eyes, bracing herself for the pain.

"This is gonna hurt…"

-X-

Just outside the alley, the Hamato Clan was just arriving when Jade suddenly came flying out of the alleyway, sailing across the street and slamming into the side of a car. She looked up, her jaw bruised and a small trickle of blood coming from the corner of her lips.

"Nice shot…" she let out, dazed.

The clan quickly hurried to her aid as Jade stood up, her left arm hanging limply at her side.

"Jade, you idiot!" Hana shouted. "What were you thinking?!"

"I was thinking of stopping that thing before it kills someone else!" Jade snapped, wincing at her arm. "Damn it… think I dislocated my shoulder."

Tai grabbed her arm, popping her shoulder back into its socket. Jade let out a pained yell before flexing her fingers.

"Next time, don't run off without backup," he told her.

Jade wiped the blood from her mouth. "Is it just me, or is it every time something with super-strength comes along, I get punched across a room?"

"It's probably the universe trying to tell you to stop running in without a plan," Vee offered.

"So how'd you stop this thing last time?" Erika asked.

"Pitchforked it to a tree, then drained it of its mutagen," Hisako replied.

On cue, the Creep emerged from the alleyway, glaring at them.

"Anybody got some weed killer?" Makoto asked.

Everybody got into fighting stances, and Raph drew his sai. "How about a weed-hacker?"

Tai and Leo promptly dashed in, slashing at him simultaneously; the Creep's arms fell off, white sap oozing from the stumps. After a minute, the Creep extended root-like vines from the stumps, reattaching his severed limbs.

"Great, he's self-healing," Tai groaned. "Nothing's ever easy."

"If it were easy, everyone would do it," Leo remarked.

"Wait, I think I got an idea," Kagome piped up. "Remember how we took down Snakeweed?"

"Yeah," Leo replied. "We froze him with liquid nitrogen."

"Two things," Tai began. "One, who's Snakeweed? And two, do you see any liquid nitrogen around here?!"

"Snakeweed was another plant mutant," Mikey quickly explained. "He used to be part of Old Hob's gang before the cat formed the Mutanimals. Haven't seen him at all since before the first invasion. Far as we know, he's dead."

"Well, that answers one question," Hana said flatly.

"Where the hell do we get liquid nitrogen?" Raph demanded. "And how do we hold off the Creep until then!?"

"Uh…" Mizuki piped up suddenly, "he's gone."

Everyone looked up. Indeed, the Creep had vanished.

"Goddammit!" Raph shouted.

"How can something that big move that fast?!" Tai questioned. "He practically fucking teleported!"

"I named him the Creep for a reason," Mikey replied.

"Okay, liquid nitrogen," Donnie cut in. "Mortu might have some. When the Creep shows up again, we'll be ready."

"Then we need to be ready," Leo decided.

"Maybe we should get the EPF involved," Hana suggested. "They have the facilities we'd need to contain him."

"Could be worth a shot," Leo agreed.

"I'll hit up the EPF, get them on the hunt," Hisako told them.

"And I'll try to get a fix on the Creep," April said.

"Right," said Leo. "We gotta find this thing."

Elsewhere, the Creep had made his escape and eventually found himself in an old part of the sewers, filled with old plants and vines. He let out a sigh, feeling as if he was safe.

"Who's there?!" came an angry voice.

From behind one plant came a very much alive Snakeweed, causing the Creep to stiffen, ready to fight. The original plant mutant stopped short at the mossy figure before him.

"The hell?" he let out. "What are you?"

The Creep let out a growl, baring mossy teeth. Snakeweed looked him up and down, seeing an opportunity. "Lemme guess, you're just a mutant, shunned by society, and came down here to hide from your hunters?"

The Creep nodded slowly.

"Why don't you work with me?" Snakeweed offered, slowly approaching him. "You could use a friend. And together, we could own this city."

The Creep glared at Snakeweed, as if sizing him up, then offered up a hand. Snakeweed grinned, shaking it.

At the EPF building, Hisako exited, approaching her friends and siblings.

"What's the word?" Leo asked.

"Dr. Bennett's mobilizing units right now," Hisako replied. "It's weird being able to walk in there whenever I want, but it helps for situations like this."

"Yeah," said April. "Now, let's track down the Creep."

Hisako nodded and they joined hands, closing their eyes to sense him out. They searched for a while, then both perked up.

"Did you feel that?" April asked.

"I did," Hisako answered.

"What is it?" Leo questioned.

"Two plant mutants," both girls replied.

"Two?!" Mikey exclaimed, realizing it. "Snakeweed!"

"What?!" Makoto shouted. "You said he's dead!"

"We said we thought he was dead," Raph clarified.

"Well, this is just fucking perfect," Jade groaned.

"If those two are teaming up, this could be borderline catastrophic," Donnie remarked.

"Remember the good old days?" Erika questioned. "When we just had to worry about yakuza and thugs, not mutants, aliens, and supernatural beings?"

"Welcome to New York," Vee said simply.

"Fair enough," Erika conceded, turning to the two psychics. "Do you know where those two are?"

They both nodded.

"Snakeweed's set himself up with a little greenhouse below ground," Hisako explained.

"It's not far," April added.

"Then it's time to tackle the root of the problem." Mikey managed a chuckle, while everyone just rolled their eyes or looked annoyed.

" Boo~! " Makoto deadpanned, giving him a thumbs down.

Raph smacked him upside the head. "Let's just go."

As they went, Mikey had more to say. "Like I said before, puns are like cheese. Sometimes the best ones stink the most."

"Keep telling yourself that, Mikey," Raph shot back.

They arrived at the greenhouse in question, lurking just outside it.

"Aren't greenhouses supposed to amplify sunlight and heat for the plants inside?" Mizuki asked. "Having them underground kinda defeats the purpose."

"Some plants don't need sunlight," Donnie replied. "And it's plenty warm down here."

"Okay, Snakeweed," Karai cut in. "Any weak points?"

"On his chest," Leo replied. "His heart is exposed."

"And what about the Creep?" Tai questioned. "Any exploitable weaknesses?"

An awkward silence followed, and Tai sighed. "I'll take that as a no."

"It doesn't matter," Donnie insisted. "We have to contain these things."

They crept forward, Leo and Tai taking point. Tai grabbed the door handle, slowly pulling it open and looking around.

"No sign of 'em," he whispered. "But there are a lot of plants in there, so it's kinda hard to say."

Everyone slowly fanned out, weapons at the ready. Jade and Hana ended up together, looking around.

"So, any idea where he could-" Hana trailed off, looking behind Jade with fear in her eyes.

Jade immediately drew her staff, spinning around and bashing the Creep, who was standing right behind her, in the face.

"You think I don't watch slasher movies?" she asked. "You guys always sneak up behind a would-be victim. And for some reason, that's always me!"

She whacked the Creep again.

"Well, hot girls are usually the targets of slasher villains," Hana pointed out.

"Well, there's that," Jade admitted, smacking him again as the others arrived.

"There's Thing One," Raph said. "Now where's Thing Two?"

Snakeweed promptly burst out of a nearby bush.

"Here!" the plant mutant yelled.

Tai and Leo quickly brought up their swords, Snakeweed recoiling.

"Since when are there so many of you?!" he demanded.

"You've missed out on a lot since we froze and smashed you, Snakeweed," Mikey remarked. "You should come out of your hole more often!"

"And be smashed into pieces again?" Snakeweed shot back. "No thank you."

Tai springboarded off Leo's back, kicking Snakeweed right in his heart. He yelled in pain, stumbling back.

Jade faced off with the Creep again, dodging around him as he struck. Eventually, she swung her staff upward, cracking him right between the legs. Every male in the room winced and the Creep jumped briefly but appeared unfazed.

"You got no balls, huh?" Jade demanded. "Explains why you killed a helpless hobo!"

The Creep let out a dark chuckle before grabbing her by the face and squeezing, attempting to crush Jade's skull. Something slashed through its arm, and Jade fell. Hana stood before the Creep, having chopped its hand off to save Jade.

The hand still clung to Jade's face as she tried to pull it off. April ran over to help her, prying it away.

"This is getting us nowhere, guys!" Leo shouted.

"Get them topside!" Hisako said. "I have a plan!"

Makoto was on it, standing before the door and whistling to get Snakeweed and the Creep's attention.

"Hey, psychos! Over here!" he taunted. "What's the matter? Can't catch us?"

He pulled down his left eyelid, blowing a raspberry, before turning around and full-on mooning the plant monsters. Everyone let out groans and covered their eyes, except Hisako, who just looked on with a deadpan expression.

"Ew, Makoto!" Kagome let out. "We don't need to stand here and look at your ass!"

Both plant monsters roared in anger and Makoto quickly yanked up his pants.

"Cheese it!" he yelled.

Everyone took off, the two plant monsters hot on their heels.

"No amount of therapy will ever make that sight okay," Karai said, totally deadpan.

"Hey, we needed them to follow us topside," Makoto defended. "And I'm a master at getting under bad guys' skins."

They got to a tunnel, and Hisako skidded to a stop by a ladder. "Up here! Quick!"

They followed her up the ladder in question. The two monsters followed, only to meet the business end of several EPF freeze guns.

"Ice these weeds!" Sarah ordered.

Both were deep-freezed in an instant, and the Hamato Clan blinked in surprise.

"Hisako," Mizuki began, "you planned this with the doctor, didn't you?"

"Eyup," Hisako replied, tapping her head. "She sent me the location. Why do you think I hung back in the fight?"

Agents began pulling the frozen plant monsters out of the sewer, loading them into a freezer truck.

"We'll place the Creep in maximum security," Sarah informed them. "Same with your pal Snakeweed."

"Thanks for your help, Doctor," Leo said gratefully.

"Anytime," Sarah replied, turning to her men. "Alright, let's move! I want these things back at headquarters before they have a chance to thaw."

They drove away in the truck, leaving the Hamato Clan there. After a minute, Mikey turned to the others.

"So…" he began, "wanna get down to planning next karaoke night?"

"As long as Makoto doesn't sing, I'm down for it," said Kagome.

Everyone nodded in agreement at that, while Makoto was just annoyed.

"Very funny," he deadpanned. "Very funny."

Author's Note:

There goes another one.

Now, the song the Turtles, Hisako, and Karai sang is "Pizza Power", from the Coming out of their Shells rock music tour. Thank you, Author of the Insane, for suggesting it.

Please R&R. Until next time!