The four arrived at the nearest dockyard, and began investigating the area. Mikey told the others, "We should split up. Try and find anything suspicious or that could link to Ben Morris."
"Got it." Artemisia nodded and the four mutants headed in separate directions.
After a few minutes of searching, Mikey approached one of the nearby warehouses. He found a particular fox lady trying to open the metal doors. Artemisia noticed the turtle and gestured for him to come over.
"Call it a hunch, but I think I heard someone inside. I wish we didn't split up - we could use Paolo's strength."
"We can handle ourselves," Mikey assured her. Then he took hold of the door and pulled on it with Artemisia. With a strong pull, they managed to open the door with a loud metal creak.
The fox panted as they came into the warehouse. She looked around for anyone that might've been the voices she heard from outside. They found multiple metal storage containers inside, each marked with different names. They heard thudding, moans, and even animalistic noises coming from each container.
"Artie, look." Mikey pointed to one of the containers with the name MORRIS written on it.
"This must be Ben's mom..." Artemisia gasped. "They're keeping all these mutants here, but where are the Foot Clan?"
"They must be at a location nearby. They wouldn't leave these people unguard-" Mikey is cut off by the sound of an approaching vehicle.
Artemisia paused as she heard the vehicle as well. She quickly pulled Michelangelo and herself behind one of the metal containers, so they wouldn't be spotted if someone came through the warehouse door. They heard three sets of footsteps as people dressed in black and purple entered the warehouse.
A female voice asked, "Did you leave the damn door open again, dumbass?"
"I didn't! I swear!" a male voice hissed back.
"Just shut up and get moving. We need to get all these things fed, and then we need to head back to base," a third, deeper male voice stated.
"These THINGS were people, you know," the first male voice pointed out.
"Just shut up and take a bucket," the deeper voice ordered.
Mikey and Artie spotted the three moving to each container. Each was carrying a bucket V written on one and M written on the other. The fox vaguely recalled being fed with a similar bucket back when she lived at the zoo, but she's only seen the M bucket. Now she understood the V bucket stands for veggies and the M bucket stands for meat.
As one of the mutants growled, Artemisia whispered, "Which one do we go after first?"
"Neither of them," Mikey replied.
Artemisia's ears folded down, anxious to not let the Foot get away again. The figures began to open the containers and tossed in contents from either the V or the M bucket. The two mutant ninjas heard the contained mutants eat whatever food they were given.
"If they're on their way back to their base, we can follow them," Mikey stated.
Artemisia asked, "But how do we follow them stealthily out?"
"We'll take the side door," Mikey pointed to the door in question.
Artie nodded. "Let's get the others before the Foot leave."
While the Foot ninjas were busy with the contained mutants, the fox and the turtle headed out the side door to get Sirani and Paolo. Once the Zootants had regrouped, they saw the car the ninjas came in drive off.
"Go! Go! Go!" Mikey hissed.
He quickly took to the rooftops with his fellow mutants in order to track the car. The four mutants managed to keep up with the car, following it from the rooftops, until it arrived at its destination. The car pulled over outside of an old warehouse in the industrial district. It stopped in front of a sliding door, which slid upwards to let them inside before quickly closing again.
The Zootants looked at the door of the warehouse and Sirani stated, "We need to find a way in that isn't that door, so we won't draw suspicion."
"The skylight." Mikey gestured to the roof of the warehouse.
The Zootants jumped over to the skylight and found it was pitch black inside the warehouse. Not only that, but it was completely silent too. The four had no choice but to open the skylight and jump straight into the warehouse. They dropped inside, the light of the moon shining down on them like a spotlight.
"Stay close," Mikey instructed. "If you find anything, say something."
Suddenly, the warehouse's lights turned on, revealing multiple Foot Clan mercenaries surrounding the Zootants, all armed with blades and firearms.
"Uh...something?" Paolo muttered as he got into a fighting stance.
Artemisia smirked and got into a fighting stance also. "I've been waiting to take it out on you jerks all evening."
Sirani got into a fighting stance third, knowing the Foot Clan wouldn't give them the mutants without a fight.
Mikey took out his nunchaku, and the battle began.
The Foot Clan members tried to attack, but Artemisia and Sirani took a defensive stance. The fox blocked attacks with her Sai, while the red panda blocked their weapons with her staff. Paolo jumped into battle quite literally, leaping high above the mercenaries, and slammed into them with his hockey stick. Mikey expertly defended himself and his teammates with his nunchaku.
"Paolo! Shell spin!" Mikey called out. Paolo picked Mikey up by his shell and then tossed him across the ground. Mikey spun on his back, knocking down multiple mercenaries before skidding to a halt.
"Hey!" Sirani exclaimed as one of the ninjas wrestled her bo staff from her grip. She still had her natural weapons – claws – and dug into the guy's leg. He screamed, and the red panda grabbed her staff from him before smacking him in the face with the weapon.
Paolo went to her, knocking away some mercenaries as he asked her, "You alright?"
"Yeah." Sirani nodded, using her bo staff to stand up. "He's not."
"I can see that," Paolo chuckled.
More mercenaries headed for the gorilla and red panda.
"Need a lift?" Paolo offered her his hand.
"Sure." She grabbed his big hand.
Paolo hoisted Sirani onto his shoulder, letting her ride him as he charged into battle. Sirani kept a hold on the gorilla's back, and helped him by smacking away any enemies with her staff that came close to his behind.
Mikey slid across the floor and back over to Artemisia, tripping up a few mercs along the way.
"Hey," the fox greeted as she knocked out another ninja. "Nice… shell-thing you did with Paolo back there. Have you guys been practicing that?"
"Oh, yeah. Took a few tries, but-" Mikey cut himself off as he swung a nunchuck backwards, knocking out a merc who tried to get him from behind. "-we got there in the end."
"Is there any chance I could see the few tries?" the fox asked before knocking back an attacking ninja with her Sai. "I'd love to see Paolo throwing you several times."
"Maybe later~" Mikey ducked as a ninja tried to take a swing at his head.
Artemisia hit the ninja who was trying to hurt Mikey in his own head, knocking him out.
"Thanks~" Mikey said as he fought back-to-back with Artemisia. Then, he spotted something big up on the scaffolding. Something large… with metal quills twitching from its back. "No way..."
The fox noticed her too and gasped. "Should I get the others?"
"No need. I can take her," Mikey assured her. "Make sure the others are safe."
Artemisia wanted to argue that the turtle can't take on Shredder alone, but she just gave him a shrug. "If you say so." She ran back to help the other Zootants.
Mikey used his parkour skills to make his way up to the catwalk. He landed opposite Karai and stared her down.
"Karai."
"Turtle."
"Have you had some work done? It's quite the improvement," Mikey quipped.
"I couldn't agree more~" Karai quickly turned her back to Mikey and launched multiple blades from her back.
"Oh crap!" Mikey exclaimed. He dodged the blades, except he failed to avoid one, cutting through his arm.
Artemisia looked back as she heard Mikey say "Oh crap!" and saw his cut arm. She yelled to him, "Are you SURE you don't need help!?"
"Maybe I could use a hand!" Mikey swung beneath the catwalk to avoid taking any more hits.
Artemisia climbed some boxes to reach the catwalk. Sirani jumped from Paolo's shoulder and swung up to the catwalk.
Paolo was left on the ground with the remaining ninjas and mercs. He smirked as they surrounded him. "Oh. You want to get nuts? Okay then..." He cracks his knuckles, remembering a particular line from one of the movies Mikey had shown him. "Let's. Get. Nuts."
Sirani managed to stop one of Karai's blades with her staff. Artemisia got on the catwalk behind Karai and hit her in the back of the head with her Sai. Karai barely flinched as she was hit in the back of the head. She turns and slashes at the fox repeatedly with precise movements. The fox dodged most of the slashes, except for the last one, which got her in the arm, near the same place of Michelangelo's cut.
Mikey leapt up onto Karai's shoulders, drawing one of his nunchucks around her neck and pulling it tightly. However, Karai simply reached with one of her claws and effortlessly cut through the chain of his weapon. Mikey got off her shoulders as she tried to slash at him, shocked over the damage his weapon had taken - the very weapon he had used for years. Artemisia gasped, almost dropping her Sais. Sirani gasped too, but kept a steady grip on her bo staff.
Frowning, Mikey kept hold of his last remaining nunchuck. He spun it in one hand and charged at Karai, but she simply kept her clawed hands behind her back. Mikey swung at her repeatedly, yet she continued blocking his attacks. During this, he failed to notice her give him a gentle tap on the back of his shell. After that, she simply knocked him over the side of the catwalk, forcing him to hold on to the edge.
"This is growing tiresome. FOOT CLAN! FALL BACK!" she ordered.
The remaining mercs and ninjas began to flee to the exits. The Zootants chased after the Foot Clan. By the time they made it outside, the ninjas and Karai were gone.
Artemisia huffed as she put away her Sais. "Well, that felt pointless."
Sirani noticed Michelangelo's broken nunchuck and asked, "Are you gonna be okay down to one, Mikey?"
Mikey sighed, "Yeah. I'll be fine. We should probably head back to base."
Sirani asked again, "But what about April and Casey?"
"We'll just tell them we couldn't make it." Artemisia frowned.
"No. I'll go and let them know," Mikey insisted. "You guys head back to base where it's safe."
Artemisia felt concerned to let the turtle go on his own again, but she only told him, "Clean your cut as soon as you get back. We'll see you later."
Mikey nodded and warned, "Be careful," before the group separated.