The sun had barely risen over the quiet farmhouse, but chaos was already unfolding inside.
"Everyone ready?" April called from the stairs, bucket in hand.
"Casey Jones was born ready," Casey boasted from below, puffing up his chest like they were about to storm a battlefield.
"Let's do this," Raph muttered, his expression grim—as if cleaning the fireplace were an epic showdown.
Chores. That was the great threat they were facing today.
Raphael was elbow-deep in soot, scrubbing the fireplace with far more aggression than necessary. Donatello swept the hardwood floors, laser-focused, while Michelangelo practically danced across the hallway with a dust rag in hand.
From the other side of the room, Leonardo wiped down the windowpanes with precise, meditative motions.
"Window cleaner on... window cleaner off," Leo mumbled to himself. "Window cleaner on... window cleaner off..."
April made her way upstairs, balancing her bucket and sponge. Down below, Donnie perked up.
"Hey, check me out, April!" he called with a hopeful grin, sweeping a final patch of dust with exaggerated flair.
But April brushed past him without a glance.
Donnie's smile faltered. He didn't even notice the mop bucket tipping over beside him as he returned to sweeping, a little more deflated than before.
Upstairs, April was elbow-deep scrubbing tiles in the bathroom when Casey popped up from inside the tub, smirking.
"Lookin' good, Red. Keep up all the hard work."
April rolled her eyes and chucked the wet sponge straight at his face.
"Real funny, Jones. Now stop slacking off and help."
Casey peeled the sponge off his cheek. "Anything for you, mon cherry."
Donnie appeared in the doorway, frowning. "It's mon chérie," he corrected flatly. "I can help you, April."
Before Casey could respond, Donnie tried to step inside and promptly knocked the other boy out of the tub.
Meanwhile, Mikey was twirling and dancing with his dust rag downstairs, humming to himself.
"Uh-huh! Put your dust rag on it!"
Casey crashed into him from above, sending Mikey tumbling down the stairs like a pinball. He landed squarely on top of Raph, who snarled.
"You gotta be kid—Whoa!"
The two rolled across the floor in a tangled mess, knocking over a small table in the process.
"Oh, Mikey," Leo groaned, staring at the now-dirty floor. "I just vacuumed!"
"Yeah?" Raph grunted, climbing to his feet. "Well, I'm about to mop the floor with him."
On the porch, Cat sat cross-legged with a duster in one hand, lightly swiping cobwebs from the rafters. She wasn't thrilled to be doing chores, but no one had given her the scary job, so she was counting it as a win.
Inside, Elliot stood on a chair in the living room, lazily wiping dust off the top of a tall bookshelf. "If I fall and break my neck, it's on you, Leo," he called out.
"You're not even dusting in circles," Leo replied flatly from the window. "That's basic cleaning form."
"Sorry, Sensei," Elliot said with a salute, then deliberately dusted in a zigzag, just to annoy him.
Raph stomped into the room, dragging a mop and glaring at the pile of chaos Mikey had just made.
"Yo, Cat! You done with the porch?"
Cat nodded silently, offering a small thumbs-up.
"You wanna help mop the kitchen next?"
She hesitated, then slowly shook her head. Nope.
Raph groaned. "Figures."
Elliot raised a brow, glancing at Cat's small grin as she turned back toward the porch. Raph noticed the look and immediately squinted at him.
"I'm just saying," Elliot said smoothly, hopping down from the chair, "she's got more cleaning style than any of you."
Cat made a mock bow. Mikey clapped weakly from the floor where he still lay.
"This place is chaos," Elliot muttered, brushing dust off his hoodie. "You all need a union."
"And you need to shut up and sweep," Raph growled.
"Bossy," Elliot muttered, but he picked up the broom anyway—just not too close to where Raph was mopping.
The front door creaked open just as the chaos in the living room was starting to settle.
Mari stepped inside, still a little dusty from the woods, a faint scratch on her cheek and the distinct look of someone who'd been up for hours training alone. She kicked the dirt off her boots at the threshold, but didn't bother greeting anyone.
The room quieted for a beat as all eyes briefly turned to her.
April was halfway down the stairs, a fresh towel tossed over her shoulder. Her expression faltered when she saw Mari. She took a small breath—almost like she was going to say something—but Mari didn't look at her. Didn't even slow down as she passed through the room and headed for the kitchen.
The tension crackled like static.
April's shoulders stiffened, then she turned and continued down, brushing some hair behind her ear like nothing had happened.
Leo cleared his throat. "Hey, Mari," he offered, trying to keep things normal. "We've got some very important missions going on this morning."
"Chores," Mikey clarified, throwing a rag over his shoulder like a sash. "The deadliest kind of ninja training."
Raph gestured to the mop still dripping next to him. "We're all taking turns. Wanna help out with the barn? Or maybe the coop?"
Mari didn't even stop walking. "No thanks."
April looked over, trying to keep her voice casual. "C'mon, Mari. It wouldn't kill you to pitch in for once."
Mari finally stopped in the kitchen doorway, slowly turning around to face them. Her expression was unreadable, but her voice was cold.
"I've been training since sunrise. You guys are fine."
April opened her mouth, then closed it again.
Raph narrowed his eyes. "Mari, this attitude of yours is getting old. We're supposed to be a team."
"I really don't care," Mari said.
Before the argument could explode, Donnie stepped in, holding up a dustpan. "Let's not. Please. We're already one broken vacuum away from a turf war."
Cat had appeared silently by the stairs, a towel over her shoulder. She looked between April and Mari, then over to Elliot.
Elliot mouthed, awkward, and went back to sweeping.
"Whoa, guys! Check it out!" Mikey suddenly pointed to the corner of the living room where a large rug had been knocked askew during the earlier chaos.
Beneath it—just barely peeking out—was the edge of a metal hatch.
"A trapdoor?" Raph blinked, crouching.
April frowned as she stepped closer. "I didn't even know we had a basement."
Mari, who had been lingering near the kitchen entrance with her arms crossed, narrowed her eyes at the exposed metal. "That's not a normal basement door."
Leo stepped forward, gaze sharpening. "What do you suppose is down there?"
"I'm voting evil clown," Mikey whispered, shuddering. He grabbed Raph's arm with a panicked look. "Evil clown, Raph. Evil. Clown."
"I'm about to throw you down there if you don't let go," Raph growled.
"You think it's a lab or something?" Elliot asked, glancing down at Cat. "Or like... alien zombie bunker?"
Cat shrugged.
"Only one way to find out," Raph muttered, then reached down and heaved the door open with a rusty creak.
A narrow, dust-choked staircase led down into the dark.
"Uh, who's going first?" Donnie asked, peering into the gloom.
"Not it," said April, Mikey, Raph, and Casey all at once.
Elliot chimed in lazily from the back, "Oh, absolutely not it."
"Yeah, no way," Mari says.
Leo sighed heavily. "Of course."
He started down first, and the others followed one by one. Cat hesitated on the threshold—until Elliot gave her a subtle nod. She took a breath, then followed behind.
The air grew thick with dust and the scent of old wood and machinery. The deeper they descended, the more the faint hum of something wrong pressed in around them.
They reached the bottom—and everyone froze.
There, buried beneath layers of earth and rotting beams, was a Kraang stealth ship. Sleek. Cold. Ancient. Somehow still intact.
"The Kraang," Leo muttered, his stomach twisting.
"Whoa..." Mikey breathed, inching closer.
"That's impossible," Raph said, brows furrowed. "We would've known if they were this close."
"It can't be," Leo whispered again, stepping forward.
Donnie immediately crouched beside the hull, brushing away dirt. "It's definitely Kraang. Stealth model—early generation, judging by the plating."
Casey grinned despite the chill creeping up his spine. "Wicked."
"But how did they find us?" April asked, voice tight, a knot forming in her chest.
"They didn't," Donnie said quietly, eyes scanning the ship's design. "This thing's been buried here for years. Way before we ever showed up."
April's jaw clenched. "What the heck is a Kraang ship doing under my house?"
Mari took a slow step back, her hand resting instinctively on the hilt of her weapon. "I don't like this."
Cat stood near Donnie, glancing nervously at the wires and glowing nodes. She reached out to lightly tug Elliot's sleeve. He looked back at her.
"This ship's wrong," he said simply.
And then—as if in direct response—the ship rumbled.
A mechanical groan echoed around them as the center of the vessel shifted, gears turning, air hissing. The entrance slowly began to open.
The group tensed.
Leo stepped forward, jaw set. "Only one way to find out."
And together, they stepped inside.
The interior of the ship was dark and sterile, humming faintly with long-dormant energy. Faint lights blinked across dusty control panels, and the metallic scent of stasis fluid lingered in the air. Panels glowed dimly along the walls, casting ghostly reflections on the group as they moved deeper inside.
Mari kept to the back, hand resting casually on her blade, eyes sharp as they scanned the hallway. She didn't like this. Not one bit.
"This place gives me the creeps," Elliot muttered beside her, adjusting the strap on his shoulder. "Feels like we stepped into one of Donnie's conspiracy theories."
Cat walked between them, unusually close to Mari's side, her wide eyes darting between panels and shadows. Her silence was tense, her footsteps barely audible.
"Guys, look!" Raph called from farther up the corridor.
Everyone turned toward his voice.
Suspended within a stasis pod near the ship's core was a woman. Pale. Still. Human.
Casey stepped forward, awestruck. "Is that a person?"
April's eyes locked onto the pod, frozen in place.
Donnie raised both hands immediately. "Okay, no one touch anything. I repeat: do not touch any—"
Beep.
Everyone's heads snapped toward the control panel.
Mikey stood there, his hand hovering guiltily over a glowing button.
"Ooh. Oops," he said with a wince. "I promise not to touch anything... starting now."
A hiss of air escaped as the pod began to open.
The woman inside stirred.
April took an involuntary step forward, her voice barely a whisper. "Mom?"
Casey's head snapped toward her. "Mom?"
The pod opened fully. The woman's legs gave out, and she fell forward—Donnie and Raph caught her just in time.
"Take it easy, ma'am," Donnie said, steadying her with one arm.
"Hold on," Raph muttered, bracing her other side.
The woman's eyes opened—and locked on their faces.
"Aah! Mutants!" she shrieked, flailing.
She stumbled back in terror, nearly falling again—until Casey stepped in and caught her.
"Whoa, hey—don't worry, Mrs. O'Neil. These guys are good mutants. I mean—except Donnie. He's kind of a jerk."
"HEY!" Donnie barked.
Elliot side-eyed him. "You did hiss at me once during a team meeting."
"One time!"
The woman glanced around, confused and panicked. "Where am I? How do you know my—"
Then she saw April.
She froze.
Her expression changed in an instant—eyes widening, breath catching. "A-April? But... just a few days ago, you were only six years old!"
And then she fainted.
"Mom!" April cried out, rushing forward—only to faint herself the moment she reached her.
Mari blinked. "Oh."
"Snap," Mikey muttered, peeking over Donnie's shoulder.
From the back of the group, Cat slowly leaned into Elliot's side.
He glanced down at her. "Yeah," he whispered. "This day just got real weird."
Mari crossed her arms, lips pressed into a thin line as she stared at the unconscious woman on the floor.
"...This is not going to end well."
Later, in the living room, the group had gathered around April's mother. She sat stiffly on the worn farmhouse couch, a blanket draped over her shoulders. Her hands cradled a mug of tea, steam curling into the air like tendrils of unease. The Turtles stood in a loose semicircle nearby, trying to look friendly—or at least not horrifying.
Mrs. O'Neil glanced around the room, her expression polite but guarded.
April entered quietly, pausing only a moment before sitting beside her on the edge of the couch. "Here you go, Mom," she said gently. "Just relax."
"Thank you, April," Mrs. O'Neil replied, her fingers white-knuckled around the cup. "I'm still a little... shaky."
The quiet stretched for a beat before Mrs. O'Neil's eyes glazed over, her voice shifting into something distant. Detached.
"I know this is hard to believe, but... the Kraang ship has been here for years."
Everyone leaned in instinctively. Mari didn't. She stood apart, arms crossed, leaning against the doorframe. She watched the woman carefully, her expression unreadable.
"It was your great-grandfather who discovered it," Mrs. O'Neil continued. "He made the mistake of awakening the Kraang."
Elliot sat near the stairs, brows furrowed, while Cat was curled up on the rug beside the fireplace. Her knees were pulled to her chest, her gaze flicking between April and the woman on the couch. Something about the story made her twitch slightly.
"They paid him back by experimenting on him... and our entire bloodline. The Kraang knew we were the key to unlocking their precious mutagen. We were their guinea pigs."
"Aww," Mikey whispered. "Guinea pigs are so cute."
Raph smacked him without looking. "I told you not to be stupid, you moron."
Mrs. O'Neil barely noticed. Her tone was grim now. "After you were born, April, it was clear you were very special. We knew the Kraang would come for you. So we ran. Kirby took you to the city. I was recaptured... and put into stasis."
April's voice cracked. "All these years, I never knew what happened to you. I never knew what to think. Dad would never tell me."
"Now you know," her mother said softly, reaching for her hand. "And now we never have to be apart again."
She smiled. But Mari saw the smile—and frowned deeper.
"Where is Kirby, anyway?"
Casey, before anyone could stop him, blurted, "Oh—he got turned into a wicked Kraang-headed mutant."
The room froze.
"Casey," Raph hissed, elbowing him so hard he nearly dropped his mug.
"OW! Dude, hot tea!" Casey snapped, patting himself.
"You had to pull a Mikey," Raph muttered.
Mikey grinned. "Ha ha! You pulled a Mikey."
Leo cleared his throat and stepped in quickly. "He's kidding. Kirby's on a safari in... Puerto Rico. Yeah. Puerto Rico. Real off-the-grid."
He took a very long, very deliberate sip of tea.
Mrs. O'Neil seemed to accept it with a nod and turned back to April. "I'm just so glad to have my April back."
April smiled and leaned in, hugging her. There was a strange tightness to her expression—like she was still trying to believe this was real. She held onto her mom like she might disappear again.
Most of the others smiled faintly at the reunion. A quiet victory, after everything they'd lost.
But not Mari.
From her place near the doorway, she stared hard at the woman on the couch.
Something's not right.
Mikey leaned toward Raph, whispering, "Is it just me, or does April's mom seem a little bit... off?"
Raph didn't look at him. "Ha. Like you're one to talk."
"I'm serious, dude," Mikey whispered again. "I got those ninja vibes, yo. I don't trust her."
The night air clung to the farmhouse porch like a blanket—cool, still, and quiet. Mari sat on the top step with her knees pulled up, arms draped loosely around them. Her eyes stared out at the distant tree line, but her mind was elsewhere.
The screen door creaked open behind her.
She didn't move.
Mikey stepped out holding a plate—sandwich, chips, cookie. He paused for a second, then wordlessly sank down beside her, setting the plate in her lap.
"I haven't seen you eat today," he said lightly. "So now you have no excuse."
Mari glanced at the food, then at him. "You're not my mom."
"Nope," Mikey replied, stretching his legs out. "I'm way cuter."
Mari rolled her eyes—but she didn't give the plate back. After a pause, she picked at the sandwich and took a small bite. They sat in silence for a moment, just the sound of the wind rustling through the trees.
Mikey kicked a pebble off the step and watched it bounce across the dirt. When he thought she wasn't looking, his shoulders sagged just a little, and the corners of his mouth turned down in a quiet frown.
Mari noticed.
"Okay," she said, straightening. "What's up with you?"
Mikey blinked. "Huh?"
"You're doing that thing where you act all chill but look like someone kicked your puppy."
"I am chill," he said quickly. "Super chill. I'm, like, the definition of chill."
Mari narrowed her eyes. "Mikey."
He hesitated... then sighed. "It's Cat."
Mari's brow furrowed.
"She's not the same," Mikey mumbled. "She was my best friend, you know? Like, in the family. She used to follow me around, always talk to me, always want to hang out... now she doesn't say anything. She just disappears or sticks to Elliot. It's like I don't even exist anymore."
Mari looked down at the sandwich in her lap, quiet.
"I get why she's different," Mikey said, voice low. "I do. I know she's hurting. But it still sucks. I miss her. I miss how she used to be. I miss having my person."
Mari's grip on the plate tightened slightly.
"And you," Mikey added, not looking at her. "I've been worried about you too."
Mari looked over at him sharply.
"You've been..."
"You don't eat. You vanish. You come back with bloody knuckles and act like it's nothing. You snap at everybody. And I know you think you're fine, or that it's your problem to deal with, but... it's not just your problem. We're supposed to be a family."
Mari stared at him for a long moment, something unreadable crossing her face.
"...I didn't think you noticed," she said quietly.
"I always notice," Mikey murmured. "Im not as dumb as you all think I am."
The wind picked up again. The porch creaked beneath them.
Mari stood slowly, still holding the plate. "Eat with me?"
Mikey blinked. "Really?"
Mari nodded.
The stars glittered above the fields, quiet and distant, painting the sky with a cool, silvery glow. April sat beside her mother on the old wooden bench near the barn, the night air crisp on their skin.
"Remember how we used to sit out here in the summertime and look up at the stars?" Mrs. O'Neil asked softly.
April smiled faintly. "Like it was yesterday... But so much has happened. So much time has passed."
Mrs. O'Neil reached for her daughter's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "And that's exactly what it is. The past. We're together again."
April's chest tightened. She leaned into her mother's arms, and for a moment, it almost felt like nothing had changed.
But from the shadows behind the barn, two shapes moved.
Mikey crouched low in the grass, his nunchucks drawn but held back. Mari stood beside him, eyes narrowed, hand resting lightly on her tanto.
"You still feel it?" he whispered.
"Worse now," she muttered.
Mrs. O'Neil's voice drifted on the breeze: "We can start over. We can be a family again."
April nodded. "If only Dad were here."
And then Mrs. O'Neil's eyes flicked toward the trees—right where Mikey and Mari hid.
Her expression changed. Cold. Alert.
Mikey leapt forward. "Booyakasha!!"
Mari followed without hesitation. "Get away from her!"
April and her mother both stood abruptly.
"Mikey?! Mari?!" April's voice cracked in shock.
"Back off!" Mikey shouted, charging. "I'm warning you!"
"I don't know what you are," Mari growled, "but you're not her."
Mrs. O'Neil gasped and ran, bursting into tears as she disappeared into the dark.
"MOM!" April cried out and spun on the two of them, furious. "What the heck is wrong with you two?!"
Mari stepped forward. "April—listen—"
"Don't," April snapped, shoving past her. "Just don't." She sprinted after her mother.
"April, wait!" Mikey called, guilt crashing over him.
Before he could run after her, a floodlight snapped on from the porch, catching them in its harsh glow.
Leo. Raph. Donnie. Casey. Cat. Elliot.
All standing in a row, stunned and angry.
Donnie stormed down the porch steps first.
"Michelangelo... you attacked April's mother?!"
Raph was close behind. "And you too?" he barked at Mari. "What the shell is going on?!"
Mikey's voice was raw. "She's not right. She's all wrong. We both felt it!"
"Felt it?" Casey scoffed. "So you just attacked her? Based on a hunch?"
Mari crossed her arms. "It wasn't just a hunch. Something's off, and if any of you—"
"After Jackson?" Donnie cut in, eyes narrowing. "You really wanna act like you're the best judge of character?"
Mari froze.
"Donnie's right," Raph snapped, "you dont know shit."
"That's low," Mikey muttered.
Mari's jaw tensed, but she didn't move. Didn't deny it.
"Don't talk to me like I'm stupid," she snapped. "We're trying to protect her."
"She doesn't need your protection," Donnie bit back. "Not from her mother."
"She needs someone who actually pays attention," Mari snapped.
"Guys, stop," Leo said, trying to interject—but Mikey was already backing away, eyes wide and glassy.
"I get it," he muttered. "You don't believe me. None of you ever do."
"Mikey!" Mari called as he stormed off.
The others were silent. Unmoving.
Mari stood alone under the porch light, her shoulders stiff, rage and guilt battling behind her eyes.
In the dimly lit dining room, Mikey sat slumped at the table, arms crossed, chin resting on the wood. Ice Cream Kitty purred gently beside him, curled up in her usual chilled bowl, the soft hum of the fridge the only sound in the room.
"No one gets me," Mikey mumbled, poking half-heartedly at a piece of bread. "No one but you."
"Meow!" Kitty replied cheerfully.
Mikey's face brightened. "Aww, see? You're just so cute, I could eat you up. Om nom nom nom nom!"
Giggling to himself, Mikey grabbed a dollop of whipped cream and a couple of berries from the table and plopped them gently onto Kitty's head, giving her the look of a literal ice cream sundae.
Kitty blinked, then mewed contently. The two shared a goofy smile—until suddenly, her ears flattened.
A low hiss escaped her throat. She bared her tiny teeth, growling and swiping at the air.
"Whoa, whoa! What is it?" Mikey leaned back in surprise. "Kitty?"
Her entire demeanor had shifted. She arched her back, fur fluffed up, eyes wide and glowing in the dark.
Mikey's face sobered. He followed her frantic gaze toward the window. Creeping toward it, he peered through the slats—his heart jumped.
Outside, Mrs. O'Neil was walking into the woods alone, her form eerily calm, her stride stiff and unnatural.
"What do you think, Kitty?" he whispered. "Go after her?"
Kitty hissed again.
Mikey nodded, tightening his grip on his nunchucks. "My thoughts exactly."
He slipped outside, his steps quiet on the porch as he followed her trail into the trees. The moon cast pale beams across the leaves, bathing the woods in ghostly silver.
Then he saw her.
Mrs. O'Neil stood by the water's edge... but something was off.
Her face twitched, the shadows catching too long beneath her cheekbones. Her eyes—no longer warm and familiar—glowed a deep, haunting purple.
Mikey froze, staring in horror.
Sweet mother of mutagen.
She knelt and pulled a Kraang canister from her coat, popping the lid and beginning to pour its glowing contents into the pond.
Mikey's instincts took over. He hurled his nunchuck like a boomerang—CRACK!—and the canister flew from her grip, smashing against a tree and splattering mutagen across the forest floor.
The woman turned slowly, her expression hardening.
"You foolish whelp," she growled.
Mikey narrowed his eyes. "Don't try flattering me."
"You shouldn't have done that, Michelangelo," she hissed. "Now... you've made mother very angry."
With a click of her fingers, she drew long, razor-sharp scissors from beneath her coat.
Mikey stepped back, his mouth dry. "I knew something was wrong with you. You're with the Kraang!"
"Yes," she hissed. "And I will capture April O'Neil... and return her to my masters."
She lunged. Mikey ducked, twisting low as the scissors grazed past him. He countered with a kick, knocking the weapon from her hand.
"Well, 'Mom'... things are about to get a lot worse for you." He spun his nunchucks. "Hyah!"
Mikey leapt forward, but she dodged again—too fast. She pivoted behind him and slammed a punch into his side, knocking the air from his lungs.
He staggered—then yelped as she grabbed him by the tails of his bandana and swung him into a tree.
WHAM!
Mikey slumped to the ground, groaning. He looked up weakly... just in time to see her hand twitch and distort.
The fingers stretched, convulsed, reshaped.
Her skin rippled like water.
Mikey's breath caught in his throat.
"...What are you?" he whispered. "HELP!"
Just as the mutated figure raised her hand again—tendrils writhing where fingers once were—there was a sharp rustle from the trees.
A flash of steel.
"Back off!" Mari's voice rang out, clear and furious.
She shot through the underbrush like a blade, knocking the creature back with a well-placed kick. Mikey gasped in relief as she landed between him and the monster, tanto drawn.
"You okay?" she asked quickly, without looking back.
Mikey groaned. "Been better."
The figure straightened slowly, her shape flickering in the shadows. Her face was shifting again—barely holding human form.
"You too?" she said, voice distorted and low. "I should've known you'd come, Mari Hamato. Always so eager to fight... even when you're so very wrong."
"Save the freaky monologue," Mari snapped, slipping into a defensive stance. "You're not her. You were never her."
The imposter smiled—and the last remnants of Mrs. O'Neil's human face melted away. Pale skin darkened, bones cracked and stretched, limbs elongated. Sharp claws burst from her fingers, and her mouth split too wide, too jagged.
Mikey whimpered.
Mari didn't hesitate. She lunged.
But the monster was faster.
It dodged her blade with unnatural ease, twisting around behind her and grabbing her by the back of her shell. With one powerful swing, it hurled her across the clearing.
Mari smashed into a tree with a sickening thud.
She crumpled to the ground, dazed, coughing hard. The monster moved toward her, looming.
Mikey dragged himself upright, adrenaline sparking through the pain. "Get away from her!" he shouted, swinging his nunchucks again—but the creature grabbed them mid-spin and yanked him off his feet.
The two siblings struggled, kicking and clawing, but the Kraang-mutated being was too strong. Tendrils wrapped around their arms and legs.
Mari thrashed harder. "Let him go—let me go, you freak!"
But the monster only hissed, then suddenly struck her square in the temple with the back of its hand.
Mari's head snapped to the side.
Everything went black.
Back at the Kraang ship, the glow of monitors lit Donatello's focused face as he sat hunched over the console. The hum of ancient alien machinery filled the stale air, broken only by the quiet clacking of Donnie's fingers on the keyboard.
He didn't flinch when a voice called softly from behind.
"What up, D?"
Donnie turned around.
Mikey and Mari stood in the doorway—or at least, that's what it looked like.
They were smiling too widely. Their posture too stiff. Their eyes... too blank.
Donnie blinked. "Whoa. You guys scared me. I'm just trying to make sense of the data from the cryotube's system. Some of these readings..." He squinted. "They don't make any sense."
Footsteps echoed behind them. April entered the room, arms crossed and visibly tense.
"Donnie, have you seen my mom?"
He looked up from the screen. "No. Why?"
April sighed. "We got into a fight earlier. Nothing major, but now she's gone. Probably because Mikey and Mari freaked her out."
The "Mikey" moved closer, still grinning. "Don't worry, April. I'm sure she's just cooling off. We'll help you look for her, right Mari?"
The "Mari" gave a short nod, smiling calmly. Too calmly.
April's expression darkened. "No thanks, Mikey. I don't need either of your help."
She turned and walked out, tension in every step.
The silence that followed wasn't peaceful—it was thick, oppressive.
Donnie stared at the screen again, frowning. "Let's see what the Kraang were really doing with that stasis pod..."
He typed quickly.
Then the screen changed.
A scan of April's mother.
Her DNA.
Mutated.
Donnie's eyes widened. "No... it can't be. She's not—"
He stood abruptly. "I have to warn the others—"
But something shifted behind him.
"Hello, Donatello," a voice whispered.
He spun.
The creature—Mrs. O'Neil's form glitching, warping—was already there. The "Mikey" and "Mari" stepped in behind her, their faces melting away into slick, pink, Kraang-like flesh.
Donnie gasped. "Wh-what did you do to them?!"
He raised his bo, but Mari moved first—inhumanly fast—striking it from his hands.
Tentacles shot forward, wrapping around his legs, his arms. The "Mikey" imposter laughed, a hollow, alien sound.
Donnie struggled violently. "Let me go!"
But the real Mari and Mikey were already gone.
And as the false ones dragged Donnie down into the shadows, his scream echoed once—and then faded into silence.
Moments later, Leo stepped cautiously into the ship.
"Mrs. O'Neil? Uh, Mom?"
No response. The eerie silence wrapped around him like fog.
Then—movement.
Leo turned and spotted Donnie standing near the edge of the room, back turned.
"Hey, Donnie," Leo said, approaching. "Where's Mom?"
"Hmm?" Donnie turned around, smiling pleasantly. "No one's here but me."
Leo hesitated. "Really? I could've sworn I saw her come in..."
"Sorry, Leo. Haven't seen her."
But something was wrong. The tone, the stillness... the smile.
Leo's eyes shifted toward the console. The laptop was broken—cracked right down the center.
"Okay..." Leo said slowly, edging away. "Guess I was mistaken."
He turned—but Donnie was already moving.
With a horrific shlurp, extra arms burst from his shell, tentacle-like and snapping. Leo yanked out his swords and slashed. The creature let out an inhuman shriek as the illusion faded—this wasn't Donnie. It was a Morpher.
Leo's heart pounded. He spun and ran, pain slicing through his injured leg with every step.
He reached the stairs—but the first step snapped beneath him.
He collapsed, the impact slamming through his ribs.
Upstairs, the floor creaked.
Raphael heard the commotion, his eyes narrowing. He tossed aside the Halloween show he'd been half-watching and sprinted down the hall.
"What the heck—Leo?!"
He found his brother hunched against the ship, breathless and pale.
"I think so..." Leo gasped.
"What happened?"
Leo's eyes flickered up. "Mikey was right. April's mom... she's a creature."
Raph's expression darkened. "What?! Where is it?"
Then—too late—Leo smiled.
The wrong kind of smile.
"Here..."
Tentacles lashed out. Raph barely had time to block as the creature, now revealed, lunged at him. One arm grabbed him by the leg and flung him against the side of the Kraang ship.
"Gah!" Raph hit the metal hard, groaning. He drew his sai and slashed, cutting through the rubbery tentacle.
The creature screamed.
"Now you see me..." Raph muttered.
He dropped a smoke bomb.
In an instant, the fog swallowed him whole—and when it cleared, Raphael was gone.
Outside, the night air was still and cool, the stars barely visible behind a shroud of thin clouds. April sat beside Casey on the old wooden bench near the barn, her arms crossed tightly over her chest.
"So that's it," she muttered. "She's leaving tonight. And if I don't go with her... she's going anyway. She's too scared of the turtles."
Casey frowned, shifting uncomfortably beside her. "That's rough, Red. But... I get it if you want to go with her. She's your mom." He hesitated. "It's just—"
His words stopped cold when he saw a figure sprinting across the yard toward them, fast and frantic.
Raph.
"April! Casey!" he shouted, his voice cracking with panic.
April and Casey shot to their feet.
"Raph?" April said, startled. "What is it?"
Raph skidded to a stop in front of them, breathing hard. "It's your mother," he said, his eyes wild. "She's not—Mikey was right. She's not what you think. She's some kind of creature. And she's done something to the others."
April shook her head. "No. No, you're wrong."
Casey crossed his arms, scowling. "Aw, come on, Raph. Not you too."
"She's not what you think she is," Raph said again, more firmly this time.
And then the farmhouse door creaked open.
The woman stepped out—Mrs. O'Neil, or what looked like her—her expression tense, her eyes locked on April.
"April," she said evenly. "I told you to pack your bags."
Raph stepped forward, protectively. "Stay back! What did you do to my brothers?"
"April," the thing said again, ignoring him. "Now."
"I said stay back, mom-thing!" Raph growled, blades slipping into his hands.
"Stop it!" April yelled, stepping between them. "Stop it right now!"
Then—her mother grabbed her.
Hard.
April yelped in pain, struggling to pull free. "What's going on?!"
"I'm your mother," the thing hissed. And then it changed.
Her face twisted, cracked—skin melting into a grotesque, snarling visage. Her eyes turned a sickly violet, and tendrils twitched beneath her flesh.
April let out a shriek.
"Oh my gosh..." she whispered, staggering back.
Casey's jaw dropped. "What the heck?! Let her go!"
He and Raph charged at once. The imposter flung April aside as they collided with her, cutting her grip. But the creature kept changing—its limbs elongating, splitting, multiplying.
Spider legs erupted from her back, her head stretching grotesquely like a snake. A kraang hybrid—part yokai, part nightmare.
Casey gagged. "I think I'm gonna puke."
"MOVE!" Raph barked. "HURRY!"
The three of them ran for the house. Casey snatched an axe from a chopped log and didn't stop moving. They slammed the door shut—only for the creature to erupt from the floor, tearing through wood and clawing for April.
Raph and Casey attacked. Blades and metal against slime and chitin. The thing skittered to the ceiling and spat a glowing green goo across the room.
"Duck!" April shouted.
Casey dove forward, slid under the creature's legs, and slashed upward with the axe—freeing April from its grip. The monster screamed.
"There's no way to stop this thing!" Raph yelled.
April's eyes lit up. "She was frozen when we found her. Maybe we can freeze her again!"
Casey scoffed. "No—we fry her! Time for Casey Jones to play offense." He swung at a hanging electrical cable. "Goongala!"
The line cracked. Electricity sparked and struck the creature's wet, slimy body. It shrieked—convulsed—smoke trailing from its limbs.
But then... it moved again.
"Okay, that didn't work," Raph muttered.
Casey tightened his grip on the axe. "Then we hack it to pieces!"
They charged—but the creature was faster.
Tentacles lashed out, wrapping around them. Raph slashed desperately but was yanked off the ground. Casey struck with the axe, snarling—but he was pulled under too.
They were gone. Swallowed whole.
"Casey! Raph! NO!" April screamed. "This is not happening—it's not!"
Suddenly—shuffling from the hallway.
Elliot rushed in, barefoot, shirt clinging to his chest, sword in hand. "April?! I heard yelling—what—"
Behind him, Cat padded in on quiet feet, hair disheveled, blanket trailing behind her like a cape. She hadn't spoken in months—but the sheer panic on her face said enough.
Elliot took one look at the destruction, then at April shaking in the middle of it, and immediately dropped beside her.
"What happened?" he asked quickly, hands hovering, not quite sure where to touch. "Where is everyone?"
Before she could answer, the slime around them began to ripple.
The creature wasn't dead.
"GET BACK!" April shouted, shoving Elliot away just as something rose behind her—new limbs reforming, heads stitching back together. The kraang-thing roared, half-regrown and furious.
Cat screamed—voice cracking and raw, the first sound she'd made in weeks—as one of the limbs shot out and wrapped around her waist.
"Cat!" Elliot lunged forward, grabbing her hand just before she was lifted into the air. But another tendril shot out, catching him by the shoulder and slamming him into the wall with a thud.
"Let them go!" April yelled
hundred layered voices.
"All will join... all will belong... all will become... one..."
It snapped a final tentacle outward—grabbing April midair and yanking her toward its core. She struggled, screamed—but this time, there was no blast.
The room filled with light and slime—and then fell quiet.
The creature loomed over the destruction it had caused.
Cat, Elliot, Casey, Raph... gone.
The monster loomed over her, many heads growing from its neck like corpses, hissing in unison.
"April," the creature purred. "We can be together. No more pain. No more sorrow."
The corpse-heads echoed, moaning. "Join us... become one..."
"One of us. One of us," the Kraang-voices chanted.
April backed away, trembling. "You are not my mother. No."
She turned to run—but tentacles found her ankles.
"We will be a family again," the thing whispered. "It's all we ever wanted."
April clenched her fists—and screamed.
A pulse of psychic energy burst from her chest, slamming into the creature and detonating it from the inside out.
The monster exploded into chunks of slime and limbs, splattering the room.
Green ooze dripped from the walls, and one by one, the others—Raph, Casey, Donnie, Mikey, Leo, Mari, Elliot, and Cat—emerged from the goo, coughing and gasping for breath.
April rushed to Mari first, helping her sit up.
"...Sorry," April said quietly.
Mari just nodded, breathless.
April moved to Donnie next. "Are you guys okay?"
Donnie wiped his eyes, still slimy. "Let me put it to you this way—I'm pretty sure I swallowed about fifteen pounds of sludge."
Mikey groaned. "I feel like... if puke could puke... it'd be us..." Then promptly turned and vomited.
Leo sat up slowly, clutching his ribs. "Thanks, April."
She offered him a faint smile, her hands trembling as she brushed goo from her sleeves.
Later, the mood was subdued inside the dimly lit Kraang scout ship. The hum of old alien machinery pulsed faintly beneath the floor. Donatello stood over the ship's console, eyes scanning rows of alien code still trickling across the screen.
He turned toward the others, his voice low. "When I downloaded the data from the ship, I found out the creature... it wasn't really April's mom. It just had her memories."
Raph crossed his arms, his jaw tightening. "So what was it?"
"An early infiltration experiment," Donnie explained. "A hybrid of Mrs. O'Neil's DNA and Kraang DNA. It was designed to pass as human... but it was unstable. Too dangerous."
Raph exhaled slowly. "So the Kraang froze it. Makes sense."
Mari stood near the back of the room, arms folded tightly over her chest, her eyes flicking toward April for a moment—then away again. She said nothing.
Cat was tucked quietly beside Elliot in the corner, her head leaning against his arm. Her eyes were distant, dark circles beneath them, but she listened, unmoving.
Elliot kept a steady arm around her, face unreadable as he stared at the floor. He hadn't said a word since they got back.
Silence hung for a moment—until Leo shifted uncomfortably. "Do we really have to talk about this now?"
They all turned.
April sat curled near the wall, arms wrapped around her knees. Her face was turned away, but they could see the way her shoulders shook.
Casey stepped closer, his voice softer than usual. "April? You okay?"
She didn't answer at first. When she finally spoke, her voice was barely a whisper. "It just... feels like I lost my mom all over again. Even if it wasn't really her." She swallowed hard. "Maybe she's really gone. Maybe she has been all this time."
No one spoke. The silence was heavy.
"Or maybe..." April's voice cracked. "Maybe she's still out there somewhere."
Leo knelt beside her and placed a hand gently on her shoulder. "You can't give up hope," he said. "Trust me on that."
April lifted her eyes to his, and for a moment, they simply looked at one another. Then Leo smiled softly and helped her to her feet.
Mari's jaw clenched. She looked like she wanted to say something but didn't. She kept staring at the floor until April glanced her way. Mari met her eyes—just briefly—and nodded once. April gave a small, tired nod back.
Mikey wiped his eyes with the back of his hand—then suddenly threw his arms out.
"Okay, emotional moment over because—hello? I was right!"
Donnie and Raph groaned as Mikey pointed gleefully at each of his brothers, bouncing on the balls of his feet.
"In your face. In your face!" he shouted. Mari elbowed him.
Elliot rolled his eyes. "Real sensitive, dude."
Donnie raised a brow. "Hold on—didn't you say something earlier about mutagen being spilled in the woods?"
Mikey blinked. "Uh... yeah."
Raph narrowed his eyes. "Do you remember where?"
Mikey paused.
Scratched his head.
Smiled sheepishly.
"Nope."
Leo sighed and closed his eyes.
"Oh no," he muttered. "You know what this means, right?"
Everyone groaned—even Elliot.
Mutagen in the woods.
Trouble was already on its way.
