Chapter 38: Cuffed a Link to the Crime
Reuniting with the rest of the Turtles wearing suits like gangsters, Leonardo briefed them on what Big Louie wanted done to get details on the string of stolen cufflinks. Their mission: putting Babyface "The Beaver" Cleaver "on ice." Learning what Louie meant, Ash had second thoughts as they journeyed through the urban streets. "Okay, boys!" called Raphael while trying to sound like Louie. "You heard the Big Cheese. We gotta get those meatballs!" Hearing food mentioned, Michelangelo rubbed his stomach.
"All that gangster talk is making me a little hungry," he muttered.
"Didn't we just eat before we confronted Louie?" questioned Brock.
"No, we chased the Butcher out without a bite," Michelangelo clarified.
"Right now, we need to fulfill Big Louie's request if we have to stop these cufflinks from being taken," Donatello mentioned. "He said that we need to put Babyface Cleaver 'on ice…' and that's what we need to do." They soon came across a brightly lit multi-story mall.
"There's Babyface's hideout," Leonardo found. The others seemed perplexed to the structure being the hideout.
"For a gangster, this doesn't seem like a proper hideout to be so lit up," Ash pointed out. "A four-story shopping mall that's open at this time of night?"
"No, I'm actually referring to the run-down warehouse next door," Leonardo clarified. They turned to the warehouse by the side. Ash shrugged before going to the warehouse.
"How come these gangsters always hang out in old, abandoned warehouses?" wondered Michelangelo.
"Like we're supposed to find old and abandoned luxury suites in Manhattan?" joked Raphael. They entered the warehouse before finding a short redhead man in a blue business suit, blue polka dot bowtie and gray fedora with a blue ribbon at the rim. He had a baby face. By him was a taller brunette man in a tan business suit, yellow necktie and brown fedora. Seeing the Turtles, the small man sat behind a desk with his gang around him for protection.
"Who are you guys?" he asked. "What do you want?" Ash and Brock looked like they're trying their best not to laugh.
"We came over on Big Louie's request," Leonardo replied. The little gangster gulped while the taller man came to his side.
"Beav, what do you wanna do?" he whispered, noting that the smaller gangster was Babyface Cleaver.
"Not sure, Wally," he replied. "If Big Louie sent them, we may need to grease these goons." Wally wasn't sure it was a good idea.
"Don't ya think we could get into a lot of trouble and stuff?"
"Maybe… Should we call Dad first?" The hesitation made Ash question their gangster roles.
"For gangsters, they're not anywhere near as tough as Big Louie," he shrugged. Babyface heard Ash and grew upset.
"Oh yeah!?" he yelled as he and Wally pulled out Tommy guns. The other gangsters pulled out similar guns and began to fire. The Turtles and Trainers leaped clear of the gunfire before Brock used his kunai knives to pierce the barrels. Leonardo brought out his katanas, slicing Babyface's and Wally's guns. This made Babyface upset again. "No fair!" Raphael threw his sais into the guns. When they pulled the trigger, they exploded from their hands. Ash and Donatello used their weapons to disarm the others.
"We got the toys!" announced Leonardo. "Now for the boys!" Babyface became worried.
"Wally?" he called. "Maybe we better scram." He and Wally escaped as the Turtles and Trainers give chase. They exited the warehouse and entered the mall. Seeing the gangsters made many late-night shoppers scatter and scream. The Turtles and Trainers trailed before they reached an ice rink. When the Turtles stepped on the ice, they slipped. They had no balance.
"WHOA!" they yelped. Ash and Brock didn't step on the ice, but the Turtles struggled to stand up. Donatello grabbed his head after a few falls.
"That's the last time I attempt a Dorothy Hammel impression," he sighed. The Trainers had to think of something to save their friends.
"We need to do something in order to save them!" urged Ash. Suddenly, they heard an engine. A Zamboni had entered the ice. "What's that!?" Looking, Donatello found the Zamboni slowly approaching.
"Oh no!" he gasped. "A Zamboni machine!" Michelangelo saw it as well.
"No, dude!" he corrected… or tried to. "That's something that smooths the ice!"
"It's the same thing!" snapped Leonardo. Realizing that the Turtles were trapped, Ash looked to his partner.
"Brock, fling me towards that Zamboni!" he plotted.
"You got it!" agreed Brock before he flung Ash onto the rink. He slid to the Zamboni before leaping. As he kicked the Zamboni, Babyface and Wally were jolted. They fell from the machine and onto the ice as Donatello saw a crack.
"Look, there's a crack in the ice!" he pointed out. The Zamboni didn't change course and the Turtles had to act. "Everybody, hit that spot!" Using their weapons, they hit the crack. It fractured the ice and under the Zamboni. It fell when the weakened ice gave way to its weight and fell into a giant hole. Ash came to Babyface and absconded his hat.
"You know, I preferred this way instead of what you guys really mean," he teased before walking off.
"So long, boys!" taunted Raphael as the Turtles walked off the ice. Babyface and Wally looked defeated.
"Gee, Wally," Babyface muttered. "I don't think those guys play fair." Back at Big Louie's hideout, Ash presented Babyface's fedora to Louie.
"It's Cleaver's hat," he confirmed. "That means you put him on ice like I requested?"
"We did," Brock confirmed.
"Now, what's the big deal about the cufflinks that you've hounded Manhattan for?" asked Leonardo.
"The thing is… we're looking for a special pair," Louie sighed. "The Cufflinks of Cathay." The Turtles and Trainers seemed perplexed to the name.
"Now the plot thickens," Ash sneered. "You make it sound like these are no ordinary cufflinks."
"Let me ask you something, kid," Louie pointed. "Are you familiar with the origin of explosive material like gunpowder?" Raphael voiced up for Ash.
"You're making it sound like some Chinese dude made these Cufflinks of Cathay," he replied.
"That's exactly what I mean," Louie confirmed. "That Chinese guy made an explosive so powerful; an entire city would fall. In order to disguise it, he molded it to appear like a ruby. Centuries later, a munitions expert found it and brought it to this country disguised as one of a pair of cufflinks… but the cufflinks have vanished. As of right now, certain… shall we say 'parties'… will pay millions for them." Ash was deeply disturbed by the backstory.
"It wasn't about owning a pair of cufflinks," he realized. "It's about owning a weapon."
"It doesn't matter to me," Louie scoffed. "You agreed to this. Now go get it!" Dismissed, the Turtles and Trainers exited the office.
"We now know the motive," Raphael summarized. "How about we nab him and forget going after these explosive cufflinks?"
"Raphael, did you forget about what Big Louie said?" questioned Leonardo. "Certain parties want those cufflinks." Michelangelo turned to Ash; his chin cupped in his hand.
"Something on your mind, little dude?" he asked. Ash looked up to Michelangelo.
"You don't think it's who we think it is that wants those cufflinks," he suspected.
"Care to enlighten us?" wondered Donatello.
"What if those cufflinks were meant to free a certain massive mobile fortress stuck in a different dimension?" guessed Ash. The Turtles became interested to believe.
"You think Shredder wants the cufflinks to free the Technodrome?" guessed Raphael.
"It's a guess, but we won't know until we find out where to find those cufflinks," Brock believed. They left to get information about the Cufflinks of Cathay. Meanwhile in the Technodrome, Krang was getting impatient.
"What do you mean Big Louie still hasn't found those cufflinks!?" the brain snapped.
"We must be patient, Krang," Shredder eased. "Big Louie's men are searching through the city for them." Jessie seemed puzzled at what Krang was after.
"If it's about fashion, why not send me into this to find these cufflinks since I'm an expert on it," she offered.
"These are no ordinary cufflinks, Jessie," Krang warned. "One of the cufflinks contains enough explosive material to free the Technodrome from the lava bed." Outside by the volcano, Foot Soldiers used pickaxes to try and break free.
"The Foot Soldiers have worked tirelessly for weeks," Shredder pointed out. "However, the lava bed is so hard, a pickaxe made of diamonds wouldn't make a dent!" He pounded fists onto the console. "We must get the Technodrome free… and those cufflinks might be the trick." While being forced to wait, the Turtles and Trainers were in the Turtle Van with Michelangelo driving. They ditched their disguises as Pikachu joined back with Ash now that the case had a purpose.
"We can't allow Big Louie to exchange the explosive cufflink to whoever he's giving it to," Leonardo warned.
"Yeah, whoever possesses those cufflinks could rule the world!" proclaimed Raphael before laughing and turning to the fourth wall. "Isn't that about the silliest thing to believe?"
"The only problem is that we have no idea where to start to find those dangerous cufflinks," Brock shrugged.
"I have a hunch," Donatello spoke up. "I don't think you and Ash are familiar with Pietro Calzoni, right?" Brock, Ash and Pikachu shook their heads. Leonardo had a guess.
"The Pizza Tycoon?" he believed.
"Owner of all those Calzoni's pizza parlors?" guessed Raphael.
"Delivery guaranteed within six hours or your pizza's cold?" added Michelangelo.
"Oh, the same," Donatello confirmed. The Trainers and Pikachu were a little skeptical about the person they're guessing.
("What's the big deal?") he squeaked.
"You seem to bring him up like he's important," Ash added.
"You see, I've read somewhere that he's an avid antiques collector," Donatello briefed. "And one such collection is his cufflinks." The realization made the other Turtles figure it was their best shot.
"Of course!" gasped Leonardo. "He's supposed to have the largest collection of cufflinks in the world!" The Trainers realized the prospect of finding their target cufflink.
"So, there's a chance that the Cufflinks of Cathay are there, huh?" assumed Brock. "It's the best lead we have so far."
"Dudes, let's pay the Calzoni's mansion a visit!" smiled Michelangelo as he put the pedal to the metal. Also on the road was the news van with April, Irma and Pete inside.
"April, are you sure going to the Calzoni mansion is a good lead?" asked Irma.
"It's the best idea I can think of," April shrugged. "Besides, Pietro Calzoni's a cufflink freak… and I'm betting that's where those robbers will strike next."
"Hopefully, Pietro's got some extra security," Pete believed. April turned a corner and headed to the mansion as the Turtles and Trainers arrived at a large mansion far from the city. They approached the mansion.
"I don't like this, dudes," Michelangelo doubted.
"Me neither," Raphael agreed. "I much prefer a different architecture, something French."
"No, I mean the breaking and entering," Michelangelo corrected. "It's totally against the code we follow."
"We don't have time to wait on something like that," Ash whispered. "We need to get those cufflinks before we know who wants them."
"And besides," Raphael added. "We forgot to bring the code book." That's when they heard another engine.
("Now what!?") wondered Pikachu. The news van arrived and parked near the gate.
"Seems we're not alone," Brock sighed. April, Irma and Pete exited the van and approached the Turtles and Trainers.
"April, what are you three doing here?" gasped Donatello. April irked to seeing her friends.
"I was just about to ask you the same thing!" she gasped.
"Come on, we get first dibs in asking," Raphael nagged.
"Well, April's figured out that this mansion is where those cufflink crooks will strike next," Irma summarized. The Trainers realized the coincidence.
"About that," Ash started as he rose a hand. "We're supposed to be the crooks in this." Pete and the women rose eyebrows.
"Did we walk into the Twilight Zone?" irked Pete.
"That one TV show or that one song you like listening to?" questioned Irma.
"See, Big Louie's been the one who's been taking the cufflinks around the city," Leonardo explained. "But he's after a cufflink that contains a powerful explosive. We need to get to that cufflink first."
"And it would be best for you three to retreat and notify who's been doing the caper," Donatello advised.
"I agree," Irma accepted. "We should tell the authorities."
"Yeah, right!" argued April. "We got news to cover!" They followed the Turtles and Trainers. The Turtles threw grappling hooks, latching on the brick wall before everyone but Irma climbed over. She chose to wait in the van. Inside the mansion, the Turtles, humans and Pikachu, who remained on April's shoulder, looked around. Michelangelo awed the mansion's theme. Armored suits holding giant wooden spoons, paintings of pizzas...
"Whoa, this is my kind of place!" he appreciated. Pikachu heard something and turned.
("Watch out!") he warned. The Turtles stopped as a giant pizza cutter swung in front of them like a pendulum. It was a close call. "Yikes! A giant pizza cutter!" Using his katana, Leonardo sliced the pizza cutter down.
"It would be best to stay on our guard," he warned as he sheathed the sword. "This mansion is probably loaded with boobytraps." From a wall, a trio of giant pizza trays shot out. Ash and Donatello deflected one each while the third sliced into the wall.
("What was your first clue?") nagged Pikachu.
"Killer pizza trays?" gulped Pete as he picked a tray up. "At least he's keeping a theme about it." Donatello wiped his forehead from the close call.
"Boy, Calzoni's more hung up on pizzas than we are!" he awed as Raphael walked to the suit of armor.
"What else could he have up his sleeve?" he pondered. "Spray us with tomato sauce?" The suit's helmet's visor lifted with a hose inside. It sprayed Raphael in the face with tomato sauce. Raphael's face was covered in the sauce. "I had to ask." He wiped his face from the sauce before joining the rest down a staircase. There, they found treasure trove of cufflinks.
"Guys, it's over here!" voiced Pete. "It's the motherload!" They came to which they all saw the multitude of cufflinks. The first was a pair of gold buckets with leaves protruding from the top and tops of pillars.
"Those are Greek cufflinks," April pointed out. Next was a pair of silver cufflinks with strange markings that included a sphinx.
"Ancient Egyptian cufflinks…" pointed out Raphael. Another pair had a blue X over an orange red with white stars in the blue.
"There's the Con-" started Leonardo before Donatello cleared his throat.
"No, Leonardo," he silenced. "It's being frowned upon in recent times. It's best learned in school." Leonardo nodded to not speaking about what they were.
"I don't get not naming those," Ash irked.
"See, it goes like this," Pete started before he whispered information. Ash's eyes grew.
"Yeah, that's dark," he accepted. That's when Leonardo found another pair of cufflinks being rubies.
"But these are the Cufflinks of Cathay!" he named.
"How lucky are we!?" cheered Brock. That's when they heard guns cocked.
"Not so fast, boys!" sounded Louie. The Turtles and humans turned to see Louie with his men.
"Big Louie!?" gasped Raphael.
"We found the cufflinks you ordered," Ash briefed. "What, you wanted to make sure we did our job?"
"Naturally," Louie shrugged. "After all, we don't appreciate double-crossers." He pulled a pocket phone from his suit. "We got 'em." A portal opened up where Shredder, Team Rocket, Rocksteady and Bebop emerged. The Turtles were surprised to see their nemesis.
"Shredder!?" gasped Leonardo. Ash slapped his head in frustration.
"I knew it all along!" he yelled.
"You did, huh?" taunted Shredder. "Then you know that I want those cufflinks!"
"And we want Pikachu, too!" demanded Jessie.
"You always were a slave to fashion, Shredhead!" snapped Raphael. With Big Louie's men, and Shredder and his mutants joining, how could the Turtles and Trainers escape? And with the Cufflinks of Cathay?
TO BE CONTINUED...
