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One second, X was fighting in the ring of the Battle Nexus to a sold-out crowd, and the next he jumped up high with the intent of landing a swift slash against his opponent - but instead of cutting through flesh, his blade sank into a hard concrete surface.“Wha?” he stood up, yanked his blade out of the ground, and held it up at the same height as the one in his right hand while gazing around in the darkness and quiet of the night, with it finally sinking in that his boss, Baron Draxum, abruptly opened a portal beneath him before his first Battle Nexus attack of the night, and they were both standing above ground in New York city at the shipping docks.Draxum looked his slave up and down with disapproval over the outfit he was wearing; but instead of looking up at his tall yokai goat owner in return, X gazed around at the top of the many tall piles of shipping containers surrounding them (that looked similar to the aisles in a human grocery store X snuck into one time for no other reason than to satisfy his own curiosity).“Big Mama’s not gonna like it when she finds out you hauled me out of a fight,” X commented calmly. He sensed a presence - four, actually - and continued scanning around for any sign of whoever it was that was watching them from the shadows.“Big Mama’s temper tantrums are of no concern to me, but the four meddlers who keep blocking my access to the supplies I require are,” Draxum dryly replied. X spun the katana in his left hand around full circle and asked: “What are we dealing with?” “Three kappa and a human,” Draxum replied. “Keep them busy.” “You got it boss!”With that, X rushed ahead to disappear ninja-style between two piles of containers, and the next thing Raphael Hamato knew, a shuriken lodged itself into the metal of the shipping container beside his red masked green turtle head.“Woah! This guy means business!” the big snapper called out to his family team. “You keep him busy and we’ll stop that creepy guy from stealing any more crates!” his human friend, April, called back. Raph nodded his head and ordered: “Mikey, you’re with me, Don, go with Pril.” “On it,” they both replied in unison.The four of them split up with the intent of taking down both bad guys at once, but when another shuriken unexpectedly whizzed past Donnie’s face, less than an inch away from slicing the tip of his nose off, followed by one that lodged itself in April’s metal bat, they both stopped dead in their tracks.“I don’t think this guy likes that idea much,” April told her brother/team leader, Raphael.“Ok team new plan, we take out this new whoever he is together and then go for the big ugly one!” “Right,” they all agreed in unison, and the four of them converged on top of a pile of shipping containers, searching for their new adversary.“There!” Mikey pointed to the top of a pile of containers straight across from them when a dark, shadowy figure swiftly ran past. “Let’s go team!” Raphael ordered, and the chase was on.None of them knew it, but X was skillfully leading them to a trap - a large, square, open area between piles of containers that was kind of like one of the smaller fighting rings he routinely trained in, before being contracted out to Big Mama for bigger, badder fights in her Battle Nexus. As soon as they reached the edge of the last pile surrounding the open area, X decided it was time to reveal himself.“There he is!” This time it was April who pointed down to the ground when a cloaked figure slowly walked out into the center, under the light of a street lamp.From their vantage point, they could see the someone was wearing a dark gray hooded cape, with the hood up over his head, and some black fabric underneath covering the entire torso - that was either an attachment to the cloak or simply a black shirt.He clearly was also carrying some sort of backpack under the cloak - that or he had a serious hunched back.In each hand he held a katana and his arms and right leg were wrapped in black ninja wrappings. But when he stepped into the light with his left foot, the intelligent softshell was the first one to notice he had a prosthetic tech leg, something like his tech shell, only dark blue instead of black. The core of his body was hidden beneath the shadows of his cape, but when he raised his head to look up at them, the light above him shone on a mask that looked like a white fox face smiling at them with a big, toothy cheshire grin, only with sharp, triangular teeth instead of rectangular flat ones. And there was one curved, gold stripe outlined in red crossing vertically through each eyehole.From his vantage point, X couldn’t get a clear view of the faces of his three opponents because the light of the street lamp he was standing under didn’t reach where they were above him. Which was disappointing to him because it wasn’t every day he had a chance to fight against his own ‘kind’, and he hadn’t actually seen any yokai kappa up close before.X tipped his head sideways when the one in the artificial shell threw down a childish quip about his appearance (something to do with his ugly mask concealing an even uglier face) but instead of quipping back one of the many puns in his head, he merely looked at him silently. He had learned the hard way that things like playful banter during a fight served no useful purpose and could actually prove quite deadly if it distracts one’s focus - and he had a prosthetic leg to prove it. But clearly these four hadn’t learned this valuable lesson yet.‘These guys are amateurs, this'll be a walk in the park,’ X thought to himself while the three kappa joked together regarding his masked face, 'hunchback', and overall appearance, and X figured with the way they carried on they must be siblings.X didn't give any reply whatsoever, which prompted the big one to grumble: “Whatever happened to hero villain banter?”'They act like they're in a tv show or something!' X thought to himself. The biggest kappa was the first to jump to the ground level where their opponent was, and X responded by immediately moving into his low, wide fighting stance and began circling him.Surprisingly (or perhaps not surprisingly, considering how inexperienced they clearly were) instead of joining the fight, the smallest of the three turtles actually sat down on top of the container he was still on, with his legs dangling out over the edge and his weapons in his lap, watching the 'dance' below with a big grin and cheers for his brother. The other turtle sat crossed-legged beside him and actually took his eyes off the threat in front of them to look at his phone! The only one left in any sort of defensible position was the human girl, who remained standing but foolishly let her guard down by resting her metal baseball bat on her shoulder, and casually tipping her hip to one side.Somebody had to teach these amateurs a lesson, and X was more than happy to oblige.To help even the playing fields a little, X sheathed the katana in his dominant right hand to fight with his left. He kept his eyes on the big, spiky kappa with two shiny sais - who seemed to be the more serious one of the bunch.The trained ninja didn't take his eyes off his target even when the smaller turtle put a hand up to cup around the side of his mouth and cheered his teammate on with a cheerful: “Go get ‘em big guy!”'What do they think this is, one of those human sports games!?’ X thought to himself, getting more and more amusement out of their childish behaviour by the second.When the big snapper motioned with his fingers for X to approach with a determined: “Come onnn,” X rolled his shoulders and ran at him. The snapper punched where he expected his opponent to be, but only got thin air as the enemy swiftly dodged and unexpectedly jumped on his shoulders, to push off there and land right in the middle of the three unsuspecting ‘spectators’. He laughed to himself at the humorous look of shock on their faces when he jumped right over the box turtle (who he could have easily slashed along the way) and landed behind his back with the human to his left and the other turtle also on his left, but somewhat behind him.While the unprepared kappas scrambled to their feet with the little one yelling the absurd statement: "No fair!" X abruptly slashed a sword down at the girl and was actually a little impressed with her speed, strength, and accuracy when she raised her bat to block what would have otherwise been a critical hit.From the ground below, he could hear the panicked shouts of the biggest of the four, who hurried to jump back up to their position, but humorously couldn't, so the other kappa actually turned his back on the enemy to reach down and help; mumbling something about wearing the wrong shell for this and the big one needing to do more sit-ups.Next, the box turtle swung his nunchucks at his masked opponent, but he clearly didn't have proper control over his own nunchaku, to the point X was effortlessly able to grab his wrist and bend his hand down to make it involuntarily open, forcing him to drop his weapon.X smiled under his mask at the shocked look on the turtle's face and the amused, almost whiny way he exclaimed: "How'd you do that!?" while looking him straight in the eyes; instead of doing the logical thing of either pulling out a concealed weapon to protect his vulnerable side, kicking his weapon away from the enemy and retreating a safe distance to pick it up, or attacking with his other nunchuck.X looked him straight in the eyes, but instead of replying, he toyed with his opponent by getting his toes under the orange chucks at his feet to kick them up into his hand, and held them out to the kappa. He snickered at the way this 'friendly' move made him and the girl foolishly smile and hold off on their attacks.But when the little one reached out his hand with a polite: "Thank you;" instead of giving it back, X threw it high in the air, playfully shrugged his shoulders, and jumped up, flipped upside-down mid air, and kicked the weapon far, far away before landing in a low, wide stance with his sword out, ready for round two, while having so much fun from this fight he hoped he had an opportunity to fight them again some day.(After all, Draxum's 'keep them busy' order was not a direct command to kill)"Heeeey!" the little box turtle whined, at the same time the girl raised her bat and cried out: "Oh that is not ok!" She swung the bat at him from the right at the same time the big one's head and torso finally popped up over the shipping container on his left, so he simply jumped straight up in the air with his knees bent and his feet tucked up tightly by his short tail, so the bat would swing through the air below him.As expected, the girl made contact with the approaching snapping turtle, slamming her bat right on his big green nose.‘That’s gonna leave a mark,’ X thought, and on the descent he kicked out to the side, hitting the turtle with an artificial shell square in the center of his back, (because he was still facing the wrong way, trying to help the big one who almost lost his grip when the bat smashed him in the face) The kick sent that kappa down to the ground below with a loud oof, then X disappeared by jumping down on the other side, to disappear ninja-style into the darkness.“Sorry Raph are you ok?” X heard the girl call out, at the same time the shorter turtle looked over the edge to yell: “You ok, Dee!?”“Yeah, Raph’s fine Pril, where’d he go?” he heard the big one, apparently named ‘Raph’ reply, while the other one in the fake shell muttered something about his tech needing to be recalibrated after that fall, or some such thing X didn't quite catch.Then Mikey pointed down to their right and told his team: “He jumped down there somewhere, and he took my chuck! Aww man, Pops is gonna kill me if I can't find it!”X snickered to himself when he stealthily jumped on and over a pile of shipping containers in plain sight to Mikey's right; but was totally missed because he and April were staring down into the dark aisle between two stacks of containers, instead of watching their backs or in any way being aware of their surroundings.‘They’re nothing but a bunch of kids,’ X thought to himself as he landed on the other side, back in the ‘fighting ring’ where the turtle holding some kind of techy-looking ninja bō was standing up, in the shadows. But even he wasn’t aware X had landed in the shadows on the other side of the open space. This was a golden opportunity X knew he would regret passing up, so he got the kappa's attention with a playful: “Boo!” “Whaaa!”This time X couldn’t help but throw his head back and laugh out loud at the very comical way the techy turtle jumped three feet in the air.X's mid-fight laugh momentarily took his focus off the threat, and it would have been his undoing, if his inexperienced opponent hadn’t foolishly announced his next attack by yelling some absurd word out loud before throwing his tech bō.Because it was powered by two rockets that appeared out of nowhere, the bō spun through the air at X with such speed that if the turtle throwing it hadn’t given him fair warning by literally announcing his attack beforehand, X wouldn’t have had time to dodge out of the way. As it was, he only managed to twist his body to the side just in time, but the bō caught the end of his cape when it flowed behind him, thankfully ripping the bottom half off with the shear force of the attack instead of pulling it and him along with it - which would have vulnerably knocked him back into the hard metal container behind him.X was unconcerned about his cloak that he had to replace many times after Nexus fights. This was just getting to be too much for him, and he couldn’t help himself from humorously calling out: “Did you just yell fibonacci!?” before jumping so swiftly and suddenly at his now unarmed opponent that he caught the turtle completely off guard.X knocked the kappa 'yokai' down by landing on top of him, and stood over him with one foot on either side of his body, the blade of his sword held horizontally straight across his throat, and his grinning cheshire masked face leaning in uncomfortably close to the scared turtle staring up at him.But now that he got a good look at his opponent, it was X’s turn to be surprised. He abruptly pulled his head back and lowered his sword, but didn’t take his eyes off that familiar face.Even though he hadn't seen this face in years and it belonged to an older turtle now, X would recognize it anywhere.That momentary lapse was enough for his opponents to get the upper-hand and X discovered the turtle beneath his body wasn’t unarmed when two long, metal clawed arms shot out of the artificial shell, reaching for him.He slashed them in half with his sword, but his head was spinning from the realization of who, exactly, he was fighting, so much so that his stunned mind didn’t even register when the biggest of the four clearly announce his attack by calling out: “HOOOT SOOOUP!”X was so frazzled he didn’t even realize the other turtle was attacking until a big fist was waaay too close to his face for him to be able to dodge in time. The big kappa hit the side of the face with such force it knocked him off the turtle under his body and drove him all the way to the other side of the ‘fighting ring’, where he slammed into the metal container so hard his back left a dent behind. But being the skilled ninja that he was X hadn’t released his grip on his weapon; and after groaning a little, he slowly stood up, still gripping his sword, but wavering slightly from the dizziness of a fresh concussion.'Hot Soup?' X thought in confusion, knowing that catchphrase very well.Once he finally managed to right himself, he stood up straight and looked at the three turtles and human, who were all standing on the ground together across from him, weapons in hand and determined-looking angry faces staring at him. But for some reason he couldn’t quite understand (and chalked up to inexperience), they hadn’t bothered to attack him when he was down and vulnerableX silently stared back at them in an awkward standoff, wondering if they really had learned how to fight from watching old Lou Jitsu movies; or perhaps, had learned a thing or two from the ex ninja tv star himself.He raised his right hand to lay it over his steadily swelling cheek, noticing for the first time the bottom right section of his handmade mask had been cracked clean off. Whether the damage to his mask was from the sais or the big guy’s fist, he didn’t know, but when a glowing magenta portal opened up beside him, signaling that his owner was done and it was time to leave, X hesitated long enough to get a good look at the three angry kappa faces staring straight at him.They still weren’t attacking him for some reason, even though they clearly had the advantage, considering he was still wavering a little in his stance from the concussion.‘I’ve never been hit like that before,’ X thought to himself, sizing up his opponents with more curiosity and wonder than anything else. But when the big one decided they had waited long enough and ordered his team to attack, he wasted no further time in his gawking and stuck his foot out to the side to take one big step through the portal, which snapped shut behind him, leaving the four opponents bewildered, wondering what happened, what that glowing circle that appeared mid air was, and where he went.* * *X came out the exit portal in his owner's giant-sized storage room and looked up at his boss, who regarded him with a mixture of anger and disgust.After a brief moment of looking his slave up and down, X’s owner, Baron Draxum, gestured to him with his left hand; and when he began one of his many lectures his voice oozed just as much disgust and disappointment as his facial expression showed.“I leave you alone with them for ten minutes and you come back looking like this, I expected better from you. And what is with that outfit you’re wearing? The hood obscures your vision and the flowing material on the cloak can easily get snagged, as it clearly has been. It only serves to slow you down and gives you a weak point for your enemies to exploit. And judging by your cracked mask, swollen face, and the clean look on your blade, I can only assume they got in more hits than you. I taught you better than this.” He looked his ninja creation up and down again and finally asked the more important question X thought he should have led with: “Do you have any life-threatening injuries?”The ninja slave of the ‘great Baron Draxum’ sheathed his left sword on the belt over his right hip, (opposite the other katana that was sheathed on his left hip) took his broken fox mask off, and held it face-down in his left hand, so he could spit a tooth into it that was knocked loose from the power of that kappa’s punch.Draxum glanced down at it for a split second, noting that his marvel of creation must have received the worst punch to the face of his life if whatever hit him was strong enough to knock out a tooth - something which was supposed to be practically impossible considering his creation's ingenious design.Draxum's dutiful servant (slave), simply called X, looked up at him with his unmasked, green turtle face. There was a curved red stripe going down over each eye in the same pattern as the stripes on the mask he had been wearing, except that the one over his right eye was distorted on the bottom from the swelling.X gave his owner a cheeky grin that stretched over the left side of his face more than the right (for obvious reasons) and casually began his reply by saying: “Big Mama says my outfit is great because the betting yokai love the whole ‘mysterious ninja’ look, and isn’t it good when I learn how to fight with a handicap because it makes me a better warrior overall, or something like that?”He raised his left leg that had a prosthetic attached halfway up the thigh - where his real leg had been chomped off during a particularly rough fight in his early Battle Nexus career - and wiggled the prosthetic toes in the air as a reminder that he was right. Then his tone changed to a little more playful when he cheekily added: “Can’t remember who taught me that. Some sort of goat scientist hyper-fixated on turning the whole human race into yokai-like mutants.” He rested his right hand on his hip and said: “Seriously, get a hobby. Isn’t there a ‘crazy mad scientist’ support group you can join or something?”Instead of addressing anything his slave said, Draxum sternly repeated: “Injuries?” only a little louder than before.“Just a concussion, nothing I can’t walk off,” the mutant red-eared slider dismissively replied. “And a swollen face and a knocked out tooth, which should have been practically impossible, as was the concussion, despite the fact this is your third one to date,” Draxum sternly countered. “What can I say, that big guy hits like a wild ravager in heat! I never took a blow like that before” X replied in a dismissive way that sounded a little impressed. “Tell me, how is it a group of clear amateurs managed to do all of this to you while you didn’t make contact with them once?”X wiped the grin off his face and angrily countered with: “Hey I got plenty of hits in, just not with my sword, and those amateurs must’ve been too much for the ‘great Baron Draxum’ to deal with or else you wouldn’t ‘ve portalled me in to help!”X flinched and pulled back with the aggressive stare Draxum gave him in return, but instead of striking his already injured slave, the goat warrior angrily replied: “That does not answer my question!”X’s tense posture melted away and he replied a little uncertainly: “I . . . got distracted,” before raising his right hand to gently lay it over his throbbing cheek.Draxum straightened up, crossed his arms in front of his chest, and simply asked: “By?”For some reason the usual chatty turtle clammed up, and he slowly replied with the vague: “I, ah . . . saw someone I recognized.”“That in no way answers my question,” Draxum told him in a calm manner that carried the hint of a threat of punishment if X wasn’t forthright with his answer to this and subsequent questions. So he sighed and replied: “It was the kappa in the purple mask with the artificial shell. I saw him in my dreams when I was a kid. He was a kid then, too, but I know that face, it was him, and I…” he hung his head to break eye contact with his owner and quickly finished with: “I didn’t know the turtle in my dreams was real, that’s what distracted me. It won’t happen again, boss.”X imperceptibly braced for a harsh punishment, but when one didn’t come he looked up at his much taller owner in surprise; first from the fact he wasn’t immediately punished for his incompetence and then from his boss’s unexpected comment: “It appears as though the mutagenic telepathic experiment had a limited degree of success.”“Thewhatnow?” X blurted out; and Draxum explained in such a calm way that his reply could be mistaken for nothing more than discussing the plot of one of those boring thick books he routinely read:“During early incubation when you were still in your eggs, I injected a mutagen I created into the brain of Experiment Alpha 002-1 and 002-2 - or you - with the hopes it would result in a telepathic connection between the two of you, thus eliminating the need for verbal communication and resulting in swifter unity during any battles. If it was a success I could include it as an addition in future mutant experiments and if not,” he leaned ahead with a grin on his face and added: “Well let’s say I had two other mutant turtle experiments leftover as a backup.”X gritted his teeth nervously and replied with: “Eeee, I wish I could say that was another one of your lame dry jokes but something tells me you’re serious.” “My ‘lame dry jokes’ are no worse than your incessant puns,” Draxum quipped back. But instead of firing back with one of his puns, X realized something and asked: “Wait a minute, are you saying those kappa really are your other mutant experiments, the ones Lou Jitsu stole when he escaped?”“Precisely,” Draxum replied.The realization dawned on X that the one he knew as 'Donnie' didn't have a prosthetic shell but was wearing a hard covering over his vulnerable soft shell.Draxum walked away to examine his new acquisition from the above ground human world while saying: “I assume the mutant who knocked your tooth out was the big snapping turtle, Experiment Alpha 001. He was designed with strength to rival even the most powerful yokai. And despite their clear incompetence and lack of proper training and experience, they proved to be as impressive as I had designed them.”“So you’re telling me I was fighting against my brothers?” X asked with a hint of excitement.“If by brothers you mean the turtles who share dna from the same genetic donor then yes,” Draxum calmly replied. He examined what looked like a simple stack of white 8X11 human paper, before putting it back and turning his whole body to look at the turtle he created; who was still holding his tooth in his mask and had a range of conflicting emotions that clearly flashed across his eyes.“Come with me, I will reset the tooth before it’s too late. Make sure to avoid any blows to your face for the next four days to ensure it sets properly. But if it comes out again and is undamaged, I can reset it as many times as is necessary, within two hours of when it was knocked out.”That simple comment got X out of his reeling mind and back in the moment, and he replied with: “Yeah, and then I’ll go see Big Mama. She probably already has some sort of insane twelve v one match scheduled to make up for the money she lost from the fight you took me out of.” “Undoubtedly,” Draxum calmly agreed; and they walked together to the wealthy yokai's med bay where he had the equipment he needed to properly reset the tooth that was knocked out of his ingeniously designed turtle creation’s mouth.
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X stood in the secret-from-humans yokai elevator of Big Mama’s above ground New York Grand Nexus hotel, on his way up to meet the lavishly wealthy and powerfully influential spider yokai in her office - who he was contracted out to by his owner for three matches a week in her brutal Battle Nexus, to further his training.The young mutant turtle didn’t know much about the spider's personal life; except that she lived a double life as a yokai disguised as a human whenever necessary, so she could capitalize on both the human world with the front of her Grand Nexus hotel, while simultaneously earning riches from her own kind with the hidden back yokai side. This was in addition to her fabulously successful underground Battle Nexus, of course.The one X fought in since he was eight, where yokai - both convicted criminals and slaves (which X technically was) - ripped each other apart limb from limb for the entertainment of blood-thirsty crowds.(Not to mention the occassional human Big Mama acquired through illegal means)Beyond that, X knew Big Mama as a benevolent, caring ‘Auntie’ who took a personal interest in him when he first showed fantastic potential to be named the youngest champion in Battle Nexus history. (Which he was, earning him the nickname he loved - 'Tampy' - for 'turtle champion', from his adoring Auntie Big Mama).She spent time with him - doting on him whenever they were together, and generally making sure her insanely profitable ‘Lou Jitsu prodigy' fighter was very content, with what she hoped would be a lifetime career bringing in the betting crowds with his entertaining fights. (If only that Draxy-poo wouldn’t stubbornly hold onto him for his own questionably unprofitable reasons)Of course there were many rumors floating around about Big Mama on the mean, hard streets of the Hidden City that reached the slider’s ears. He figured there must be some ring of truth to the rumors of her ruthless dark side (after all she was the owner of the bloody Battle Nexus) but he never really gave it much thought.Until today.Because of his amicable relationship with her, X let his guard down as he rode the elevator up to Big Mama’s office. But that was a mistake he would soon regret.The elevator doors dinged open and before he even had a chance to raise one foot off the floor, X was greeted by a swift punch to his already injured face, abruptly followed by five of Big Mama’s cronies jumping on top of him to hold him down, tie him up, and completely disarm him.X was dragged out of the elevator with his wrists tightly tied behind his back, his thighs above the prosthetic likewise tied together, and a fresh cut on his face from the sharp end of the brass knuckle that made contact with his cheek. Then he was unceremoniously thrown face-down on the floor in Big Mama’s office. He pushed himself up to sit back on his knees and glared up at the spider yokai towering over him, with blood drizzling down his face from the cut.X turned his head to the side to spit out the back tooth that had been knocked lose for the second time, before it had a chance to reset properly, before glaring daggers at Big Mama, realizing he had been betrayed by the one out of only two yokai he considered to be family.“I trusted you!”X spat out his words like venom before narrowing his eyes and adding in a cold, hateful tone: “I guess the rumors are true, you really are nothing but a traitorous bi…” Language my little turtly-boo, weren't you taught better than that?” Big Mama interrupted in a faux-offended but polite tone. X put his head down instead of replying with the obscenities that were swirling around in his mind, because he was focusing his attention on subtly trying to figure a way out of this."This really is an unfortunate turn of events. Now kindly look at your Auntie when she talks to you deary, I have something of the utmost importance to share," Big Mama said in her usual polite tone. One that sounded almost as pleasant as the day he tasted ice cream for very first time, when she brought him to one of her Big Mama vendors in the Hidden City Market as a reward after spectacularly winning his first Battle Nexus fight.Big Mama put her spider hand under his chin to make him raise his head to look at her. He aggressively yanked his head away and pointed his angry face at the floor again so she couldn’t see his eyes darting around, searching for a way out; but there was nothing. Even the yokai holding all his weapons stood at respectable distance behind Big Mama. She also knew him well - better than he realized - because every single last concealed weapon that could have helped him had been confiscated; including the blade he kept beneath his black ninja wrappings flush to his wrist, and the secret weapons built into the custom prosthetic leg Draxum built for him, that he was ordered to save for an emergency and wasn't aware she knew about.When he continued staring at the floor, Big Mama said: "Now really, don't you think you're too old for this childish pouting? Kindly raise your head so Big Mama can explain this whole dreadful kerfuffle that was started when you rudely portalled out of your match without warning. I was worried out of my mind that something terrible happened to you! What do you have to say for leaving your poor Auntie behind without as much as an explanation?"X raised his head alright; by shooting his angry eyes up at her and snapping: “It’s not my fault Draxum portalled me out, take this up with him!”“Oh deary me this really is an unfortunate situation you've gotten yourself into; if only you hadn't kept your doting Auntie in the dark. But I'm afraid there's no way to undo the damage now."X ignored her comment and aggressively yelled at the top of his voice: “When Draxum finds out about this…!” “My dear boy, Draxy already knows, which is the most unfortunate part of all,” Big Mama sweetly interrupted with a hint of (fake) sadness. “If only you had contacted me sooner I wouldn't have had to call your . . . Oh now what is that word he uses to refer to himself? It's certainly not father, despite the fact he's raised you from infancy."X followed Big Mama with his eyes as she paced in front of him, looking like she was taking a moment to think; and then, while continuing to pace back and forth, she abruptly continued in her deviously kind-sounding voice: "Oh yes your owner. If you had come to your Auntie sooner to explain everything I could have overlooked this piddly little error with no more than an extra match to make up my loses, and your brutish owner would have been none the wiser. But now I'm afraid it's far too late for that."Big Mama stopped her pacing to stand directly in front of X, facing him, when she continued."Why, I just got off the piddly phone with Draxy not more than two minutes ago. I really had to call him to make sure you were alright considering he refuses to allow you to share your number with your loving Auntie - for reasons I cannot fathom - and I hadn't heard from you once until now. He informed me he was unaware you were in the fighting ring when he required your services and blamed you for not telling him about your scheduled fight. Then he absolutely insisted Big Mama dish out your punishment as per his explicit instructions because he is 'far too busy to deal with you himself,' his words not mine deary. Nasty business, I won't bore you with the details your control-freak owner described over the phone."The spider lady let out a disappointed-soundings sigh and continued in what seemed to be a sad tone of voice. "Naturally I objected but who is Big Mama to go against the great Baron Draxum, hmm? I'm simply a tizzy business owner trying to carve out a place for myself in this cold, hard world.”“You’re lying,” X replied quietly.But judging by the way he hung his head and spoke in a hushed voice, Big Mama smiled to herself because she knew he wasn’t certain if he really, truly believed his own words.“It's too bad you're the piddly slave of that brute of a scientist," she continued. "If you lived with your dear spider auntie things would be oh so different. But unfortunately my hands are tied-oops, excuse the pun.""I'd never betray Draxum," the tied-up mutant turtle replied with firm conviction, leaving no room for doubt.Next, Big Mama turned into her human form with her mystic broach, and leaned in so close she was almost face-to-face with the slider, who kept his head down and his eyes glued to the floor. Then she said in a sweet, kind tone of voice:"Think about this my dear sweet Tampy, has Big Mama ever treated you in such a gastly manner before?" She kept her face inches away from his, looking at him with what appeared to be sympathy in her eyes when he glanced up for a split second; and she paused long enough for the silence to become uncomfortable for X. So he huffed out a sour-sounding: "No."Big Mama patted his uninjured left cheek, stood up straight, and asked: "Now think about this, has Draxum ever treated you this harshly in his dealings with you?"X didn't bother to answer; there was no need, they both already knew the answer was 'yes.' (Although Draxum was always careful never to cause permanent damage or lasting harm to his useful warrior creation; and he even steered clear of striking his face after doing so once, only for X to annoyingly complain he was going to 'ruin his good looks' for weeks on end).On the one hand, X always fully understood exactly why he was being punished and he was treated far better than his fellow Hidden City slave associates; but on the other hand, he often felt his owner's approach to training and discipline was disproportionate to the transgression he committed, and much harsher than necessary to adequately correct his 'undesirable' behavior. A sentiment his 'Auntie,' Big Mama, frequently claimed to whole-heartedly agree with over the years since she had known him.The silence stretched on a moment longer and then Big Mama smiled to herself again when the tied-up turtle warrior kneeling on her floor let his shoulders drop with an exasperated sigh out through his mouth; because she knew that meant she had successfully watered the seeds of doubt in her Nexus Champion's mind.There was no need to wait for an verbal answer anymore, so Big Mama clapped her hands twice while ordering her henchmen: “Come come Big Mama had an important business appointment and she shant be late.”The big brute of a pink gorilla yokai who punched X had clearly already been instructed on what to do, and he grabbed X’s tied up arms to force him to his feet.As he was being led away to his inevitable (apparently 'Draxum sanctioned') punishment, Big Mama told him: "Auntie does apologize for the harm this will cause, and it's at such a piddly bad time, too. I requested postponing your punishment until after this weekend but your unreasonable owner wouldn't hear of it. I am so dreadfully sorry but it looks like you'll be in no condition to join Big Mama at the annual Hidden City Masquerade Madness Magicon this weekend." She tutted three times with her mouth and finished with: "So unfortunate, it's always been the highlight of the year for us. But you know as well as I do that Draxy always gets what Draxy wants."As he was led into the elevator, X looked behind his back at the powerful yokai in charge who (at the very least) was letting this happen to him. She saw the look of uncertainty in his eyes and merely smiled at him with a gentle, sympathetic-looking grin and raised her hand to wave ‘goodbye’ with her fingers, as was common for her, while promising: "Be certain to let that owner of yours know Big Mama will keep your weapons tucked away, safe and sound, until you return for your next scheduled fight."Then, the last thing she heard before the elevator doors closed between them, was X yelling to her: "Can you at least tell them to stay away from my face!?"* * *~About Two Hours Later~X stumbled over his own feet as he walked from the rear Grand Nexus entrance to the above ground Hidden City portal that would take him home. He was hunched over - almost bent double - with his left arm wrapped around his bloody plastron and the other hand out, grabbing onto whatever was nearby that could help steady him; feeling the sting of pain from a cracked shell for the first time in his life.When they were done dishing out his punishment, X was tossed out into a nearby alley across from the Grand Nexus hotel without having any of his things returned to him. That included his wrist communicator that would’ve come in handy to contact his owner to portal him home; as well as his two cherished katanas, that had been the very first (rare) gift Draxum ever willingly bestowed upon him.A short while later, the badly bruised, beaten, and bleeding mutant ninja turtle shuffled down a hallway and appeared in the entrance to his yokai owner’s lab. When he got there, he switched arms to wrap his injured right one around his gut so he could steady himself by grabbing the worktable beside the entrance, on his left. The goat alchemist was back-on to him, working on one of his experiments, and X glanced down at the blood he accidentally smeared on the table, (as well as the droplets on the floor) hoping his owner didn’t punish him in addition to all of this for dirtying his pristine lab.“Where were you and why didn't you answer your com? You were gone for hours and I required your assistant,” the warrior alchemist curtly demanded, without turning around.“I was out on a date but he didn’t like my puns any more than you do.”“A date?” Draxum asked in confusion. He paused his work to look behind his back, only to see his turtle creation hunched over, beaten worse than ever before, and painted red with blood he hoped wasn’t all his.X weakly smiled up at the shocked yokai and in his typical ‘using humor to cope’ approach to life, he joked: “Don’t go out with any gorilla yokai, they have a fierce temper.”“What happened to you!? Don’t tell me this was from a Nexus fight!”Draxum rushed over to assess the damage, but X was coated in so much blood, with swollen bruises upon bruises, there was no way to get an accurate assessment without first cleaning him up.“Don’t you know? Big Mama told me she was following your orders.”Draxum’s shocked expression changed to one of a calmness that X knew all too well hid intense anger inside.Incidentally, if X was ever asked what was the most redeemable quality of the harsh warrior scientist - who was hyper-fixated on ‘freeing’ yokaikind from their ‘underground bondage’ by turning all humans into yokai-like mutants - he would say it was his blunt, no-nonsense honesty. So the mutant turtle thoroughly believed him when Draxum factually replied:"No, I had no idea this was happening to you, I never would’ve allowed it and I would have stopped this senseless brutality if I knew. This degree of torturous punishment is typical of Big Mama’s style. No doubt she was sending me a clear message regarding my lapse on our deal by taking you out of the ring; and her obvious lie verifies my suspicions that she has been attempting to convince you to betray me and deflect to her.” Then he gestured to X’s bloody body and asked: “Is this all yours? Where are your katanas?”“Yeah, and she took them. Promised to returned them when I show up for my next fight,” X replied. He groaned from the pain and Draxum told him: “There will not be a 'next fight' and don't concern yourself trying to retrieve them, I recently acquired superior weaponry. You are forbidden from participating in that gong show she calls a sporting arena and you are not to have any contact with her or any lackeys you know to be her so-called 'servants.' Stay as far away from her and them as you can get.”“Awww, but she promised to take me to the magicom this weekend, I already made my mask and everything!” X whined as a sarcastic joke.Draxum ignored his sarcasm to (finally) calmly ask: “Do you have any potentially life-threatening injuries?”“There’s too many to know for sure, I can’t make out any one over the others. But they used some kind of giant nut cracker to give my shell a good going over. I thought they were gonna pop me right outta it like one of those springfizzle berries.”“Even through the copious amounts of clotted blood I can clearly see your shell is fractured in numerous places, there may be internal injuries," Draxum commented.A portal to the med bay opened up, and after following Draxum through, his owner gestured to a metal exam table and ordered: "Lay here, I’ll bring you disinfectant wipes to clean off your plastron and check you over for internal injuries first. Then we’ll deal with the deepest cuts and go from there, but I can tell you now, you’re shell is going to need to be reset in a couple of places.”“Oh yaaah and I thought today couldn’t get any better,” X sarcastically replied, before slowly climbing on the table to lay down; with a few groans and a couple of curse words he learned from the Hidden City streets that Draxum normally didn't allow; but decided was understandable and could be overlooked this time, considering the state he was in.The initial relief X felt at finally being able to get off his feet instantly fled away when he realized how painful it was to lay his cracked carapace on a hard surface; and he wished he was standing again but didn't think he had the strength to get up even if he was allowed. His eyes watered from the agony of it all, but he stifled the urge to whimper in front of his strict (and sometimes harsh) owner and also didn’t complain when a white disinfectant cloth was thrown at him so he could wipe off the caked-on blood smeared all over his plastron."They did a number to my face, do you think it'll leave any scars?" he asked while he did that. "There's too much blood to tell but I'll use the mystic stitches, that will reduce the chance of scarring," Draxum flatly replied, not surprised in the least that his badly injured mutant turtle would be concerned over such a trivial matter. However he was surprised when his potentially mortally wounded slave asked:"Can I wipe off my face first so you can look at it?"Draxum shot his head up to angrily glare at him and that was all the answer X needed, so he dropped the subject and quietly resumed wiping off his plastron.When he was done cleaning his plastron, X dropped his hand to his side, still gripping the white-turned-red cloth because he was too tired to bother chucking it in the garbage, and Draxum began the process of using the stethoscope to listen for any internal bleeding.“You didn’t happen to make a mutagen-based painkiller since nothing else works on my mutated body, did you?” X asked hopefully. “There’s no such thing,” Draxum dryly replied. “Figures,” the injured turtle mumbled under his breath.He lay silent and quiet for a few seconds until a thought occurred to him and he asked: “What are you gonna do about that deal you made with Big Mama? Ain’t there two years left on my contract?”Draxum immediately snapped in reply: “Don’t use that pseudo-word, I taught you better, stay away from whatever gutter trash you learned it from on the streets, and my deal with Big Mama is none of your concern.”“Yes Draxum,” X grumbled in reply, only because his rattled, exhausted mind was too foggy to think up an appropriate pun or quick witted comeback in the moment.“Take in a deep breath,” Draxum ordered. “This is gonna be fun,” X muttered under his breath before sucking in a deep breath through his mouth.An abrupt shot of pain when his lungs filled with air made him involuntarily wince his right eye; but when they watered for the second time he was careful not to let a tear roll down his face - considering he already learned his lesson not to cry from pain in front of Draxum when he was seven and miserably lost his very first match against two opponents instead of one.When Draxum was done, X slowly released the breath he held in, and his yokai boss informed him: “There is blood in your right lung but not enough to be concerning. Judging by the damage to your shell, it was likely punctured by a rib. The bone should reset itself naturally when I reset the rest of your shell, and your superbly designed superior mutant body will heal the bulk of your injuries within three to five weeks. You are on strict bedrest for the next six days, minimum.”X silently laughed to himself over the manner in which the prideful Draxum always seemed to find ways to subtly praise his own 'superbly designed' work. Then he hinted at something new he recently learned about humans when he playfully lamented with a snarky grin: “Six days. But I was all set to climb Mount Everest tomorrow.” “Mount . . . Everest?” Draxum asked in confusion. He threw another disinfectant cloth at X and removed his prosthetic before opening a sterilized suture kit to begin stitching the worst of the cuts.X grunted from the pain when he sat up a little so he could reach down to wipe off the deep gash along his left thigh, and calmly replied: “Yeah, it’s a human thing. They like to throw away their lives on a fifty-fifty gamble they'll make it out alive, so they can earn bragging rights ‘cause they climbed to the top of the tallest mountain, or something like that.” “Humans are very adept at throwing their lives away on useless pursuits,” Draxum agreed wholeheartedly while threading the curved suture needle.X finished wiping away the blood and leaned back with an oof, when his carapace made contact with the exam table again - surprised that his yokai owner who hated humans didn’t scold him for his ‘unhealthy interest’ in human affairs - as was the norm.Despite his scoldings though, Draxum never forbade him from venturing above ground to the human city of New York in his free time; or for pursuing his interest in understanding humans better, even to the point of filling his room with human trinkets. The only exception to his view of humans was the Lou Jitsu line of movies he insisted his turtle creation watch, which sparked that interest in the first place. But that was for the one and only reason the scientist who created him with the use of Lou Jitsu dna felt it was prudent to allow his warrior to draw from his genetic strengths, by learning that particular fighting style. Something the young turtle tot ninja-in-training eagerly gobbled up.X winced as his owner began the first stitch; but despite the pain he was in and the humiliation he felt at naively walking right into Big Mama’s trap, he couldn’t help but smile at this pleasant interchange between him and his owner/creator, who raised him from an egg and who he viewed as a father figure; in spite of the harsh punishments for any shortcomings and long hours of intense training he had been put through from a young age.(But he didn’t dare make the mistake of referring to him as ‘dad’ again. He had learned his lesson the hard way on that one when he was younger, just like the harsh lesson he learned today that he would never forget)But just like that, all the warm, fuzzy feelings he felt were wiped away like the blood on his cracked plastron when Draxum’s soft voice switched to his stern tone, that carried the all-too-familiar air of that disgust and disappointment that always cut X deeper than any two-edged sword ever could, when he said:“This happened because you let your guard down around Big Mama. I expected better from you.”In any other situation X wouldn’t dare even consider answering the way he did - but a combination of pain, blood loss, and mental/physical exhaustion left his mind too cloudy to consider consequences. So he angrily blurted out:“This wouldn’t ‘ve happened if you ever once warned me about her!”‘Oops,’ he immediately thought from the angry look Draxum shot at him, but it was too late for take-backsies now.“If you weren’t in your current condition I’d portal you to the bottom of the lapta lake for your disrespectful attitude! And you’re a highly skilled ninja warrior, trained in the art of deception, a warning shouldn’t have been necessary!” Draxum harshly yelled in reply.X turned his head to the side to averted his gaze with a solemn, respectful: “Yes boss, you’re right it won’t happen again,” because apologies were something 'weak-willed yokai used to excuse their bad behavior that they inevitable repeated anyway.’ (Draxum’s words, of course)A memory came to mind of falling out through a portal directly above the middle of the cloudy, pale blue underground lake where hundreds of tiny eel-like ‘lapta yokai’ attacked him with their individually weak - but when combined incessant and painful - electrical pulses and tiny but sharp, needle-like teeth, as he hastily swam to the shore. All because of his disrespectful attitude when he was younger and yelled: “No! I’m not going back!” after he was ordered to return to the Battle Nexus for his first fight after his left leg had been chomped off in that very ring.X kept his eyes averted as he let out a regretful sigh because he knew Draxum was right; that he was trained in deception and should have known better, but his owner wasn't done belittling him yet. As he stitched his gash, he sternly scolded:"Why you consistently have to learn your lessons the hard way is beyond me. I created you with enough intelligence to counteract that, but you stubbornly insist on working against my flawless design."And there it was. The reminder that X was Draxum’s creation - one of his experiments - and not a son.Draxum hadn't even given him a name.X.A title.Short for Experiment Alpha 002-2. 'Alpha' denoting he and his fellow turtle experiments were meant to be the first of many mutant warrior creations (before the fire that destroyed his lab and set him back in his work, shortly after their mutation). And the numerical designation logically referred to their hatching order.
Experiment Alpha 001 (the snapping turtle) hatched first, three and a half weeks before the next two. Being naturally large with the toughest shell, Draxum focused on putting most of his 'mutagenic points' (so to speak) into this turtle's brute strength and size - to be the tank and protector of the warrior ninja team.
Experiment Alpha 002-1 (the softshell turtle) and 002-2 (X - the red-eared slider) were each given a sub-classification because they were incubated together and hatched together - with the slider hatching twenty three seconds after the softshell. Draxum focused heavily on genius-level intelligence for the already genetically intelligent softshelled turtle, which was dually useful to compensate for his lack of natural armor, once he was old enough to design and build his own armor. And he focused his 'mutagenic points' on speed and stealth to enhance the natural abilities of the red-eared slider turtle.
Experiment Alpha 003 (the box turtle) hatched late - five weeks after the softshell and slider, when it was supposed to be three. Draxum figured something happened in early incubation before the egg came to be in his possession, so he put more 'mutagenic points' in enhancing this turtle's raw, natural talents to compensate for any potential genetic flaws in his intelligence; to ensure his ninja warrior training would progress at the same rate as the other three.
That was the end of their conversation, and even though Draxum didn’t hint at a future punishment for his attitude, X couldn’t help but notice that his boss and owner (but not father) was rougher than necessary for the remainder of his stitches and subsequent shell repair. With the entire lengthy process taking place in total silence on the part of both of them.Save for the grunts, groans, and occasional quiet curses from the injured ninja warrior.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
X’s miraculously designed mutant warrior body was mostly healed by the end of three and a half weeks, save for the hairline cracks in his shell that would remain for some time. (And he was relieved to see his ‘good looks’ as Draxum’s self-proclaimed ‘faceman’ weren’t ruined with any permanent scarring, and that the tooth he lost didn't affect his 'winning smile' in any way, because it was one of his back molar)That was good news for the turtle servant of Draxum because of what happened on this particular day. Healed or not, he had to be sent out regardless, to retrieve a dog yokai spy that had infiltrated his boss's base and got away via his portalling powers; taking with him a vial of specialized concentrated mutagen Draxum needed for the next phase of his plan.If X’s mission was unsuccessful it would put his boss behind where he wanted to be in his ultimate life goal; so this took priority over everything else, and X was determined not to let his owner down (for more reasons than one - failure came at a heavy cost).The red-eared slider’s interest in humans often came in handy because he knew some areas of the city of New York well. Like the one he was in now that he flushed the agent into from the Hidden City, where he could have fled to his comrades for support. And now the trained ninja watched from the shadows as the agent he was after huddled underneath the beams of a new building under construction - because humans were constantly tearing things down to build them up again instead of doing the job right the first time.As an added bonus, this particular construction site happened to be alongside the portal leading right outside Draxum’s house. Meaning the dog yokai thief practically gift wrapped himself with a bow tied around his little neck that was Draxum’s concentrated mutagen. This night couldn't get any better!With the exception of the two unusual, long tusks that went down from the upper jaw and curved out, the yokai looked kind of like a scared, lost little orange and blue dog who was shivering on his spot on the dirty construction site ground, even though it was a warm night.Good, that meant it was lost and afraid; all out of ideas with nowhere left to run or hide.“You’re all alone,” X whispered to himself as he slowly approached from the shadows. One wrong move would prompt the agent to portal away before he was within striking distance. Like all other mystical animal-type yokai, his mystic powers were weak; but despite the fact he could only portal short distances, that minor advantage was enough to stretch out the search, because every time X got too close, his prey disappeared and the mutant turtle had to search for him again before he could start the chase anew.In X’s right hand was a brand new odachi that Draxum bestowed upon him before he left for this mission, explaining that it possessed powers he would train him to use in the near future; and in his left hand was a tiny, pink pebble-like item that, when thrown, would expand into a containment orb to capture whatever it came in contact with. It also came equipped with the handy feature of blocking the use of mystic powers, so once the little thief was in it, he wouldn't be able to portal away.Just when he was a few steps away from getting within throwing distance, X abruptly stopped his advance and looked up from a noise that caught his attention. There, for a second, was the big snapper, who he remembered Donnie told him was named Raph in his dreams when he was younger.X’s brother.Raph was jumping down from a building, with the other two turtles and the human girl following behind; and the sight got his heart pumping with excitement. His new plan was to hurry up and send the agent back to Draxum for his boss to deal with, so he was free to intercept the amateur ninja wannabes and have a little fun with them - perhaps, even at some point, revealing who he was to them by taking off the new fox mask he made while on bedrest, to replace the one Raph broke.But when the four of them abruptly jumped into the construction sight right in front of the agent, between him and his target, X’s initial excitement quickly turned to annoyance over the fact that they were making his life difficult yet again by getting between Draxum and his plans. So his hands flopped down by his sides and he threw his head back with a disgruntled groan:“Nooo not these bozos again!”With a huff, X sheathed his odachi on the belt at his left hip to conceal it below his spare, hooded, dark gray cloak, that - like his last one that ripped when he first fought his brothers - came equipped with an extra piece of black fabric hidden underneath he could use to cover his turtle plastron, as part of the 'mysterious ninja' act the betting crowds loved at the Battle Nexus (where he was - thankfully - ordered to stay away from).It also came in handy to conceal his turtle identity from anyone he didn't want to know he was a turtle (at least not yet)When he was done that, X stepped out into the light, deciding to at least try to go with the diplomatic route first.Before stepping out of the shadows, the skilled ninja assassin watched the four with a degree of amusement thrown in among the annoyance he felt at their interference; because of the way these so-called ‘ninjas’ were all huddled around the dog-like agent while they 'oohed' and 'awed' over how 'cute' it was, with all of their backs turned away from any potential danger on the outside as they gave the 'dog thingie' (as they called it) their undivided attention. So much so they didn’t even notice when X stepped out of the shadows and stood mere feet behind them. In fact, he was close enough to the smaller one (‘Mikey?’ he tried to remember) that if he stepped one foot ahead and thrust out his sword, the tip of it would sink far enough into his thick carapace to inflict a critical hit if one knew where to aim (X did).After eyeing them for a moment, waiting to see if anyone would notice him, the trained ninja began growing antsy because he had a vital mission to complete, and decided to get their attention with a casual: “Hey.”At any other time X would have buckled over with laughter from the way all of them practically jumped out of their shells from fright.After their cries of surprise they faced him, with Mikey yelling: “Don’t do that!” at the same time Donnie flatly complained: “Not you again,” in a similar tone the calm, dry Draxum often used.X gave them a friendly wave while looking at them from behind his big cheshire grinning fox mask, and said (lied) in a kind tone of voice: “Thanks for finding my pet, I’ve been out all night looking for him.”He tried to ‘encourage’ the agent to give himself up peacefully by leaning ahead with an outstretched hand, rubbing his fingers together in the same manner he had seen humans do who were trying to coax a cat closer, and copying the high-pitched tone they often used when talking to their pets, when he said: “Come here Squeakers, daddy wants to bring you home.” ‘Squeakers is a human pet name, right?’ he thought to himself. 'Oh well, too late to change it now.'Predictably the agent growled at him and cuddled into the human girl’s arms; and frustratingly the three turtles and human decided now was a good time to ‘play ninja’ again by protecting him.Uuugh, couldn’t one thing just go right for a change?“Welp, I tried.” X reached his right hand beneath his long cloak and pulled out his shiny new odachi. (with a blue handle nonetheless, his favorite color) He very casually pointed the tip of the blade at them, smiled to himself over the fact that they foolishly still weren’t arming themselves, and spoke in a way that reflected how very done he was with this whole situation.“Listen, my boss needs that cute little nasty thief in your friend’s arms and I was sent to, let’s say ‘retrieve’ him. Now I don’t want to humiliate you wannabe ninja action stars, but I will if that’s what I gotta do to get my hands on him.”The one called Raph opened his scowling mouth to say something in reply, but X interrupted him by snorting out a laugh, correcting himself with a comical: “Who am I kidding, of course I wanna humiliate you!” and alluded to their Lou Jitsu movie-style fighting by yelling: “Action!”He jumped up over their heads to swing off a beam and landed behind their backs, facing them in a low fighting stance with enough time to take out at least two of them (if he wanted to) before they fully turned around to face him, finally with their weapons drawn.Raphael came at him first and with the way he held his sai it was evident he had at least some basic training on how to use them. But regardless, X was able to easily dodge out of the way of his attack. And Raph didn’t notice his opponent had been standing in front of a metal beam until after the masked ninja dodged aside and he rammed face-first into it.Raph rubbed his sore snout and then noticed something felt different, so he looked at his hands to see they were empty. “Wha?” He turned around to see the caped person had sheathed his sword and now was holding both of his sai, with one held up high between the tip of his thumb and index finger, tauntingly dangling it in the air. And with the way that infuriating grin stretched across his masked face it looked like he was mocking him. (he was)Next Mikey came at him and in a heartbeat X kicked high, not to jam his foot in the turtle's face but to graze the surface of his nose; making him pull back in surprise and stop spinning his potentially deadly (in the right hands) weapons. Then, he skillfully thrust Raph's said up so Mikey's wrists were in between two prongs, and twisted them in a way that forced the shorter turtle to lose his grip.Before they hit the ground, X swiftly stuck his foot out to catch them, and Mikey whined: “Not again!"Next, instead of kicking the chucks up to his hand, X saw Donnie coming at him from the corner of his eye, so he quickly bent down at the hips to grab the chucks just as a rocket powered bō aimed at his head swung horizontally in an arc over his back, right at Mikey.The box turtle yelped and instinctively popped into his shell to avoid his brother's attack, and in one smooth motion X knocked Donnie off his feet with a sweeping kick and yanked the tech bō out of his hand, before immediately jumping up onto one of the beams of the building's exposed frame when Raphael came at him from behind for another attack, only to miss again.Once he was positioned high up on a beam that was out of reach of the scowling turtles and human glaring at him, he stood straight up to get a better look at his new acquisitions.“Niiice,” X said as he examined the chucks in his hand. “Give those back!” Mikey angrily demanded. Instead, he sat down on the beam with his back resting against a vertical one and a leg lazily dangling down along with his cape, casually swinging it back and forth while holding the shiny sai up to his masked face.“Real authentic Japanese ninjitsu weapons, you don’t see those every day. They’ll look reeeal good in my collection,” X commented in a half impressed half playful tone. “And what is this?” He ignored the baseless threats to return the weapons 'or else' and tucked the sai and chucks into interior pockets in his cloak to get a better look at the purple titanium tech bō in his hands. “I bet I could get a pretty penny for this in the Dark Alley. Ooo is that solid titanium!? How does it work?” “Unhand my tech you foul reprobate!”X completely ignored Donnie’s . . . insult? Was that what it was? He didn’t know what a ‘reprobate’ was but assumed it was meant as some sort of insult. What he didn’t ignore was when he tossed it in the air above his head to get a feel for its weight and center of gravity; but instead of landing back in his hand the agent teleported up to it, grabbed it in his mouth, and teleported down to the ground where Donnie was.“Hey it plays fetch!” Donnie commented with a smile. The agent portalled away to go back in the human’s arms and he said a casual turned shocked: “And teleports, which is…oh my gosh it teleports!”The dog yokai wasn't actually teleporting, that took much more 'mystic mojo' to accomplish. What he was really doing was shrinking himself to fit in a teeny, tiny portal.X didn't bother correcting Donnie's error, instead he muttered under his breath: "Something tells me they’ve never been to the Hidden City."For a brief moment he pictured himself walking through the underground yokai city he called home, showing his three brothers around (and he supposed that human girl with an attitude was alright, too, so she could tag along). Then he decided it was time to get his assignment over with and unsheathed his odachi while jumping down to the ground across from them.“This has been loads of fun, but my boss really wants that dog thingie and he gets super kranky when he doesn’t get what he wants, soo…” he dashed ahead, locking eyes with his faux-target - Raph - and when he jumped, Raph raised his massive fists over his face to block an attack that didn’t come. Instead, X went after his real target by landing his spinning kick on the human. His foot made contact with her gut, she and the agent in her arms were knocked back, and everything happened so fast no one knew quite how he did it - but one second the mystery person knocked April off her feet and the next the dog was inside a pink orb in the girl’s hands.April looked down at the dog that tried unsuccessfully to portal away, but didn’t get anywhere. Then, when X raised his left hand, the orb floated out of her grip and straight to his waiting grasp.Immediately after that, X walked up to a brick wall that was behind his back, and a glowing pink portal opened up on it. He gave the four of them a playful two-fingered salute goodbye, said: “Thanks for the fun, let’s do it again some time!” and jumped through the portal, not realizing first or last the human foolishly jumped straight through behind him before it shut, in an attempt to get the 'dog thingie' back.* * *In Draxum’s lab, the scientist was working on the final touches of the buffer he needed to add the vial of concentrated mutagen to the rather large container of mutant mosquitoes X dubbed 'mutsquitoes.' He looked up when he saw his ninja turtle come in from the corner of his eye, and smiled at the agent confined in the orb in his hands.“Anyone order a grimy thief with a side of mutagen?” X asked, before tossing the orb into Draxum’s hands. His goat yokai boss caught it and held it up in front of his face to look straight at the agent and say: “Excellent, now I can begin the next phase of my plan.”X stuck the tip of the katana on the floor and leaned on it with one leg crossed in front of the other. He lowered his hood and raised his mask over his smiling face with his free right hand, feeling rather pleased with himself for his accomplishment that Draxum indirectly complimented as ‘excellent.’(Or maybe the prideful alchemist was referring to his excellent job at creating the mutagen and the orb that confined the agent; which was the most likely of the two options, but X preferred his more)He watched as his owner reached a hand in through the orb like it was some sort of liquid, yanked the vial off the agent’s collar, and immediately tossed the yokai dog - orb and all - in one of his organic cages on the floor, where green vine-like bars trapped him in place.X sheathed his sword and sauntered over to the cage while Draxum poured the mutagen into the buffer. From there he injected it into a rather large container full of his mutant mosquitoes. The mosquitoes immediately began sucking it up, but X was disinterested in the goings-on of a bunch of yucky bugs, so he stood back-on to the whole thing and crouched low in front of the cage to get a good look at the yokai thief.“What’r you gonna do with this one, boss?” X asked. When Draxum didn’t answer, he turned his head to look at his owner, who was so intensely focused on watching the mosquitoes sucking up all of the mutagen he either hadn’t heard what he said or simply chose to ignore him.It was most likely the latter. After all, they both knew the answer was obvious.X rolled his eyes over the sight of his owner being so fascinated by what amounted to nothing more than a bunch of gross insects, wondering why he even bothered asking, and looked at the dog again while reaching a hand in the cage to try and pet it, like what he saw the human girl doing.“He’s kinda cute in a weird sort of way,” he commented, mirroring something similar to what he heard his brothers say when they were gawking over the scared little dog they found. Naturally, the yokai didn’t want to be petted by the person who captured him, so X abruptly drew his hand back out when he growled and snapped at it.“Cute?” he heard his boss say from behind his back. X kept his eyes on the yokai dog and tipped his head sideways a little, feeling a teensie bit of sorrow over the fact that the creature his brothers and their human friend were trying to save would undoubtedly meet his demise before the end of this very day, and stood up to turn around and face Draxum.“Cute or not I suppose we gotta dispose of the little critter,” X commented, hoping maybe Draxum would get his hint and decide to spare the life of this one. Draxum looked at him suspiciously, curious about his warrior’s sudden empathetic mood, and decided to squash it before those kinds of feelings had a chance to take root, by slowly replying with: “Yes, I suppose you do,” before turning around again to watch his mutant bugs.X patted the top of the cage, and without looking down whispered: “Sorry boy, orders are orders,” before walking away to stand by Draxum’s side. He loosely crossed his arms and they stood silently like that for a few minutes, watching as more and more mutant mosquitoes sucked up the mutagen, before Draxum turned to him and he looked up at his boss when he said: “Now is an adequate time to teach you more about the mystic weapon in your possession, though I am uncertain as to whether its powers will work on a mutant as it does with yokai.”Without being directly prompted, X stepped back to put distance between him and the goat when he unsheathed his odachi, and he held it up with both hands in front of his body. He respectfully kept his eyes on Draxum as his owner slowly paced back and forth while explaining: “This weapon is a very expensive acquisition and I expect you not to carelessly lose it as you did with the katanas I gave to you.”X held back from speaking the rebuttal that was on the tip of his tongue, because he knew blaming Big Mama for his shortcoming in walking straight into her trap would only get him portalled to the lapta lake - or worse, the magma fields. His tail tingled at the memory of a hot ember flying up and singeing the tip of it, and he instinctively curled it up so that it tucked under his shell as Draxum continued.“The properties infused into the metal channels any potential powers inside a yokai. Or in this case, mutant. If the person possesses these inner powers, once initiated this simple act bonds the yokai to the item so that no other person can channel their powers into it until either the item is purged or the wielder dies. Some yokai who have shown absolutely no sign of possessing mystic energy have shown great potential once bonded with such an item, and under the proper guidance and training have gone on to become powerful mystic warriors - some working for the benefit of yokaikind but others for their own selfish gains. But of course you already knew this from your lessons when you were younger."(Was it bad that Leo was already getting bored and had to keep redirecting his mind away from thoughts of fighting his brothers again?) Draxum droned on like this a while longer, and more than once X had to stifle a yawn. During the entire boring speech, the slider stood still with the sword held up in front of his body in both hands and kept his eyes on the pacing yokai. When his boss was done, X summarized the important parts he had been listening to by saying: “Look inside myself, channel my energy, pour it into the sword, and use whatever rad powers come out of it.”Draxum raised an eyebrow at his use of the word ‘rad’ but didn’t correct his mutant’s speech as Leo repositioned his feet, took a deep breath through his mouth, and closed his eyes, concentrating on ‘searching within himself.’ (whatever that meant)A few minutes ticked by with absolutely no results, but as long as Draxum wasn't saying anything or taking the sword away, X knew he was expected to keep trying, and did just that.After two or three additional minutes, he sensed something within himself, like a spark igniting in his chest that grew into a warm, cozy campfire he could feel in his chest, and see in his mind’s eye looked like a glowing blue flame. As he continued searching within himself, a red, orange, and purple light swirled around with his blue one, and Draxum looked down at his creation's chest when a glowing blue symbol unexpectedly appeared hovering in front of it. One that looked somewhat like the human food called ‘pizza,’ with five slices and a single glowing blue pepperoni on each slice.X had no idea there was anything glowing in front of his plastron, and he let out a very slow exhale through his mouth while manipulating his energy to flow from his chest, down his arms, and into the weapon. The glowing symbol faded away at the same time everything but the blue flame retreated inside X’s mind; and a small grin formed on Draxum’s face when he saw blue lightning-like sparks crackle and pop around the blade of the sword, smugly praising himself in his mind over his genius in creating a superbly designed mutant capable of possessing mystic energy.Sensing within himself that he had accomplished his task, X opened his eyes to look down at the odachi, and the crackling lightning was replaced with a blue glow encompassing the entire sword from pommel to tip. The light faded away and X took his gaze off the blade to look up at Draxum’s face. The unusual softness in Draxum’s eyes and smile on his face told him everything his owner would never say out loud; namely:'Well done.'With a step back to give his turtle room, Draxum calmly gestured out to the empty center of his lab to order: “Try it out.”X looked at his sword again and took in another deep breath, slowly letting it out through his mouth to calm his excitedly pounding heart, while his racing mind wondered exactly what sort of natural ‘rad’ powers had been unknowingly hidden within his mutant body for the past sixteen years (and secretly thinking that if he could open portals like his boss it would make sneaking out of his room when he was supposed to be studying so much easier).The hilt of the sword glowed the nicest shade of blue X had ever seen, and the light slowly spread up the blade. But before reaching the tip, it abruptly retreated when the ninja turtle was distracted by a voice calling out behind him:“Anyone here order Chinese?”Draxum glared at the intruder who walked in through the open lab entrance on the far side of the large room, at the same time X spun around, mentally kicking himself for being so focused on his new-found powers that he let his guard down and didn’t even realize anyone else was there until they spoke. But when he noticed what he was looking at was a human, X turned around with a cheeky grin for the warrior alchemist, and asked: “Didn’t you say you need a human test subject?” “Yes,” Draxum dryly replied.X’s smile grew and he gazed around the big lab while yelling: “I need a new LP Eight Ninety cosmic blue Swiftshot Hoverboard with Hydro Action!”“That’s oddly specific,” the warrior alchemist calmly commented.X looked up at him and excitedly exclaimed: “It’s the latest model, the only one that can hover over water. And it comes equipped with all kinds of extra features like stabilizing…” He stopped when Draxum smiled at him while gesturing out with his hand toward the human 'test subject' (who was actually quite calm considering the unusual circumstances he found himself in) and X spun around to face him, noting no one else was walking in the room holding a 'hoverboard delivery.' With a shrug of one shoulder he mumbled: “Worth a shot,” and lowered his fox mask down over his face while walking toward the hapless human who had no idea what he was in for.“Hello, friend,” X said in a creepy tone. He threateningly raised the blade of his sword up diagonally in front of his chest, and the strangely calm delivery boy simply said:“If you’re upset about the new delivery fee I can wave it just this once, but there’s still an extra charge for the dipping sauce.""We have no interest in your pathetic sauce of dipping," Draxum dryly replied, prompting X to roll his eyes at the seriousness of that odd comment, from the warrior alchemist who knew very little about the human world he was working very hard to one day overthrow.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
After locking the human inside a cage beside the dog yokai, Draxum was busy with something to do with his bugs (possibly preparing to try his mutagen on his new test subject). So the ninja turtle used the opportunity to slip away before his boss had a chance to order him to kill the agent right here and now.X went to his bedroom, hung up his cloak and mask on a wooden coat tree he found inside an abandoned human apartment building one day (and later refurbished), and sat back on his bed to better examine his new weapons.At the time, he thought stealing them was a fun and harmless prank to play on his brothers. But now that he had time to think about it, he figured taking what almost definitely amounted to ancient but well cared for family heirlooms definitely did little to endear them to him.Neither would killing the ‘cute dog thingie’ they seemed to be so fond of, and in their own bumbling way did their best to try to protect and save.Truth be told, X really didn’t know how to act around the three mutant experiments who shared Lou Jitsu’s dna with him - aka his biological half-brothers. On one hand they had put themselves in direct opposition to his boss, owner, master, teacher, mentor, and only ‘father’ he ever knew - the harsh, powerful, powerfully influential, genius control freak: ‘the great Baron Draxum.’ On the other hand, they were his very own flesh and blood brothers - his family - and he longed to be a part of what appeared to be a loving family dynamic that they had etched out for themselves in this harsh, cold world.X rolled over onto his back and casually held a sai up over his face - in no way giving consideration to the potential danger he would be in if he lost his loose grip on the handle and the sharp tip went straight into his eye (because that wasn’t going to happen, of course).Although his eyes were on the weapon, his mind was focused on thinking over the many times he had seen siblings in the Hidden City, who were joking around and hanging out and playing pranks on each other all in the name of ‘fun’ and ‘family togetherness’ - like what he tried to do with his siblings. But what at the time (to him) seemed like nothing more than playful pranking he realized now was likely viewed as harmful bullying from someone they viewed as nothing more than a faceless enemy. And he gave serious consideration to returning their rare, ancient Japanese weapons.X switched over to the orange nunchucks next, but once again his mind was a million miles away. Now that he had seen his turtle brothers with his own two eyes and knew they were alive and happy together, old thoughts he had stuffed away long ago resurfaced. Thoughts of wondering what life would have been like for him if he had been raised with them by the father he never knew.By the 'father' who abandoned him, knowingly and willfully leaving him behind on the night of the lab fire, because he was 'too much of a handful' - according to the brutally honest, factually minded goat yokai alchemist, who X very firmly and insistently believed never lied to him.The little he did know about this 'dad' of theirs amounted to a few important things.First, he taught them at least the basics of the art of ninjitsu and likely was the person who bestowed upon them these magnificent weapons.However, he was clearly neglectful as a parent figure to at least some degree; considering he was either completely unaware or completely apathetic to the fact his very under-trained, under-skilled, and inexperienced kids were risking their lives by running amuck in the streets of New York, playing ‘hero vigilante’ like they were some sort of superheroes in their own comedic action movie.The thought of being happy with a family who perhaps even might have loved him to some degree was paled by the glaringly obvious handicap that being more like them in regards to his ninja skillset left a bad taste in X’s mouth.Like the time he ate an entire spoiled footlong sub that had been left out to rot and coated in some kind of bitterly sour and noxious solution Draxum made up, as his punishment for stealing the human food fourteen days prior. The problem wasn’t that he stole it - Draxum never disapproved of theft against human (or yokai as long as it was for the right purpose) - the problem was that his owner had taught him all human food amounted to nothing more than junk that would ‘ruin the growth and function of his ingenious design (referring to X’s growing body) with its poor nutritional value and highly refined sugary poison.’ X learned his lesson (the hard way) and stayed far away from any human food after hurling his guts up for two full days.After giving a glance over the nunchucks in his hands, X noticed a symbol etched into the kontei that he had seen on the sai. A circle cut into five evenly shaped triangles with a smaller circle inside each triangle. He sat up and gave it special attention, figuring it must be the family crest for whoever was the original owner."Welp, enough of that."X got off his bed, tossed the antique weapon on his mattress with the sais, and unsheathed his mystic odachi - so he could distract his mind from the unpleasant task awaiting him of 'disposing' of the cute 'dog thingie' his brothers were so fond of (and possibly having to dispose of another failed half-mutated experiment that was once a human test subject).He held his new sword out in front of his body with both hands, took in a deep breath to help calm his mind, and focused on the ninpo warmth he could feel inside his chest.It took almost a full minute of meditative focus, but eventually X could feel his mystic powers flowing down his arms, into his hands. And the second the blade began crackling with blue ninpo energy, he swung it in a wide arch, ending with the tip pointing straight up above his head.But the only thing that happened was a flash of harmless blue light, which shot out from the blade and disappeared when it made contact with the wall."Huh? That's it?"But that wasn't 'it', and immediately after, the blade X still had pointed up at the ceiling crackled with ninpo electricity again and a glowing blue 'pool' of mystic light appeared under his feet.X used his quick ninja reflexes to get out of the way before he inevitably fell through, and he watched from the sidelines as another glowing blue circle of light opened about two feet above where the tip of the blade had been.They looked like portals, but to be sure, X grabbed a magic 8 ball off his human trinkets shelf to test out his theory. (Incidentally, humans were always throwing around this word 'magic' as though they actually knew what it meant)X tossed the ball into the portal on the floor, and he watched with a grin as it came out of the one above it, to fall back in the bottom one and come out of the top once again in an endless loop."Al-right portals! That's the best mystic power of all!"He reached his hand out, caught the magic-not-magic eight ball to look down on it with a joyful grin on his face over his very useful mystical accomplishment, while giving consideration to all the possible doors this new ability unlocked for him.But at that moment, his thoughtful consideration was interrupted and his head shot up at the sound of a commotion (no, fight) coming from the lab. The portals shut, and he carelessly dropped the trinket on the floor to rush out of his room, snatching up his cape and mask along the way, that Draxum disapproved of but didn't order him not to wear.Instead of running down the hall and straight into the lab through the main entrance like some inexperienced madman with a death wish, X opted for the stealthy route and went in through a way he knew would take him to some beams high up by the exceptionally tall lab ceiling.When he looked down, his heart raced with excitement from the sight of his very own brothers and that stubbornly brave human friend of theirs, (he really should take the time to remember her name) who apparently had come to the rescue of the dog yokai (and he wondered for a brief moment how they got the above ground portal open, and if their appearance in Draxum’s lab had anything to do with the random human who mysteriously showed up and was currently nowhere in sight).He also noticed they already made themselves at home and made up for the weapons he stole by stealing some of the new weapons from Draxum’s weapons room. So his little faux-pas didn’t bother him as much because he figured they were even now, which meant he got to keep their authentic Japaness weapons instead of giving them back, like he had previously decided.A crooked smile came across X’s face at the thought that perhaps these ‘inexperienced bozo ninja action hero wannabe’s’ (as he sometimes referred to them) had more up their shell than he realized, considering they not only found their way to Draxum’s home at the outskirts of the Hidden City, they even managed to find their way to his weapons room and stole some for themselves, before facing Draxum in his lab.That in itself gave evidence of some sort of skillset......or perhaps it was just dumb luck and they actually tumbled through the portal behind him before it shut, and blindly went for the weapons when they stumbled upon that room.Regardless, they were here now, in his boss's private lab, and X watched silently and unseen for everyone but Draxum - who was the only person he could never seem to sneak up on - while clipping the black section of his cloak over his plastron to conceal his turtle identity from them, yet again.Draxum gave no indication he was aware of another presence hovering above their heads as he stood in the middle of the room and addressed his slave's brothers with an impressed sounding: “Accidentally impressive.”On the other side of the lab the three turtles and girl were piled together in a heap with Donnie on top of the big snapper’s shell, foolishly (but not surprisingly) sitting cross-legged with his hunched back facing toward the warrior scientist and his eyes glued to his phone.Clearly there had been a fight in X's absence and bits and pieces of his boss’s gooey giant golem were scattered around everywhere.“Join me, and with a little training you will be as formidable as I had hoped,” Draxum commented, still sounding impressed.His words made X’s heart skip a beat. Would he really have an opportunity to train with his own brothers? They could become the skilled ninja heroes they wanted to be under Draxum’s guidance!After they helped mutate all human life to free yokaikind from their underground bondage, of course; but still, that was a win-win, right?X’s heart sank when he watched his brothers foolishly refuse such a generous offer that would no doubt not be extended to them a second time. A decision he also knew now officially made them the enemies of one of the most powerful yokai in the Hidden City, who wouldn't let anyone or anything get between him and his life's goal.His brothers against his father-figure/strict owner. Not a pretty picture in his eyes.“I will give you one final chance to reconsider. Perhaps a demonstration will prove to be effective.”Wow, a second chance? That was unheard of!Raph ran at Draxum but X got the hint and his much bigger big brother stopped dead in his tracks when the familiar caped figure suddenly and unexpectedly jumped down in between the two of them, facing him with one hand on the floor, wielding his long sword in the other, and looking at the snapper with the big, toothy cheshire grin on that mask of his.Unless Draxum ordered otherwise, X thought maybe now wouldn’t be the best time to reveal who he was to them. Especially when he was expected to follow the command: “Collect those specimens!”X shot ahead at the big snapper, who prepared for a fight. But when he saw a glowing orange kusari fundo heading straight for his boss’s face, at the last second X jump-kicked to the side, knocking Mikey off his feet and ending the mystic part of his attack. The fundo’s glow stopped as it fell to the floor, and without wasting a second X spun around to deal with Donnie, who was coming at him from behind.In the background, X’s keen senses were aware of the clamor of excitement when Raph and the girl ran to Mikey, asking how he did that and wanting a demonstration. X was also curious to know how his estranged younger brother was able to tap into his own mystic powers without any training whatsoever, as though it was the easiest thing in the world, but he didn’t have time to give it much thought right now.The trained ninja warrior circled Donnie in his low ninja fighting stance, but the softshell seemed to be unbothered and calmly stood up straight, telling him: “I added a quick upgrade to my tech, try this on for size! Or more accurately, take this off. This being your prosthetic leg, that is.”X straightened up in surprise at that comment, wondering when his obviously very intelligent brother had the time for an upgrade between their last fight earlier that day and now. And when Donnie clicked a button on his wrist tech, X was even more surprised when the high-grade, impenetrable, sophisticated tech prosthetic that the genius Draxum created malfunctioned and disconnected from his thigh.“Ohmigosh you cut his leg off!” Mikey exclaimed, not realizing it had been a prosthetic all along. But X was used to fighting with a handicap and he had already been well-trained in combat without the use of his tech leg. So once he overcame the initial shock of Donnie having done the seemingly impossible by infiltrating Draxum’s ingenious tech, he decided to have a little fun with his brother - who he had been informed hatched twenty three seconds before him (that practically made him his twin!) by sheathing his sword and picking up his prosthetic to use as a weapon.X skillfully dodged and rolled away from a swing of Donnie’s tech bō, that somehow now had a giant spinning drill on one end and sent bits of floor flying when he slammed down where the slider's head had been. With the skill and precision accomplished by years of training, he jumped up onto his one foot, grinned wildly under his likewise grinning mask, and swung his new prosthetic 'weapon' at his brother’s head, knocking him down in a daze.Before Donnie even registered what had happened to him, X was busy manually reattaching his prosthetic; and by the time his brother got back up on his feet, he was in the middle of locking the knee in place, in a partially bent position that he learned through trial and error was the best angle for combat.“That weapon isn’t regulation!” Donnie (comically) yelled in anger. X looked up at him with a sideways tip to his grinning masked face and asked: “Is this regulation enough for you?” With the flick of a manual switch, eight inch spikes protruded from the prosthetic on all sides - spikes Donnie realized he could have used at any time - like just now, when he slammed the metal leg ‘baseball bat style’ into the side of his face.“I recant, would you like it in writing?” Donnie replied with a nervous gulp. X grinned at him under his mask and briefly glanced in Draxum’s direction, relieved that the fighting yokai didn’t notice he had revealed one of his secret ‘only to be used in an emergency’ additions to the prosthetic. He flicked the switch again to retract the spikes, and Donnie appeared to be more amicable now, as he stood up straight, with his bō non-threateningly held up vertically in his hand with one end on the floor, leaning on it like how X sometimes casually leaned on his sword.X took advantage of the brief moment of peace by joining his brother in watching the chaos around them with amusement; like two spectators for one of those crazy yokai sports X was always sneaking in to watch (not because he couldn’t afford or didn’t want to pay the cover charge with the street money he earned, but because he could). He knew Draxum would disapprove of this particular pointlessly illegal activity, but X figured since he left the amount he owed at the box office before sneaking in, there was no harm done.While they calmly watched together as though they weren’t anything but friends, (brothers) Draxum was busy putting out a small, manageable fire on the other side of the room, where a large chunk of dead golem had been set alight by Mikey’s fundo; which was glowing brightly with an orange mystic flame and streaking around the room in big circles, carrying the hapless turtle behind him who either didn’t have enough sense to let go or was enjoying the ride (he couldn’t tell for sure, the sounds of Mikey’s screams could be taken for both).Standing to the side by himself but facing the big goat yokai was the not-quite-as-big, big snapper, who was grasping his new tonfas tightly, yelling with excitement: “Magic weapons, magic weapons, magic weapons!”X was shocked (mortified more like it) when Raph’s two tonfas glowed red, indicating he had tapped into his mystic powers as easily as their little brother had. ‘It’s not fair! Why do I gotta do everything the hard way!?’ X lamented. He and Donnie kept their eyes on the wildly grinning snapper, both wanting to see what sort of powers he unlocked, but they never found out because at that moment the screaming Mikey slammed into his big brother, sending them both careening across the room, landing with a painful-sounding *thump* and a *thud* against some lab equipment, thoroughly tied up in Mikey’s long fundo chains.Two down, two to go. This was going to be even easier than X originally anticipated.(Too easy. He wanted them to escape.)Without in any way moving to help them, Donnie gestured to his two tied-up, struggling brothers and calmly commented: "That's why I fight the old fashioned way. With impossibly futuristic, high-tech weaponry."Instead of fighting each other, both sets of eyes followed the human girl as she ran across the room to the two turtle’s aid. But since X knew it would take her a while to get them untied, there was no urgency to stop her. So he opened his mouth and calmly said to his brother: (who had no idea they were related in any way) “Draxum’s not a bad guy, and he's got some great plans to make the world a better place. He could train you to be better ninjas if you let him. You could become the greatest ninja heroes the world’s ever seen with his help. Why not take him up on his offer?”X thought throwing in the word ‘hero’ that their big brother seemed to be so fond of would be the figurative grape on top of their plan. (Was it grape or cherry on top? He couldn’t remember. Humans were weird in that they were always referring to food in non-food related phrases, for some reason)Donnie’s reaction wasn’t what he had hoped for when he replied with a sour-sounding sarcastic remark:“Oh yes, the creepy mad scientist who pet-napped an innocent dog and locked it in a cage along with a delivery driver - who he turned into a mutant cod in case you weren’t aware.” “Hm, I wondered where he went,” X commented in a casually dismissive tone. “And let's not forget, attacked us with his giant goopy abomination and sent you after us twice now. Why not take him up on his offer to make us 'better ninjas'?"X was slightly amused at the way Donnie actually used air quotes with his fingers when he said that last part; but that amusement was paled in comparison by the fact they were putting themselves in direct opposition of the great Baron Draxum with their firm refusal and annoying meddling - thereby making them his enemies.And Draxum didn’t have a good track record of treating his enemies in a, let's say, merciful way.X let out a sigh as he watched - but didn’t stop - the girl he heard Mikey call ‘April’ release them from their self-inflicted bonds.“I take it that’s your final answer?” he asked in a sad-sounding voice.“All my answers are my final answer,” the overconfident softshell replied.Judging by the fierce way Raph, Mikey, and April got right into battle with Draxum as soon as they were free, X didn't doubt for a second that they wouldn’t change their minds, either. So he did the only thing he could think of to try and help them out by giving the solemn warning: “That makes you his enemies. I’ll help you get outta here but if you want to keep your heads on your shells take my advice, leave here and never come back. And if you ever see Draxum again. Run.”Donnie eyed the mysterious caped stranger suspiciously and asked: “Why are you telling me this?”Instead of answering, X instructed: “Keep your distance up on the second level, and Draxum will used his mutant vines to attack. They’re fast, you’ll have to stay on your toes, but they’re flammable. We can handle a few flames. When he’s busy using them to fight you, get that April girl to free the dog. He can portal you all out to safety.”Without another word, he shot ahead to rejoin the fight, and when Donnie saw his enemy skid to halt in between Draxum and his family, sword drawn and ready to strike, he rushed ahead to join the fight on the other side, with his brothers.At first, Donnie was silent about X’s plan, thinking it was a trap. During the fight he ensured he kept his eye on the masked figure as best he could; noting that even though the stranger was clearly on the winning side, he was pulling his punches, and missing some potentially harmful strikes by just enough to make it appear accidental. He even seemed to let himself get punched right in his gut by Raph when Don thought he had time to dodge. Although the comical way his eyes widened from surprise under his mask when the snapper’s fist enveloped in a forcefield of red mystic powers at the last second, was a look that would forever be etched in his mind.Raph’s glowing red forcefield fist made contact and the capped opponent was hurtled backwards through the air until he very forcefully crashed through some expensive looking lab equipment.Draxum groaned and rolled his eyes at the sight, before easily blocking a direct attack from April’s metal baseball bat.That was when Donnie groaned: “I don’t know why I’m doing this!” while running over to his big brother.“We’re not getting ahead like this, we need to get to higher ground!” Raph looked up to where Donnie was pointing his bō, which was a higher level that encompassed the perimeter of the entire lab; and with a nod of his head he agreed: “Let’s do it!”X pulled himself out of the rubble left behind by his body slamming through Draxum’s expensive lab equipment, and rubbed the back of his sore head before looking up to see Raph, Mikey, and Donnie were now higher up, further away from his boss, who was so focused fighting them with his vines he was completely oblivious the slider had emerged. Then he looked toward the cage that held the dog yokai, seeing April literally crouched on top of the dome with the organic green bars in her teeth, trying to tear it apart like a wild animal.“Finally!” X exclaimed, seeing his 'keep my brothers alive' plan was coming together. He ran over to the crazy human, who immediately stopped what she was doing to face him, holding the bat up, ready to pound him in the face.She actually did try to pound him in the face when he got too close, but X expertly raised a hand to block her attack and looked her in the eyes to calmly say: “You’ll never get him out like that.” He snatched the bat out of her hand like he was taking candy from a baby and April was all ready to send the fists flying, but stopped herself when he calmly offered it handle-side out for her to take it back.“Uh, thanks,” she said in a confused tone. She kept her guard up but noticed how the so-called ‘enemy’ standing in front of her kept nervously glancing over at the goat yokai who was preoccupied attacking her family.Even after they both had to duck down when a screaming Mikey flew over their heads on the tail end of a flaming orange kusari fundo - effectively setting the mutant vines ablaze - their so-called ‘enemy’ ignored the chaos and continued glancing nervously at the distracted goat as he got to work by hauling out a dagger so fast it seemed to come from nowhere; and stabbed it straight down in a place he knew was a weak spot that would short out the mechanics of the cage.X had to wiggle the blade around a bit to sever all the necessary connections, and as he did so he calmly instructed April: “They’ll never get control of their powers that way. The ninpo is connected to their emotions and it won’t work right until they learn to calm their minds. Meditation helps, there.”Suddenly the dog was freed and it jumped in April’s arms. “He can portal you out. I’ll go left, you go right.” “Why are you helping…and he’s gone.” April frowned at the caped mystery person who swiftly ran away, and she hurried in the other direction like he said, undoubtedly so the bigger guy they were fighting named ‘Draxum’ wouldn’t suspect they had been together; so he could help her for reasons she didn’t understand.By the time X got to his owner’s side and April reached her family, all three turtles were wrapped up in Draxum’s organic cocoon nets.“It's about time," Draxum flatly commented over the fact that his turtle creation only got back into the fight this very moment. Then he calmly ordered: "Kill the human, confine the others.”With a swift nod X darted ahead, and when he jumped it appeared as though the blade of his sword was going to go straight down through April. But the last thing she saw was the look of fear in her rescuer turned attacker’s eyes - who clearly didn’t want to kill her but was doing as ordered - when the dog in her arms portalled them all to safety.X’s sword sank deep into Draxum’s floor and he secretly breathed a sigh of relief before yanking it out and standing on his feet.“Hurry up and help me get this fire under control!” Draxum curtly ordered next. X turned around to see his boss was busy fighting flames that were spreading and growing much faster than he anticipated when he suggested this plan. And worse still, when the overhead sprinklers turned on, over half of them were clogged with golem goop, rendering them completely useless.X grabbed a yokai device similar to a human fire extinguisher, but the fire was far too much out of control for either of them to deal with, and it was quickly spreading to the center power supply behind his owner’s back.In a last-ditched effort to save his owner's life work, X ran toward the center, where the mutant bugs were stored above the power supply. He hit the button that released the bugs while simultaneously opening a giant portal to New York above the tank, just when the fire reached the explosive power conduit.“Draxum look out!” X yelled. Draxum turned around to witness the power cell ablaze as the ninja turtle dashed to his boss, begging his sword: “Please work please work please work!”Less than a second before the explosion he skidded in front of his owner and in a flash of bright blue light they both fell through a portal and were gone.X and Draxum appeared in another flash of blue light, at the exit portal location on a hill a safe distance away, and they watched as his lab was destroyed before their eyes. But it wasn’t a total loss because in amongst the black smoke rose the huge mass of his mutant mosquitoes, which one and all went through the scientist’s overhead portal en masse.X discreetly searched around for his family, hoping they escaped, but they were nowhere in sight. He hoped that meant they already went out through the portal they came into, and he abandoned his search to look up at Draxum’s stern face when he asked:“Why were you conversing instead of obeying my command?”X’s fearful mind told him Draxum had witnessed everything: his peaceful discussion with the human girl, how he gave her back her weapon and then disobeyed his boss’s orders by freeing the ‘dog thingie’. When he continued staring up at his owner a little too long, his boss firmly asked with an air of disgust: “Do you have yet another concussion?” “Uhh, concussion? Yeah, maybe.”X rubbed the back of his sore head and Draxum took his unsure answer as a ‘yes’, and sighed before saying slowly and clearly: “Why weren’t you fighting the softshelled specimen?”‘Ohhh, the softshell!’X’s composure relaxed significantly and he rested his life-saving odachi over his shoulder, on the lip of his carapace, while raising his mask up to rest it on top of his head; to smile up at Draxum and say: “I was trying to convince him to let you train them.” “How did it go?”X figuratively breathed a sigh of relief that Draxum accepted this answer as acceptable. He sheathed his odachi, gestured vividly to the burning building with both outstretched arms, and replied: “How do you think it went?”He rested his hands on his hips, watching the smoke billow up from Draxum’s lab, and wondering if they had any of the yokai food called keeno-kababs to roast over the fire as his ‘using humor to cope’ approach to this whole situation.Draxum hummed in acknowledgement and turned his body to face his home as well. They silently watched it burn from the center only, side by side father owner and son slave, and - without in any way mentioning X's rad new mystic powers that saved them both - Draxum calmly told him: “I managed to seal off my lab from the remainder of my house before the explosion. The fire is contained. Once it is extinguished we will work at rebuilding, and I will improve the sprinkler system.”They continued watching the smoke billowing side-by-side, until X looked up at his owner and calmly said: “At least the bugs got out,” hoping to receive even an indirect word of praise for his quick thinking in releasing the mosquitoes into New York before it was too late - each of which were filled with the mutagen designed for humans that took the scientist warrior years to perfect a second time after the first lab fire.“Yes, and the mutagen was a success, so it wasn’t a total loss, but this setback will delay my work further.” “You got that right,” X emphatically agreed, deciding that was the best indirect compliment he could hope for.The sound of a secondary explosion got X’s attention, but it wasn’t nearly as big as the first one. As he watched a smaller plume of purple smoke join the first one, his heart sank in his chest at the sound of Draxum’s calm but firm voice when he said: “You know what to do if you encounter those failed experiments again.”'Kill them on sight,' was the unspoken command.After letting out a deep sigh, the obedient ninja slave simply replied with a solemn: “Yes, boss.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
X was finally able to spend some leisure time above ground after five long weeks of doing nothing at all but eating, sleeping, showering, and working on repairing the immense damage done to Draxum’s lab. He was so exhausted by the end of every day he didn’t even have the time or energy to train with his newfound (rad) mystic powers.It wasn’t until partway through day four that Draxum finally had a look at his locked-up tech prosthetic. All he did was use a special tool he kept on his person to pop open a section on the back (that he refused to give X access to) and flick a switch that acted as a sort of breaker to prevent the system from being fried when it was overloaded. That turned the tech part of it back on so that he didn’t have to limp around with a locked-up knee or rely on the uncomfortable manual clamps to keep it attached to his stumped leg. After somehow finding a way to blame X for what happened, Draxum commented that he would get around to upgrading his tech and improving the manual backup for the knee at some point in the distant future, when he had the time; and naturally X spent the next few days grumbling to himself over how easy that was and how he could have done it himself if given access. But he never once let his currently furious owner (who kept taking his anger out on his turtle slave in various ways, which was unusual for the warrior alchemist who prided himself on his 'perfect' self control) know his inner thinkings on that particular subject.Both X and his boss worked together so diligently for such long hours the lab was at least in a workable state now, after those five weeks. So after a long day's work, Draxum gave him the evening off under strict orders to use that time to train with his new powers. Which was what he did for the first three hours with limited success. And now he was on the lookout for the reclusive, above-ground yokai restaurant known as Run of the Mill, that catered to yokai who left the Hidden City to live in New York, concealed as humans.Despite the name, there was nothing ordinary about this restaurant, if rumors were true. Word on the mean streets of the Hidden City told tales of the owner having been a ruthless, cutthroat pirate exiled from the underground yokai world, and who now ran the New York yokai restaurant as a front for an illegal exotic mystic weapons trading operation.All of that intrigued X but he knew street rumors were often over-embellished half-truths or outright lies. Besides, what he was really after was a taste of the cuisine, that he heard was a tantalizingly delicious combination of yokai and human food. Draxum strongly insisted X stay far away from eating the ‘human filth those idiots call food’ and he had learned his lesson the hard way to obey that order; but human food mixed with yokai food cooked in a yokai restaurant by yokai staff? That was a different thing. At least in X’s mind, but he never once went to Draxum for confirmation.After experimenting with his new powers, X learned he also had an innate ability to see mystic energy (something he referred to as ‘ninpo’ in reference to his powers, because he learned through his mandatory studies when he was younger that was the Japanese yokai equivalent). Right now that ability was spotty at best and when he was able to successfully access it, the vision lasted no more than a few seconds. But that was long enough for him to spot a mystic energy signature in an alley on the side of a brick wall of an unassuming office building.After ninjaing over to the building on the roofs, X checked that the coast was clear before jumping into the alley, where he stood in front of the unseen, closed portal. He decided to lower his hood and take his mask off to clip it to his belt, so he wouldn’t be taken for a robber when he first went in; but when he clicked at his wrist tech to open it, this portal didn’t respond.X tipped his hip to the side, rested a hand on it, and rubbed his chin while gazing at the portal he knew was there, trying to figure out how to get in. After four or five tries, he was able to use his powers to see the energy hidden to the naked eye; and the crisp color signatures he got a clear look at were a mixture of pink swirled with dark purple.All Hidden City portals were various shades of pink, and the purple swirls indicated this one was a typical ‘run of the mill’ (so-to-speak) portal that had been altered in some way so not just any random thug from the Hidden City (like him) could stroll right in.With a little bit of trial and error, X gradually changed the frequency of the energy output in his portal app and eventually the portal door spread open from the center, with glowing purple and pink edges, clearly revealing a bustling yokai restaurant on the other side.“Oh yeah!” the ninja turtle happily exclaimed. With a click he saved that frequency in his app for future visits and sauntered inside, with the portal automatically shutting behind him.At first glance it appeared to be an ordinary restaurant that had a mixture of human and yokai decor, and was filled with mostly yokai patrons. But there was also a scattered human here and there; which X didn't think was unusual, because he occasionally saw the random human with yokai connections walking about freely in the Hidden City, as though nobody cared in the least if humans and yokai cohabited.(Something X always thought was strange, until he met the 'crazy rad' human girl, April)No one paid the cloaked ninja any mind except for a skeleton yokai X noticed glanced up at him once or twice from behind the till. As he gazed around the unassuming room, looking for a place to sit, he figured he understood now why the restaurant was named ‘Run of the Mill;’ until his eyes settled on a simple doorway with the words ‘Maze of Death’ written above it.X’s life was already full of enough ‘adventure’ he had no interest in whatsoever in trying out the maze. But the little opening tucked away in the left corner got him thinking: ‘Hm, maybe the yokai who owns this place was a pirate.’Although a few tables were empty, X preferred to keep a low profile and searched for a suitable booth tucked away in the corner somewhere.That was when he saw it - a small, unoccupied booth squeezed into a tight spot at the back right corner located in between a larger booth and the wall, like it had been nothing more than an unplanned last minute addition when the restaurant was first built. Which was a strategic spot to sit, because it meant if X sat facing the back wall instead of sitting with his back against it, most of his turtle frame would be discreetly blocked from the view of others by the back of the seat; but he could still keep an eye on the goings-on in the restaurant out of the corner of his perceptive ninja turtle eye.There was the added bonus that the booth ended inches away from the mens washroom door, with the ladies door to the left of that one; meaning he had a up close view of every single yokai coming and going from the two bathrooms. All of this combined made it the perfect place for an assassin like him to sit.X casually walked up to the booth that most yokai would have avoided considering it’s old, worn-out look, narrow table, cramped location, and close proximity to the bathrooms. When he got there and sat down, he took note of his surroundings with a smile on his face.The cushioned two-seater benches were well worn and a different color and material than the other booths, as though this one had been skipped during the last renovation. A few of tears in the fabric had been covered by some kind of smooth, black strip of bonding material X didn’t know was human duct tape, and the faded material itself had a blue diamond pattern with beige outlines rather than the red outlined black squares on the other booths. The wooden table was just as well used, with the darker finish being worn away at the corners - sporting knife cut marks all around the edges, as well as a few spots in a C shape on the surface, indicating that was where most yokai put their coffee cups over the years.All of this combined made X feel right at home. Although he lived with his owner in a large, exquisite, state-of-the-art house, he spent most of his time on activities that took him away from the luxuries he enjoyed there during his free time - things he enjoyed because Draxum didn't seem to care in the least about what his slave did when he wasn't needed.(Luxuries for the slave included a warm bed in his own private bedroom, hot showers, all the healthy, nutritious food he wanted, and even free access to Draxum’s many amenities like his well-stocked workout room, training room, pool, and hot tub - providing it wasn't in use and he cleaned up after himself when he was done) Much of X's time was spent fighting in the heavily damaged Battle Nexus ring, running around on the wrong side of town completing back-door errands for his boss, going out on 'assignments' he was ordered to complete, slinking around in the dark, dirty alleys of the Hidden City selling homemade portal chips and accepting shady job offers in his free time for a little cash in his pocket, shopping, trading, or lounging around in the Dark Alley, pulling off tricks in one of the many skateparks on an old, used hoverboard he bought and refurbished, or sticking to the alleys, rooftops, and abandoned buildings when exploring New York City.All in all this had been exactly what X had been looking for and he comfortably settled in. The menu was already sitting on the table when he got there, and he picked it up just in time to conceal his identity from a yokai who glanced his way when he left the bathroom. A yokai X recognized as someone Draxum wanted dead a couple of years prior, and who fled the Hidden City and was never heard from again after news reached his ears that the kappa ninja hitman of Baron Draxum was after him.The ninja turtle slave made a mental note to stake out the place at a later date to finish the job.But not now.Now he was relaxing by grabbing a bite after a very long day following a long few weeks.So he picked out the new-to-him human food called ‘pizza’ with yokai toppings he knew he liked, and waited for the waitress to take his order.“What’ll you have, hon?”When X raised his eyes to look up at the waitress, a crooked grin formed on his face at the sight. Instead of telling her what he wanted right away, he rested his left arm on top of the cushioned back of the booth to fully face her with a simple: “Hi.”(He didn't need to say much, he was the 'faceman' after all)Standing beside him was a tall (about his height), curvy maroon-colored fox around his age, with long, triangular pointed black ears. Most of her short muzzle was black as well, with a strip of white running down the center of her bottom jaw, and extending out as long white fur on her chest that contrasted with the deep maroon surrounding it on either side. Her brown eyes were so dark they almost appeared to be black, and her paw-like hands were black fading into maroon at the elbows. She wore a short dress under her black apron that was the same color as her fur, only darker, sported a pair of black leather boots that went up to her knees, and X could only guess that the fur on her tail behind her back looked to be just as silky and soft as the rest of her fur. But the piece de resistance was the black knife strapped to the belt on her thigh.The blade was just under the length of his forearm from wrist to elbow, and he recognized it as an expensive Kirasuka made in Japan, sold in limited quantities, and very good quality. In fact, it was something he had been trying to get his hands on for a long time. And judging by her appearance and the way she carried herself, she knew how to use it.
“Can I take your order?” the polite fox asked, with a gentle smile X wasn’t sure was something she gave to all her customers or if it was an indication she was interested. His eyes flicked away from hers for a split second when he noticed the skeleton behind the till glaring at him again, but he couldn’t care less and went ahead to give her his order with his winning ‘faceman’ crooked smile.The waitress wrote down what he said on a pad of paper and said: “Ok hon, I’ll get that in right away.” When she turned around to leave, X looked down at her maroon tail that was just as thick and silky as the rest of her fur, and had a stylish tiny white tip on the end. He wondered if it felt as soft as it looked but held back from doing what he wanted to do by reaching out to touch it.(The thought that - maybe if he played his cards right - he could find out later was a huge incentive to hold back)The grinning ninja turtle watched the waitress on her way back to the kitchen doors, completely ignoring the skeleton who kept glaring at him every chance he got in between serving paying customers, for the entire duration of the time the turtle ninja waited for his food. It wasn’t until after the fox clearly flirted with him when she dropped off his pizza (with him reciprocating, of course) that the skeleton yokai decided it was time to act.This time on her way back to the kitchen X didn’t watch the fox waitress, because his eyes were glued to the incredible food sitting on the table in front of him. And the smell! X’s mouth watered from the delectable scent wafting off the pizza and reaching his nose, and he couldn’t wait to dig in. But as he raised the ooey gooey cheesy (that was what it was called, right? Cheese?) slice up to his waiting mouth, the skeleton yokai who had been eyeing him ever since he stepped through the portal, approached so swiftly and silently his keen ninja senses didn’t alert him to a presence until he was almost within striking distance.When the yokai firmly planted the palms of both hands on the table, X lowered his slice and casually eyed the person he assumed was the business owner up and down from the corner of his eye, without fully turning his head to face him in a: 'I couldn't care less about what you have to say because you're nothing to me' kind of way. The skeleton leaned his bony face in close to his and said in a stern, commanding voice: “I know your type and I don’t want any trouble in my restaurante.”X huffed out a single laugh and fully turned his body to face him, with the slice in one hand; grinning and still looking far too casual for anyone with an untrained eye to realize how deadly he could turn in the blink of an eye.“And what exactly is my type?” X asked in a half amused half threatening tone of voice. He looked the yokai up and down again and made the message that couldn’t care less about him or this conversation even clearer by causally sinking his teeth into the tip of the slice.But that changed everything.Despite trying his best to keep his cool, the skeleton couldn’t help but notice the way the kappa's eyes widened for a split second when the food entered his mouth. The flavor explosion of yokai toppings combined with human dough and sauce and oh the cheese! tantalized his taste buds and he wanted to greedily shove the whole slice in his mouth, but restrained himself by settling for biting off a small piece.‘Ok, don’t piss this guy off, you don’t wanna get banned,’ X thought to himself. It was at that point he realized the skeleton was in the middle of answering the question he completely forgot about until now, because he hadn’t been paying attention.X resisted the urge to take another bite and helped himself maintain self control by putting the slice back with the rest of the pizza. Then he sat up in a more respectful manner and looked up at the yokai again, but dropped the attitude.“...and I saw you watch Toresno on his way out of the baňo. He is a regular customer of mine and if he disappears I will put a bounty on your head, kappa.”‘Woah, this guy’s good! I bet he really was a pirate!'’ X thought, deciding he should stay on guard around this particular yokai.Despite wanting to be polite and respectful for his own selfish reasons, X couldn’t help but smile at the business owner and say (throwing a pun in for good humor):“When I first saw you I thought you’re nothing but another average, run of the mill yokai. But I’m starting to believe you really were a cutthroat pirate.”“Looks can be deceiving and one more thing before I leave you to your meal. Stay away from Yolinda. If you as much as touch a single strand of fur on the tip of her tail I’ll have my chef chop you up for turtle soup.”Instead of responding to the threat with one of his own like he usually did in situations like this, a big grin broke out on his face when he replied with a cheerful: “You got it, bone man,” because he was thinking: ‘I like this guy!’Naturally the skeleton didn’t smile in return, and sternly said: “I’ll be keeping a close eye on you,” as his ‘goodbye’ before turning around to walk away.“What happened to looks can be deceiving?” X called out in a calm manner, while picking up his slice. The skeleton stopped walking, turned his head slightly to see him out of the corner of his eye, and sternly replied: “For you, I will make an exception. And we have a five weapons or less rule in my restaurant, kappa. I expect you to adhere to that on your future visits. I will be happy for you to never show your face here again and stick to the Hidden City streets where you belong, but since this is clearly your first time tasting pizza I’m sure I will be seeing a lot more of you in the near future.” “You’re good!” The red-eared slider happily exclaimed in amazement at both astute observations; but especially because of the weapons comment. He wondered if the yokai had a 'mystic powers' way of detecting the many concealed weapons on his person, or if he had enough experience to know someone like him would naturally carry around at least a dozen or so concealed weaponry in their arsenal.The owner merely hummed in acknowledgement, but before he resumed walking away the slider picked up his first slice again and - in no way offering his 'name' (he knew the rough skeleton wouldn’t use it, anyway) - said: “What’s your name? I figured I should know since we’re going to be such good friends.”He stuck the delicious food in his mouth, where the flavors once again exploded on his palate, and still without turning around the owner curtly replied: “Hueso. But you can call me Seňor.”X swallowed his mouthful of food, knowing full well Hueso meant for him to refer to him as ‘Seňor’ and nothing else; but he decided to test the waters by replying: “You got it Seňor Hueso.” He raised a nonexistent eyebrow, watching him closely for any sort of reaction, but the bone man didn’t give away a single clue regarding how he felt about that, not even as much as twitching a pinkie finger or tensing his shoulders. Instead, he simply resumed walking away, thereby giving the unspoken agreement they both understood to mean ‘Seňor Hueso’ would be acceptable. For now.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
X enjoyed every bite of his delectable pizza, so much so that even after he was sufficiently satisfied he scarfed down the last three slices he had originally planned on bringing home to save for later. He had a contented grin on his face when the ‘foxy’ waitress (who he stopped flirting with for fear of getting banned but who had been flirting with him all evening) brought the bill.That was when his smile fell.There, at the bottom of the bill, was the amount he owed, with the human '$' sign he was familiar with because US human currency was frequently accepted throughout the Hidden City. What he wasn’t familiar with was the blank spot beside the total where the '§' symbol representing ‘yen’ should have been, showing him how much he owed in the century's-old, worldwide yokai currency; which happened to share the name with a type of human currency by pure coincidence, and which also hapened to be accepted everywhere in the Hidden City.Indicating it was not accepted here.“Uuughhh,” X moaned loudly. He slammed his elbow on the table so hard it made an audible bang and slapped his hand on his face to rub his forehead in frustration; muttering under his breath, too low for the waitress to hear: “I’m gonna get banned for sure.”After that, X revealed what was bothering him so much when he groaned into his hand: “I don’t have human money, I only carry yen.”He looked up at Yolinda’s silky smooth black muzzle when she bent at her hips to lean her face close, and said with a smile: “Don’t worry, hon, Hueso’s forgiving with new customers from the Hidden City, we can work something out.” Then with a wink she added: “I’ll go put a good word in for you.”X looked down to see the fox had put her cute paw-like hand on his left leg, above the prosthetic, and although it felt even softer than he expected and he wanted to let her keep it there, his keen ninja senses alerted him to a set of skeleton eyes glaring at him from across the room, so he pushed her hand away while uncomfortably squirming out from under it.“Something tells me he’s not going to be very forgiving for me. Especially if you don’t stop flirting with me like that. He told me to stay away from you,” X bluntly told her in no uncertain terms.“Don’t mind Tío Huseo, he can be a little overprotective but I’m sure he’ll listen to reason.” "Tío Hueso?” X repeated in a concerned tone of voice, having a good enough grasp of the Spanish language he occasionally overhead in the Hidden City, to realize she was calling Seňor Hueso her uncle. He flopped back in his chair and rested the back of his head on the cushion while staring up at the ceiling and groaning: “That’s it. I’m banned for sure.”“What seems to be the problem here?”As if he could hear their conversation, Hueso suddenly appeared; and if it wasn’t for his keenly trained ninja senses that saw him coming out from behind the counter where the cash register was, X would’ve sworn he appeared right beside the sweet fox yokai with some kind of teleporter or invisible mystic powers.“Tío...” “Thanks, but I can handle it,” X interrupted in a kind tone of voice. He sat up from his position lounging back in the booth and respectfully made eye contact with the skeleton as his fox niece gave him a peck on his cheek before saying: “I’ll clean twelve,” and then quietly whispering: "Go easy on him."But her 'Tío' didn’t acknowledge her in any way before she walked away, because he was busy keeping his angry eyes locked firmly on the 'kappa yokai' in front of him.“Let me guess, you left your wallet at home,” Hueso sternly said as soon as Yolinda was gone.“It’s not like that, I got the money but I never carry human cash, I only have yen. You should’ve put up signs or something!” X defensively replied in an almost whiny tone.“We do have signs, kappa.”Hueso pointed with a outstretched arm at the clear, unmistakable 'no yen' sign, that was the '§' in center of the easily recognizable red prohibition circle stuck to the wall at the booth X was in, indicating they didn’t accept yen. Now that he saw it, he realized there was the same sign at every table and a big one he had walked right past at the front entrance.‘How is it I can spot a flemming tick on the hair of a lakkerpig from fifty yards but not something so obvious as a hundred signs right in front of my face?' X lamented in his mind. Then he decided to try pushing his luck by referring to a Hidden City law, and asked: “Aren’t all yokai stores supposed to accept yen?” “We are not located in or affiliated in any way with the Hidden City,” the angry store owner sternly replied.X smiled at him and joked: “You know you’re really giving off a big ‘exiled ex pirate’ vibe.” But he wiped that smug grin off his face when Seňor Hueso snapped: “I knew you were a troublemaker from the moment you stepped foot in my establishment! Now, kindly…” “No wait, I’m sorry!” X blurted out when he saw the skeleton owner thrust out his finger, pointing to the exit.Hueso stopped himself and lowered his hand, willing to at least listen for no other reason than the clearly hardened teenage criminal was willing to humble himself by saying the ‘s’ word most yokai teens and hooligans refused to add to their (usually limited) repertoire.(A word X usually never uttered because of his ninja warrior training under Draxum. But desperate times called for desperate measures)“How was I supposed to know this place isn’t in the Hidden City, that portal could lead anywhere! There’s no way your restaurant's really inside a human office building!” X exclaimed in a whiny sort of tone again.“I also have a portal in the back that leads to a giant razor-fanged terrorworm pit and I would be more than happy to give you an up close and personal view if you like, kappa.”X’s whole posture relaxed and he said with a crooked grin: “Aw c’mon, you can’t expect me to believe you were never a pirate!” But with the aggressive glare he got in return he once again wiped the grin off his face and nervously put both hands up.“Ok ok I get it, I’ll get the cash, just give me five minutes. Fifteen tops. If I’m not back you can put that bounty on my head. Either way it’s a win for you,” X said in an almost pleading tone - something he normally refused to do - and planning on resorting to theft by pick pocketing however many New Yorkers it took to get the right amount of cash he needed (along with a generous tip for Yolinda, of course). And he wasn’t above begging for the second time ever in his life, if that was what it took to avoid getting banned from the restaurant he felt sold the best food that ever existed.When Seňor Hueso angrily looked him up and down instead of answering, for good measure X hastily threw in the offer: “I promise I’ll never go after any of your customers, even if I’m sent out on a hit, just pleease don’t ban me!”‘Oops,’ he thought, realizing he just incriminated himself as a street thug who worked for someone that sent him out on hits; and figuring he just dug his own grave (while really hoping that promise didn’t come back to bite him on his turtle tail later). But instead of immediately kicking him out, Hueso seemed to be silently considering his offer.But only because the Hidden City 'street thug' surprised him yet again with his respectful use of the word 'please'; making him wonder if there really was more to him than his outward appearances indicated. There was only one way to find out - by putting this 'kappa yokai' to the test.After a brief, reflective pause, the skeleton yokai relented. His tense posture relaxed with a sigh, and in an almost defeated ‘I don’t have time for this’ tone of voice, he said: “Theft will not be necessary.” He turned around and raised his hand to gesture with his bony fingers for the kappa to follow behind.X got up to follow him, and asked: “What makes you think I wasn’t gonna get cash from a dollar-yen exchange?” referring to one of the many machines found along the Hidden City streets where, for a fee, yokai could exchange US human currency for yokai yen currency, and vice versa.Hueso continued walking but turned his head far enough to see the slider out of the corner of his eye when he asked: “Were you?” “Got me again,” X replied with amusement and a grin, before playfully adding: “I could really see you with an eye patch. Hey, you don’t happen to have a peg leg under those pants, do you?”Hueso replied in an unamused tone: “You shouldn’t believe everything you hear on the streets.” Then X grinned wildly when he added: "And my limbs can be reattached." He bit his bottom lip to stop himself from saying an absurd joke on the tip of his tongue that he knew would come out with a bad pirate accent if he opened his mouth, thus getting him banned for sure. Then they went through one of the double swinging kitchen doors and X unbit his bottom lip when he gazed around in wonder with a smile, never having seen the inside of a restaurant kitchen before.“I don’t believe everything I hear," he casually told the bone yokai. "But I’ve been around long enough to know an ex-con when I see one.”Hueso simply kept walking instead of chastising or correcting him, and suddenly X's smile fell and he tensed in preparation for a fight when a thought hit him.“You’re not leading me to that back portal, are you?” he asked seriously. Along the way through the kitchen he eyed a rather massive, broad pink chef who was known as a brute-type yokai, had three pairs of muscular arms, and stopped his work long enough to crack all six sets of knuckles - three at a time - while glaring straight at him, with the fire from a giant brick oven behind his back giving him an even more menacing appearance. ‘I can take him,’ X thought smugly.“Not yet. I am bringing you here.” Hueso stopped in front of a large double sink sunk in a countertop to the left of the chef’s workstation, on the other side of the brute yokai's big counter where he was making pizzas, with the two countertops connected on the end like a big L.The brute's pizza oven was built into the right wall; and the chef was standing between that and his counter, where he was currently working; while the dishwashing station that faced away from the kitchen swinging doors, toward the back exit, happened to be directly in sight of the brute chef, and also happened to have piles upon piles of dirty dishes to the left of the sink that were so high, when X looked up he knew he still wouldn't be able to reach the top even if he climbed up on the counter.“Our dishwasher quit six days ago.” “Eugh boi that’s a lot of dishes, do I gotta…” X stopped mid-sentence and gazed around in surprise when he realized Seňor Hueso was gone.“How does he do that!?” he exclaimed in wonder. When he was certain Hueso had left the kitchen he gazed up at the impossibly tall pile of dirty dishes right in front of him, and Yolinda came in just in time to hear him gripe: “Aw man, my boss is gonna chop off another leg when I’m not home by midnight!” (Referring to the mandatory curfew Draxum put in place while they worked on repairing the lab, so his useful turtle creation wasn't out over half the night, leaving him too tired to be a beneficial help when they began work early each morning. Not that the exhausted, overworked slider had the energy for skulking around on the Hidden City streets once their workday was through)Despite his internal monologue grumbling and trying to convince him even the most delicious food in the world wasn’t worth all this and he should bail, he had been taught better than that. 'Besides, if Draxum found out I bailed, the punishment for not sticking it out will be worse than the one I'm gonna get for breaking curfew' he reasoned in his turtly heart.Without further ado, X put the plug in the sink and filled it with soap and water; before searching around for a pair of dish gloves so he didn’t get his valuable (lotioned, manicured, well cared for) fighting hands pruney and gross, but there weren’t any. So with a disgruntled groan he lifted the first of many piles of dishes to put them in the sink and stuck his bare hands in the hot, soapy water to get to work, mumbling under his breath so no one else could hear his complaint: “My manicure’s gonna need a manicure,” and being sure to do a good job cleaning because that was how he did all of the work assigned to him, after already having that important skill beaten into his head by learning the hard way.Before X got through washing the first plate, he sensed he was being watched and looked to his right to see the grotesquely large brute chef locking his solid black eyes on him, without blinking or looking down to give his attention to the three sets of hands hard at work making two pizzas at once. X’s eyes narrowed and he gave him a small, cocky grin, turned his body to face him, and pushed his cape back off his left hip, flashing his long, sheathed odachi at him. The unintimidated chef snorted out a rough-sounding laugh, flipped a large butcher knife in the air, skillfully caught it in his top right hand, and cut a big lump of dough in half with one swift chop...And for the rest of the night they had a silent understanding; namely:‘don’t cross the invisible line we drew between us.’* * *~A Few Hours Later~Despite the fact the ‘bully bug’ (as X secretly named the chef after finding out his nickname was ‘Bully’) glared at him every time Yolinda stepped foot in the kitchen, he decided to completely ignore him rather than do the ‘fun’ thing by finding childish ways to antagonize him (like he wanted to do); because he had a job to complete as close to midnight as possible. He also decided it would be a bad idea to anger the yokai who (in his opinion) made the best food in existence and who also would be the one making his delicious pizzas whenever he ate here. (regularly if he had anything to say about it; providing Draxum didn't ban him forever when he found out about this whole situation)And, to be honest, Bully was kind of impressed that the kid ignored his every attempt to provoke him throughout the night.The kitchen began dying down around 9:30, and by eleven there were only four people left in the entire closed restaurant: X, Hueso, Yolinda, (who the staff referred to as ‘Scraps’) and Bully, who personally insisted on cleaning ‘his’ kitchen himself at the end of every night to ensure it was ‘done right.’‘Hm, a wickedly awesome hard worker, intimidating, doesn’t back down from a challenge, doesn’t trust anybody, and an ex-pirate too, if that tattoo's legit,’ X thought to himself. ‘That ticks off enough boxes for me. This is a guy I can respect.’At one point during his work, X took off his heavy cape that was only making his hotter than he already was, and hung it up on one of the wall pegs. Some time later, he began the laborious task of drying every dish he washed (not because he had been told to, but because he knew that was expected of him and he hadn’t been given permission to leave yet). And at some point, after Yolinda was done her job cleaning the dining area, she grabbed a cloth to join him. The big chef glared at X in anger but didn’t openly object to her assistance.“Isn’t your shift over?” X asked as his way of saying ‘why are you helping me?’ when he realized Bully wasn’t going to protectively order 'Scraps' to get away from him. The fox yokai popped the ‘p’ when she simply replied: “Yelp,” and continued with her work.That got X’s back up and he sternly said: “Hey, I already told you what your Tío Hueso said and I’m not getting myself banned from this restaurant!” Without looking up at him and continuing on with her work, Yolinda calmly replied: “I know.”X kept drying the plate in his hand, but was looking at her, and his left eye twitched from the anger he was holding in at her suspicious behavior. Although he kept his temper under control, there was still an obvious tension in his voice when he asked: “What’s in it for you?”The endearing way she laughed at him got X to relax a little, and she looked him in the eyes to say: “It’s called a good deed, but something tells me you don’t have a lot of experience with those.”“Hey, I do good when I can!” X defensively replied. Yolinda put her dry dish on the pile, picked up another one, and focused on her work when she casually asked: “Oh yeah, like what?” “Like...” He suddenly felt embarrassed to admit out loud that he broke up any problems street thugs were causing to innocent yokai whenever he happened upon it, and put his head down to stare at the plate in his hand while huffing out a quiet: “Forget it.”There was a brief pause when they worked together in silence, until Yolinda broke it (and the tension X was feeling) when she said in a kind-sounding tone of voice: “Ok then, something tells me you don’t have a whole lot of experience being on the receiving end.”After another, shorter pause, X huffed out a quiet: “Yeah,” but kept his head down and continued on with his work. He didn’t know if he felt elated by the frank outspokenness he found attractive, or annoyed by her intrusive prying, so settled on something in between.At that moment, Hueso came in the kitchen and the tired, overworked slider (who started his work day with Draxum bright and early in his lab) hoped he was finally going to be told to go home. But - as he had done all night - the restaurant owner completely ignored him. Instead, he whispered something to the head chef, who glared at X the entire time. The ninja turtle watched them suspiciously from the corner of his eye, and as was the norm for him, just as fast and silently as he came in, Seňor Hueso was gone.The next thing X knew, the chef piled all six arms with pots and pizza pans and cooking utensils, and the ninja turtle stopped his work long enough to glare at him when he broke the unspoken rule for the night, by getting right into his ‘territory' to dump everything in the sink full of cold, dirty dish water that he hadn't drained yet.X continued glaring at him with his fists clenched, but he restrained himself from pulling out his weapon, by waiting to see what the big brute was doing; hoping he wouldn't have to ruin everything by challenging this guy to a fight for breaking the unspoken rule between them by using 'his' workstation. A fact that didn't escape Bully's notice and was something he would most definitely do if Bully planned on intimidating him by staying put washing his pots now, right beside him, while he was still here.'If this guys thinks I'm gonna back down he's got another thing coming,' X thought, determined not to leave here with the sour reputation that he was a coward who wouldn't follow through on a threat, no matter what the cost. But his angry glare abruptly shifted to a wide-eyed, slack-jawed shocked expression when Bully wiped off all six of his hands and let out deep laugh while saying in his rough voice: “Have fun.”“Wha…but I gotta…my boss is gonna… . . . Aw man!” X slapped the drying cloth on top of a pile of clean, wet plates and resigned to his horrible fate, settling for yelling: “You could’ve let me drain the sink first!”Scraps also seemed to be surprised by Bully’s behavior; and while X fumbled around for the drain under the new mess he had to deal with, she stared at the back of the ‘bully bug’s' head while he walked away, with a curt: “Hey!”X ignored the curious interaction of someone actually defending him with no obvious gain of their own, to get to work lifting the pots out of the way and setting them aside so he could reach the drain. Chef turned around with a gruff: “Whaddya want, Scraps? Can’t ya see I’m heading home?”She put a hand on her very curvy hip and although she was obviously angry, she clearly revealed the deep respect she had for this guy with her overall tone and body language when she said: “You guys already had your fun, Bully! He’s been here for hours and he’s only working off one twelve inch! Don’t you think that’s a little harsh, even for you?”X noticed early on that a handful of the kitchen workers seemed to each have a nickname, like they were some sort of rough-and-tumble family of misfits, and the one nicknamed Bully huffed out a condescending laugh and replied with: “Ha! You think that’s harsh, wait till you get a load of this!” X continued standing back-on to him, quietly continuing with his work, when Bully stretched out his middle left arm to point a finger at the hard working turtle and said in a tone that was clearly meant as an order: “He’s finishing alone because you’re leaving.” “But..” “There ain’t no way I’m lettin' you stay here with the likes of him!”Bully grinned when he saw the slider tensed his shoulders in anger over that comment; and he was secretly (once again) a little impressed with this kid's self-control, because he continued quietly washing dishes instead of hurling back his own insults or letting himself get provoked into a fight. Then he waved three left hands for Yolinda to follow with a curt: “Come on.”Yolinda rolled her eyes with an exacerbated sigh and groaned: “Fine, I just need to grab my bag, I'm going out tonight.” “Don’t be long!” Bully ordered, and when she went to get her bag X saw through the reflection on the faucet that the pink yokai looked him up and down once more before roughly banging the kitchen door open and leaving to wait for her in the dining area of Hueso's restaurant.On her way out, Yolinda walked up to X with her bag on her shoulder and said: “Sorry for my rude family, but don’t let him get under your skin. Bully must think you do good work, he never lets anyone touch his cookware.” “Lucky me,” X grumbled in reply. He continued on with his work looking almost as tired as he felt, and Yolinda repositioned her bag’s strap on her shoulder and said: “Catch you later, Scrubs.”That got X’s attention. His jaw dropped open for the second time that night and he flopped both hands down in the sink from his frustration, making hot, soapy water splash him all over.Yolinda giggled when he turned his head to look at her and she saw there was a big glob of bubbles clinging to the left side of his face.“Scrubs!? Are you kidding me!? I get a nickname and it’s that!?” He ignored the clump of bubbles gently falling down his cheek (he was too exhausted to deal with it, anyway) and quietly resumed washing the pots and pans.Yolinda leaned her right hip against the counter with a smile for him, and asked: “Ok Scrubs, what would you chose for yourself?” “I dunno, Rad Ninja, Faceman, even Stripes is better than Scrubs!” he replied, referring to the stylish red stripes on his face and yellow ones on his arms and legs that he was so fond of.“Faceman, hey? I’m looking forward to seeing more of that face of yours around here.” “You better get a good look at it now, ‘cause when I get home this late past curfew Draxum’s gonna cut me into ittie bittie pieces and sell me to you uncle for turtle soup,” X calmly replied, but being very serious about the fact he knew he was going to receive a very, very harsh punishment for his faux pas (especially considering the mood Draxum had been ever since his lab got destroyed, and how the goat alchemist who normally prided himself on his 'perfect' self control had been taking his frustrations out on him)He was also a little afraid concerned his strict owner would triple his punishment for being 'lied' to for the very first time by his slave - because what 'mad scientist' is going to believe his well-trained, highly skilled, ninja warrior mutant creation was more than two hours past curfew because he was voluntarily washing dishes at some random yokai restaurant to pay for a single meal? Not Baron Draxum, that was for sure!But despite being so very late, Draxum hadn’t contacted his turtle slave with a text or call via his wrist tech, and X knew never to use his wrist com to contact Draxum unless it was an actual emergency. There was no doubt in his mind that his boss knew he broke curfew, but the fact he hadn’t as much as sent him a one-word text was a good thing because it meant Draxum wasn’t so angry over his unauthorized absence he was eager to get him home to start his punishment.Yet.X continued on with his work and Yolinda's smile fell at the sound of the name ‘Draxum’. He was too exhausted to notice that, but his highly tuned ninja survivor’s instincts did tune in to a faint noise on the other side of the kitchen doors. Without slowing down with his scrubbing or looking up from his work, he surprised Scraps by saying: “You better get going, he’s not gonna miss a second time.” “Wha…” Suddenly there was a loud *bang* when Bully slammed the kitchen door open with one of his big hands, and from behind X, a throwing knife whizzed past the right side of the 'kappa's' head, between him and Yolinda, so close to him he could hear the sound of the blade cutting through the air and felt the breeze on his smooth turtle skin. But like the true ninja he was, he didn’t do so much as flinch, and calmly kept on with his work.Unlike X, Yolinda gasped and stared at the knife sticking out of the wall near the back exit door. Then she snapped her head to stare at the big brute yokai, who was threateningly holding another blade, in one hand.“I won’t miss next time,” Bully told ‘Scrubs’ as Yolinda’s final warning to leave. “You’re unbelievable!” she yelled. Then she looked at X to asked: “How’d you know he was gonna do that?” She noticed the black bags under his eyes when looked up from his work long enough to wink at her with his ‘signature faceman’ crooked grin, and replied: “Ninja’s secret. But maybe I’ll clue you in next time, if you’re not serving me up as soup of the day.”Next, soapy water splashed across the floor with the speed X whipped his left hand out of the sink; and when Yolinda looked down at his left thigh, she saw he was holding the second of Bully’s (six) throwing knives between his two turtle fingers, with the tip mere millimeters away from breaking the surface of his green skin, just above where the prosthetic joined to his leg.“I’m coming!” Yolinda yelled, putting a small grin on the exhausted turtle's face by cutely squeaking her voice in anger, before storming out. Bully stepped aside to hold the door open for her without taking his eyes off X, who he knew for sure now wasn't all show with the skill, accuracy, and quick reflexes he possessed.While Bully watched him, X casually threw the blade straight up. It spiralled through the air and he caught it on the descent between his two fingers again, gave the short, intricately designed, greasy handle a good look over, and tossed it in the sink with the rest of the dirty dishes before silently carrying on with his work.With his back to the big chef, his head down, and both hands working hard in the sink, he calmly said: “You should take better care of your weapons.” Bully huffed out a rough laugh and left behind Yolinda, leaving the potential thief all alone to finish his work.Less than a minute later, half the kitchen lights shut off.“Aw come on!” X groaned. He stopped his work long enough to look up at half lit ceiling, and as expected the rest of the lights went out, leaving him in total darkness; with him knowing just as well as that big 'bully bug' who did this to him that he was not permitted to search for the breaker and turn them back on after they left. X pulled his hands out of the soapy water and wiped them off with a drying cloth before reaching down toward his prosthetic leg.“Scrubs they call me,” he grumbled out loud in complaint, feeling free to do so now that he was alone. He pulled out a flashlight from the side of his prosthetic, grumbled: “Stool Pigeon’s more like it,” clicked it on, and then stuck it in his mouth, holding it between his upper and lower front teeth so he could at least see what he was doing as he worked.And it was good he had his mouth full because some of the incoherent words that spewed out of it sounded an awful lot like the many colorful curses he learned on the cold, hard streets of the wrong side of town in the Hidden City - the ones he knew he was never suppose to utter aloud.But he figured even the unforgiving Draxum would overlook his offense against the 'gift of speech' his creator bestowed upon him, just this once if he was here, considering the circumstances.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
When X finally completed everything he knew was expected of him it was just past three am. He would have considered slipping out the back, but when Bully locked the back kitchen door after the last of the garbage was taken out, he activated an alarm that needed a passcode to unlock it. So instead he left the dark kitchen and entered the quiet, dimly lit restaurant.Draxum hadn’t contacted him once all night; but X knew that wasn’t because he didn’t know his turtle creation was out far past curfew, rather, that he wasn’t concerned about his ninja's safety.It was also a good thing he hadn't texted because it meant his already angry owner wasn't too upset over his absence. Yet.X liked to think Draxum didn't worry about him because he was a highly skilled ninja trained in warfare who could take care of himself. But a nagging part he kept shoved away in the back of his mind kept telling him it was really because if he got killed, Draxum would have the callous opinion he had no one to blame but himself (like he was scolded repeatedly after he walked into Big Mama’s trap), and that his boss-not-father was apathetic regarding whether he was dead or alive.That normally quiet part buzzing around in the back of his head - like an annoying mutesquito he wasn't allowed to squash - was getting to be much louder and harder to push aside ever since Draxum so casually issued the ‘kill on sight’ command for the three other turtle experiments of his own personal creation. So X gave up and accepted it would stay there for now as he tried to focus on finding the restaurant owner before he left.The dim lights left on in the restaurant gave just enough light for X to see by, so he clicked off his flashlight and tucked it away in his prosthetic, where it belonged and would recharge, before calling out: “Hello? Anyone there?”No one was present but him, and he mumbled to himself: “There’s no way they would’ve left me alone with all that stealable junk in the kitchen.” He glanced at the register, noting a rather large, open tip jar half full of human bills and coins with a few yokai yen scattered throughout, ripe for the picking.“That’s a trap,” X thought out loud. He walked past it on his way to the wall where the front entrance portal was located, and called out: “I’m done! I’m going home now, ok!?” to no one but the empty room.Normally X would have headed to the lit-up stairwell to his right instead of rudely leaving without first getting permission. That was how Draxum strictly trained him in his early years, but later reserved for certain occasions the slider usually had to feel out based on the overall mood in the room. But after having been on his feet practically all day since early that morning, he decided he would make an exception just this once. If he could.When X walked up to the wall and clicked at his wrist tech to open the portal door, nothing happened because it was shut off for the night as the portal equivalent of locking the front door. For extra insurance he rapped on the brick wall with his knuckles to confirm his hand wouldn’t go through.It didn't, so he let out a big yawn while turning around to head to the stairs.When he got upstairs, he was greeted by a long hallway - one very similar to the ones he had seen inside abandoned human apartment buildings during his curious explorations. The door at the end, straight in front of him, was shut, and there with three rooms on his left, two on the right, with the only light coming from an open doorway down the hall on the left.He yawned again on the way there and stopped long enough to gaze out through an open door on his right, when he saw the lights from a New York building through a window in the room.‘Huh, this place really is in the office building,’ he thought, before continuing on his way to the only room with a light on.When he got there, X respectfully stood in the open office doorway, waiting to be addressed. But when the skeleton yokai kept his head down and quietly continued on with his paperwork, he was getting antsy - wanting to hurry up and get his punishment over so he could go to bed. So he softly said: “Uh, Seňor Hueso? I’m all done with the work you gave me.”Still without looking up, Hueso lowered his left hand to click a button under his desk top and simply replied: “The exit portal is open for you.”“That’s it?” X asked, genuinely confused. “No ‘dust the light fixtures’ or ‘sweep the dust bunnies under the booths' on your way out’?” “If you are offering…” “Nono, I wasn’t offering!” the nervous turtle interrupted with sweat beading on his head. Hueso calmly replied: “Very well, be on your way,” and raised his free hand to dismissively shoo the slider away.Incidentally, shortly after X began working diligently in the kitchen, Hueso used his connections in the Hidden City to find out the 'kappa yokai' in his temporary employment was a ruthless Battle Nexus champ. That was another reason why this turtle who he correctly suspected was a hardened fighter from the moment he set eyes on him, surprised him yet again with his polite attitude by saying: “Thank you Seňor. But, uh, before I go . . . I’m not banned from your restaurant, am I?”This time Hueso did raise his head to look up at the very tired slider who had bags under his eyes, and gently replied: “No, pepino, you’re not banned, you are welcome back any time,” before immediately putting his head down again.X smiled at both the invitation to return and being called the somewhat affectionate term ‘pepino’ instead of ‘kappa,’ which was nothing more than what turtle yokai were called.“Thank you, Seňor Hueso,” he softly replied. Then, like what Hueso had been doing all night, in true ninja fashion the 'kappa' was gone, with the skeleton yokai not even realizing he left until he looked up to see the doorway was empty.After that, Hueso put his pen down, stood up, and walked over to a small human tube tv, on top of a counter built into the side wall. He flicked it on to see the security video in the restaurant, and watched for the 'kappa' to come down the stairs, figuring if he was going to steal from him, now would be that time.But the hard-working slider nicknamed ‘Scrubs’ didn’t hesitate or as much as glance in the direction of the tip jar as he flew down the stairs and sprinted to the front portal, like he was suddenly very anxious to get somewhere fast. In fact, he was so anxious he ended up smacking face-first straight into the solid wall where the exit was, because he forgot to open the unlocked portal first.Without even taking a second to rub his sore nose, X tapped his wrist tech and then flew out the portal into the alley, with as much speed as he did on the day he accidentally antagonized a wild ravager while out razzleberrie picking in a huge underground cavern. One that ended up chasing him through a maze of caves before he finally got away and had to find his way back out again.Hueso changed the channel with a knob on front, and the video switched to the camera in the alley outside his restaurant. The volume was turned down so there was no sound, but he didn’t need it to get the gist of what was happening, when the now outright panicking slider unsheathed his odachi and seemed to be talking to it as he shook it in the air and bright blue sparks flashed around the blade for a few seconds.Nothing else happened beyond that and ‘Scrubs’ - who Hueso just realized forgot to take his cape and mask before leaving - dropped his hands down and threw back his head with his mouth wide open, no doubt groaning loudly. And it was at that moment the business owner/ex pirate who kept him all night also just realized for the first time he never once bothered to get the hard working boy’s name.Hueso continued watching until his employee for the day hastily sheathed his sword and ran out of range of the alley security camera, most likely heading for whatever Hidden City portal would take him home the quickest.At that moment, Hueso’s old fashioned human phone rang. He picked up the receiver, said: “Hola,” and after a pause said: “Thank you,” and hung up.He had been satisfied with his informant’s tip that ‘Scrubs’ was a fighter in Big Mama’s Battle Nexus; but after Yolinda informed him late that night he had mentioned he lived with Draxum and indirectly referred to him as his 'boss', Hueso dug deeper to get more intel on the kappa's identity. Just now he got off the phone with one of his other informants, who notified him Baron Draxum was the one who contracted him out to Big Mama; because Scrubs was the mutant red-eared slider turtle experiment of, and personal slave to, the well-known ruthless, powerfully influential, and unforgiving Baron.This was a fact that would have prompted him to send the teen on his way with plenty of time to get home before curfew; if he had known.Instead of going to bed, Hueso switched off his old but sturdy and dependable tv and sat at his desk again. He pushed aside the paperwork he had been working on, to put his computer keyboard in front of him.Unlike the old tv, Hueso’s computer was state of the art and he hauled up a recording of the security footage taken a few minutes ago in his hallway, to find out what got the turtle in such a tizzy.There on the computer monitor, he watched as the ‘yokai’ who was really a mutant turtle he only knew as ‘Scrubs’ left the open doorway to his office, only to abruptly stop halfway down the hall and look down on the display screen on his wrist tech. His eyes widened from obvious fear and he hastily clicked at the touchscreen before booking it down the stairs.Hueso let out an audible sad sigh and closed out of his security program, feeling a mixture of sadness, guilt, and worry over his decision to test out the surprisingly diligent, respect, hard-working 'kappa' by keeping him for much longer than was necessary; because he wanted to know if there was really more to him than first impressions seemed to indicate, and because he was trying to push him past his limits to find out what his breaking point was. That was before he found out he was actually the slave to the punishing and unforgiving Baron Draxum. Something he wished he had learned long before the slider came upstairs to politely inform him he was done all the laborious work that had been assigned to him.Seňor Hueso hoped the unmerciful Baron would lesson the severity of 'Scrubs' punishment when he found out his slave was delayed because he was doing the honest job of paying for his food with hard labor at his restaurant - considering he and the Baron went way back as occassional 'business associates', before abandoning his ruthless pirate's life selling and trading rare and exotic stolen mystic weapons and goods, to open an above-ground restaurant.After switching off his computer, he pushed the keyboard to the side of his desk again and resumed his paperwork; staying up because he knew he would receive a late night call within the hour.
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As soon as X burst through one of the front double doors of Draxum’s house, he was greeted by a very loud female voice alerting him: “Intruder detected. Security program set to lethal.”X groaned out loud and unsheathed his odachi; prepared to defend himself against the home security system that was never turned on while the yokai alchemist was awake and also never set to the highest setting. The turtle slave had also clearly been removed from the AI detection program because it didn’t recognize him; which X knew was only the first phase of his punishment for angering his already enraged owner by breaking curfew by such a long time.A barrage of weaponry appeared in the wide, long hallway between him and the lab where he knew Draxum was awake and waiting for him, ranging from lazer blasters and moving spikes he had to dodge to fire spewing up from the floor and hidden booby traps he needed to avoid at all cost.Normally the adrenaline rush would push his overly exhausted, sleep-deprived mind through with flying colors; but his body had expended the last of those reserves on his rush here, so X ended up being sloppy and his ninja reflexes were slower than usual. As a result, by the time he made it to the lab, worn out and out of breath, his left arm was bleeding from a cut that went over his elbow, a cluster of straight, narrow thorns was sticking out of the side of his right thigh, and a small, red crab-like animal yokai aptly called a ‘scarlet pincer’ was hanging off the tip of his tail by one of its pincer-like claws.“I’m home,” X said between puffs of air. His arms hung limp at his sides but he kept his grip on his lightweight sword (that was feeling really heavy right now), prepared to further defend himself from whatever was the next phase of Draxum’s punishment.Providing he would be permitted to defend himself this time.The only saving grace of this whole situation was that considering his current state, Draxum had no reason to question the red, sore nose on his turtle slave’s green face. So X wouldn’t have to explain he got that from his ineptitude by running straight into a brick wall in his panicked rush to get home.Draxum looked his obviously exhausted slave over and demanded: “Where were you?”X motioned to pick up the edge of his cloak to use it to wipe away sweat stinging his eyes, but when it wasn’t there he realized he forgot it at the restaurant, (along with his cheshire fox mask) and used the back of his already sweat-soaked ninja wrapped wrist instead, while replying: “I stopped at a restaurant after my training, but they didn’t accept yen so I had to work off my food washing dishes.”There was a moment of silence, during which time Draxum stared straight at him, with X assuming he was deciding if his story was believable or not. And even though he knew his boss considered it to be highly disrespectful, the threat of an additional punishment tacked on top of everything else wasn’t enough to stop his heavy eyelids from closing right there in front of the stern yokai he was supposed to be looking up at.Thankfully, Draxum seemed to understand even his perfect creation's flawlessly designed body had its limitations, so he overlooked it to say: “Explain yourself.”Good, that meant his story was believable enough to Draxum that he decided to gather more information, before making a decision as to whether his consistently honest slave was trying to hide something from him.“Um…” X’s mind went blank and he couldn’t be certain he hadn’t drifted off for a microsecond; but the incensed: “Um?” coming out of his owner's mouth put enough fear into his heart for one last adrenaline rush. So X snapped his eyes open to look up at Draxum’s face and hastily gave him all the facts he was waiting for. “It’s a hidden yokai joint in New York called Run of the Mill and it’s owned by Seňor Hueso, a skeleton yokai. They only take human cash and I offered to get some but he ordered me to wash the dishes as payment and made me stay all night because his dishwasher quit six days ago and he wouldn't let me leave until I cleaned everything.”X breathed heavily through his mouth from his overtired, stressed, pounding heart, while waiting for his strict owner to say something.After another pause (during which time X swore he drifted off again, and hadn't realized for a brief moment his eyes closed on him) Draxum calmly said: “I am aware of that restaurant.” He raised one eyebrow and added: “They sell a combination of yokai and human food, I believe.”‘Eugh boi.’X went through the motions of swallowing nervously but his body was far too dehydrated to produce any saliva, before he obediently replied: “Yes, Draxum.”There was another uncomfortable pause, during which time X’s eyelids fluttered because he was trying so hard to keep them open. Then Draxum surprised him by not banning him from ever stepping foot in that yokai restaurant. Instead, he horrified his turtle slave with the simple question: “Were there no signs indicating yen isn’t an accepted form of payment?”Once again X tried to swallow to relieve the tension in his dry throat, before slowly giving the honest reply he knew was expected of him.“Yes, Draxum. There were signs everywhere.”X involuntarily flinched from the angry response he got when Draxum raised his voice to aggressively scold: “I have no doubt whatsoever you would have taken note of a sign if it was one square inch in size on the back of a rampaging ravager a hundred yards away, but your consistent incompetence of missing what is right in front of your nose can no longer be overlooked. Remove your gear, weapons, all of it. Then lock yourself in cell C to await my arrival. Your punishment will be delayed until tomorrow when your mind is no longer too exhausted to properly register the pain.”X’s heart practically dropped out of his chest, his face paled, and his mind and body felt more numb than it already was from the dread of expectation over that harsh order. But he obediently replied: “Yes, boss,” and walked over to the closest empty table to do as he was told (while hoping he would at least be permitted a drink of water before having to go to the dungeon basement).Draxum watched him sternly and silently as he laid his odachi down and removed absolutely everything but his prosthetic leg and the black shorts he always wore under his shell, to lay the rest of his stuff on the table with the sword - including the scarlet pincer stuck to his tail without even realizing what he was doing. Draxum took his eyes off his slave for a few brief seconds to watch when the pincer scrambled off the table and scuttled away, making note of where it went. Then he locked eyes on him again while the slider turned around to walk away; heading to the dungeon as he was told.X was so thoroughly exhausted that he barely registered his owner silently kept his eyes on him as he walked through the entire length of the exceptionally large lab, until he went out of sight in the hallway.As soon as he was gone, the tyrannical Baron Draxum went to his private office before retiring for the night. Once there, he picked up the phone to make a call.* * *In his office, late at night, as expected Hueso’s phone began ringing. “Hola,” he answered, and he heard a familiar voice he hadn’t heard since his days selling stolen weapons and paraphernalia as a pirate captain.“Was my turtle in your establishment tonight, Bones?” “Si Baron Draxum, he was a hard work…” *click.* Hueso let out a deep, sad-sounding sigh and slowly hung up the phone.* * *~The Next Day~Bully was the first one to arrive at the restaurant he called his second home, ready to start another busy shift by prepping the dough and ingredients he needed for the day. And as soon as he stepped foot in the kitchen, he stopped to gaze around in surprise.It wasn’t the dark gray cloak and white fox mask hanging up on one of the wall pegs that shocked him, it was the state his kitchen was in.“Well look at that,” he exclaimed with a smile on his face, pleased to see the hard working 'kappa' stayed until the job was done, even going so far as to put away all the dishes he washed and dried - down to the last fork and spoon - and cleaned his work station before leaving.Bully walked up to the empty double sink that had been drained and scrubbed so spotlessly it shined, noting that even the water spilled on the floor from when ‘Scrubs’ caught the blade thrown at his leg had been wiped clean.From there, he walked around to inspect the kitchen, noting everything was put back in the proper place. Then when he walked in between his wide counter and the brick oven built into the wall, he smiled up at all his immaculately clean cookware with a nod of approval; noticing the observant ninja ensured every last pot and pan was hanging from the correct hook. He stopped his inspection of the kitchen at his work station, and laying there neatly in front of him, beside the stovetop built into the counter, on one of the white cloth restaurant napkins, were his two shiny, clean throwing blades.He picked one up to get a good look at the handle, admiring how every nook and cranny in the intricate wild rose design was free of years worth of oil and grime, and said to himself: “There’s somethin' special about that kid.”At that moment, the kitchen 'in' door swung open and Bully looked up at Hueso with a big smile. But when he opened his mouth to praise the job the hard-working slider did, his smile fell from the somber look on his boss’s tired face.If Bully were to jump to conclusions (which naturally he did), he would have guessed Hueso had been up all night again worrying about his impulsive, headstrong adoptive daughter, Yolinda, because she had been out all night with the 'hard working kid' and hadn't come home yet.In anger, Bully slammed the blade down on the counter and exclaimed: “I knew that kid was too good to be true!” He raised all six hands to motion like he was strangling someone while yelling: “When I get my hands on him…” “No, Jack, it isn’t Yolinda this time,” Hueso interrupted in a voice that sounded just as sad and tired as he looked.Jack - aka ‘Bully’ - quietly looked at his boss/ex captain and patiently waited while Hueso dragged a hand down his tired face before talking again.“Scrubs is the personal slave of Baron Draxum.”“Well ain’t that sumthin’,” Bully flatly replied with a slight pirate accent from long ago, that only ever came out when he was exceptionally stressed. “When did you find out?” “Last night, but I wasn't informed until after he left for the night. That certainly wasn’t in time to save him from his punishment for breaking curfew,” ‘Bones’ immediately replied.Next, Bully asked in a calm, cold voice with a threatening undertone: "What are we gonna do about it?” “What can we do?” Hueso responded in a defeated-sounding tone.Bully snarled in anger, clenched all six fists, aggressively pounded one of them down on the sturdy counter with a big *bang,* and yelled: “I’ll TELL ya what we’re gonna DO…” “ANY act of retaliation will only make things worse for the boy!” Hueso sternly yelled in reply.That calmed Bully’s anger down enough to shut his mouth, but he kept his fists clenched and stared at Hueso, wanting to do something to protect the poor kid, but at a loss as to where to go from here.After all, in the Hidden City, even the law was on Draxum's side.Hueso silently gazed at the floor for a moment, before mumbling: “Did you get his name?” "No," Bully abruptly replied, sounding almost as sad as Hueso this time.Hueso nodded his head and turned around to slowly shuffle out, but stopped when Bully got his attention.“Hey,” he pointed to the cloak hanging up on the wall and said: “He left his stuff here.” “I’ll take it to my office. I want to see for myself what kind of shape he’s in when he comes to pick it up,” Hueso commented. He walked over to grab the cloak and mask off the wall and Bully quietly watched as he slowly left the room to try and get some sleep after drowning his worries in paperwork all night long following that disappointing phone call.Bully similarly got to work quenching his anger by making dough for the pizzas. As he began his long work day he grumbled under his breath: “How a kid with a life like that turned out to be such an honest, hard worker I’ll never know.”And that day he pounded the dough more roughly than necessary and was a little overzealous with the knife when he chopped the chunks of meat into topping-sized pieces.
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~Later that Day~Bully was busy rotating pizzas in the giant brick oven when Yolinda came in the kitchen. He took one out, turned around to put it on a pizza tray, cut it into slices, and told her: “Order up!”Instead of taking the steaming hot pizza to the waiting customers, Yolinda rested a hand on her hip and sternly inquired: “Alright Bully, you’ve been talking with your pirate accent all day and Tío hasn’t left his office once. Something’s wrong, what is it?”Bully stopped his busy work to smile fondly at the fox he viewed as a beloved niece, and gently cupped his top left hand over her right cheek.“It’s nothing you need to worry your pretty little head over,” he told her in an overly soft tone. “Ok now I’m really worried,” Yolinda objected. Before the conversation went any further, a part-time hired server came in the kitchen and loudly called out: “There’s a kappa out front, says he’s here for his cape and mask!” “Seat him in the scoundrel booth!” Bully ordered, referring to the small, unrenovated booth near the men's room that X sat in when he ate there, and was nicknamed the ‘scoundrel’ booth because only crooks and lowlife thugs ever voluntarily sat there. “You got it!”The server left, and Bully patted Yolinda's shoulder and softly ordered her: “Stay here,” because he didn’t want her to see whatever poor state Baron Draxum’s turtle slave was no doubt in. She eyed him with anxious suspicion as he walked across the room, to the phone on the wall that had a direct line to Hueso’s office.“He’s here,” Bully told his boss. But after he hung up and turned around, Yolinda was nowhere in sight.“If that girl don’t learn to stay put I’m gonna glue her feet to the floor!” Bully cried out in anger. Then, when he saw she left the pizza behind she was supposed to take out to the customers, he pointed at a random hired bever server bringing in a pile of dirty dishes from the restaurant, and aggressively yelled: “Get that pizza out to table seven!”“Yes chef!” The yokai rushed to drop off the dishes, and Bully huffed out in frustration when he laid the pile of plates containing uneaten leftover food in the empty sink instead of beside it, where they belonged.“Don’t put those plates in the sink, don’t you know you gotta scrape off the food first!” Bully yelled at the frantic server. “Yes chef, uh, no chef,” he exclaimed and ran back to the sink. “Not now! Get that pizza out while it's still hot!” “Yes chef!”The nervous server did a full one eighty at the sink, rushed over to the pizza, and Bully watched in disappointment as he left the kitchen through the wrong door - using the one labelled ‘in’ instead of ‘out.’ He put his lower hands on his hips and shook his head at the teenage server's ineptitude while muttering: “Yeah, that kid's sumthin' special alright,” and went back to his workstation to tend to the pizzas in the oven and work on a fresh one, at Hueso’s request.Meanwhile, Yolinda stepped out through the kitchen door and smiled when she saw ‘Scrubs’ walking behind a server who was leading him to the scoundrel booth at the back.But her smile fell when she saw the slow, stiff steps he took, favoring his left leg as he walked with a slight limp because of a swollen red welt on his right knee; and appearing to be in a great deal in pain.She also noticed how his shell front and back was covered by a dark gray cloak like the one he wore yesterday, that he was clasping in the front with both hands underneath the fabric, to keep it closed over his plastron.The cloak he had on today was a ragged one that had been ripped off at the bottom at some point, with the tattered, uneven end coming down just far enough to cover the back of his shell, save for a single strip on the back left reaching just past his prosthetic knee. The large hood was also up over his head far enough that - with the way he was looking down at the floor as he walked - his face was completely obscured from view by a dark shadow.Unlike yesterday when he carried a shiny new odachi, the belt sheath on his left hip was empty like the right one; and what worried her just as much as the slow, ginger steps he took was the way he was concealing the front of his shell - like he was hiding more injuries underneath (and only holding it that way because he was far too tired to be bothered with the effort it took to clasp the black cape attachment over his plastron).All of this combined painted a grim picture that ‘Scrubs’ had been through something terrible.Yolinda waited until her new turtle 'friend' was seated in the same old ‘scoundrel’ corner booth where he ate the day before. After the server left, X sank back in the booth with his back and head resting on the cushion and his hands limp at his sides, looking completely spent and appearing like he might have drifted off to sleep with the way he didn’t budge an inch while he sat there.Yolinda grabbed a chair from a nearby empty table and brought it over to sit at the end of table at the 'scoundrel booth.' She sat silently with him for a moment, noticing how he took shallow, labored breaths, how the little bit of his hooded face she could see from this angle revealed a busted, swollen lip; and when she leaned ahead to get a look at the part of his plastron that was exposed between both sides of his cloak, she saw evidence of what looked like some sort of burn marks - but she couldn't be sure because she didn't know what a burned shell looked like."Get a good look?"Yolinda sat back in her chair at his words and looked at his hooded face. She was starting to believe X was asleep until he spoke, and when she didn't reply, still without moving or opening his eyes, he added: “Your Tío’s gonna be mad if he sees you sitting with me.”Yolinda noticed X said that in a tired voice that seemed so done with everything. Instead of replying to his comment, she softly asked him the serious question: “What happened?”X raised his hand to push the side of his hood back far enough to see her from the corner of his left eye when he replied: “Don’t ever try to ride a wild ashmouth hound. They have a nasty habit of tearing through the magma fields.”X could sense by the look in her eyes she wasn’t buying his lie, and she asked softly but a little firmer this time: “What really happened?”He huffed out a single laugh, weakly smiled at her, and lowered his hand while putting his head back and closing his eyes again.“I don’t know if that snoopy fox nose of yours is adorable or annoying,” he replied without in any way answering her question. Then he huffed out another laugh when she demanded a little aggressively this time: “What. Happened?”“You better watch that temper of yours or it’ll get you in big trouble one day,” X told her in a snarky tone; dodging the subject while teasing her with a 'friendly' warning.“Answer the question!” she snapped, louder than before.“Persistent, too. And a little fierce. Remind me never to sell you a faulty portal chip,” X calmly replied.“Just answer me!”The amusement he felt over the cute way her voice squeaked on the ‘s’ in ‘answer’ was overshadowed by the annoyance he was beginning to feel over the fact she wouldn’t take the hint; and this time he sounded a little angry when he replied:“Learn how to take a hint, sister, I'm not gonna tell you!”“I'm not your 'sister' and I'm not gonna stop until you do!”"Why should I!?""Because I asked!"“That’s not a reason," X said calmly this time. He slowly sat ahead, leaning on the table with his elbows, and dragged a hand down his face; groaning when it became evident this senseless debate wasn't going to end anytime soon when she persisted.“Why won’t you tell me!?”“Because it’s none of your business.”“I want to know what happened to you!”“Iiiii barely know you so back off!”“I’m not backing off until you tell me!”X sat up and inadvertently show off the shiner he had on his right eye when he glared at her and yelled: “Why SHOULD I!?” But then he scrunched his shoulders and repositioned the hood over his head to hide away a little more when he realized his teasing backfired; because somehow she managed to push his buttons instead of the other way around; making him so angry he got a little too loud and drew the attention of the entire restaurant to their argument.‘How’d she do that?’ he wondered; not having lost control like that since he was younger and adamantly refused to return to the Battle Nexus after a particularly gruesome fight against a giant razor-fanged terrorworm. He tugged on the cloak a little, making sure it completely covered both shoulders, and then, sounding more annoyed than angry, he asked in a quieter voice: “Why does it even matter to you?” “Because I want to help.”The genuine kindness that he heard in her soft voice prompted X to snap his head up to look straight at her in surprise. The same kindness he heard in her voice radiated from her dark eyes, making him feel uncomfortable because no one ever looked at him that way. Not even his ‘doting auntie’ Big Mama ever once had genuine kindness in her eyes when she looked at him, he suddenly realized for the first time.X lowered his eyes to break eye contact and said a firm but quiet: “There’s nothing you can do.”And the arguing started all over again.“I can patch it up, put on some salve.”“You don’t need to know what happened to do that.”“Will you let me?”“Let you what? Patch it up or know what happened?”“Both.”“No. Thanks.”“To which one?”“Both.”“Why are you being so stubborn!?”“You’re the one who's stubborn!”“No I’m not! And that’s only because you won’t tell me!”“You just contradicted yourself." This time his voice sounded amused.“Uuughh! Stop changing the subject!”“Your voice squeaks when you’re mad.”“It does not!”“Heh, you did it again.”“Just tell me!”"I already told you.""That's a lie!"“There’s nothing to tell.”“You’re lying again!”“No I’m not.”“That’s IT!”Yolinda abruptly stood up and slapped her hands on the table, leaning over it to glare at him. X looked up at her from beneath his hood with a tiny grin on his face; but his smile fell when she smugly smiled at him in return and playfully said the calm, condescending words (sounding more like a little girl bulling a classmate at school for her crayons): “If you don’t tell me what happened then maybe Tío Hueso will overhear me telling one of my friends I waited around for you last night and you kissed me on your way home.”X's jaw dropped open.“You wouldn’t!” He exclaimed.He watched in shock as she casually straightened up, rested a hand on her curvy hip, and gave him a smug grin that was infuriating but somehow also made him really want to kiss her at the same time.“Try me,” Yolinda said with an air of confidence that he knew meant she wasn't making an idle threat.No one ever stood up to him like that! Especially not one of those 'chickies' he regularly hooked up with! They were all afraid of the hardened ninja 'street thug' who knew how to throw his weight around and pretty much always got away with whatever he wanted because of his connections to Baron Draxum and to a lesser degree, Big Mama (but only because not everyone knew he was her profitable masked ninja Battle Nexus warrior).(He wondered for a second if she normally got away with whatever she wanted because of her connections to ex-pirates)It was like there was something different about her. If he wasn't so overwhelmingly frustrated and annoyed he might even go so far as to admit he found her fiery temperament attractive.‘How does she keep getting in my head like that!?’ X lamented in his mind. Then his shoulders dropped and he hung his head, conceding defeat. This time.Yolinda: 1, X: 0Yolinda waited patiently while X shifted his body so he was facing the table again instead of her, with his head hanging low and his hands laying limp in his lap.The silence stretched on and X self-consciously pulled his hood down over his forehead so it covered his eyes, to ensure himself she couldn’t see any inch of his face whatsoever (and he couldn't see any inch of her). Then he rested his ninja-wrapped hands on the table, let out a sigh, absently picked at a chipped piece of paint with his right index finger, and quietly told her in a sad tone of voice: “The truth’s humiliating. You’ll laugh at me.” “No I won’t,” Yolinda immediately replied without a second’s hesitation. She slowly sat down again and kept her eyes on the hood covering his face; waiting.X couldn’t see the kindness or compassion in Yolinda’s eyes but he could hear it in her voice, so he started off by curtly saying: “I don’t get you.” Then he took in a deep breath - clenching his left arm and fist from a shot of pain that caused - and slowly exhaled through his mouth before telling her everything she needed to hear with the simple words:“Draxum’s not just my boss . . . he’s my owner.”'and I was punished for breaking curfew last night,' were the unspoken words that didn't need to be uttered.X knew Draxum’s punishment hadn't been so severe because he angered his owner by being out too late, but he left out the part where Draxum was already angry about something else and took it out on him. And the part about being punished because of his incompetence in missing what was right in front of his nose.He immediately tensed his fists again, but not as tightly this time, and when she didn't reply he sternly asked: “Now do you see why I didn’t want you to know?” 'But you're too stubborn to listen,' he thought but didn't say.Yolinda stretched her arm out to put a soft hand on his and kindly told him: “That’s nothing to be ashamed of.”X didn’t give her the response she was expecting when he yanked his hand away at the same time he snapped his head up to glare at her and exclaim in anger:“I don’t need your sympathy!”“I’m trying to help!” she yelled in return, squeaking her voice when the last word came out high-pitched.But he was too angry to think it was cute this time, waved his left arm out, gesturing to the restaurant as a whole, and snapped: “If you want to help someone why don’t you start with those customers you’re supposed to be serving! That guy’s been trying to get your attention since you came out of the kitchen!”Yolinda turned her head to join X in looking at a yokai sitting at a nearby table who he pointing out; and when the guy looked back at them and motioned as if to say something, the slider rudely snapped: “Close your mouth, can’t you see we’re talking here!?” The yokai made an annoyed-sounding huff but shut his mouth and returned to his food.X put his eyes back on Yolinda when she stood up and firmly asked in a half-annoyed, half-angry tone, that sounded like a mother scolding her child:“Do you want to know what your problem is?”He glanced down at her petite finger with a small grin when she pointed it at him, and then sarcastically 'requested': "Oh pleeease tell me.”She crossed her arms and told him in a confident ‘I know better than you’ tone:“You won’t let your guard down for a second because deep down inside you're just a scared little turtle who wants his mommy and you're afraid if anyone gets too close they might hurt you. Or maaaybe you're scared you might find someone you actually like. But you don't know how that feels because you don't like anyone, not even like yourself!"'Ouch, that hit pretty close to home. She's one clever fox, more than I gave her credit for. I gotta keep my eyes open around her.'X in no way gave away his inner thoughts with his body language, facial expression, or tone of voice. Instead, he leaned ahead with a cocky grin, and rested his right elbow on the table but left his other one free so he could gesture with his left hand as he talked. He glanced up for a second when he saw Seňor Hueso come out of the kitchen he had gone into a few minutes prior, holding up a pizza and a glass of water in addition to the mask and carefully folded cloak tucked under his arm.X noticed 'Tío Hueso' was watching them but maintained a respectful distance - and that he didn't look angry at all, but rather tired as he gazed at Yolinda - so he felt relatively safe putting his eyes back on hers and calmly saying with his own air of confidence:“Listen sister, nobody in this world gives something without getting as much in return." He leaned his face closer to hers with a big, smug grin and added: "And I already know what you want from me.”X leaned back with his left arm resting on the back of the cushion and calmly grinned at the fox yokai who was glaring at him in return; so angry she was left speechless and her entire body was tense. Her stiff arms went straight down by her sides with her fists clenched so tightly they were vibrating, and her jaw was likewise clamped shut, with a few wrinkles on the top half from the snarl she was trying to hold back (that X found adorable to look at and made him smile more).The calm turtle leaned back again, huffed out a laugh, and said a casual: “If I knew that’s all it took to shut you up I would’ve said it long ago.” He snickered to himself over the high-pitched whining that came out of her mouth and calmly watched as she thrust her hand out to grab a glass of lemonade on the table of the occupied booth beside his, behind where he was sitting.Although he knew what was coming, he merely watched casually with his cocky grin, not reacting in the slightest beyond shutting his eyes at the appropriate time when she chucked the entire contents of the full glass right in his face.X opened his eyes and ignored the sticky liquid dripping down his face and neck and soaking into his cloak to continue smiling at her with that same relaxed cocky grin. Then, for the iceing on the cake (whatever that was) - or rather cheese on the pizza (yeah, that's better) - in a very relaxed way he snarkily told her: "Thanks, I was too hot."Yolinda was so furious all she could do in return was let out a few high-pitched: “Ugh! Uuugh! UUUGGGHHHH!" Then she fumbled over her words before finally getting out a coherent sentence."You…You… . . . I HOPE DRAXUM REALLY DOES CUT OFF YOUR OTHER LEG AND SELLS IT TO BULLY SO HE CAN PUT IT IN TURTLE SOUP AND MAKE YOU EAT IT!!!”Yolinda: 1, X: 1X only infuriated her more when he dismissively shrugged his left shoulder and calmly replied: “Then I’d have a matching pair.”To his utter amusement, she squealed even louder than before, aggressively spun around, and he leaned his head out of his booth to look behind his back, so he could watch her all along the way as she stormed through restaurant to leave through the open front portal, where she inadvertently banged into a couple of patrons on their way in.X took his eyes off the portal at the front of the room and turned back around when the owner of this fine establishment calmly walked up to him with a frown on his face, still holding the pizza and glass of water in his hands.“I didn’t ask her to come over, Seňor Hueso, she did that all on her own,” he calmly told the bone man who had the authority to ban him for life. "That doesn't surprise me, pepino,” Hueso replied in an equally calm voice while setting the glass down so he could hold out his stuff to him. “Here.”X accepted his cloak and mask from the skeleton yokai with a polite: “Thanks for holding onto it for me.” He laid them in his lap and sat forward in the booth to reach out for a napkin on the table to wipe off his face. But after he wiped off around his eyes and moved on to his nose, he froze in place with the napkin still covering his nose and mouth when Seňor Hueso unexpectedly pushed the tempting glass of ice cold lemon water further down the table, to make room for the steaming hot pizza in front of him.X was so parched and dehydrated he instantly dropped the dirty napkin and reached his right hand ahead for the glass without thinking; but came to his senses and stopped himself short of picking it up. Instead, he let his fingertips brush against the pleasantly cold surface full of condensation, not able to take his eyes off the refreshing liquid he hadn’t tasted once since the previous day, and asked as respectfully as he could considering his tense, defensive tone: “What’s this?” “It’s for you, pepino.”Still without taking his hand or his eyes off the tempting glass of ice water, X curtly replied: “I don’t take anything for nothing and I don't have human cash on me." “I don’t do handouts kappa, you already worked for it,” Hueso sternly replied in a tone of voice that told him refusal wasn’t an option.X kept his hand where it was, huffed out a laugh, and let the corners of his mouth curve upward slightly, before saying: “I guess that makes us even then.” “I guess it does,” Hueso softly replied, before turning around to leave the famished (injured) turtle to his meal. “Wait!”Hueso turned around again to look at the slider as he put his right hand down and turned his torso to respectfully make full eye contact, showing Hueso his busted eye and cut lip for the first time.There was nothing more X could do in regards to fixing Draxum's lab because everything left involved rebuilding complex machinery and working with mutagen, two things X had absolutely no understanding of and ended up getting in the way more than being a productive help. And since Draxum was so swamped for the time being, he didn't have any side jobs for his slave, so settled on keeping him busy by ordering him to work for his ex-pirate 'business' associate, 'Bones'; which was why X informed him:“I don’t know if he told you yet, but Draxum ordered me to work here until he needs me again.”“Ordered?” Hueso asked with an eyebrow raised, not wanting to give away what he already knew about the ninja turtle being Baron Draxum's personal slave; and likewise hoping he would volunteer the information to get it out in the open, so there was no unnecessary uncomfortableness surrounding this particular situation during his long workdays here.X took his eyes off the skeleton yokai to sit ahead in his booth, so his hood would cover his face from Hueso’s view. As he did so he reached out with his right hand to gently grasp the bottom portion of the glass again, hoping this conversation would be over after bluntly saying: “You know what I am to him.”The fact Hueso didn’t reply verified X’s suspicion that he was right and had been checked out by the skeleton 'Bones' - likely via his pirate contacts in the Hidden City. And among the ruffians on the wrong side of town in the Hidden City it was no secret that X was also the warrior mutant turtle experiment of Baron Draxum; so if Hueso knew about his lowly position in yokai society, he most definitely also knew that the turtle in front of him was not a yokai.Once he felt sufficient time passed for Seňor Hueso to object, he told him: “I start tomorrow,” without moving a muscle except for his index finger, which was repetitively rubbing the smooth surface of the cold, wet glass, somewhat like a nervous tick."Si. Your shift starts at one," Hueso replied with a single nod. "The five weapons rule doesn't apply to staff. And what’s your name, pepino? I'll put it on the schedule."Hueso watched as the turtle quietly rubbed his finger back and forth on the wet glass before pulling his hand back, forming it into a fist, and then resting it in his lap with the other one, while shifting his head down a little more so the top of the hood would block the water from his view - clearly having a hard time resisting the urge to drink it right here and now."Scrubs,” X replied with a half grin the skeleton yokai couldn't see.Hueso recognized that the turtle slave was politely waiting for this conversation to end (and likely for him to leave) so he had ‘permission’ to eat and drink. So without another word, he turned around and left.X turned his head just far enough to the side to get his hood out of the way so he could see his new boss walk away. As soon as Hueso went through the kitchen doors, he grabbed the glass of lemon water, thrust it up to his mouth, and downed the entire contents in one gulp, before spitting out the lemon wedge into his hand and laying it on the napkin.One glassful wasn’t enough to satisfy his thirst, but it did help enough with the dehydration for him to be able to eat his pizza without a dry mouth; and what helped even more was when a server came by to refill his glass and left the glistening jug of ice cold water behind on the table just for him.Just like with most human restaurants, tap water was always free in yokai ones, so X didn’t question it and kept refilling his glass until he more than satisfied his thirst. But every time Hueso came out from the kitchen to serve customers in Yolinda’s place, he discreetly stopped eating and sat quietly with his hooded head down and his hands resting in his lap until he left.Luckily, Hueso must have noticed this behavior because eventually he came out one last time to go upstairs to his office. Shortly thereafter a different yokai who X recognized as a kitchen staff member took his place.Just to be on the safe side, X pulled the hood down off his head to see the stairwell in his peripheral, and kept his keen ninja senses attuned to movement on the stairs. But now that the annoyingly cute Yolinda - who was in no way intimidated by his 'ninja fighter street thug' look like most yokai he came across - wasn't here to distract him and Seňor Hueso retired to his office, he finally felt he could relax and enjoy his hard earned and extremely delicious meal.Unfortunately, that was the moment a yokai sitting in the booth behind him - whose lemonade ended up on his face - picked to speak up; saying loud enough for X to hear: "You do not know how to talk to women."*Bang!* X slammed both fists on the table, left his seat to go over and stand in front of the booth where the busybody was sitting, aggressively reached out to grab a slice of pizza, and shoved it in the surprised yokai's mouth."Eat your food," he curtly ordered, before sitting back down again to finally be able to enjoy his meal in peace.But for some reason, he couldn't get that annoyingly clever fox - who was so fun to pester yet so frustrating to argue with - out of his head.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
X was on the cold dungeon floor, sitting back on his knees as ordered, while Draxum dished out his torturous punishment. Metal shackles were clamped over his wrists, attaching him to the floor by short, heavy chains so he couldn’t instinctively pull away during the worst parts. He also knew begging and screaming would only make things worse; so with the exception of one time he inadvertently let a pained scream slip, up till now he had taken everything Draxum dished out with the poise and self-control of a true ninja warrior.
Draxum saved the most painful part of his punishment for the finale, and right now X was taking quick, shallow (agonized) breaths through his mouth with his eyes squeezed shut, his back hunched over, and his entire body tense in anticipation of what was to come next.
Standing directly behind him was his big goat owner, holding a torture device in his hands that looked like a metal beam with a smoldering end on one side. He left his slave in anxious suspense for a while, standing there threateningly, watching him panic and bracing for impact. Then, with one final jab, Draxum pressed the searing hot end straight against the center of X’s carapace, leaving it there for far too long.
“Mmmff . . . AAAUGHHHH!”
X couldn’t help himself. He tried to stifle a scream, but it just came out.
His eyes watered and he bit his bottom lip, trying to stifle another scream; but the sound of his scutes sizzling and the scorching heat from the metal burning through more than one layer was too much for him to bear.
“AAAUGH!” he cried out again; and losing strength, he fell ahead on his elbows, so now he was holding himself up on his forearms and knees, but Draxum followed with the metal, pressing it in even harder, prompting X to pull on his chains, instinctively trying to get away, and let out another blood-curdling screech of agony.
“You’re only making this harder on yourself,” the cruel, apathetic Draxum told him. He lightened the pressure and moved the torture device up X’s shell for the one and only reason that leaving it in place any longer would cause permanent, irreparable damage to the marvelous protective armor of his turtle creation.
When the burning metal was moved up it caused a new surge of pain, and X had to muffle his next scream by sticking his tongue between his teeth and biting down so hard it bled.
That simple act of self control seemed to suffice, and Draxum let off on his attack. X let out a deep exhale from his mouth and then panted through it with a mixture of sweat and blood dripping off his face onto the cold stone floor beneath his face.
Draxum stood over his ‘incompetent’ slave, ready to punish him further if he let his trembling arms and legs give out. Once he was satisfied that was not going to happen, he slowly walked over to the ‘torture corner’ (as X secretly dubbed it) where all his many torture devices either lay on a metal table or were hanging from metal hooks and rods protruding from the wall behind it; to put away the item in his hands.
X heard a rattling behind his back that sounded like a ring of heavy keys, and when Draxum slowly walked up to him and stood beside his head, X tipped his head far enough to see him out of the corner of his left eye, trying to find out if he had any more torture devices in his hands or if he was finally done.
X’s arms, right leg, and left thigh above his prosthetic trembled under the weight of his body, but he stayed on his knees and elbows, looking up at Draxum and hoping whatever was concealed in his right hand wasn’t one of the many small torture tools that were surprisingly just as painful as some of the larger ones.
Some, but not all, he discovered with Draxum’s last punishment.
Instead of continuing with his unnecessary torture, Draxum threw a silvery skeleton key on the floor beside X’s left arm that was the same color as the shackles chaining him in place, and calmly and coldly instructed:
"Your attempts to 'assist' with delicate lab work is nothing short of pathetic. I do not require your bumbling idioticy while I reconstruct my lab equipment and create new mutagenic formulas, therefore you will be working for Bones at Run of the Mill until further notice, beginning tomorrow. And your curfew is lifted. The less time you spend here the better.” He leaned his face closer to X's to threateningly and sternly say: "For you, that is."
“Y…yes . . . Dr . . . Dra . . . xum. Mmmft.”
X closed his eyes and hung his head again, trying to focus all his energy on keeping his shaky arms and legs under his body so he didn’t make things worse for himself by falling flat on his stomach; while Draxum stared down on him in disgust.
Despite dishing out his lengthy, severely painful, first-ever torturous punishment, X figured Draxum must have still been angry at him, because he stayed like that, standing over his slave and staring down on him for far longer than expected - as if he wanted his turtle slave to fail and collapse on the floor so he had further reason to dish out another cruel punishment.Or perhaps he wasn’t angry at the ninja turtle’s incompetence but rather, was using his slave as his own personal ‘punching bag’ to release steam from his outrage over the state of his lab, and at his three turtle creations who he couldn’t punish. The ones who so foolishly and disrespectfully refused his offer; misused the gift of their geniusly designed warrior bodies with their childish buffoonery in the under-trained and unskilled way they fought and behaved; and hindered his work by repeatedly getting in his way in their stubbornly idiotic insistence on fighting against him and not for him. What a waste of time, energy, and resources.What a waste of life. They deserved to die.X knew that there was more going on than his incompetence that resulted in his being over three hours past curfew; but right now the singular thought in his exhausted, dehydrated, agonized mind was staying put until Draxum left. But it was getting harder and harder by the second and he knew if his boss didn’t leave soon, his body would give out on him and he'd collapse from total exhaustion.
Fortunately for him, Draxum finally relented and walked away. X listened to the sound of his hooves clicking on the floor behind his back, walking toward to the back right where the exit was instead of to X's left, where the ‘torture corner’ was located.
He kept listening to the sounds of footsteps clicking on the floor, up the five steps to the heavy metal door, and then to the sound of the open door banging shut before he finally let himself collapse onto his injured stomach.
X’s breath hitched when he was struck with the sudden realization Draxum might have been tricking him by not really leaving the dungeon, and he mentally kicked himself for not checking, first.
As he listened carefully for the sound of his owner’s stern voice or the clip-clopping of yokai hooves making their way to the ‘torture corner,’ the only thing he heard was the sound of silence, so he released the breath he was holding in.
X lay there for a while, panting through his parched, sore mouth, unmoving with the coldness of the floor against the right side of his face soothing the swollen skin around his eye from one of the two times Draxum outright punched him in the face as the start of his lengthy punishment.
X had to resist the urge to complain when it happened, so that something worse wasn't done to his already injured, 'gorgeous' face in response.Draxum had never used his fists before and he always steered clear of X’s face, as some sort of unspoken agreement that he would respect his slave’s desire not to ‘ruin his good looks.’ But no permanent harm was done this time. Hopefully that never changed.
It wasn't long before X fell asleep on the floor from nothing more than pure and utter exhaustion.
When he woke up some time later, his mouth felt pasty and gross in addition to everything else; with the unpleasant copper aftertaste from his busted lip and when he bit his tongue overpowering his tastebuds.
And he didn't even have any saliva left to spit it out.
The chains rattled when he reached his hand out to grasp the key, and he held it in his grip for a few minutes before gathering the strength his severely injured, dehydrated, famished body needed to unlock the clasps, one at a time.
After he did that, X pushed his sore, beaten, bruised, and burned body up to sit back on his knees with his hands resting in his lap, his head hung low, and feeling too tired to rub the sores and bruises on his wrists from the too-tight shackles digging into his skin, before he felt he could attempt standing.
Eventually, he pushed himself up onto his trembling legs and favored his sturdier prosthetic left one as he shuffled over to the ‘torture table,’ where he slapped down the key. Then he headed for the stairs to do what he knew was expected of him, by gathering his stuff he had been ordered to leave in the lab, before locking himself in one of Draxum’s confinement cells for the night.
When X slowly shuffled his way through the lab, Draxum was standing back-on to him, working on a new batch of mutagen.
The first thing the injured slider did was grab his black belt to put on over his damaged shell. Halfway through picking up his dagger to sheathe it in the belt strap going down diagonally across his chest, Draxum sternly ordered: “Get out of my sight. And don't let me see your face when I'm out replenishing supplies tonight."
‘Eugh boi, he’s still pissed.’X knew that was his boss’ way of saying: ‘Don’t eat, don’t drink, don’t shower, don’t tend to your wounds, don't go to bed, and you better not let me catch you in the Hidden City when I go out.’ In other words: ‘Get out and go somewhere far away for the rest of the day and night; preferably above ground; and do it NOW!’
“Yes, Draxum,” X replied. He did his best to pick up the pace so he could get out of there before his owner had a chance to turn around and lay his angry eyes on him.
While gathering the rest of his stuff, X noticed the mystic power-channeling odachi was missing; which meant it had been taken away from him as part of his punishment. Whether that was to be permanent or not, he didn’t know or give much thought to in the moment.
On the way out of the lab, X stopped dead in his tracks just shy of the entrance when Draxum sternly ordered: “I expect you to retrieve your katanas before the end of the week.”
”Yes boss,” X respectfully replied. At any other time the obviously angry tension in the room would have prompted X to hang around and wait for permission to leave; but since he was already ordered ‘get out of my sight,’ he limped out as hastily as he could, and hobbled down the hall to his room; where he dropped off the stuff he didn't need, and got a fresh set of his black ninja wrappings and the quickest thing he could grab that he could wear over his injured shell - which was the torn cloak damaged by Donnie's tech bō in his first ever fight against his brothers, that was hanging on a wooden coat tree by his bedroom door. Then he got out of there and left for the nearest New York-to-Hidden City portal.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A freshly mutated baby red-eared slider cried in the black arms of a small, black, fast-moving, flying gargoyle. There was the loud *boom* of an explosion directly behind them, and the infant was knocked away to land on the floor; with the sound of a pained, dying scream filling the air through the fearful cries of the baby turtle laying on his back, as a fire raged all around."Leonardo!" a voice called out from somewhere. But the person attached to the voice never appeared, because at that moment a support beam completely engulfed in flames fell right on top of the crying baby.Or, it appeared to have, but at the last second, a streak of black flew at him with such speed that when a second small, black, winged gargoyle banged into the baby mutant full-force, he knocked the crying turtle out of the way toward a pair of cloven feet, while himself succumbing to the flames.X snapped awake with a gasp. He had fallen asleep in his booth after finishing his meal, and only woke up because the horrible memory of Draxum dishing out his most recent and cruelest punishment of all entered his dreams, followed by that other dream he repeatedly had since childhood.The vulnerability X felt earlier that very day when he was helplessly chained to the floor, receiving the worst, torturous punishment of his life - enduring the scorching pang of having his shell burned for the first time ever - was probably what pompted that other dream to resurface.The helplessness, vulnerability, and fear X always felt when awaking from that particular dream (which was really a memory) was what drove him over the years to train longer than Draxum ordered and push himself harder than his harsh owner demanded, because he was never smart, strong, fast, or good enough......and he never wanted to feel vulnerable like that ever again.It took a second of consciousness for the pain to come roaring back to life, with the burn in the center of his back by far the most unbearable of them all. Worst of all, he knew it was at a spot he couldn’t reach properly when the time came to scrape off the charred, dead scutes; and he also knew that with the mood his owner was in, Draxum wouldn’t help in the usual way after his ninja turtle creation sustained injuries from a fight, by mending the places X couldn't reach properly on his own. So he was left with no choice but to resign to the fate that there very well might be permanent - or at the very least long-lasting - damage left behind on the smooth surface and stylish blue markings as a result.Despite how extremely severe and serious he knew this particular injury was - far worse than anything Draxum had ever done to him before (he wondered whether his creator understood the extent of the damage or was too blinded by rage to comprehend exactly what he was doing) - X wasn’t concerned about getting an infection, because his superior mutant body was practically impervious to the frailties and weaknesses that plagued yokaikind and the much weaker human species. This included natural resistance to any poisons, venom, toxins, viruses, or anything else that could get into his body and otherwise prove to be harmful or potentially fatal.Meaning all forms of medications like painkillers and antibiotics didn’t work on his superb mutant form.X decided now would be a good time to change out of his old cloak into his new one, so he took off the ripped, tattered cape he was wearing, laid it bunched up on the seat beside his right leg, and then put on his new cape before snuggly putting his fox mask on top of his head, and clipping the black piece on his cloak across his plastron, to conceal the burn marks (but mostly for the sense of comfort it provided).Now he wasn’t sure what to do next. He couldn’t go home to grab anything useful he didn’t have time to get in his rush out, and he wasn't allowed in the Hidden City today, which was the only place where he could buy the work gloves he needed to cover his three-fingered hands. Truth be told, even if he could go there, he was feeling far too antsy for shopping right now.He wanted to do something, and he knew what it was.He wanted to take out his frustrations over this whole situation by finding someone to antagonize.X figured if Seňor Hueso was going to kick him out for provoking his neice into causing a scene, or for staying too long, he would have done so by now. So he decided the most fun way to vent his emotions would be to stay put until closing, in the hopes he would still be here when the cute, fiery Yolinda came back.It wasn’t like he had anywhere else to be right now. He was forbidden from going anywhere in the Hidden City where his owner might be buying supplies; he wasn’t interested in ninjaing around on rooftops and slinking in New York alleys to hide from the humans with the shape he was in; and he knew he had to wait a few days to heal a little before even attempting the arduous task of breaking into Big Mama’s highly guarded hotel to retrieve his katanas. So what else was he supposed to do? Go to the Mystic Library and study? Blah!Besides, that was in the Hidden City.The thought of (*cringe*) studying would have left a bad taste in his mouth if not for the delicious aftertaste of 'the world's greatest pizza' he finished before accidentally drifting off.'Yeah, I'm looking at you Maze of Death. I don't need to try your so-called 'world's greatest pizza' to know you ain't got nothing on Bully's extra creepy supreme.' X chuckled to himself over his 'mini rebellion' against Draxum with his poor use of the 'fake' word ain't; which on an average day would have at least gotten him a stern reproof, if not a swift backhand if his boss knew he even thought something so 'disrespectful to the gift of language' Draxum so generously bestowed upon him via his mutation. Although for some reason, his alchemist boss put up with some slang words and expressions, like 'gonna' and 'gotta'.X didn't want to think about how angry his boss would be over his faus pas with the mood he was currently in, and pushed the thought aside while reaching for one of his five concealed weapons; having made sure to stay within the required amount permitted in Run of the Mill before he left his room.Sitting flush to the black belt going down diagonally across his sore, burned chest was the dagger he wanted - the one he bought partially because it was a good quality weapon, partly because of the unusual matte finish, partly because the color matched his cloak, and partly because it was a suitable substitute for the limited-edition Kirasuka blade he couldn't get his hands on, that the spicy maroon fox somehow had as part of her collection.He settled back in the booth, playing with his ‘fidget toy’ to occupy his mind while he waited.But he didn’t have to wait long before an even better opportunity to blow off steam presented itself, when he heard the familiar voices of Raph, Donnie, and Mikey come in through the front portal entrance.His brothers.His brothers he was ordered to kill.And judging by the sounds of it, this was the very first time any of them had ever been in a yokai restaurant - or any restaurant for that matter, considering they didn’t know what they were supposed to do when they first walked in.With a big, crooked smile on his busted face, X slid down in his seat to get as much of his exposed head out of sight as possible, and raised a hand to lower the fox mask over his face; before covering the rest of his green turtle head with his big hood.The antsy ninja turtle’s whole sore body tingled with excitement when his brothers picked the now-empty booth behind his back to dine in - directly adjacent to the one he was sitting in.The smile on his face was almost as big as the cheshire grin on the white fox mask adorned with gold stripes (matching the color of the trim of Draxum’s 'warrior' outfit, and in the same spots as his turtle red ones). He absent-mindedly picked at the top of his dagger's blade with his fingertips while closely listening in on their conversation.“That Big Mama is such a sweet spider lady,” Mikey cheerfully commented.‘Uh oh.’X’s smile fell.“And those oozesquitoes don’t stand a chance with my new Bug Slapper out of beta,” Donnie said in a happy, somewhat prideful tone.‘Ooze-squitoes? I really dropped the ball on that one,’ X thought, referring to his (now lame) idea of calling Draxum’s mutant bugs ‘mutesquitoes.’“It sure was nice of Big Mama to let us use her webbing to catch those bugs,” Raph said in an upbeat, innocent-sounding voice.“Yeah, we’ll be rounding up those oozesquitoes for her in no time!” Mikey added in a confident, positive tone.‘Uuughhh,’ X groaned in his mind. ‘She’s using those poor saps to do her grunt work so she can get her hands on Draxum’s bugs to mutate humans for her Nexus ring,’ he correctly concluded. 'I gotta warn them about her.'X wished he could blame his brothers for their incompetence in falling for Big Mama’s deception and getting roped in to doing her dirty work for her, but when it came to falling prey to the ‘sweet spider lady’s’ manipulative deception, he knew the sting of betrayal all too well.Then again…‘What kind of bozos trust a total stranger!?’Yeah, this was their fault.With a mixture of curiosity and disgust over the childish way they talked and behaved, goofed around and teased one another, X eavesdropped in on their conversation all while they ordered, waited for their food, and throughout their meal (that smelled so delicious he was half tempted to get up and grab a slice for himself). But along with those feelings, he also felt a sad fondness for the brothers he never knew, and a longing to be part of their seemingly carefree family dynamic.They were only teenagers after all.Like him.Unlike him though, they had retained their youthful innocence because of having been sheltered from the cold, hard, bitter realities of life. A fact that didn’t escape X’s notice and angered him; because he was afraid their naive, trusting nature would get his ‘action star superhero ninja wannabe’ brothers in serious hot water with their inept vigilante work, and also because he wasn’t a carefree teen, sitting right there with them, spared the harsh cruelties of life that forced him to mentally age far beyond his years.All of these intense emotions swirling around in his head combined with the anger, frustration, fear, vulnerability and helplessness he felt from being nothing more than what amounted to Draxum’s unwitting anger outlet earlier that day, left him feeling even more antsy than before. So he squirmed and fidgeted in his booth, wanting to lash out at someone and soon.He kept his left prosthetic leg still but bounced his right knee, briskly and repeatedly tapped his fingernails on the table, and flipped the dagger up to catch it over and over again in his right hand; being sure not to throw it so high it caught the attention of his brothers sitting in the next booth. Which, quite frankly, he figured would have to be pretty high. But why take any chances on drawing their attention before he was ready? No matter how anxious he was to hurry up and take his frustrations out by picking on them (he was really coming to understand the fun behind sibling pranks and banter), he adamently refused to cause problems for Hueso by acting in a way that might cause a scene in his restaurant. So he continued waiting for the right time to strike.(Picking on Yolinda didn't count, of course, because he could hardly be held responsible for her behavior if she caused an adorable scene by screaming or hurling threats or dumping a whole pitcher of lemonade over his head; which judging by Hueso’s calm, unsurprised 'I'm so done with this' reaction earlier, that wasn't the first time she had done that)Incidentally, Hueso returned to the restaurant sometime after X finished his pizza and fell asleep in the 'scoundrel booth' to do his usual job of working at the till. He had been watching the interaction with keen interest from the moment the three new turtle customers walked in and Scrubs concealed himself with his apparel and hunched down in his booth. At the moment, he was watching the newest member of his misfit hooligan family twitching and squirming around uncomfortably, clearly agitated by their presence (as far as he was aware) and decided to go deal with them himself after he finished serving the last customer waiting in line to pay.Shortly after Raph, Mikey, and Donnie finished their pizza, ‘Leo’ (a name X was familiar with because 'Little Donnie' repeatedly called him that in their telepathic dreamworld) was given the opportunity he was itching for when Donnie got up to go to the bathroom by himself.On his brother’s way past, X looked down to his right to hide the conspicuous cheshire grin on his white masked face, neatly folded his damaged cape, and tucked it away in an inner pocket.As expected, Donnie didn’t notice the familiar, potentially dangerous cloaked ninja he walked right past; nor did the others when the same cloaked ninja got up and followed behind.When X went in the washroom, Donnie was right there, back-on to him, heading to either the sinks on the left or one of the bathroom stalls on the right.X acted swiftly, silently, and instantly. All at once he put his right arm around Donnie to pin his upper arm in place and held the dagger across his throat. He gently rested his left hand on Donnie’s left shoulder; pressed his chest flush against the tech shell on his back that held his bō, and for the final touch, rested the chin of his smiling masked face on his right shoulder to position his mouth beside his ear.“Better not use any of those weapons in that fancy shell of yours or my hand might slip,” X told him in a threatening tone. “You!” Donnie exclaimed. “Now, be a good ninja wannabe,” X continued, “and throw your wrist tech in that toilet over there.”He gestured with his head to an open stall they both knew contained a toilet.“Fine,” Donnie grumbled. He motioned as if to remove the tech, but when X saw Donnie raised a finger to click at the touchscreen - no doubt to short out his prosthetic again - he noticeably tensed the arm and hand holding his dagger, tightening his grip, and playfully warned: “Uh-uh-uh-uh. Try using that smart brain of your for a change and don’t do anything dumb or you might lose a finger or three.”X had no intention whatsoever of following through on that threat - which was why he added ‘might' - and he was already having loads of fun toying with his brother, even though he only just began.“Sigh, Fine,” Donnie begrudgingly acquiesced; and X laughed out loud over the way he said the word ‘sigh’ instead of just sighing."Something funny?" Donnie grumbled. "I'm looking at it," X replied. He watched as Donnie took off his wrist tech, tossed it over the divider into the bathroom stall, and they both heard' *clink, clink, plop.*"Off the rim! Good shot! You'd make a good puffleball player. Wanna game sometime?""What do you want from me?" Donnie asked in an exasperated voice. "I swear I've only got five bucks. Ten tops."'Bucks? Is that a type of human money?" X wondered to himself. Then he decided now was a good time to get to the secondary point of his visit by warning his brother in no uncertain terms: “Stay away from Big Mama.” He repositioned his head to rest his chin on Donnie’s left shoulder, and with a threatening undertone quietly whispered: “She’s baaad news.”“Says the creep holding a blade to my throat. For the second time, might I add.”The masked slider didn’t know if the unusual calmness his brother displayed was a personality trait, coping mechanism, or just plain naivety of not fully grasping the potential deadly consequences of being held at knifepoint.He had to find out; naturally by pushing his buttons some more."My bad, bro!"X abruptly pulled back and stood up straight with both hands held up at the sides of his head, revealing gaps between the black fabric and the edges of his cloak, that he already knew were too small and dark to reveal he was a turtle.Donnie immediately spun around, unsheathed his tech bō, and tightly gripped it in both hands to glare with an angry scowl at the ridiculously wide, toothy grin on the masked face looking back at him."In absolutely no interdimensionary system, no bifurcated time branch, and by no stretch of the wildest scientific imagination are you my bro!"X fair tingled from excitement over the way he was so easily able to expose and poke at Donnie's sore spots. He simply had to keep going.Donnie kept his angry eyes on the caped ninja when X took his eyes off him, to casually give his attention to the dagger - that was now in his left hand and held up prominently in front of his face, where he fidgeted with the blade."Oops. My bad again. Not bro," X playfully but threateningly replied, while swiping his index finger down the tip of the cutting edge. He took it off to reveal a short cut with blood dripping down, as an intimidation tactic to reveal how dangerously sharp his dagger was, and to show he wasn't afraid of a little pain (but mostly he was trying to get a reaction). When he did that he briefly glanced up at Donnie's face, to see him looking about ready to completely lose it and unlease all of what he likely had for hidden tech weapons all at once.And through gritted teeth, Donie angrily demanded: "Stop. Using. That. Word."'Ohhh he's a control freak, too! And is that a vein throbbing under his mask on that gigantic forehead of his? This is fuuun!'X resumed giving close attention to his cut and tried again to get a reaction from his 'bro' by squeezing out a droplet of blood with his thumb while saying in a cool, calm manner: "Hey, I'm not here to cause you any trouble. I just wanted to warn you about Big Mama is all."“Yes, why not trust the knife-wielding crazed lunatic who cut himself and keeps attacking me and my family,” Donnie sarcastically replied as a statement and not a question.Satisfied with the verbal confirmation that he got Donnie's attention with his minor, self-inflicted injury, X lowered his hands, looked up, and snorted out a laugh because Donnie was holding up one three-fingered hand as though he thought his adversary couldn't count to three on his own. Donnie twitched an eye, put his hand back on his bō, and said a firm: “No thank you. I think we’ll take our chances with the kind spider yokai who recognizes my genius and has been nothing but good to us. Unlike you.”Oooh, he kept getting under Donnie’s skin, and it was so easy!'This keeps getting better and better!"X smiled wildly under his mask when his brother leaned ahead to add a sterned-turned-angry: “Warning noted and dismissed. Now if you’ll excuuse me, I have a complex wrist device made from very expensive parts to disinfect. YOU'RE LUCKY IT’S WATERPROOF!”X huffed out a laugh over the baseless 'You're lucky' threat, leaned his face in closer to Donnie's, and calmly replied: “Looks can be deceiving, bro. But still don’t believe me? Maybe this will help.”Donnie looked down when the caped ninja briskly pushed back the left side of his cloak, to see his adversary was revealing the hairline cracks on a small section of his lower carapace (a section that wasn’t damaged by Draxum’s punishment).“Last time we met up, the 'kind spider yokai' left me with this little memorabilia.”Donnie’s eyes widened at the sight of the damaged shell and he blurted out: “Your shell's cracked! You have a shell! You’re a turtle yokai!” The gears were turning in the intelligent turtle's head and he raised his eyes to make eye contact, trying to piece everything together like a complex algorithm.X stared straight into his eyes, let go of his cloak, raised his right hand to show how effortlessly and skillfully he could twirl the dagger around in his fingers while maintaining unbroken eye contact, and factually replied: “Oh, I’m no yokai.”Donnie’s surprised expression switched to one of confusion and apprehension, and he raised one of his absurdly big, black eyebrows ('Are they drawn on?') while suspiciously asking: “Who are you, why are you warning me about Big Mama, and what do you have to gain from this?”X tossed up his dagger and caught the handle of the spinning weapon on the descent while saying: “Good man!” He tucked it away in its sheath and in an overly-casual tone, added: “You don’t get something for nothing, right?" *Wink* "I’m just looking out for my fam, bro.”“Fam!? BRO!? WHO ARE YOU!?” Donnie aggressively demanded. X snickered at the way his brother's right eye twitched again, feeling thoroughly satisfied with how well his teasing took his mind off his own problems, and finished this conversation by raising his hand to push his mask up, revealing the busted lip on his crooked grin and the black eye on his red-eared slider, mutant turtle face.X's smile spread across his face when he realized Donnie recognized him from their telepathic dream 'playtimes' as turtle tots with the way his eyes widen even bigger than before and his jaw dropped open. “Leo!” Donnie exclaimed. In return, ‘Leo’ playfully winked his uninjured left eye at him, said a cheerful: “Catch ya later, bro!” and as quick as a flash the mask went down and the cloak whipped behind his back when he spun around to swiftly disappear out the door.“No! Wait!” Donnie yelled with an outstretched hand. The bottom edge of the dark gray cloak slipped through his fingers and he motioned to follow behind his long-assumed-deceased brother; but stopped himself with a frustrated groan because his was split between that and his need to get his valuable tech out of the filthy toilet water.After doing what basically amounted to a little dance, where he stepped ahead only to turn around and step toward the stall a few times; he finally got his head on straight and used a metal Extend-a-Claw (patent pending) to get his tech. Another claw holding a contamination bag popped out, it was dropped inside, and as they retracted into his tech shell he tried to chase after his long lost brother before it was too late.Meanwhile, when X ran out of the bathroom at a full sprint toward the front entrance portal, on his way past the booth where his two other brothers were sitting, he conspicuously looked at them with his grinning masked face and a playful two-fingered salute.“You!” Mikey exclaimed, pointing at the caped ninja running away, at the same time Raph jumped up and blurted out a panicked: “Donnie!” “Oh no, Dee!” Mikey exclaimed, giving up all pretense of chasing after the villain to follow behind Raph to the men’s room.Meanwhile, Hueso watched the whole thing while serving his last customer at the till.After X rushed out through the open portal, Hueso’s eyes narrowed in anger at these 'yokai' who he thought were causing trouble for ‘Scrubs.’ The big one clumsily ran straight into the one in the purple mask (who was holding a weapon in his hands) when he rushed out of the bathroom where Scrubs had been; and then there was a panicked commotion between the three of them. Unfortunately though, Hueso had to look away at that moment to serve a female scarlet macaw yokai who was a regular here, when she politely said: “Here’s my bill," because he had been ignoring her.“Thank you seňora.” Hueso took the bill from her hand, told her: “Fifty two seventy,” and she gave him the cash.“I have to say, this is the best restaurant around,” the parrot told him. “Combining yokai food with human pizza? What a clever idea. My family's been coming here regularly since we moved to New York.” “Yes yes thank you, here’s your change, have a nice day,” Hueso hastily and dismissively replied. The macaw took her money with a polite smile for the busy business owner, and when he looked away from her again, he saw he was too late to evict the three ‘troublemakers’ because they were ‘evicting’ themselves by running straight out his front entrance portal, without paying.Hueso let out a frustrated huff but restrained his anger as best he could in front of the dining customers as he made his way to the kitchen. Then he very angrily banged the kitchen's swinging ‘in’ door open; and as soon as he got inside he aggressively yelled:"Bully! We had some more troublemakers in here today! They were causing problems for Scrubs!" "Scrubs!? Where are they!? When I get my hands on them...!"
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Donnie rushed into his lab with his two brothers close behind. He quickly put on his backup wrist tech, and then sat at his computer desk to input all the data he knew about Leo, both past and present, partly out of necessity and partly to calm his frayed nerves.“How do you know he’s our brother and not just some random turtle yokai!?” Raph loudly demanded in a very annoyed tone. “Red-eared slider and once again he’s not a yokai, he’s a mutant, like us,” Donnie factually corrected without taking his eyes off his screen as he typed fervently.Mikey’s eyes bounced back and forth between his two older brothers, as they continued the argument they started shortly after Donnie told them the masked ninja who worked for Draxum was their brother, Leo, and rushed out without further explanation.“Ok, so he’s a red-eared swinger…”“Slider.”“How do you know that . . . slider is our brother Leo!?”“How can he not be!?”“That doesn’t answer my question Don, now spill it!”“Later, I’m busy.”“NOW!”"But I...""I said NOW, Don!"Donnie's shoulders slumped and he stopped typing. He knew there was no winning this argument.“Sigh, Fine.”Donnie spun around in his computer chair to face Raph, and gestured vividly with his hands as he talked.“We’ve already established he’s a red-eared slider turtle. He also matches the description dad gave us when we were little, appears to be approximately our age, and works for the crazy evil genius who created us in his lab. How could he not be our brother!?”“Alright Don, I’ll admit all that stuff you said sounds convincing, but how do you know he’s not just, I dunno, some other turtle Draxum mutated after Pops snatched us outta there?” "Yeah, Donnie. Dad did say Leo died in that fire," Mikey added.Donnie’s eye twitched. He clenched his jaw and said through gritted teeth: “I. Just. Know.” Then he spun around to resume his work.“Oooh no you don’t!” Raph grabbed Donnie’s chair, spun it around, firmly planted his hands on the arm rests, and leaned his face in close to Donnie’s face. Dee glared up at him and Raph sternly told him: “There’s something you’re not tellin’ us, now spill it!”Donnie looked down to break eye contact. “I toold you everything I knoow,” he lied, but not very convincingly.Raph stood up straight, crossed his big, muscular arms in front of his chest, and plainly told Donnie: “You know I know when you’re lying, Don." “Whaaat makes you think I’m lying?” Donnie asked, but already knowing the answer because he voice came out sounding guilty, even to him. “Donnie,” Mikey said in a flat tone of voice: “cockroaches know when you’re lying, so just tell us already!”Instead of replying, Donnie opened his mouth wide to emphasize the fact he wasn’t saying anything when he over-dramatically shut it and spun around to type at his computer again.“Fine,” Raph said calmly, before telling Dee: “I’ll get Pops and he’ll…” “No.” Donnie hung his head and slowly spun around to face his brothers again. “There’s no need worry Pápá by getting him involved yet.” He looked up at them and started his explanation by asking: “Do you remember when we were turtle tots and dad first told us we had a brother he named Leonardo, who died in a fire the night he rescued us?” “You mean the day he told us he's our movie star idol Lou Jitsu, and to stay away from any unusually buff, tall, hairy-looking bookworms?" Raph asked in reply, still crossing his arms but loosely now. "Yeah, that one," Donnie agreed, before continuing.“I was thinking about him all that day, and when I went to bed I dreamed about him.”“A dream? Reeeally?” Mikey flatly asked, unamused. Donnie raised a hand up at Mikey and said: “Bear with me, I’m getting somewhere.” He took in a deep breath and continued.“When I woke up, I told Pápá I saw Leo in my dream and it was real, he said it was only a dream I had because he just told us about him and to go back to sleep. But it seemed too real to be a dream, so I didn’t believe him, but kept it to myself. I dreamed about Leo almost every night for a long time after that, until one day…”Donnie hung his head over the sad dream-memory of seeing Leo motionlessly standing back-on to him in the dream realm.Little Donnie ran to his brother, happily calling out his name. Little Leo turned his head to look at him behind his back with a mournful looking face that was coated red with blood.Little Donnie’s running slowed to a walk and he stopped in shock at the sight. Now that he looked at him, he could see traces of blood spattered on other parts of his body, hinting that there was more on his hands, arms, legs, and plastron.“Leo, what happened?” Little Donnie asked.“I don’t think I can be a hero like you and your brothers anymore,” Little Leo sadly replied.“But you’re our brother too!” Little Donnie insisted.Donnie’s memory ended and he let out a sad sigh and finished his sentence by only telling his brothers: “They just stopped.”Raph and Mikey gazed uncomfortably at each other, before looking at Donnie, who leaned ahead in his chair with his arms on his lap for support. Then, in a much softer voice than before, Raph asked: “Ok Don, what’s your point?”Donnie raised his head up to look at him and firmly replied with conviction: “My point is that I never forget a face. He might be older, but structurally and anatomically he is the same Leo from my dreams, right down to the color, relative size, and placement of his face stripes and the angle of his crooked grin. He is our brother, Leo, I know it. And . . . and I might be able to prove it.”“How?” Mikey asked. Donnie looked at him next and continued.“Now that I know he's alive, I have strong reason to believe those dreams ended because Leo stopped reaching out to me and refused to respond when I reached out to him. So I’m saying…” “If he’s really our brother, you can reach out to him now!” Mikey excitedly finished for him.“It’ll only work if he’s willing to respond to me,” Donnie factually informed him. “What are you waiting for!? Do it now!” Mikey eagerly urged.“Alright Miguel, but I need quiet to concentrate, so both of you out.”In a quiet, timid voice, Mikey promised: “I’ll be quiet.” “Hah!” Raph laughed out loud. “What’s that supposed to mean!? I can be quiet if I wanna!” “Yeah, for about five seconds before you get bored and play around with Donnie’s tech,” Raph replied in an amused tone. Mikey let out a: “Hmpf,” stuck out his bottom lip with a pouty face, and - agreeing with Raph, Donnie firmly said: “All the more reason for you to get out of my lab, Miguel. I’ll unlock the door when I’m done.”“Fiiine,” Mikey grumbled in agreement. He left with Raph, and as soon as the door shut behind them Donnie clicked at his wrist tech to remotely lock it. Then he sat back in his chair, relaxed his body, and shut his eyes.* * *In New York City, a red-eared slider mutant turtle was sitting on the roof of Hueso’s restaurant, with his back leaning against a wall to the door for the stairwell to the roof. He was wearing his gray cape, with the mask laying face-side up on the roof beside him, and in his hands was a New York chili dog with the works that he swiped from a street vendor when his head was turned after he distracted him.X had only taken it as his rebellious way of satisfying his mild hunger, but he hadn’t eaten a bite. All he did was look at it while a war raged in his mind.His conflicted thoughts told him he should eat it; Draxum would never know, if his owner asked he could just lie; and besides, it was all Draxum’s fault, anyway, for forcing him to leave his home and stay away from the Hidden City for the day when he was already injured, dehydrated, and practically half starved.But the logical, fearful, self-preserving side of his mind kept nagging at him with reminders that Draxum would likely outright ask if he ate any human food considering he was above ground for so long; his owner-not-dad would see right through any lie because of how nervous he felt over the very thought; that lying would break the long record of trust he had with the yokai he never lied to and who never lied to him (as far as he knew); and his owner was already in a real bad mood so the punishment for lying on top of disobeying his direct command regarding human food trash would not be worth it.But the straw on top that broke his figurative back was that Draxum was the only dad he ever knew. According to Draxum, Lou Jitsu abandoned him because he chose to leave him behind on the night of the fire when he escaped. X also agreed with his plan to turn all humans into yokai-like mutants - believing everyone would benefit in the long run because humans would be better off with their stronger, healthier, smarter, superior mutant bodies and yokai would be free to come and go as they pleased, anywhere on earth, both below ground and above. It was a clear win-win.X couldn’t see any down side to the whole thing, and despite the sometimes harsh treatment, he deeply respected his father figure and admired Draxum for his desire to make life better for his own kind, while also improving the lives of the inferior humans. He also figured that once Draxum got his lab in order and was back on track with the next phase of his plan, his anger would dissipate and things would go back to the way they were before.Or maybe things would even get better once his plan was completed and a success.And Draxum couldn’t possibly be serious about his expectations for X to kill his own creations and his turtle slave-not-son’s brothers. That was absurd! He only said that in the heat of anger and didn’t really mean it, just like he didn’t really mean to damage X’s shell so badly.Right?Of course.With a discontented sigh, X put the chili dog aside, leaving it on the roof for the pigeons to pick at later, and laid back with his arms beneath his head to gaze up at the dark, cloudy night sky; conserving his energy after his rough treatment and picturing what life would be like under the paradise-like conditions of humans and yokai living as one; and how happy Draxum would be once his plan was a success, with the help of his turtle, who would become his son-not-slave.Maybe he would even give X a real name after all of that, like he once promised long ago.It wasn’t long before X unclipped the front cover to his cloak, and rolled over to lay on his stomach with his chin resting on his crossed arms, letting the cool surface of the roof beneath his plastron ease the sting of his burns a little.Aside for the slight chill on the breeze, overall it was a nice, warm night and X closed his eyes, deciding to sleep here on the roof and go to the Hidden City tomorrow to pick up supplies when he was allowed back, because Draxum only banned him for one day. But steering clear of the mansion he called 'home' after Draxum’s curt warning:
"The less time you spend here the better"
That was fine, once he was allowed back in the Hidden City he had a spot where he could crash with a fellow slave, until Draxum cooled down. A slave whose owner couldn't care less about the comings and goings from his little backyard hut, as long as he always 'got the job done' as a skilled mercenary.But before he fell asleep, he heard a very familiar voice in his head.“Leo?”. . .“Leo, are you there?”. . .“Answer me.”. . .. . .“Please?”“Uuugh I knew this would happen,” X grumbled, not really upset, and surprised at how quickly Donnie jumped on the opportunity to reach out to him, after he revealed his identity.X took deep, slow breaths and focused through the pain on reaching back for the first time in nine years.When he opened his eyes, he was in the blackness of the telepathic dream realm, with Donnie about a stone’s throw away, looking right at him.“What do you want?” X curtly and rudely demanded as his form of a ‘brotherly greeting.’“Leo. It is you,” Donnie let out as a shocked exhale.X spread his arms out wide and replied with a sour-sounding: “In the flesh.” Then, as Donnie walked up to him, he raised his hands up to his face to pick at the very real cut on his solid finger, before rubbing his hand along the red sores on his wrist from the too-tight shackles, and dropped the attitude when he said:“At least I think I’m in the flesh. I don’t know how this works.”Next he grasped the edges of his cloak and held them out like wings while looking down at them as Donnie stood directly in front of him, looking at him with a mixture of shock and disbelief. X put a hand on top of his head to confirm the mask he wasn’t wearing in his real body wasn’t there, and then snapped his eyes to look straight at Donnie, who was gazing at the burns on his plastron that he accidentally put on full display when he spread open his cape.X figured there was no point in trying to hide his injuries now, so he pointed his thumb over his shoulder at his carapace and with a half smile said in an almost joking tone of voice: “If you think that’s bad, you should see the back.”Donnie snapped his eyes up to look into his brother’s, and X felt uncomfortable when he saw the same look of kindness and empathy that were in Yolinda’s eyes after she saw his injuries.“Yes, show me the rest of your shell,” Donnie flatly requested.“Why?” X defensively snapped.Donnie stored away all the many questions swimming around in that overactive genius mind of his to focus on the more important matter staring him in the face, and replied: “I’m the family medic and I know a lot about shell repair. I’m sure I can help.”X huffed out a contemptible laugh and sarcastically replied: “Yeah, I’ve heard that one before.”“Please, let me at least look at it,” Donnie insisted.“You’re just as bad as that fox yokai,” X huffed out. “Are you gonna threaten to tell your uncle I kissed you, too, if I don’t do what you want?”“What? No. What does that even…ugh!” Donnie rubbed his forehead from the frustration of them getting off track so quickly, and then lowered his hand and said in a worried-sounding voice that was borderline pleading: “Please, Leo. If shell damage isn't properly tended, your susceptible to infections, especially with a cracked shell.” “The cracks are mostly healed,” X refuted. “But not completely,” Donnie tried to logically argue. “Ok wise guy how about this? I can’t get an infection. Neither can you. Or those other two brothers of ours.”X glared at Donnie because the uncontrollable, somewhat vulnerable way he felt at this whole conversation manifested as anger.‘That clever fox is right about me. I push people away because I’m scared,’ he thought but didn’t say; and pushed away the feelings of fondness he had for her with the words he didn't really mean.‘I hate her.’Donnie raised one of his oversized eyebrows and said: “Explain.”“Draxum made our bodies next to perfect, they're impervious to infections and stuff like that,” X bluntly replied without further explanation.“That statement is factually incorrect on three accounts,” the technical ‘bookworm’ bluntly replied.The slider leaned ahead with a cocky grin and copied Donnie when he said: “Explain.”And explain he did.Donnie paced back and forth, seeming to be lost in his own mind as he rattled off: “Our bodies were not made by Draxum, they were mutated by him. We were already living turtles when he did that. Unless, of course, by ‘made’ you mean…” “Boooor-ring!” X blurted out before faking a yawn. Then he added with a crooked grin: “I’m about to find out if I can fall asleep when I’m already asleep if you keep droning on like that.”Donnie went back to his factual tone, but sounded slightly annoyed this time as he continued. “My point is that our mutated bodies are not impervious to infection because when Mikey was little he chipped the top right edge of his shell and got shell rot. And we’re also not impervious to,” he raised his fingers to make air quotes, “‘stuff like that’, because we are also susceptible to contracting the rat flue.” “Thewhatnow?” X asked, genuinely having no clue what he was referring to. Donnie bypassed that question to get back to the more important issue and said: “So you should let me look at your shell before it gets worse.”That seemingly generous offer apparently with ‘no strings attached’ got X on edge and he angrily (defensively) replied: “Ok so we’re almost impervious to infection and,” he glared at Donnie, being sure to make eye contact when he raised his hands to do air quote and said: “‘stuff like that’,” hoping Donnie could see how ridiculous he looked when he did the same. Then he loosely crossed his arms in front of his chest and continued.“And I don’t know if you learned this in that quaint little life you live watching old Lou Jitsu reruns and trying to be ninjas like him with your lame hero work…” He leaned ahead and bluntly said in a factual tone: “You’re gonna get yourselves killed, by the way,” and then resumed with the defensive, mocking attitude.“But let me clue you in on something, brother.”X tightened his crossed arms at the same time his body tensed, and adjusted his stance to stand with one foot in front of the other so his body wasn’t directly facing his brother. It looked like he was prepared to fight, run, or both (he was).“Out there on the streets you don’t get something without giving just as much or more. I learned the hard way, nobody ever does anything out of the ‘goodness of their heart’,” he briefly glanced at his hands that were making air quotes, thinking he was starting to understand what was so appealing about it, and finished with: “And, in case you forgot, I got the cracks to prove it.”Donnie’s heart dropped at the thought of his long-lost brother having to live a harsh life full of pain and misery while they were happily playing in their sewer lair home, under the somewhat absent but safe and overall loving care of the dad Leo never knew, completely oblivious to whatever tortures their presumed-deceased-but-alive brother was going through.“You’re right.”X was surprised by Donnie’s frank, candid reply, and he was intrigued enough not to follow his instincts (aka ‘better judgement’) by high-tailing it out of there right this instant.But the cold chill he felt indicated his body was beginning to feel cold, and he supposed the wind was picking up - possibly preceding a storm. So whatever else was said he hoped was done quickly.“We did grow up living sheltered lives while you clearly did not, but this is serious, Leo. At least let me look at it and give you some recommendations. I won't touch anything, I promise.”That seemingly sincere offer being thrown out again got X’s blood boiling and he sarcastically snapped with a scowl: “Let me guess, you want to help out of the kindness of your heart because you’re my brother and it hurts you to see me in pain. Stop me when I get close.”“YES!” Donnie yelled, sounding exasperated. “All of it! It’s all true! Stop being such a dummy and let me help! Please!” X’s angry voice oozed sarcasm when he snapped in reply: “Oh yeah, why don’t I just trust you because you’re my 'brother'," (even when he was mad air quotes were fun) "and turn my back to the turtle with about twenty seven different weapons stored in his artificial shell.”Donnie was impressed with Leo’s assessment of his weaponry and bluntly replied: “Twenty-nine, and why did you warn me about Big Mama?”Donnie figured he got his point across judging by the way Leo’s tense posture softened at the reminder that he warned Donnie for no other reason than they're his family and he wanted to help them be safe.X’s anger turned to embarrassment over how Donnie exposed a gaping flaw in his thinking he hadn’t realized was there until now.At first, X thought his skin was crawling over the uncomfortable way Donnie’s poignant observation made him feel, but when he looked down at his arms he realized he was actually feeling rain falling on his body, if the wet droplets appearing on his skin was any indication.Another thing X learned the hard way over the years via harsh punishments was the importance of admitting his mistakes, so he wasn’t one to make excuses or shift the blame to others. Therefore he acquiesced, his body softened further, and he broke contact to gaze at the floor while nervously tapping his cold index finger on his arm over and over.“I tell you what. If I can’t take care of it myself, I’ll . . . think about letting you look at it. Deal?”“Take care of it yourself!” Donnie blurted out in surprise. “You can’t properly reach all your shell on your own and you said the back is worse! Don’t you have one person you trust enough to help!? What about..” “DEAL?”Donnie looked up at Leo’s waiting gaze and sadly replied: “Sigh. Deal.”X snorted out a laugh and said: “Sigh? Why do you do that? Is it just as fun as using air quotes? Does it work with other words?”Without giving Donnie time to answer even one of his questions, X broke eye contact to gaze around the blackness surrounding them and yelled loudly into the void, hoping for an echo (there wasn’t one): “GRUNT! BURP! COUGH COUGH! Hey, what if I tack on other words? ANGRY SNARL! ANNOYED GROAN! FRUSTRATED SIGH! Yeah, that wor-what!?”X got his back up again when he looked back at his brother and saw he was gazing at him with a smile. “Got something on my shell? Oh I know, you’re laughing at the black eye, aren’t you? Some ninja warrior can’t even protect his good looks from a punch to the face! Well I’ll have you know I was chained to the floor when that happened so jokes on you. I can defend myself when I wanna while you bozos run around...would you stop looking at me like that? Seriously, I feel like a cadaver you can’t wait to cut into, it’s creeping me out bro.”Donnie shook his head to get himself out of the inner working of his busy, fast processing mind with: “It’s not that, it’s…”. . .“It’s what?” X asked, still tense and defensive, waiting for the other shoe to drop.Donnie looked him in the eyes with what was a mixture of fondness, kindness, and sadness, and said: “We all thought you were dead. Aaand . . . it’s nice to know you’re not. Bro.”What was that strange, warm, fuzzy feeling X felt inside? It was new and . . . weird. He hated it, he liked it, he wanted it to go away, but at the same time it felt kind of . . . nice.Leo softened his tense posture but kept his arms crossed and gave his brother a little grin.“That goes both ways. Bro.”“Why did you stop reaching out to me? Why did you stop responding when I reached out to you? I thought you must've died, Leo,” Donnie asked suddenly. Judging by the way Leo immediately tensed again and looked away, his abrupt question was completely unexpected; and in a quiet little voice, he replied: “I already told you.”X considered asking the 'hero turtle' 'are you sure you wanna do this?' (as in 'rekindle our brotherly relationship') but bit his tongue instead; figuring if Donnie wanted to back out at the bloody reminder from when they were little, that X was not a hero like them, now was the time to do it.Donnie did the exact opposite of what he was expecting when he said: “We should get together again, out in the real world with Raph and Mikey. I mean when you’re not attacking us. And I’m sure Pops…” “Woah woah woah,” X interrupted with his hand out, indicating he wanted Donnie to stop. He put it back with the other one and said: “There’s no need to get him involved. At least not yet. Let’s take things slowly, one step at a time. We don’t know each other and I don’t have any reason to trust you yet.” “You don’t have any reason not to trust us,” Donnie tried to fire back.In a defensive tone X replied: “Yeah, right. I only need to take one bite of that poisoned pizza to know it’s something I’m never gonna repeat, and - in case you forgot again - I got the cracks to prove it.”X looked at Donnie, waiting for him to object, but instead he surprised him by saying: “We can do slowly. How about tomorrow, is that too soon? Me, Raph, Mikey. And dad doesn’t have to know.” “Tomorrow, hey?”X tapped his foot on the black floor while he thought; his troubled mind coming up with all sorts of excuses to back out. But in the end his desire to meet his brothers - to really meet them without the cape and the mask and the whole ‘engaging in combat with a masked stranger’ thing, but as their brother ‘Leo’ - was too hard to resist.Although he still gave himself an ‘out’ by suggesting a time when he was working when he said: “Yeah, I can do tomorrow. But it's gotta be at Run of the Mill. Five sound good?”Five was during his shift. Maybe Seňor Hueso would say 'no' to taking a quick break to meet with his brothers.Maybe he would forget to ask.“It’s a deal.”Donnie stuck his right hand out for a handshake and X looked down at it suspiciously. Although he didn’t see any sign of concealed weapons that could be used against him, X decided for the sake of curiosity, he would put his hand out and see what happened, while saying: “Deal.” Donnie did something else unexpected when he grasped Leo's hand and moved them both up and down once, before exclaiming: “You’re wet! And cold!”In a nervous sort of way, X smiled at him, pulled his hand back to point a thumb over his shoulder at his shell, and slowly backed away while saying: “Yeah. Guess it’s raining where I’m at. I'm laying on my stomach, better get back, wouldn’t want to get that shell rot you mentioned.”“Make sure to keep your shell clean and dry!” Donnie instructed in an almost panicked tone of voice.“Yelp,” X popped the ‘p’ and kept walking backwards.“And scrape off any dead scutes when they come lose!”“Will do.”“And don’t forget…” “Bye!”X disappeared with a wave and Donnie was left behind to pick up the pieces of this whole new situarion surrounding Leo's shell, and some of the worrisome things he revealed; things that possibly painted a dark picture of what his life was like.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
As soon as Donnie opened his eyes in his lab, he blurted out in anger: “CHAINED to the FLOOR!!!? I can defend myself when I WANNA!? What did he mean by THAT!!!?” He clicked at his wrist tech to unlock the lab door, and no sooner was it unlocked than Mikey and Raph came barreling in, wanting to know how things went; but he ignored them to type at his keyboard, inputting important new data into a file marked ‘Leonardo.’“Was he there!? Did you see him!? What did he say!?” Mikey grabbed Donnie’s shoulders and frantically yelled: “I NEED ANSWERS!!”Donnie pushed him away and snapped: “Get off Miguel before you knock my tech shell out of alignment!” The softshell calmly brushed himself off, and looked up at his little brother to respond in a tone Raph noticed sounded annoyed and maybe a little bit angry:“Yes, he was there and yes I saw him and he said a lot of things, some of which I need to include in my spreadsheet. Now excuse me but I also have a lot of research to conduct.”Raph watched the words on the screen that Donnie was typing, not understanding any of it because the intelligent softshell was writing in his custom shorthand.“I take it things didn’t go well?” the big snapper asked. Donnie scrunched his shoulders while typing a little too forcefully, (good thing he had a heavy-duty Genius Build™ keyboard) and through gritted teeth he replied with a sarcastic: “Things went swimmingly, Raphael.”Raph noticed the sarcastic tone to Donnie’s voice and the way he tensed his body, but the overexcited Mikey was completely oblivious and practically shouted in his excitement: “Of course things went good, he’s our brother! How could they not!?”Mikey clasped his hands together and excitedly jumped up and down with a big grin on his face, but stopped and finally noticed Donnie’s tense composure when Raph asked: “What’s the problem, Don?” Donnie continued typing and replied: “The problem is that his shell is in bad shape, or at least what I can see, but he told me the carapace is worse.”Mikey lowered his hands and unclasped them with a confused: “Carapace?” He looked all around his body like he was searching for something and asked: “Do we have one of those, or just Leo?” “Yes, Miguel, we have a carapace. All turtles do,” Donnie replied, sounding so tired. “The carapace is the back of your shell and the plastron is the front. We went over this twenty seven times in the past six years, remember?” “Yes!” Mikey immediately agreed with a proud smile. But when he really thought about it his smile fell and he said a quieter: “Uh, no.”Raph gazed at Mikey along with Donnie, the latter looking so tired from his conversation with their long lost brother, and the big brother/leader of the ‘Mad Dogs’ family team of heroes felt the need to build up his fam, so he said with confidence: “The important thing is that he’s still alive, right? And he answered Don. So, uhhh . . . what do we do from here? Any ideas?”“Well, he agreed to meet us tomorrow at five at Run of the Mill,” Donnie flatly and factually informed them, like he was telling them nothing more important than a lightbulb in the rec room needed to be replaced. Mikey didn't think that was so 'run of the mill' though and squealed: “Ohmigosh I’m going to meet my brother!!! TOMORROW!”Donnie had to stop typing because Mikey wrapped his arms around him and jumped up and down again, squealing. Raph smiled at the disgruntled look on Donnie’s face as he quietly conceded to the unwanted physical contact; not pushing him away because he knew from personal experience the quickest and easiest way for this to end was to just ride through it until Mikey got it out of his system.Mikey talked rapid-fire about random things; like finding out Leo’s favorite color, how he ‘needed’ to have a coordinated ninja mask like theirs, and making him shell stickers and finding out his favorite food so he could cook it and so on and so forth.After a short bit, a thought came to Raph’s mind. His smile fell and the overprotective big brother of the family curtly reminded his overexcited, overtrusting little brother: “Don’t get too excited Mikey, we already did meet him. Three times now. And he wasn’t very friendly.”Mikey abruptly stopped his jumping, not from what his big brother said, but rather, what he remembered about Run of the Mill, and he asked: “Didn’t we leave without paying the bill?”Raph nervously scratched the back of his head and replied: “Uh, yeah, I think so,” but Donatello remained perfectly calm, clicked at his wrist tech and reassured them: “Have no fear, there is a simple fix. I shall send the necessary funds to April and ask her to go there ahead of us and pay our bill with our deepest apologies.” “Good idea Don,” Raph complimented, and Mikey jumped up and down again and squealed: “I can’t wait until tomorrow! I’m going to go make some stickers for him right now!”The youngest of the three (four) turtle brothers bolted out of the room to do just that.* * *~Early The Next Day~X got up bright and early inside a back room of a long-sinced-closed human shoe store, put on his belt, black ninja wrappings, weapons, and cloak; attached his mask snugly to the top of his head, and went to the Hidden City for food and supplies - because Draxum’s order to stay out of the Hidden City expired as of early that morning. And after he was done that he planned on hitting up the usual places to sell the last few insta-portal chips he had and see if any of his contacts had side jobs for him, to earn some money because he was almost tapped out.Incidentally, insta-portal chips were one-time-use weak portals that crooks used (and cops hated) to instantly teleport themselves a few blocks away whenever they were in a pinch. They were super easy to make if one had the right sophisticated, complex machinery; which X had, thanks to Draxum allowing him to take his old, outdated Mystic Energy Transmorphifier when he built a bigger, better one, in exchange for X doing the lengthy, menial job of picking razzleberries for him in his free time over the three short weeks of the year that they were ripe.Any physical, inanimate object the right shape and size could be infuse with mystic energy via Draxum’s MET. So all X had to do was go to the nearby gravel pit surrounding the sides and back of his home, collect pebbles that were the right size and shape, and stick them inside the machine. Then it was only a matter of clicking a few buttons and voila! A new portal chip rock which took on a purply sheen, indicating it had been infused with mystic properties. The rock acted as a vessel for the mystic energy, lost its sheen when consumed; and X made a decent living as one of the few people around who could make them, especially since he was the only street thug who subsequently sold them among the ruffians, criminals, and gang members on the Hidden City streets.The supplies part of X’s errands were done, with him picking up a few basic necessities to tide him over until it was safe to return home; like a toothbrush and toothpaste, reptile skin lotion (naturally), 'Uncle Lee's' shell, quill, horn, and hoove wipes, bandages, a stiff brush and shell scraper, and last of all a pair of heavy duty, black dish gloves that went up to his elbows, to keep the soft, lotioned skin on his hands in good condition.At the moment, X had just arrived at the downtown Hidden City Market where he regularly shopped for food when Draxum sent him out to replenish their supplies. He had a taste for yokai fruits and vegetables because of the way Draxum raised him on an exceptionally healthy diet, and casually looked around the fruit stands before giving his attention to some chorus fruit being sold at one of the stands.The pink yokai fruit had purple stripes going down from the top, was the same general shape and size as a pomegranate, and was one of X’s favorite fruits. He picked one up and gently squeezed it to check for ripeness, holding it up to his ear to hear the heavenly “aaaah” sound it emitted when gently squeezed. Higher pitched sounds were under ripe, a lower pitch meant over ripe, and somewhere in the middle was perfectly ripe for eating.X’s ear was in-tuned to the right pitch and since that one was slightly too high, he put it down, tried another that was just right, and then laid it on the table in front of the vendor, who was a white and green furry kangaroo-type yokai. He reached in his belt pouch, took out the right amount of yokai yen he needed, and paid for it. But just after he reached down and picked it up, a ninja chill went down his spine and he whipped around, dagger in hand, ready to defend himself. Only to see a very angry set of goat yokai eyes staring right at him.“Draxum?” X asked in confusion; wondering why his boss was so angry to see him at the only place in the Hidden City he ever came to buy food supplies.Sure he was already mad before X was sent away, but the 'stay away from the Hidden City' rule was for one day; and even Baron Draxum must have understood his turtle slave needed to eat sometimes.X sheathed his dagger and remained in place - like he knew was expected of him - holding the chorus fruit in one hand and gazing up with a mixture of fear and confusion at the furious yokai who was locking eyes with him and storming his way.X knew better than to try and escape his owner’s wrath by cowardly turning chicken and running away, so he stayed perfectly still, respectfully gazing up in fearful confusion at the enraged face that kept getting closer and closer.When Draxum got in striking distance X flinched but didn’t pull away or in any way try to resist when two big goat yokai hands grabbed his upper arms, squeezed them so tightly it hurt, and barked out: “What are you doing here!?” “I was just…” “Nevermind! Come with me!”The verbal command wasn’t needed with the way Draxum kept his tight grip on the hapless slider’s left arm and dragged him to the closest alley. The surprised turtle was so overcome with shock that he inadvertently dropped the chorus fruit in his hand, not realizing in the slightest first or last that he lost his only food.While Draxum stormed away with his turtle creation, another yokai calmly took X’s place, figuring it was nothing more than an owner dealing with a disobedient or incompetent slave. He picked up X’s chorus fruit to lay it back in the wooden box with the others, while the kangaroo vendor watched the 'kappa yokai’ stumbling to keep up with his taller goat owner’s brisk pace as he was dragged away.The first yokai laid a different fruit in front of the vendor to buy it with a dismissive: “Must’ve bought the wrong fruit or something.” “Must’ve,” the kangaroo agreed, watching the goat and turtle disappear into a dark alley before calmly tending to her paying customer.In the alley, Draxum forcefully threw X face-down to the ground. The bewildered turtle hastily rolled onto his back and tightly grasped the store bag to his chest, that contained the supplies he needed, while staring up wide-eyed at his infuriated boss.“I told you to get out of my sight and stay away from the Hidden City!” Draxum aggressively yelled. “That was for one day!” X frantically objected. “Now it’s longer!” Draxum yelled in reply.X instinctively shielded his face with his arm when Draxum stomped one cloven foot ahead and thrust out a hand to point aggressively at him.“Get out of here, stay above ground in New York, and don’t return until I call for you!”“But how am I supposed to eat!? I’m not allowed human junk, I'm almost out of yen, and I need human money to eat at Señor Hueso's!”“I don’t care what you do as long as you stay far away from me!”Draxum gave X one final threatening glare before regaining his composure and turning around to walk away.X hugged his shopping bag up close to his chest and pressed his luck by asking in a respectful but concerned voice:“Draxum?”The goat yokai stopped walking, stiffened his body, and stood back-on to X, awaiting his question.When X saw that he had permission to speak, he respectfully asked: “It's getting cold above ground, I don't have anything warm to wear. How am I supposed to stay in New York if I can't go to the Hidden City to buy clothes that fits over my shell?”Draxum turned his head far enough to see his turtle slave out of the corner of his left eye and calmly but firmly told him: “That’s your problem.” “Can I at least go home and get some of my stuff?” X quickly blurted out.Draxum looked straight ahead again with X still behind his back, and then after a couple of seconds he resumed walking away; with his lack of any hint of a refusal answer enough.X breathed a sigh of relief that his enraged scientist-warrior owner was leaving without adding to his woes, by punishing him for breaking a command that hadn't even been issued yet. Then he scrambled to his feet so he could rush home, hastily grab whatever of his he could carry, and hurry up to get out of there and away from the Hidden City before Draxum randomly decided to show up and take out his anger on the turtle who was ordered to get out of his sight.* * *~About Twenty Minutes Later~X was in his room, stuffing his gray leather satchel full of essentials, and he hastily grabbed an open box of a healthy yokai version of energy bars from his bedside dresser, as a final addition. The very first thing he took when he rushed into his room was the mystic odachi Draxum had taken away from him, but decided to hang on his wall in his room at some point while X was in New York.The part of X’s mind that told him this was his boss’s way of ordering him to train with it again ‘for the greater good’ surpassed the small but loud part screaming at him, trying to convince him the only reason Draxum didn’t put it back in the display case in his weapons room where it came from was because he refused to set eyes on the three empty spots where the stolen weapons belonged.By the time he was done, X’s room was in shambles and the nervousness he felt at the thought of his owner seeing the state it was in, was far outweighed by the fear of what would happen to him if Draxum returned home to find him still here.It took the panicked slider over fifteen minutes to get to Draxum’s house from the market, which meant he had been in his room for less than five when he heard the familiar sound of hooves clicking on tiles.‘He must’ve portalled here! WHY'D HE DO THAT!!!’X’s face paled. He didn’t bother wasting precious time trying to portal away because he knew it would be a futile attempt with the way he was panicking. So he booked it out of his room to run down the hall in the opposite direction from where he knew Draxum was; toward the back door, off the kitchen.Although he felt a pair of cold yokai eyes figuratively burning holes in the back of his head when Draxum stepped into the hall, X didn’t slow down long enough to turn around and look, and ran in the kitchen - knowing with the way his cape whipped through the air behind his back Draxum had a clear view of the odachi strapped to his left hip; and if he had done wrong by taking it his owner would have ordered him to stop by now.The thought never once crossed X’s mind to dip into some of the bounty that was yokai food in the kitchen; not because he was scrambling to get his turtle tail out of there before he wound up on the menu (or worse on a terrorworm’s dinner plate) but because he was only granted permission to grab his stuff and anything more than that would be considered an act of rebellion.After he flew out the back door, X skidded to a halt and did a quick one eighty to run back and do the necessary task of firmly closing the door he accidentally left wide open behind him. Then he rushed around to the front of Draxum’s immense house so quickly he ended up hopping on one foot when he took the corner too fast and almost lost his balance.Even without the use of his portals, Draxum could easily reach the front door before X could run all the way around the big house, and they both knew it. So if he was going to punish him before he went topside, Draxum still had plenty of time to do so. But X didn’t have any choice but to run to the front of the house because Draxum’s place was sitting atop a cliff, with steep slopes on three of the four sides leading to the immense gravel pits below. The pit was surrounded all around with sheer cliffs impossible to climb, leading to the cavern roof high up, and there was no way in or out except through a foot path behind Draxum’s house leading down in one spot.This meant the only way topside from here was to take a rock bridge jutting out just past Draxum’s front yard. That bridge connected Draxum’s property to the rest of the cavern. A sharp left led to the Hidden City that was nearby, but not in sight; to the right a way's away was a network of crystal caves where Draxum frequently sent X to collect necessary supplies for his experiments; and straight ahead only a few feet past the bridge was a cave wall where the nearest portal topside was located.The panicking slider could hear his feet padding on the ground with each hurried step, along with the sound of his heavy breathing through his mouth to make up for his rapidly pounding heart.When he finally got to the front of the house, where the nearest portal topside was located, X glanced at the door to see Draxum wasn’t there yet. The sweat from his brow stung his eyes when it got in them, but wiping them away would only slow him down, so like his aching shell he ignored the sting and just kept going; running through the glowing green lichen making up Draxum’s front yard and out across the rocky bride to the portal to New York he was so desperate to reach.X’s wrist com had already been programmed to automatically open this portal when he was within a few dozen feet of it. But as soon as the rocky wall in front of him came alive with bright pink mystic energy, X felt a pair of cold eyes gazing at him from behind; and abruptly stopped just shy of his salvation to look behind his back at the warrior alchemist, who was calmly standing on his front step, gazing up at him.Draxum had never done anything like this before and X had no idea what was expected of him now. So he froze for a second, holding his breath in anxious suspense, and locking eyes with the calm-looking yokai who could unexpectedly turn violent with no more warning than a flick of his finger, ordering his slave home for a new round of grueling punishments he really didn’t deserve.X’s owner continued calmly gazing up at him, and when no such command came the nervous slider tentatively raised one foot and very obviously stuck it through the portal.The goat yokai didn’t move or say anything, so X correctly took that to mean he was free to leave and literally threw himself through the portal in his effort to get out of there before the boss who had been exceptionally angry ever since his lab fire changed his mind.The portal spit him out at the brick wall near the construction site where he had fought his family and stole their weapons. He came out headfirst and rolled across the ground, before quickly clicking at his wrist tech to close the portal behind him. Then he turned his head to look at the brick wall, confirming the portal was indeed shut and no angered warrior yokai was going to reopen it and step through.Once he felt sufficient time had passed for Draxum to follow him here if that was his plan, X pushed himself up off his stomach and leaned back against the wall, sitting on the ground with his tired-out legs splayed out in front of him, his satchel in his lap, and his panting head resting against the wall.X took a few deep breaths through his mouth, while his heart gradually settled down. He tipped his head a little to the left, to look at where the portal showed itself when it opened, half expecting the bright pink light to shine beside him any second and a temperamental goat yokai to come storming through to exact vengeance on his slave for daring to still be home when he arrived.When, once again, no such thing happened and there was no angry voice or text message coming through his com ordering him home, X’s heart settled more and he rolled his head back to look straight ahead, closed his eyes, and calmed down enough to be able to breathe through his nose once more.As soon as he closed his dry mouth he went through the motions of swallowing to relieve the tension in his throat, and then slowly raised a hand up to the mask resting snugly on the top of his head to drag it down over his face - more for the comfort he felt by protectively hiding his face behind a facade than an attempt to hide his mutant turtle face from any humans who might see him.As an extra step to conceal himself, X draped the cloak over his shoulders, one side at a time. After he ensured both arms were hidden beneath, he grasped the edges up by his chest to firmly close it over his shell, so there wasn’t a gap anywhere from his mask down, and only doing that because he was far too beat to bother with the effort of clipping the shorter black piece over his plastron - besides, this way his legs were covered, too.The only thing exposed now were X’s ninja wrapped green turtle foot and blue padded metal one poking out the bottom, and the parts of his head not covered by his mask. But that was only because he was too wore out to pull his knees up to his chest to get his feet underneath his flowy cape, or to lean ahead far enough to get his hood out from behind his shell so he could pull it up. Besides, the extra padding was nice between his sore shell and the brick wall.That small bit of comfort his mask and cape provided was enough to calm X’s mind sufficiently for him to be able to think clearly enough to finally put the pieces together, and he glanced down at where he knew the odachi was under his cloak.Draxum had showed up with enough time to confirm his panicking slave had come to the right conclusion by taking the odachi back to further his mystic training.And he walked out the front door at just the right moment to catch his slave before he reached the portal as an intimidation tactic - threatening with nothing more than his calm presence that he had eyes everywhere in the Hidden City and if he turtle slave ever dared try to rebel against his orders to stay above ground, the consequences would be swift and brutal.X shoved the thought aside of being chopped apart and fed to a insatiable giant razor-fanged terrorworm by his angry boss, and focused instead on the loud racket of construction crews working on the new building on the other side of the brick wall he propped himself against. The consistent distractions of shouting and crane equipment moving around and supplies being unloaded had a calming effect on his rattled mind. That was, until the deafening sound of a jackhammer thrummed in his ears and pounded in his head, so he decided it was time to take his leave and pushed himself up onto his shaky legs.At first, X pulled out his odachi to try and open a portal, but then the realization hit him that he had nowhere left to call home for the time being. After a moment's contemplation, he focused on the only option he could think of and tried to open a portal to the closed down shoe store where he had slept the night before. But when it was time for his portal to open, nothing beyond a glowing blue blade followed by a few sparks at the tip manifested.X tried twice more, but the best he could do was open a tiny portal no bigger than one of his toes. His shoulders dropped from sadness at the sight, he sheathed his sword, pulled his hood up over his head, picked up some of his stuff that he inadvertently dropped unsheathing his sword, and began the long walk on foot to go to the only place he knew where he could get out of the cool weather and take a nap before work.* * *By the time he finally made it to the empty store he called his temporary home, X was feeling dead on his feet and was looking forward to passing out for the next three hours before his one o’clock shift started at Run of the Mill. But he was in for no such luck, and grasped his leather bag to hug it close to his chest as a form of comfort as he stood on the sidewalk, sadly gazing at the big sign prominently displayed on the front sales window of the brightly lit store:‘Coming soon!The Foot Shack!Now hiring’With the exception of giving the masked, cloaked, hooded person giving off creepy vibes a wide berth, everyone passing X on the sidewalk completely ignored him. He stayed where he was, gazing in disbelief at the workers inside the brightly lit store, putting together shelves to hold shoes, until his heavy eyelids keep drooping down, reminding him of how utterly exhausted he felt.X let out a deep sigh and decided to do the only other thing his tired mind could think of, by going around the side of the building into an alley. The coolness of the air was more noticable in the dark alley shadows, but he was too spent for it to bother him. Next, X hoisted his sore body up onto the fire escape, but instead of going all the way out of sight on the roof, he was so worn out that he settled on stopping at the second floor landing, where he lay down on the metal grating to catch a few z’s.After laying on his side so his injured carapace wasn’t flush against the rough metal, X put his satchel under his head for a pillow, carefully ensured his cloak was wrapped around his entire body like a blanket as his only protection against the cold, and bent his knees to pull his feet up underneath cape.And despite the hard, rough, bumpy surface of his makeshift bed, the way his shell ached with every breath, and the chill from the coolness reaching through the heavy material of his cloak, sleep found the exhausted slider much quicker than he thought it would, and was much, much deeper than he anticipated.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Seňor Hueso was in the kitchen when Scrubs burst through the door in a panic.“I'm here! I didn't mean to be late Seňor Hueso, I’ll start right away!”X had been so exhausted after his stressful encounter with his owner that morning that he ended up sleeping soundly right up until it was almost time for his shift. After a quick and unsuccessful attempt with a portal, he scrambled to get to work on time, and was actually five minutes early. But the problem was, for Draxum’s slave being ‘on time’ meant he was expected to be at least fifteen minutes early - or else - so X was always twenty minutes ahead of schedule, just to be safe.The slider rushed over to his workstation without first hanging up his cloak and gray leather satchel. He slapped his big bag on the counter, flipped open the top cover, reached his hand in, and grasped his new dish gloves. But before he pulled them out, Hueso put a hand on his shoulder; so he stopped and snapped his head up to make eye contact with his ‘Draxum sanctioned' boss.Hueso noticed Scrubs tensed under his touch, but when the anxious slider looked up into his eyes to see a relaxed, smiling face looking back at him, he relaxed his tension; but only a little.“You are not late, pepino, you are five minutes early, you shift doesn’t start until one, remember?”Scrubs looked at Hueso like he was confused. (and he was confused that Hueso didn’t get angry with him for not being fifteen minutes early) His mind was still rattled from the whole ‘Draxum’ incident this morning, which lead him to stutter out: “Uh . . . yeah, I . . . I thought . . . it’s just that…” He let out a sigh, relaxed a little more, and instead of explaining the whole situation with Draxum and the consequences of being late but really early, he smiled back at the bone man and honestly told him: “Thanks. I lost track of time.”“Now that you are here, I would like to have a quick chat with you in my office.”X’s face paled.He wondered if the back portal to a terrorworm pit Hueso once mentioned was real.Hueso noticed and hastily added: “It’s nothing of concern, I need to iron out some details of your job with you. It's common protocol for all new hires.”Relief washed over Scrub’s face and he said with a crooked grin: “Oh, yeah ok.” Hueso led the way out and Scrubs followed him close behind. When they got to his upstairs office, Hueso sat at his spot behind the desk and X respectfully remained standing, until he was directed to sit, as well.After sitting down, X quietly and nervously bounced his foot while waiting for the figurative hammer to drop, but instead he was surprised when Hueso simply told him: “My restaurant is open six days a week. All full-time staff work Tuesday to Sunday with Mondays off, except for once a year during the annual deep clean. Your shift will begin at one and end at closing at ten, or when the work is done, whatever comes last." Hueso’s tone of voice softened when he added: "And one more thing pepino. I am not in the habit of employing free labor at my restaurant.” (by ‘free labor’ they both knew he meant ‘slave labor’ of course) “I have put you on the payroll.”X put on his fake ‘faceman’ crooked grin, sat back all casual-like in his chair with his left arm draped over the back of it, and calmly replied: “You don’t pay your slaves, Seňor Hueso.” Hueso leaned forward and firmly but kindly told him: “You are not my slave, pepino.”X remained unphased and with a dismissive shrug of his left shoulder, he calmly replied: “I’m Draxum’s slave and I’m following his orders to work for you.”X assumed that would be the end of that and waited for permission to leave so he could begin his shift, feeling unsure about whether or not he should bring up his plans to meet with his brothers for the very first time, here at five. But instead Hueso once again surprised him by telling him: "I discussed this matter with Baron Draxum and once I explained to him I do not allow free labor in my establishment, he agreed with a . . . modest reimbursement for your services, beginning retroactively from your first night here, which was owed to you yesterday.”X didn’t know what to say when Hueso reached his hand out and put some much needed human money on the edge of his desk right in front of his slave-not-slave. His eyes widened from a mixture of shock, relief, and a little bit of fear, but he didn’t reach out for it yet; as Hueso showed he respected the 'not getting something for nothing' rule on the Hidden City streets that X lived by, when he explained: “I deducted the cost of the food you ate, of course.”X sat ahead a little in his seat and Hueso watched with patience as the turtle he knew was a gravely mistreated slave stared in disbelief at the cash in front of him, until asking: “When did Draxum agree to this?” “This morning, pepino.”Scrubs kept his wide eyes glued to the cash, absently nodded his head in acknowledgement, and followed up with the question: “Uh . . . what time?”He assumed Draxum had been so angry with him when they bumped into each other at the Hidden City Market, that any agreement regarding pay made prior to that incident would be null and void, but his owner hadn’t gotten around to informing Hueso of his change of heart. Naturally, that would mean accepting the money would be an act of defiance against his cruel owner; but Hueso put those fears at ease when he explained: “Just after ten thirty. Why?” “Ah, no reason.”For the second time since arriving at work Scrubs tense posture relaxed and Hueso smiled when he finally reached out to pick up the bills. A tiny crooked smile came on X’s face, too, while he stared at the cash in his hand. Not only from the relief of not being forced to resort to the sometimes necessary but distasteful and dishonest act of thievery (even among humans, it always left him with a nagging feeling of guilt in the back of his mind for some reason); but moreso because he thought this was Draxum’s way of ensuring he had enough money for food; hinting that his owner didn’t currently hate his guts - as he was coming to believe given recent events.Next, X looked up at Hueso with appreciation evident in his eyes and all over his face, and he said a sincere: “Thank you, Seňor Hueso.” He suddenly felt bad over the thought of asking for a few minutes off at five to meet with his estranged brothers, thinking doing so would be taking advantage of his new boss's kindness and generosity. So he didn't speak up or say another word when Hueso gave him a soft smile and simply replied with: “You are free to go.”X nodded his head, rose from the chair, and stuffed the money in one of his belt pouches under his baggy, blue shirt on his way back to the kitchen.While sarcastically thinking: "Yeah. Free. Like that's ever gonna happen."The relieved slider walked to the kitchen much more calmly than before, wearing a blue short-sleeve shirt under his cloak, that he grabbed from his room that morning. And the few measly items he got his hands on that were overflowing from or wouldn’t fit in his satchel were left on top of Hueso’s roof, to pick up after his shift when it was time to search for a new place to sleep for a few nights until Draxum came to his senses, calmed down, and called him back.As soon as X pushed the door open and walked into the kitchen, his smile fell at the sight of someone else at his workstation. There, standing back-on to him, was the imbecile beaver yokai he recognized as a server, washing dishes in his sink nonetheless!His first reaction was anger and he tensed again, but when he thought about it, a small half smile came on his face.'I soo needed this,' he thought to himself over the opportunity to release some pent-up tension that the beaver so generously presented to him on a silver platter.Bully glanced up at Scrubs and let out a silent laugh over his almost imperceivable reaction, before returning to his work.Aside for glancing at him once, at first X completely ignored the interloper to grab his satchel, hang it up on one of the wall pegs under his cloak, and take his work gloves out. As he did that, Bully occasionally glanced up at him with a smirk on his face; and he watched quietly when the turtle ninja walked up to stand to the server's left, and calmly laid his dish gloves down on the counter next to a pile of dirty plates, while eyeing the beaver.Like a flash, when the server reached his hand up for a plate on the counter, X stabbed the short blade of a dagger straight down between his furry fingers.The yokai jumped from fright and Bully watched the amusement with keen interest while working on a salad for a customer.X leaned his face in closer to the yokai with a tense smile that gave his face as threatening of an appearance as could be heard in his tone of voice, when he said: “I think you’re lost, friend, let me help you out. You see that door over there?” The yokai looked up when X pointed to the kitchen’s double swinging doors, and then he took his eyes off them to look at the turtle ninja when he said: “That’s where you belong, out there serving the customers, but this…” he gestured to his workstation as a whole, “This is where I belong, and if I ever catch you here again…” he picked up his dagger to show it off horizontally in front of his face, and finished with: “I won’t miss.”“You can’t talk to me like that! You’re nothing but the dishwasher! I'm going to see that you're fired!” X was unbothered, and still with his menacing grin he leaned his face in close to the yokai again to firmly respond: “Get. Out.”Instead of leaving the kitchen to tend to customers like he was supposed to be doing, the beaver stormed over to the counter where his boss, Chef Bully, was working on the other side.Now it was X’s turn to watch with a smile when the server loudly objected: “You can’t let him treat me that way!” “I can do whatever I like now git back in the restaurant where you belong!” Bully yelled in reply. The server pointed back at the smirking turtle with an outstretched arm and yelled: “He threatened to stab me!”X glanced down at the sink of freshly washed dishes, and his cocky grin fell at something he saw, at the same time Bully sternly replied: “Listen bub, you’ve been trying to weasel your way into the kitchen for weeks and if you don’t get out there and do the job you were hired for, Scrubs ain’t gonna be the only one who’ll stab a blade down at yer hand, only I won’t be so polite as to miss the first time!"The server opened his mouth to yell something back, but was interrupted when X held up a plate in his hand and glared at him with an angry: “You call this clean!?” He slapped it in the soapy water and the angry server yelled: “That’s it I QUIT!” “Good riddance!” Bully yelled back. "It's about time!" came another voice near the back of the kitchen.Next, X watched with amusement as the yokai stormed out the ‘in’ door and left. After he was gone, Scrubs spun the blade in his hand and put it away in the breast belt under his shirt, while calmly asking: “Why’d you let him wash dishes in the first place?” “It’s your station, ain't it kid?” Bully replied. They gave each other a smile over their new understanding, and X put on the provided splash apron before picking up one of his dish gloves to stick his left hand in it.“You collectin’ pricklefruit or something, what’s with the getup?” Bully asked with a grin. X reached his gloved hand into the soapy water to drain the sink so he could refill it the right way, and replied with his own smile: “Gotta protect my fighting hands, they’re my lifeline.” Then he added in a sterner tone: “Like you weapons. Get around to cleaning the rest of your blades bub?”Bully laughed and replied: “Nah I got someone else to do that fer me.” He swiftly threw a blade at X’s face with his bottom right hand so fast anyone who wasn’t a trained fighter might have missed the motion. The ninja slider effortlessly caught it mid-air with his ungloved right hand, and calmly looked the dirty handle over, giving Bully a better view of his smooth, manicured turtle hand.“I ain’t never seen such purdy fighter hands before, ‘cept fer some of those chickies in the Black Alley. You lotion or sumthin’?” Bully joked. X laid the throwing blade on the counter to wash with the rest of the dishes and raised his hand up in front of his face to proudly admire his soft skin and well-manicured fingernails.“Exfoliate, lotion, manicure, the whole deal.” He put on his second dish glove and gave Bully a cheeky grin and a wink with his uninjured left eye, while adding: “I can fight and look good at the same time.” “Is that why you wear that crazy fox mask?” Bully asked. Still with his cheeky crooked grin, X replied: “Gotta protect my good looks,” and began filling up the sink.Bully gave a quick check of the black eye and busted lip he knew Draxum likely gave to the kid, to assure his mind there wasn’t any permanent damage on the poor slave's ‘good looking’ face, and looked down at his work again.Around that time, Yolinda came in the kitchen and gazed around, searching for someone.“Where’s the beaver server?” she asked. “He wasn’t in the restaurant, he's got customers waiting.” Bully gave the one answer reply: “Quit,” and then X snickered to himself at Yolinda’s high-pitched, exasperated whine, before she roughly grabbed her black work apron off a wall hook, huffed: “Guess I’m starting early today,” and briefly glanced at the back of Scrubs head before leaving, to serve the customers the beaver server left unattended when he abruptly stormed out.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
~That Evening~Raph, Mikey, and Donnie were on their way to Hueso’s. It was a cool day, so they were all wearing their fall jackets, and when they got to the alley where the portal was, they saw April leaning against the brick wall with her hands in her jacket pockets - keeping them warm - waiting for them.“Did you pay the bill?” was Donnie’s blunt greeting, mixed in among Raph and Mikey's pleasant ones.“Yes, but I had to wait for one of those yokai you told me about to come out because the portal wouldn’t open for me,” April said in a very annoyed tone. Donnie seemed unbothered and flatly told her: “I should have done this earlier but I’ll fix that now.”With a quick click at his wrist tech, Donnie sent the command to April’s Genius Build™ wrist tech that would let her open Hueso’s restaurant portal. Her tech glowed green, indicating the command was received, but she ignored it to yell at Donnie:“Darn right you should've done that earlier and thanks a lot for sticking me with the tip!” “You made April pay the tip?” Raph asked in his firm big brother ‘you should know better’ voice. Donnie once again seemed unbothered and calmly replied: “Tips are unnecessary and an insult. If the business owner can’t be bothered to pay their staff enough to live on, that shouldn't be my problem.”Raph thrust a finger at Donnie’s chest and complained: “It’s gonna be your problem from now on ‘cause if I ever catch you not tipping again I’ll sic Dr. Feelings on you!” Mikey smugly and emphatically nodded his head in agreement before saying: “Ah yeah! Dr. Feelings already has a slideshow prepared for just such an occasion.” “Dr. Feelings?” Donnie asked skeptically. Then he used air quotes when he commented: “I thought you were ‘Dr. Delicate Touch’.”Mikey got a menacing look that managed to send a chill down Dee’s spine, and where did that shadow across his face come from!? “Dr. Delicate Touch feels nothing,” he bluntly replied in a tone as creepy as his facial expression.“Oookay, now that that’s out of the way, how much do I owe you to make up the deficit?” Donnie asked April, getting back on subject. Mikey took out the stickers he made for Leo to show them off to Raph, and they conversed while April and Donnie settled the matter of payment.“Twenty bucks,” April told him. “Twenty bucks!?” Donnie exclaimed. “That’s a fifty three point three three percent tip!” “I didn’t do this for free, now pay up, cheapskate,” April replied in her no nonsense 'you're already on my bad side so you better not talk back’ tone of voice.“Sigh,” was the only reply Donnie gave. He resigned to his fate, a metal mech claw came out of his tech shell, and dropped his wallet into his hand. When he opened it to reveal a big wad of cash inside, April was unsurprised because Donnie kept her in the loop about his online Genius Build Apparel store; whereas Raph and Mikey had been kept in the dark (for obvious reasons. If they knew how much he made they’d make him pay for their pizza every week!). They abruptly stopped their conversation to stare wide-eyed at the big wad of cash in Donnie’s wallet.“Where’d you get all the cash, Don!?” Raph demanded. “Uhhh, don’t worry about it,” Donnie calmly replied. He handed the twenty out to April, who took it with a smile and a polite (but still somehow smug): “Thank you,” and pocketed it. Donnie’s mech claw came out to put his wallet away, but before he handed it over he stopped because Raph firmly asked: “How about sharing the wealth, Don?”Donnie factually (and kind of smugly) replied: “If you would like more than what Pápá’s weekly allowance supplies then I suggest you work for it online like moi.” “Can I have some?” Mikey asked sweetly and starry-eyed while gazing at the many bills in Dee’s wallet.Raph let out an incensed huff when Donnie abruptly pulled out four twenties to hand over to his little brother, before putting his wallet away. And when Raph jealously glared at Mikey, the shorter 'baby brother' of the family stuck his tongue out at him before putting the cash away in a belt pouch.Instead of leaving like Donnie expected, April stuck her hands back in her pockets and asked: “So when do I get to meet this new brother of yours?” “Not today,” Donnie bluntly replied. “Aw come on Dee! I’m family too! I wanna meet him just as bad as you three.”“Once again you already did meet him. Twice to be exact,” Donnie flatly replied, alluding to the argument he had been having with April ever since he informed her of this whole situation.She lowered her voice and said a sarcastic-sounding: “Swinging a sword at my face and fighting us in a cape and mask is not meeting him.” “I saw you two talking over by the teleporting dog, that can hardly be called ‘fighting’,” Donnie factually objected with air quotes. April replied by thrusting a finger at Dee's face and angrily saying: “The 'dog’ is named Mayhem and I’m 'bout ready to fight you if you don’t…” “Don’s right, Pril,” Raph calmly interrupted. “You’re siding with him!?” she exclaimed in a high-pitched tone, while gesturing vividly with both hands at the softshell.“Listen, this is our first time meeting Leo and…” Raph slapped a hand over Donnie’s mouth when he opened it to object this was technically the third time they all met him. Dee glared at him but didn't try to remove his brother’s hand. “I don’t wanna scare him away before we have a chance to get to know him. He already made it clear he does not want to meet Pops yet. And no offense, but he did try to skewer you with his sword before your do...uh Mayhem got us out. Something tells Raph you're not on his top ten favorites list."Raph lowered his hand off Donnie’s mouth and Mikey looked up at April to say: “Yeah April, Donnie told us Leo had his back up when it was just the two of them. I don’t wanna blow our chance to get to know our long lost brother.” He gave her his ‘patented’ little brother puppy dog eyes while clasping his hands under his chin like he was begging, and April huffed out a frustrated sigh and grudgingly agreed: “Fine.”Mikey squealed from excitement and she sternly added: “But let him know I wanna meet him, too.” Raph nervously rubbed the back of his head and replied: “Uh, yeah,” super nervous about introducing his blade-wielding brother to his sister who he attacked - and planning to 'forget' her request.She looked at him suspiciously before sticking her hands in her pockets again and saying: “I’ll head home before he gets here." She addressed Donnie next, when she sternly added: "But you’re coming over tomorrow night and we’re watching the video from your hidden camera, capiche?” "Why not tonight?" Donnie asked her. "Because I've got a test in the morning, so I can't sleep through biology this time." “Understood, I’ll bring the chips,” Donnie calmly agreed. April blew him a kiss, put her hand back in her pocket, and walked away.“Did she say hidden camera!?” Mikey exclaimed. "That's what I heard," Raph sternly agreed. Donnie looked down to click at his wrist tech and calmly replied: “I record everything,” like it was common knowledge among the family. Raph gave him his big brother glare but decided to let it go for now.“This is it! We’re going to meet our brother! I’m so excited! I hope he likes my stickers!” Mikey blurted out when the portal opened in front of their eyes. “Yeah. Excited,” Raph flatly ‘agreed’ in a somewhat worried tone of voice. Then he clapped his hands together and rubbed them back and forth to warm them up on their way in.* * *Hueso was back in the kitchen, taking inventory from Bully to know what supplies he needed to add to the next order, when a full-time server came in from the dining area and told him: “Those troublemakers are back, boss.”Bully abruptly stopped his work and angrily motioned to go out to the dining room, but stopped when Hueso stuck his arm out to block him and firmly said while glaring at the door: “I will deal with those kappa.” ‘Kappa!? Ahhh nooo,’ X moaned in his mind. Hueso walked to the kitchen doors but stopped and turned around in surprise when Scrubs called out: “Wait Seňor Hueso!” “What is it, pepino?” the business owner softly asked. “Are those the three from yesterday? The ones in the colorful masks?” “If you are referring to the three who caused problems for you, then yes,” Hueso firmly replied, feeling angry over how those troublemakers upset his new honorary admittance into the restaurant’s misfit family of ruffians.Hueso was surprised when Scrub’s shoulders dropped and in an almost sad sounding voice he explained: “They weren’t causing problems for me, Seňor. If anything I was causing trouble for them. Please don’t ban them.”Hueso eyed X up and down, trying to figure him out, and Bully told him: “They skipped on the check, too, kid.” Scrubs took off his dish gloves and laid them on the counter, so water wouldn’t drip on the floor when he stepped closer to Hueso and sincerely offered: “Alright, let me deal with it. I’ll pick up the shifts of the beaver who quit to pay their bill, and work late to make up for it.”Instead of Hueso replying, Bully lowered his voice so the rest of the kitchen staff wouldn't hear, and bluntly (and discreetly) said: “We all know what happened last time you worked late. Unless you wanna try ‘n tell me you got that black eye falling down the stairs.”There was no point in trying to hide the truth, so Scrubs looked at Bully and factually told him: “Draxum lifted my curfew,” without giving away any unnecessary details about Draxum wanting him out of his sight and to stay in New York until he was called back. Then he looked at Hueso again and very politely asked: “Please, Seňor Hueso? Let me do this and don’t ban them. At least not yet, but if they cause any more trouble, do what you think is right.”“Why do you care so much about them, pepino?” Hueso asked with a mixture of confusion and suspicion. X pinched the skin between his eyes, replied: “Because they’re my…” he flopped his hand down, groaned with an eye roll, and sounded disgusted by the word when he spit out: “Brothers.”“They’re your brothers!?” Bully exclaimed. "I wasn't aware you had any brothers," Hueso added, as the big brute chef wiped off his hands and walked over to the kitchen door to open it and get a good look at the three bozos taking a seat, while Scrubs informed them: “We were . . . separated as babies. I didn’t know if they were still alive or not until a few weeks ago.”Bully very conspicuously kept his eyes on the three oblivious turtles. The big one was gesturing wildly with his arms and an angry scowl on his face, wrapped up in a heated debate with the one wearing something over his shell; who kept getting distracted by some kind of touchscreen strapped to his wrist that he routinely looked down on to click at. Meanwhile, the bubbly little one kept childishly reaching across the table with a huge grin, saying something to the angry big one while taunting him by waving some twenty dollar bills in his face. And every time his hand was batted away, the little one hugged the other turtle's arm and stuck his tongue out at the big one.There was one word that came to the hardened ex-pirate brute yokai's mind to aptly describe them. A word he would never consider using to describe the hard-working, ninja warrior, Scrubs:Immature. “Ah, that explains it,” he said with a nod of his head, in reference to Scrubs comment about them being separated early on. Then when he saw Scraps angry face storming toward him, he went back in the kitchen and called out: “Firebat at twelve o’clock!” Hueso knew his chef was referring to an angry Yolinda, and in a voice that sounded so done he asked: “What now?”After Scraps burst into the kitchen through the ‘in’ door, she pointed back at the dining area with an outstretched arm and told the room in general: “Hey! Those three kappa who skipped out on their bill are back!” Then she aggressively pointed at Bully and demanded: “I saw you looking at them Bully! Why didn’t you kick them out!?”Yolinda gave Scrubs her attention next when he barked out a single laugh and, in an amused tone of voice and with a smile on his face, he asked her: “Skipped out on the bill, is that all?” She huffed out in annoyance and rested a hand on her hip while he leaned his smug, grinning face in closer to hers and asked with an air of arrogance: “You sure they didn’t throw a drink in your face and threaten to make you eat your own leg?” Hueso and Bully gave each other a passing glance and Chef went back to his work while Yolinda cheekily replied: “I found a turtle recipe online and gave it to Bully this morning. I bet you’d make a reeeal good soup.”X was completely unphased and replied with his own smug attitude when he responded: “That’s not the only thing I do reeeal good but you’ll never know it.” He continued smiling smugly at her when she clenched her fists and let out a high-pitched whine. “Why you . . . when I . . . You’re gonna regret…” “That’s enough!” Hueso loudly snapped. X’s smug grin abruptly fell when his boss pointed at him and sternly ordered: “You! Get back to work!” “Yes Seňor Hueso,” X humbly and respectfully replied. He immediately turned around to put his dish gloves on and got back to work, while Hueso ordered his adoptive daughter, Yolinda, in the same stern manner: “And you! Serve our new turtle customers rápida!”X kept diligently working at his station but listened to Yolinda and Hueso’s conversation taking place behind his back. The fox yokai let out an incensed-sounding huff and exclaimed: “You want me to serve those troublemakers!?” “Si Yolinda,” Hueso sternly replied; but there was a softness to his tone. “Why!?” Her high-pitched voice squeaked, making X smile.Hueso sighed and calmly told her: “They are Scrubs brothers and at his request I will give them one more chance.” A mischievous grin came across Yolinda’s face and she gazed at the back of Scrub’s head. “Brothers, hey? I’ll go serve them right away.” And with a little bounce to her step she gladly left the kitchen to get to know these new customers a little better.X kept his head down and quietly continued with his washing. He wanted to go out and properly meet with the three turtle brothers he had been separated from for such a long time, but thought it best not to bring up the subject after the harsh way his boss addressed his faux pas when he took his bantering with Yolinda a little too far in front of her ‘Tío Hueso’ and his 'Draxum sanctioned' boss.Hueso calmly walked up to Scrubs to stand by his side, and X kept his head down and continued on with his work, secretly hoping Hueso wouldn’t decide to inform Draxum of the disrespectful way he behaved right in front of him, all while nervously wondering if the giant terrorworm portal in the back room Hueso told him about was really real.X continued washing and resisted the urge to tense or squirm away when Hueso put a hand on his shoulder like Draxum often did. But this was different; it wasn’t the abrupt, heavy hand that came with a backhanded compliment immediately followed by a harsh rebuke for a flaw or shortcoming (and sometimes even harsher punishment). Despite being a skeleton yokai, this hand was soft, with a gentle grip, matching the soft gentleness in Hueso’s voice and face when he spoke and X respectfully looked up at him.“There will be no need for you to pick up Gregory’s shift. A human girl came in earlier and paid on behalf of your three brothers. All is forgiven. This time.”Scrubs hid his bashful smile by putting his head down and scrubbed at a stubborn piece of stuck-on dirt. In a quiet, soft tone of voice he said: “Thank you Seňor Hueso,” but continued biting his tongue instead of overstepping his place as a slave(-not-slave) by telling his kind boss his brothers were there to meet up with him.Hueso patted X’s shoulder just as gently and walked away to retire to his office. But before leaving the kitchen, he turned around to look at the back of Scrubs head and softly said: “It’s a shame to have family so close when you’re stuck in here working.” “Yeah,” X quietly replied, not getting the hint.Hueso and Bully exchanged a knowing glance when the business owner told him: “Check the schedule to find out who’s next on break.” Then he left, and almost immediately after, Bully gruffly told Scrubs: “You heard him! Git outta here, go on your break!” “Break? What’s that?” X asked flatly with his eyes on his work. But he stopped long enough to look up at the brute yokai when Bully raised all three of his left fists to shake them at him and threatened: “It’s when I break your leg and both your arms because you won’t go out there with your family. Now git!”X gave Bully a huge smile before hastily pulling off his gloves and apron. Before leaving, he went over to the wall opposite where Bully was working, where his cape and satchel were hanging, and took out a tube of reptile lotion. He squeezed out a dollop and put the tube back, but as he was rubbing it into his hands, Bully looked up at him and gasped. But he didn’t let his anxiety over what he saw show through when he pointedly asked Scrubs: “What’s that on your top?” “What?” X looked at his back as best he could, but couldn’t see what Bully was referring to.Bully wiped off his hands and told Scrubs: “Take off your shirt,” while walking around his counter over to where the turtle was standing on the other side of the room. X turned around to put his back to the wall, and took off his shirt to see what Bully was referring to.As soon as he saw the small, reddish blotch right in the center of his shirt that lined up with the worst injury on his shell, he groaned out loud. Then he looked up from it to Bully’s face when he stood close to him and nodded his head up once, indicating he wanted to discreetly take a look at Scrub’s shell.X twisted his torso just far enough to let Bully take a look at it, and after confirming no one was within earshot and all the kitchen staff were busy with their work, he whispered: “You oughta bandage that, kid.” “I can’t. Not until I scrape off the dead scutes, and I can’t do that until they peel more or it’ll make the damage worse. How bad is it?”The delay in a response was answer enough, but the tension in Bully’s voice confirmed the damage was likely worse than he realized when the hardened ex-pirate who had been around the block quite a few times quietly answered:“It’s bad.”Then they continued their conversation in a hushed whisper, starting with 'Scrubs'.“Is it bleeding?”“Yeah.”“It wasn’t doing that before. Is it bad?”“Nah, just a little.”“Ok, here.”X rummaged through his satchel and took out a flat, sealed item labelled ‘disposable shell, horn, and hoof cleansing wipe.’ He handed it to Bully with the instructions: “Don’t wipe it, pat it.”Bully ripped open the package, took out the wipe, and X winced and grimaced when he felt the cool, wet cloth brushing against the worst part of the second worst injury he ever had in his life.When he was satisfied the oozing bleed had stopped, Bully informed Scrubs: “It’s good now. Got another shirt in that oversized purse of yours?” “It’s a leather satchel and yeah, I got one.” X reached into his bag, pulled out the second of two oversized blue shirts he owned, and pulled it on over his head before balling up the soiled shirt and stuffing it into the satchel. He showed Bully his carapace again and asked: “Better?” “Yeah, that’s good kid.”X nodded his head in acknowledgement but decided to put on his dark gray cloak as an extra precaution. While he was doing that, before walking away Bully discreetly told him: “Let me know if you can’t reach all the...what'dyoucall'em? Ah, yeah, scutes, when it comes time to scrap 'em off.” Scrubs gave a brisk nod of his head in agreement and left to go meet up with the family he didn’t know he desperately needed before their first encounter at the shipping docks, when Draxum portalled him in to deal with their annoying meddling.When Bully pointed out the new issue he had to deal with on his carapace it took the wind out of the ninja turtle’s sails and he came out of the kitchen with much less enthusiasm than he had when he was told to go on break. He looked over where they were sitting, to see Yolinda engaging in conversation with his three brothers.Leo wasn’t aware that Raph was blushing as he talked to Yolinda, because the fox yokai was blocking his view of the big snapper - who was also sitting back-on to him. It felt like his heart skipped a beat over the prospect of finally getting a chance to bond with the brothers he knew about all his life and hope for years were still alive. He took in a deep breath, quietly reminded himself: “Don’t get too excited dummy, you hardly know them,” and walked over to the booth.On the way across the big dining area, Yolinda finished chatting with his brothers, and when she passed by on her way to the kitchen with a mischievous grin on her face, X looked at her with suspicious confusion and stopped walking to look behind his back and watch her walk away. Then he shook it off and continued to the booth.“Leo!”Mikey was the first to greet him with a big smile and a wave. He was sitting on the inside, facing 'Leo', with Donnie beside him, who was looking down at his phone, and Raph sat opposite them with room for Leo by his right side.X didn’t know if it was intentional or not, but it appeared as though they were strategically protecting their little brother with their positions. Mikey was on the side closest to the entrance portal, was sitting in the corner furthest away from where Leo was supposed to sit, and Donnie - the one with all the advanced high-tech weaponry in his battle shell - was protectively blocking approach from any potential attacks. And their big brother, Raph, chose to sit on the same side of the slider they didn’t know and already fought twice, putting the big snapper in the best position to react to and block any attacks directed at his younger brothers.Or perhaps it was nothing more than Donnie wanting to sit straight across from Leo, to get a clear shot for the two tiny hidden cameras X could see carefully concealed on the shoulder clamps of his tech shell, and the rest was a coincidence.If it was anyone else but his brothers who he was trying to get along with, X would have 'stirred the pot' by emphatically insisting he wanted to sit beside his little brother. Something told him Mikey would eagerly go along with that, but the other two...Well, that was why stuff like that was so much fun!He decided against it because he wasn't trying to antagonize them (this time) and he scooched in to sit beside the big snapper, who raised his hand off the table to give him a brief wave with a nervous smile before resting it back on the table again.Keeping it out so he was ready to defend his brothers from his brother, if necessary.And what was that smell?X ignored the unpleasant odor, gave a two-fingered wave with a "hey," for Raph, skipped the pleasantries with the turtle who had his eyes glued to his phone, and gently smiled at the wildly grinning box turtle. “Mikey, right?” he asked. “That’s right you remembered! I made you stickers!” Mikey excitedly exclaimed, in a way that seemed like X was a little kid and he was being rewarded with stickers for his 'good deed' of getting the name right. He sat up from surprise when a page full of stickers was shoved across the table at him, and then picked up the sheet to have a good look at the very well done homemade stickers, while Mikey gazed at him, looking kind of like he was a little kid waiting to receive praise from a parental figure for their artwork.“I don’t know what your favorite color is so I made them in all different colors,” Mikey said in a timid-sounding voice. Then his smile got even bigger when he saw Leo smiling at his handiwork, before saying in an impressed way: “Hey, that’s really something, you made these yourself?” “Yelp! All by myself!” Mikey proudly replied.Next, the enthusiastic box turtle reached across the table, getting very close to Leo, to point at the bigger stickers on the bottom and said: “Those are shell stickers, like mine!”When he did so, the bad smell wafting off Raph got worse.X ignored it again and noticed the bright, triangle sticker adorning the top right of Mikey’s plastron, remembering that was where Donnie told him Mikey had chipped his shell as a child, and he wondered if something like that would be as effective at covering up one of the deepest cracks on his lower plastron left behind by Big Mama’s little ‘gift’.“Shell stickers, hey? You must be an artist or something.” X laid the sheet down on the table and rested his hand on top of it, like he was protecting it or something foolish like that.“Mm hmm,” Mikey proudly replied with a big nod of his head. Leo mischievously smiled at the energetic box turtle and asked in an equally mischievous tone of voice: “Ever spray-paint graffetti?” “You bet!”Raph tensed a little more and the stink got worse.X was beginning to put the pieces together.He tested his theory.“We should get together sometime to stake out places for graffetti art, so you can show off those rad skills you got!” “Yeah!”X didn’t know how it was possible, but the box turtle’s big smile got even bigger at the same time the bad smell got noticeably worse.X kept his left hand on the sticker page, casually rested his right arm on the back of the cushion, and said with his ‘signature’ crooked faceman grin: “After we get to know each other better. And maybe these two bozos can tag along.” He used his thumb to point to Donnie and then Raph.The snapper visibly relaxed and the stink lessened to a more tolerable level, but didn’t go away entirely.‘Nervous stink, got it,’ X correctly thought to himself, happy to have such an obvious tell to the inner workings of his big brother’s mind.He was here to get to know them better after all, right? If he happened to do it in ways that protected him from potential future harm, all the better.“The only bozo here is the one who won’t let a professional look at his injured shell,” Donnie flatly said, all without taking his eyes off his phone until the end, when he looked up to gauge Leo’s reaction."Joining the conversation, Don?" Raph asked in a flat, unimpressed tone of voice. Donnie only grunted in reply.X gave Donnie a crooked smile, gripped the edge of the sticker page to hold it for some sort of sappy, sentimental reason he couldn’t understand, and joked: “Professional? There aren’t many human colleges accepting turtle mutant applicants, are there? Where’d you get your qualifications? Out of a school dumpster?”Donnie let out an incensed: “Scoff!” literally saying the word instead of scoffing; making X laugh out loud, as Dee sternly continued: “I’ll have you know my qualifications are of the highest…” “Booor-ring!” X loudly interrupted.Leo glanced at Mikey for a split second when he noticed the little brother of the group snorted out a laugh at his comical reply, but when Raph tensed (and stunk) more for some unknown reason just before Donnie flatly grumbled: “You’re our brother alright,” he was beginning to feel almost as nervous as Raph seemed worried.So he let out some of that nervous energy by taking out a shuriken with three sharp, curved points, to twirl around in his fingers like a fidget spinner. Mikey looked impressed by this talent and let out an amazed: “Wooow,” confirming X’s initial thought that this brother wore his emotions on his sleeve and there wasn’t much ‘reading between the lines' with him. Raph was definitely more worried than before from the ninja star, and Donnie didn’t give any visible reaction at all beyond briefly glancing at X’s left hand and then putting his eyes down on his phone again.‘Softy’s pretending to be a tough guy, got it,’ X thought to himself, having interacted with many so-called ‘tough’ yokai on the Hidden City streets.Those guys who tried to hide who they were behind a fake exterior were always the most fun to annoy, because of the amusing way they fumbled around, trying to conceal their soft and squishy insides by focusing too much attention on keeping up appearances at the slightest provocation.X noticed the smell of Raph’s nervous stink worsened, and that he very conspicuously was trying to inconspicuously look at the spinning ninja star from the corner of his eye. So he conspicuously looked up at the snapper, abruptly stopped the blade, and put it away.But the nervous stink remained.“Ok, so you’re Raph, right big guy?” “Yeah, I’m Raph,” he replied with more tension in his voice than X expected. But the reason for the additional tension was made clear with his next tense and blunt, but somewhat soft, expression: “You, ah, gonna give us back our weapons?”X gave the snapper a relaxed, crooked grin, and was about to reply when Mikey snapped: “I told you not to ask that yet!” “I concur,” Donnie flatly agreed, without taking his eyes off his phone.X sat back and watch the sibling banter with amusement that was overshadowed by the anxiety he felt over Raph's anxiety.“Those are Pops priceless ancestral weapons! We gotta get them back!” Raph sternly argued.The unspoken tension hanging thick in the air was really starting to get to X, so he interrupted this argument before any good stuff happened by casually saying with a dismissive shrug: “Yeah, I’ll give them back.”Raph sat up, looking completely shocked. 'What's the matter ninja wannabe, too hard to believe a real ninja can't do a good deed once in a while?' X sarcastically thought but didn't say. Raph closed his gaping mouth when he looked at Leo in surprise, and asked a skeptical-sounding: “Really?” “Of course.”Instead of looking into his big brother’s eyes, Leo averted his gaze by looking down at the stickers while reaching out to hold them again as a sort of comfort item since he didn’t have his ‘fidget spinner’ anymore. But rather than grasp the sheet in his hand, he laid his fingers on it and nervously tapped his index finger on top of a green red-eared slider turtle sticker.‘Why do I like this so much? It’s stupid! I should chuck them.’With a dismissive shrug and an overly casual tone, X told Raph: “I was just playing with you when I took them. I would’ve returned them already, but I figured we were even after you stole Draxum’s priceless mystic weapons, and that mystic gem of his.”Leo glanced knowingly at Donnie, who briefly met his gaze before sticking his eyes back on his phone. Then he looked up to see Raph’s reaction; and the way the snapper frowned and his shoulders dropped just a little told him what he wanted to know.Raph didn’t want to give up his rad new mystic powers that were brought out by the weapons they stole. And judging by the looks on their faces, none of them wanted to return the stuff they stole.‘Phew, that was a close one,’ the slave of Baron Draxum thought, knowing there was absolutely no way he could possibly return to his Hidden City bedroom to retrieve those weapons without being forced to face dire consequences for his disobedience.Leo kept his gaze on the bigger turtle’s softened expression, and casually offered: “Next time we meet up we’ll each bring our priceless weapons and do a little tradeski. You return those crazy rad mystic weapons and I'll give you back your ancestral ones. Deal?”Raph gazed around at his two brothers, clearly trying to find a way out of this bad deal he somehow got himself into.X once again sounded overly casual when he gave them a way out.“Unless you want to keep them. Draxum has a whole room full of weapons and gems, if he wanted his stuff back he would’ve sent me after you by now.”The stink got worse.Donnie finally looked up from his phone and asked: "After us?" but he stopped when Mikey nudged him with his elbow and gave him a look X didn't understand; one Donnie knew meant 'Dr. Delicate Touch' was going to have a whole lot to say to him later if he didn't drop this subject and now. So he put his eyes back on his phone.Leo skipped past that little detail and asked Raph: “Whaddaya say? You keep those rad mystic weapons and I get to keep those awesome authentic Japanese keepsakes. And maybe I'll even help you learn how to use them. Deal?”This time, Raph gave one firm nod to his two brothers, who each nodded in return, before sticking his hand out and saying: "Deal."X merely glanced down at the hand. “Great," he said, and Raph reluctantly put it back on the table. "Yeah. Great," he grumbled in agreement, upset that Leo refused to shake his hand in return, and wondering why.The tension in Raph’s voice was still clearly evident, despite the ‘friendly’ way ‘Leo’ let them keep the weapons they had stolen; and the slider thought sourly: 'I can tell already, nothing I do is ever gonna be good enough for that guy. He’ll never see me as anything but a bad guy.’But the thing that stung the worst, was that X knew Raph was right about him. He really was a bad guy.Their server, Yolinda, came by at that moment to take their orders, and X noticed how she looked at Raph, how he blushed in return, and how there was a new type of stink in the air, mingling in with the nervous one already there.On one hand it was great being around someone who tried to hide their true feelings (like him) to be so easy to read, like an open book, but on the other hand, ‘Pooh-wee! Does this happen often!? And why is she flirting with him!? He is not her type. What is she after?’X didn’t give away any tells with his body language or facial expression that he was anything but chill; but the nervous way his finger tapped on the sticker sheet gave away his true feelings to anyone observant enough.Fortunately for him no one here was that observant (or so he thought, underestimating the cleaver fox yokai, yet again).“What’ll you have, hon?” X’s eyes bounced back and forth between the flirting fox yokai on his right and the reciprocating turtle to his left; but with the way Yolinda kept glancing down at him while she conversed with Raph, X came to the realization she was only flirting with his big brother to make him jealous.The little bit of smugness X felt over the thought that the spunky fox yokai still liked him after everything he had said to her was overshadowed by the looming tension between him and Raph that was weighing him down. And the anger he felt at the way Yolinda was disturbing his first 'brotherly bonding' moment by faking interest in his sibling, clearly trying to get a rise out of him.He wanted to wipe that smug grin off her face with a kiss-no, wait!'How does she keep getting in my head!?'“What do you want, Leo?”Mikey’s innocent question snapped X out of the inner workings of his troubled mind and he looked up at his little brother, having every intention of calmly replying that his break was over and he had to get back to work so he could get away from the tension that was about ready to make him pop.But that… that fox who liked to get under his shell tipped him over the edge when she looked at him with a mischievous grin and asked in an arrogant ‘I got you right where I want you and you know it’ tone of voice: “Yeah, Leo. What do you want?”“That’s it!”Leo surprised everyone but Yolinda when he abruptly jumped up (still grasping the sticker sheet in his left hand).“You…” He pointed at Yolinda and focused on controlling his anger so he didn’t make a scene in Seňor Hueso’s restaurant.“You’re so . . . you!”Yolinda huffed out a silent laugh, then calmly looked at Scrubs oldest brother and politely told him: “I’ll come back when you’re ready to order, hon.”Raph blushed again when he politely agreed, she walked away, and X continued his rant when he pointed at Donnie next - who was looking up at him instead of the phone in his hand for a change.“You act like you don’t care with your eyes glued to your phone, but you do because you spent all our time together last night griping over my busted shell, and you’re recording my every move with those two cameras hidden in your fake shell.”Donnie kept his eyes glued to his slider brother; shocked that he knew about the cameras he spent considerable time and effort expertly concealing. He laid his phone down on the table, and asked: “Tech shell, and how did you…” “You.”X pointed to Raph next, who defensively tensed and instinctively reached for his sheathed tonfa. The skilled ninja noticeably looked down at his big hand, making Raph put it in his lap from embarrassment. Then he narrowed his eyes in anger and coldly said: “You act like I’m nothing more than another bad guy who's gonna attack our brothers the first chance I get. And you…”Next he looked at Mikey - but not in anger. His little brother, who he suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to protect, was silently gazing back up at him with a pair of sad, worried eyes that were on the verge of tearing up. Leo nervously fiddle with the sticker sheet in his hand, noticing that both Raph and the ‘tough guy’ Donnie tensed and watch him intently while he was trying to figure out how to word what he wanted to say to their little brother.And Donnie even put a supportive hand on Mikey's shoulder.‘Good,’ he thought, ‘they’re protective of him. That’s the way it should be.’X softened his voice and kindly told Mikey: “You’re genuine. I like that.”The fact Leo said ‘I like that’ rather than ‘I like you,’ seemed to fly right over Mikey’s head. X decided to let it go, and couldn’t help but smile when Mikey pressed his hands to his cheeks so forcefully it was like he was so overstimulated and needed something to ground him. And he happily (and loudly) exclaimed: “Ohmigosh you like me!? I like you too!”X was beginning to feel overwhelmed by these strange new emotions (on top of everything else he was dealing with) that energetically happy response elicited, so he averted his eyes from seeing all three of his ‘new’ brothers by looking down at the stickers in his hand, and said a quiet: “Yeah, I know.”There was a moment of silence that was uncomfortable for everyone but the oblivious, wildly grinning Mikey, and X broke it when he said: “My break’s over," and turned around to leave, but was stopped by Raph's apologetic voice."Leo I'm..." "It's fine Raph," X quietly interrupted. He nervously fiddled with the sticker page in his hand and added: "You don't know me. And you're looking out for for your family. That's something I can respect."Raph motioned to rise."But Leo it's..." "I said it's fine!" Leo snapped. Raph sat down again and before walking away, Scrubs glanced up at the back of the maroon fox yokai who was taking someone else’s order, with that cute white tip at the end of her tail bobbing around in the air.That was when Donnie calmly asked: “When do you want to hang out again?”X fidgeted with the sticker page in his hand, and he was going to suggest some time next week, but with the way Mikey’s voice sounded so full of hope when he excitedly blurted out: “When do you get off!?” he couldn’t bring himself to disappoint his little brother.“Mikey,” Raph sternly said through gritted teeth, about ready to scold his brother for not giving Leo time to decide for himself, and figuring he would want a break from them after this whole tense situation. (hopefully not a big break)“No, it’s ok,” Leo told them, without turning around. “Uh . . .” he suddenly felt uncomfortable telling them when his shift was over, but couldn’t understand why it made him feel so vulnerable.Just like how he couldn’t understand the many other mismatched emotions swirling around in his head right now.Still without facing them, in between berating himself with his internal monologue, he told them:“My shift’s over at ten.”‘Don’t tell them that!’“But I stay until the work’s done.”‘What are you doing!? You don’t want them waiting around for you! Tell them Two. Or better yet, three!’“I should be out by ten thirty at the latest.”‘Way to go, dummy.’“Come by if you want. Or don’t. You know how to reach me. And put down that phone Donnie. You keep looking at it like that you’ll need glasses.”Donnie kept his head down and calmly replied: “That’s what contacts are for. See you tonight, bro.” ‘Contacts?’ X thought, wondering what they had to do with glasses. The only contacts he knew about were the type of ‘contacts’ Draxum and Big Mama had all over the Hidden City - yokai who kept them informed of the goings on of anyone they wanted.Like him.He didn’t bother satisfying his curiosity over this apparent human thing called ‘contacts’ that were somehow related to glasses, and hesitantly replied: “Yeah, see you tonight. . . . Bro.”X walked away and when he was gone back in the kitchen, Donnie dropped the ‘emotionally unavailable tough guy’ act, slapped his phone on the table, and looked up at his brothers to exclaim: “How does he know these things!?” He immediately began looking down at the clasps on his tech shell, searching for any sign of his cleverly disguised hidden cameras."That's what I'm wondering," Raph agreed, pondering over the fact that Leo read him like an open book. He was feeling a mixture of guilt combined with his overprotective worry for the safety of the two brothers he had protectively watched over all his life (Leo was obviously a very skilled fighter, he did attack them on more than one occasion, and his attacks on April could have ended badly. Very, very badly)“Oh nooo!" Mikey abruptly whined. Raph looked at him but Donnie kept his eyes glued to his wrist tech, this time - inputting ideas floating around in his head for upgrades to his secret, hidden cameras.Mikey emphatically slapped his arm straight out on the table and leaned over to rest his cheek on it. “I forgot to get his favorite colooor!” he lamented. That was enough to make Raph smile and relax his composure, before he dropped his arms down, straightened his posture a little, and looked up with a blush when their cute, smiling fox server walked up to take their order.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leo X banged the kitchen door open a little harder than necessary and stormed up to his workstation with Mikey’s gift in his hand. But he stopped halfway there when Bully asked: "Went that good, hey?"The seasoned ex-pirate knew the beginnings of an anxiety-fueled meltdown when he saw one, and considering everything he knew Scrubs had been through recently, he was honestly surprised it had taken this long.A testomony to the ninja warrior's self-control.X stood in place, thinking. His whole body was tense, and his repeatedly tapped his index finger on the sheet in his hand, as he gazed around the room, refusing to make eye contact or even look at anyone in the kitchen.Overall he looked like he was about to explode any second. Explode and do something he would later regret.And considering his history as a highly skilled ninja warrior Battle Nexus champ, Bully figured 'doing something he would later regret' would no doubt involve the violent loss of a life or two."Uuuh . . . yeah," X said, in answer to Bully's question. He raised his right hand to absently and nervously rub his fingertips across his forehead, looking to be about a million miles away and trying to figure out who or what to take out his frustrations out on, how, and to what degree (he was). Then he stopped rubbing at his face (it was a nasty habit to develop that Draxum wouldn't tolerate, anyway), gazed down at the stickers in his hand, and flatly said: "It went good."Bully snorted out a laugh at the sight of colorful stickers in the hardened killer's grip, and in a condescending tone asked: "What's that you got? Stickers?"The tone in Bully's voice seemed to go right over X's head, and while still looking at the stickers he calmly and factual replied: "Yeah."He didn't take his eyes off his sticker sheet until Bully said something so casual-like it was as if he was merely uttering a simple truth he assumed Leo agreed with:"Probably from that pansy little one.""Hey! Mikey’s an artist, and he's my brother so back off!" Leo defensively snapped.Bully smiled at the angry slider, glad he gave the right response by loyally defending his family, even though they just met and he barely knew them. Then he instructed him: "When you're done those dishes throw the scraps in the back room."X nodded his head and went to where his gray leather satchel and fox mask were hanging on the wall. The satchel was closed with a big leather flap attached to the top, that went all the way down over the front, and he took off his cape to hang it up before opening the flap to put the stickers inside his bag.X stopped halfway through when he saw a blue lightning bolt that reminded him of his ninpo powers; so he discreetly checked that no one was looking, peeled it off the sheet, and put it on the top right corner of his open satchel. Then he put the sticker sheet all the way in - being careful not to bend or tear it - closed the flap over the front where it covered the sticker, and went back to work.Not long after, Yolinda came in the kitchen and went straight up to the hard-working slider, to lean her back against the counter by his right side, in front of the sink where he was putting the clean dishes he washed.She looked at him in her cute, snarky way that he did not find cute in the moment, and Bully watched her closely, ready to step in and shoo her away if she ended up pushing one too many of Scrubs buttons.Who was he kidding? When was more like it."I like that brother of yours. The big one with all the muscles. He looks really tough. I bet he can take a hit better than you."No response. X kept right on working."He told me his name. I think it was Ralph or something."X's jaw and throat tightened. She said the wrong name on purpose. It was disrespectful. It was infuriating.She kept going. "I wonder how much he can bench press. Do you know . . . Leeeo?""That's not my name."X's voice was a little tense but calm. His emotions were anything but."Sure it is. Leo""Order up!" (Bully)"One second!" (Yolinda)X's hand tensed so much under the water he bent a spoon back without meaning to. Good thing his fixable 'oopsie' was concealed under a layer of bubbles.Quietly through clenched teeth, he told her in a tense voice: "That's what my brothers call me, but it's not my name."He discreetly fixed the spoon in the soapy dish water and continued with his work."I said order up!""I said one second!"Yolinda's voice squeaked on the high-pitched 'second.'X didn't find it endearing.. . .Ok, maybe not much."What is your name; Leeeo?"'Count down from ten and take a deep breath.'X took in a deep breath through his nose and didn't reply or acknowledge Yolinda in any way while she looked him over with a cocky grin."If you don't take that order out RIGHT NOW..!" "I'm COMING!"Her voice squeaked again.Hearing it calmed his nerves just enough to stop him from slitting something with the steak knife he was tightly grasping under the water.Like his own hand.The three-fingered, elbow-length dish gloves he couldn't replace in the above ground human world was a big incentive not to do that.Despite what she told Bully, Yolinda didn't move and kept looking X up and down, like he was the prey in her web and she was the spider trying to decide what scrumptious part to eat first."That's ok, you don't have to tell me. I'll just call you Leo like your brothers. . . . Leo."X's arms and shoulders tensed and he clenched his jaw tighter, but kept washing with his head down.If her antsy, whole-body fidgeting was any indication, Yolinda was getting agitated over the lack of response. So she tried to push his buttons some more by misspronouncing his brother's name again."I think Ralph's gonna ask me out.""His name is Raph," X muttered through gritted teeth.'Oooh, that got a reaction,' the crafty fox thought.Yolinda was itching for one of their entertaining, yet still frustrating arguments (which were only frustrating for her if she was on the losing side, of course). She casually leaned her back against the sink where the wet dishes were drying, watched 'Leo' intently, and intentionally swiped the tip of her tail across a couple of plates so he would have to rewash them, to try and get even more of a rise out of him.Bully kept glaring at her, about ready to jump across the counter to make her get that order out and leave the already agitated, mistreated slave alone if she didn't back off and soon.When that didn't get a reaction like she was hoping, Yolinda nonchalantly looked down at her black manicured claws and said: "Ralph, Raph, it's all the same. His name doesn't matter, guys like him are a dime a dozen. I think I'll get my nails painted red for our first date. That's his favorite color, right? Those sappy buffoon types love stuff like that."X's eye twitched.He was about to pop.'How does she always KNOW the right BUTTONS to press!!?'The plate he didn't realize until now he was tightly gripping with both hands, cracked into three pieces under the sudsy water.His eyes widened and his countenance fell ever so slightly at the realization of what he just did.X quickly regained his composure, gently laid the pieces aside at the bottom of the sink so Yolinda wouldn't know what he did, and carried on with his work (but this time being more careful with his grip).And that was Bully decided it was time to step in.He abruptly stopped his work, came out from behind his workstation, and aggressively stormed up to Scraps to get in her face and loudly yell: “When I tell you to take out an order I expect you to DO it!” He pointed with an outstretched arm at the plates of food on the end of his counter and demanded: “Take that to the customers NOW or I’ll put you on scrub duty for a MONTH!”“Uuughh!” Yolinda whined in a high-pitched voice. Then she snapped her head to glare at the turtle she frustratingly couldn't get a rise out of this time, and got her angry energy out by screaming at him: “You make me so mad it’s . . . it's . . . INFURIATING!!!”X continued on with his work, and without looking up at her, or giving away how his mind was like a hot soup of conflicting thoughts and emotions about ready to boil over, he quietly and tensly replied: “The feeling’s mutual;” with the only thing preventing him from losing his temper with her being the fact that he knew when he eventually blew, it was going to be something big.He was looking for a fight, not an argument, and if Draxum hadn't specifically ordered him to go above ground to New York, he would have given serious consideration to antagonizing a wild ravager in the 'Lush Berryfields' network of caves and caverns, that housed it's very own diverse mystic biome deep underground.(He wondered if there were any above-ground equivalents to massive, hairy, four-footed beasts with a giant horn on their head, poor eyesight, and a quick temper)Yolinda clenched her fists, let out another high-pitched squeal, and stomped her foot once when she screamed: “I HATE you!!!”Scrubs didn’t in any way respond, and the fiery fox yokai stormed out with the order. But before she left the kitchen, Bully yelled at her: “For someone who’s so clever you can sure be dumb sometimes!”She looked behind her back to squeal at Bully again before going out through the kitchen door.As soon as she was gone, Scrubs let out a deep sigh and said: “I…” “It’s nothin’ to worry about, I break stuff myself from time to time,” Bully reassured the turtle slave of the cruel Baron Draxum. One by one, X took the broken pieces out of the sink to lay them on the counter for now, while saying: “I’ll get Seňor Hueso to take it out of my pay.” Then he looked up at Bully from surprise when the multi-armed yokai pointed a ladle at him and sternly said: “Hueso may be the owner but I’m in charge in my kitchen and I said it’s nothing!”He continued staring at Scrubs as he stuck the ladle back in a big pot of the soup of the day (a yokai-human clam chowder amalgamation) to stir it, and X’s only response was to look away and quietly stick his hand in the soapy water to pull the plug so he could rinse out any glass shards left behind.While he was waiting for the jumbo-sized sink to drain, X calmly grabbed one pile of dishes after another from the right sink to put them on the counter to the left, with the rest of the dirty dishes - determined to rewash every single one after (in his eyes) Yolinda ruined the entire bunch by swiping her tail over a few.To an untrained eye, the quiet turtle seemed calm and at ease. But Bully knew better, and he could see the tension Scrubs was still holding in.The emotional release X felt from ‘winning’ that round when Scraps lost her temper first and stormed away only delayed the inevitable and possibly changed his 'anger outlet' target to someone else who crossed him the wrong way. But Scrubs was still on the verge of an explosion.He needed a proper release; to vent those intense emotions in the right way. And Bully knew how to make that happen, with a plan he put in motion when he ordered Scrubs to chuck out the food scraps.X tapped his gloved hand on the edge of the empty right sink and blankly gazed into it before saying: "I'll get rid of those scraps now.” Bully pulled a pizza out of the oven and curtly ordered: "Clean out that sink first," to buy himself the time he needed to finish setting up his plan.With nothing more than a hum in reply, Scrubs pulled out the faucet attachment that was a spray nozzle on the end of a hose, rinsed out the fully-drained left sink, and then put it back to pick up a scouring pad and begin the process of thoroughly scouring every last inch to ensure absolutely no trace of broken glass could have been missed.While he did that, Bully wiped off his many hands, threw the cloth he used over his shoulder, and walked to the back of the kitchen, where there was a door on the back of the left wall. He went into the small storage room empty-handed and likewise came out empty-handed less than a minute later, to go back to his workstation and continue where he left off.On his way past, X glanced up at him in the middle of his scrubbing, but was far too angry to give curious thought to what he did for more than a second.As soon as X was done his thorough clean of the sink, he took off his gloves and apron and grabbed the bucket of scraps to put them in the same storage room Bully just left from; so he could finally release some of his pent-up anger by cursing and loudly complaining in privacy. But when he got inside the dimly lit room, he stopped and stared wide-eyed at a solid glowing yellow circle on the wall to his right.A portal.X slowly shut the heavy metal door behind his back, and stood perfectly still, examining the yellow mystic light of the portal.Judging by the color, this was a special portal that only certain people had access to open (like it was now). And on the brick wall above it it, in big letters, were the words:‘KEEP OUT!’X didn’t take his eyes off the solid yellow glowing orifice that - like many other portals and unlike the entrance portal at Run of the Mill - when opened he couldn’t see through.There was only one way to find out what was on the other side.X had every intention of walking straight past the portal to dump the bucket of scraps into the big bin in the corner on the other side of it; but instead stopped right in front of the glowing light, stood facing it, and absent-mindedly reached into the bucket to take out a big piece leftover pizza crust.“They don’t have a terrorworm pit. That leads to the magma fields or a vortex portal or something,” X told himself. But he couldn’t stop staring.Without taking his eyes off the yellow light, X finished walking up to the big bin and dumped the scraps from the bucket into it; but he kept ahold of the pizza crust in his right hand.Instead of cursing and yelling in anger like he intended on doing when he first got in here, or returning to his job, X kept his eyes on the portal, slowly laid the bucket down, and then stood up straight to continue staring at the yellow light.“They don’t really have a terrorworm pit,” he said a little louder, trying to reassure himself. Without realizing what he was doing, he absently reached his left hand down to scratch a phantom pain in his nonexistent left leg.The one that was chomped off in a Battle Nexus fight.When his fingers made contact with the cool metal instead of his flesh, he looked down at it in surprise; his mind having been too numb to realize his mistake until now.X straightened up again, raised his right hand to hold up the pizza scrap close to his chest, and followed the beckoning of his disbelieving mind by taking one big step ahead, right through the portal.‘They don’t really have giant razor-fanged terrorworms. Seňor Hueso was just pulling my leg.’. . .X came out the other side on a four foot wide metal plank that was eighteen feet long from where he stood, and looked like what one would expect to find on a yokai mystic pirate ship.Along the edges to the left and right were straight poles with silvery, reflective spheres attached to the top of them. Each one was about four feet apart with a thick ship’s rope linking them together, about waist high, to act as a barrier to stop anyone from accidentally walking off one of the sides and plummeting far below.The plank was protruding from the wall where the portal was, only it wasn’t a wall. On this side (wherever this was) X was inside a huge circular cavern with solid rock stretching straight up to a dark, curved rock ceiling far above his head. And even further straight down the smooth, sheer rock surface, was the bottom.The ‘Battle Nexus champ’ stepped ahead one step before stopping, with his eyes glued straight ahead at the unbarricaded open end. He leaned over the side of one of the ropes and tore his eyes away from the end to gaze down below.Hundreds of feet down was a sandy bottom that reminded X of something he had seen once before. He absently scratched at his prosthetic again while glancing up at the glowing orange-red rocky 'walls' that kept the cavern sufficiently lit, with special glowing rocks or algae or mystic energy of some kind. Then he stopped the scratching he didn’t even realize he had been doing, straightened up, and put his eyes ahead on the end of the plank once more.X fidgeted with the pizza scrap held up close to his chest and let the fingers of his left hand graze along the top of the rope as he took one slow, purposeful step forward after another. When he finally reached the end, he rested his hand on the last metal sphere and looked straight ahead at the glowing rock on the other side of the cave.Stretching out his right hand in front of him, X swallowed nervously to relieve the tension in his throat, just before spreading apart his fingers to let the food scrap drop from his grasp. Then he gripped the knob tighter and looked down to watch it fall far, far below.Before it even reached the sand, there was an explosion of life when the huge, gaping, circular jaw of a six foot long, giant razor-fanged terrorworm filled with curved, razor sharp teeth (teeth that could slice through bone with a single chomp) burst out of the sand. The teeth lined all sides of the inside of its mouth like the edges of a giant drill, and in one chomp it ate the scrap and disappeared back under the sand again.The numbness X felt was replaced with terror, and his pupils shrank into tiny dots at the horrific sight, just before the sand came alive with the movements of dozens of terrorworms hidden underneath. It looked like a tawny-brown ocean with a reddish hue, filled to the brim with a school-full of tightly packed fish that were thrashing around because there wasn't enough room for them all to fit.X’s eyes widened fearfully when his brain finally caught up to his vision and he gripped the silvery knob so hard it was difficult to tell where it ended and his hand began.Instead of high-tailing it out of there, X was frozen from fear, with the memory of the traumatic day he lost his leg in the Battle Nexus flashing before his eyes.The memory of his very first - and last - giant razor-fanged terrorworm fight.
The floor of the Battle Nexus was made up of a deep layer of sand for this particular high-profile fight. He was only eight years old at the time, but had already proven himself to be worthy of the challenge with his lengthy win streak.
One that he didn’t know was about to be broken.
He thought he was prepared, he thought he was ready. But he was really overconfident. And that was his undoing.
The creeping young ninja stepped so silently, carefully, and delicately he never made a sound and barely even left a footprint behind; but that was when it happened.
He foolishly crack a crooked smile and gloated over his ‘greatness’ with a joke; saying it so quietly it hardly even reached his ears. But his overconfident slip-up made tiny vibrations come from his mouth that the sensitive hair-like sensors covering the terrorworm’s entire body picked up on.
“Terrorworm? More like terror-bull, because this fight is so terrible I’m going to die from boredom if this thing doesn’t…”
Suddenly out of nowhere, the gaping mouth full of serrated, razor sharp teeth exploded out of the sand. But on that day, it appeared directly below his left foot, and it didn’t chomp down and leave with a piece of pizza crust in it’s mouth. Instead it chomped down and disappeared under the sand with the majority of a mutant turtle’s left leg.
Big Mama - who fully comprehended his potential for years worth of crowd-pleasing greatness - immediately ordered an end to the match; which was quite rare for the Battle Nexus in all the many years it had been entertaining yokai with bloody and gory entertainment.
In a moment that seemed like a blur to the potentially mortally wounded kid turtle, a metal grating floor extended out about two feet beneath the surface of the sand from opposite sides, to meet in the middle. The ring was then drained, taking the terrorworm with it, and X was left behind on the metal grating, bleeding out and missing a limb. He was rushed to the medic and only saved in time thanks to the ingenious design of his superior mutant body.
The first few days after his attack, Big Mama hardly left his side and his ‘doting auntie’ did exactly that, by doting on him. That was until Draxum got fed up with her behavior and the round-the-clock medical care his turtle slave received; citing that her unnecessary babying over what amounted to nothing more than a 'fixable' injury would soften his last remaining mutant warrior, making him too emotionally weak to properly fight again; and he absolutely insisted X return to him at once for immediate rehabilitation.
Back in the cavern, as soon as X got enough control of his shocked, terror-filled mind to react, he turned tail and bolted for the portal in a panic. But when he got there, he ended up smacking straight into the rock wall, not realizing in his terror the glowing yellow light was gone.Because someone shut the portal from the other side.“NONONONO!” He frantically felt around the warm, bumpy, vertical rock surface, in a futile attempt at searching for any way out, any weak spot, anything that would get him out of the monster’s dinner room. But at the sound of a deep rumbling coming from the terrorworms far below, he spun around in fear with his arms, the palms of both hands, and his injured back pressed firmly against the rock wall, and his eyes darting around for any sign of a mouth full of razor sharp teeth coming at him; willing himself to sink through the rock behind his back. But, of course, that didn't occur; and the thought of attempting to use his portals likewise didn't once enter his mind, because of how panic-stricken he was.(Not that his ninpo ever worked for him when he was exceptionally stressed)X abruptly snapped his head up next, and gazed his wide, petrified eyes around above the cave ceiling, from the sound of a voice coming out from some kind of unseen speaker hidden somewhere amongst the rock.Bully’s voice.“Do ya know what we used to do on our ship to scallywags who stuck their nose in where it don’t belong?”X gulped nervously.“M… make them walk the plank?” he obediently answered.There was the mechanical sound of motors whirling from somewhere within the rock wall behind his back, and X’s eyes snapped on the end of the plank when it began coming closer.In his panic, he didn’t even realize he was doing this, but his feet were taking steps to keep him upright on the only walkable surface between him and the terrorworms far below, as it was gradually retreating into the wall.X wanted to cry out for help, scream for it to stop, or beg for forgiveness from his grievous error, but he couldn’t find his voice in the moment. Not until the end of the plank that he couldn’t peel his eyes away from got dangerously close.Then the sound of a blood-curdling scream reached his ears, but his whole body and mind was far too numb to register it was coming from him.He heard the ear-piercing scream twice more, and when the end of the plank was within two feet of his toes, it came to an abrupt halt; two sets of big, broad hands slammed down on top of his shoulders and around his shell; and the giant terrorworm pit disappeared as he was pulled backwards, out of the death trap.X’s flesh and bone leg felt like rubber at the realization he was out, but he was spared from collapsing onto the floor by Bully’s warm and firm grip, when he spun his body around to face him and the spent turtle collapse onto his chest, instead.X was leaning ahead against Bully’s big, broad body with his likewise broad, muscular arms wrapped around him, sort of like a hug but really holding him up because he couldn’t stand under his own power.He was still so terror-stricken - with his eyes wide open and his pupils tiny dots - that he didn’t realize tears were falling down his face that was smushed against the apron covering Bully’s chest; that he was tightly grasping the fabric on Bully’s clothes; or that he wasn’t taking in a single breath.“Breathe Scrubs, just breathe boy.”At the reassuring sound of Bully’s voice, X gasped in a sharp breath of warm air through his mouth, and that was when the room started spinning around him.He hung onto whatever it was he was grasping for dear life and gasped in one deep breath after another; only doing so by the prompting of the disembodies voice repeatedly telling him to breathe.Once his brain got sufficient oxygen the dizziness began to subside, and so did the total body numbness, which was replaced with a tingling sensation throughout. But his leg was still rubber and he was still leaning against Bully’s chest with his fists tightly gripping a shirt sleeve in his left hand and the brute yokai's apron in his right.As soon as he realized the numbness was lifting and he got sufficient oxygen to compensate for his rapidly pounding heart, Bully patted him on his right arm (intentionally avoiding the badly burned carapace) and told him in his rough but kind voice: “Let it out kid.”That was all the encouragement he needed for Leo's mind to fill with a flood of emotions that years worth of abuse and neglect brought with it......of bearing through the painful punishments without a cry of anguish or word of complaint escaping his lips…...of pushing through the pain, the laborious slave work, the heavy burden of bearing responsible for taking another life... another death… another murder… another spectacular, crowd-pleasing finale in the gory Battle Nexus......of his unjust treatment of being tortured and severely burned because his owner was furious with his brothers and unjustly took it out on him. Of the unfairness of the powerful Baron Draxum doing whatever he pleased to his turtle slave with the law on his side and no one to stop him...... of bearing the grief of witnessing or coming to know of his fellow slaves being beaten, starved, humiliated, and killed - some of whom were his comrades - all because their owners could do whatever they wanted to them, and the law was on their side......of holding it all in, sticking a smile on his face, and coping with humor, puns, and 'lame' one-liners. But not tears for fear his weakness would be spotted by - or reported to - the great and powerful Baron Draxum.. . .Until now.Leo sobbed openly like he had never wept before in his life, his body heaving with each heart-wrenching sob. His eyes were spilling oceans worth of tears of bitter sorrow over the life he was forced to live; mournful regret over the blood he spilled; resentment against the only father he ever knew treating him like nothing more than a worthless slave - a numbered, unnamed experiment; of being abandoned by his biological dad, who could have given him a means of escape but instead took his three brothers and left him behind; and over everything else he felt in between.He cried until his eyes were red and his face was sore from the constant stream of tears. He cried until his voice was hoarse and his chest felt sore and tight; until his body trembled and his hands went numb again from how tense his muscles were as he tightly gripped onto whatever it was clutched in his fists.Until nothing made sense anymore and his insides felt like they were spilling out and his outsides felt like they were caving in.Until time became nothing more than a forgotten concept that lost all meaning and seemed to stand still just for him; so he could stay in this moment and cry forever.It wasn’t until the sobbing eventually tapered off, the spinning came to a complete stop, and the numb tingling in his body and mind eased off a little that he realized he was standing and not laying on the floor somewhere.Where? he didn’t know anymore.But he did know that he wasn’t standing under his own power at all because his rubber right leg and left thigh had melted into limp pools, unable to hold up a single soap bubble, let alone the heavy-shelled body of a mutant turtle.Eventually his mind cleared a little more, just enough for him to realize he was only standing upright because someone was holding him up in his massive, pink, muscular arms.Because Bully was respecting the unspoken rule of the streets, that fighters stay on their feet right up to the bitter end.A downed fighter better be dead or as-good-as because there was no other excuse for - no sympathy extended to - those who fell under their own strength as a result of fear and not a mortal wound.The only exception was something like this, when a fellow fighter held them up until they could stand under their own strength. Otherwise, those who trembled and collapsed from fear were labelled as cowards and ostracized from the fighting community for the rest of their lives (which usually didn’t end long afterward, because they became an easy target for whoever they angered over the years to pick off).Once he saw that the seasoned fighter in his grip was mentally stabilized enough for his frayed mind to be able to process and comprehend what he had to say, Bully gave Scrubs another reassuring pat on his arm and said in an unusually soft, kind (perhaps even tender) tone of voice:"There you go, kid. That oughta take care of the murderous rage for a good long while.""I don't kill to blow off steam," X bluntly and immediately replied in a monotonous tone, before taking two more deep breaths through his mouth and added through a shaky voice: "But... but I needed this."Bully correctly took Scrubs' comment about killing to mean: 'I only murder when I have to because I'm a slave, I don't have any other choice, and I hate myself for it.' In reply, he patted his comrade on the shoulder, and softly said: "You're somethin' else, kid."That small, gentle but firm pat was a respectful reminder that X could stand under his own strength now; because it helped focus his half numb mind on the fact Bully noticed before him the trembling in his likewise half numbed body had settled down sufficiently.X nodded his head slightly and grasped Bully's clothes tighter to push his chest up and off his support beam; but before moving he swallowed the tiny bit of saliva in his dry, pasty mouth, and opened it to say in another flat, monotonous tone: "Don't tell Hueso. He reports to Draxum, and he'll kill me for being weak."At any other time, X wouldn't have uttered those words, but as circumstances changed so did viewpoints, and he believed what he said was true - at least for however long Draxum stayed furiously angry with Leo's brothers over the latest setbacks and challenges he faced, as a direct result of their unscheduled visit to his lab.A large part of him wondered if he had been sent away because Draxum didn't know if he currently lacked the 'perfect' self-control he normally displayed so as not to waste years worth of time, work, and resources by killing his turtle slave creation in the heat of anger for no good reason at all.The turtle who reminded him of his three failed mutant turtle experiments, who should have rightfully been his property because he created them, but who turned from what also should have been allied slaves into pesky antagonists. The ones who threw his own shortcomings and failures in his face, who were living proof that in one night one pathetic caged human was stronger and smarter and faster than him, and capable of destroying all his hard work by escaping his ingenious confines, stealing his most valuable creations, and leaving his lab incinerated by a fiery inferno."I'd tell you Hueso don't report to Draxum but you won't believe it; and you might be a lot of things, but weak ain't one of them."X let out a muffled humm in reply and - more as an acknowledgement than agreement - he nodded his head so slightly Bully didn't know he had done it.Next he pushed himself up onto his steady, but still shaky body, keeping himself in the position where any sort of eye contact was impossible with the way he stared off to his left when Bully's head was on his right, and how he staying so close to Bully's chest his skin and shell were still brushing up against his clothes. He was also still grasping Chef's shirt and apron so tightly in his fists it seemed like his fingers must have frozen off from how numb they felt.Incidentally, ruffians never, under any circumstances, hugged one another.That was why this wasn't a hug. This was one ex-pirate steadying a fellow comrade because that was how they kept each other alive and kicking; able to fight another day on the cold, hard streets; protecting your own because in the end you knew that was all you really had worth fighting for."How did you know?" X asked, keeping his blank stare on the small glint of light reflecting off the blade of a butcher knife in the dimly lit room, to give his frazzled mind something to focus on."We got recordings of your fights when we tracked you down," Bully explained, referring to him and Hueso. "Watched every one of 'em. You're sure somethin' else, kid. Ain't never seen anybody fight like that since Lou Jitsu was in the ring.""I hate myself," Leo volunteered at the many traumatic memories of him maiming, torturing, bludgeoning, mutilating, and murdering failed half-mutated human experiments under Draxum's command; and doing likewise to yokai in the gory Battle Nexus ring, for no other reason than to 'further his training' and put on a spectacular show too appease the masses of blood-thirsty crowds.Paying blood-thirsty crowds.Bully patted his upper arm and gently said a kind but firm: "Get on your feet now and don't go sayin' nothin' you'll later regret."X nodded his head and pulled away; not realizing until then that at some point he began drooling on Bully's apron from the smell of freshly baked pizza, that he realized now was coming from a pizza box on the floor and not Chef Bully's clothes or apron. He also noticed for the first time that the yellow light of the bright portal was gone, because the portal was shut off and locked again.X wiped the drool off his chin with the back of his ninja wrapped right hand and then walked away from his 'physical and emotional crutch for the day;' being sure to step further into the room, closer to the knife he had been staring at, so he couldn't see Bully's . . . anything.Bully understood the unspoken rule of respect that didn't allow a ruffian to look at another ruffian who was 'getting the blood out of their eyes' and walked ahead to clasp the knob of the heavy metal door in his hand.Staring straight ahead at the gray steel door so he couldn't see X, Bully said: "Some idiot ordered the wrong toppings for his pizza. Blamed the kitchen staff like the scallywag he is. Hueso gave him another pizza just to shut him up and get rid of him, but that leaves all my hard work down the drain with the one he wouldn't eat. It really gets under my skin when I gotta throw out good food with the scraps. What a waste."Bully left and firmly closed the door behind him. When he was gone Leo got the hint and turned around. At first, all he did was look at the box. But then, ever so slowly, he walked over to it, sat his trembling body cross-legged on the floor, and opened the lid to begin eating.And from that day on there was a new understanding between the two of them. Namely:Bully would respect X's emotional boundaries by not prying into his personal life or asking questions that were best kept private......And X respected that Bully wouldn't hurt him or turn against him, even when he was weak, trembling, scared, and vulnerable; and that he was someone he could safely turn to in times of need.And that was when their budding relationship that was somewhat a mixture of work associates, fellow comrades, and close friends, first bloomed into a beautiful flower one could get close enough to look at and smell; but not touch......because that would be crossing the invisible line drawn between them.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
During all the craziness in the kitchen, Leo's three brothers ate their meal mostly in silence, but each for their own reasons.Mikey's tongue was curled up over his top lip, as he was eating his slices in between drawing pictures of Leo with paper and colored pencils he brought, while his brothers face was still fresh in his mind.Donnie kept his eyes glued to his wrist tech, inputting the schematics into an app he created, for a new idea for another hidden camera he was going to construct as soon as they got home.And Raph... Well he felt terrible over how bad his first impression went with their long thought deceased brother, and was replaying their interactions in his mind, over and over. When the time came to pay, he was even too down to bother bantering with the ‘wealthy’ Donnie and instead took out the cash himself; with Mikey voluntarily throwing some of his in for the tip, and Donnie not contributing a thing (after all he did end up paying for their entire first meal here and a outrageously generous tip, once April's pay was thrown into the mix, he figured).Instead of paying at the till like most customers, the restaurant owner came over to them himself to take their payment. Mikey and Raph each offered a pleasant greeting, with the big snapper throwing in an apology for leaving without paying the last time they were here. But Hueso sternly accepted their payment and handed out their receipt without saying a word.The reason became apparent when, in a very serious and firm tone that matched his facial expression and body language, in no uncertain terms 'Bones' told them: “If your brother hadn’t spoken up for you I would have given you an up close and personal view of our terrorworm pit.""Terror worm pit?" Donnie blurted out. He raised his head to look up at the skeleton yokai, with his analytical mind wanting to ask all sorts of questions about these so-called 'terror' worms and what kind of 'pit' they were in, but he didn't get a chance to even open his mouth before Hueso continued:"But don’t think he’ll be able to save you if you cross the line again. This is your only warning. Do not cause any more problems in my restaurante. And if you do anything to make your brother's life more difficult, you will have to deal with me and my brute chef.”The three of them stared at him - dumbfounded - figuring the chef was called a brute because he was big and brutish, not that he was a 'brute yokai' (he was both) - until Donnie (who wanted him to leave) said: “Uhhh, ok.” Hueso firmly nodded his head once and walked away.When Dee stood up, he looked at Mikey, who was grinning from ear to ear. “What are you so happy about?” he asked in a sour tone. Raph joined his side and as Mikey grabbed his drawings and took his leave with them, he happily exclaimed: “Didn’t you hear him!” “Oh I heard him alright,” Raph said in a grumpy tone on the way out."Yes, something about a 'terror worm pit'," Donnie calmly commented, while clicking away at his wrist tech, doing research into 'terror worms', but not finding anything that wasn't fictional.“No not that!" Mikey emphatically replied with a big grin, "Leo spoke up for us because he's our brother and he loves us!!! I can’t wait to put this in my journal tonight!”* * *~A Few Hours Later~Shortly after ten, Leo strolled out of the restaurant wearing his shirt, cape, and his fox mask attached to his right hip (along with his weapons that he was never without). He decided to leave his heavy-laden satchel hanging on the wall peg to pick up after he found a suitable place to sleep until Draxum called him back; because Bully gave him the code to get into the back kitchen door from the back alley and told him he could come by whenever he wanted.If he was to be honest, when X stepped outside he was a little surprised to see Raph, Donnie, and Mikey actually showed up and were there in the alley, waiting for him. Unlike him - because he didn't have the right clothes - each of them were dressed for the cool weather, wearing jackets, pants, and shoes, in addition to the backpack Mikey was carrying.And someone else was with them.That stubbornly brave April was there, and with a big, genuine grin she walked up to X and said in a cheerful voice: “Hi Leo! Do you mind if I tag along?” With a dismissive shrug she added: "It's ok to say no, I thought it wouldn't hurt to ask."Leo opened his smiling mouth to tell her it was fine (he was actually happy to see the spunky human again) but Donnie cut him off with a grumpy, sour-sounding: “We told you to wait! And don't you have a test in the morning!?” April glared at him and curtly replied: “I can cram later tonight, and I told you to ask!”X smiled at the interaction, Raph rolled his eyes with an annoyed huff, Mikey flatly said: “Here we go again,” and Donnie threw out his hands and argued back.“I informed you we didn’t get a chance to inquire!”Mikey walked over to stand by Leo, Raph’s nervous stink filled their noses and he edged a little closer to Leo, too, as April argued: “That’s why I asked if he minds if I tag along!”With a scowl and an exaggerated high-pitched tone of voice, Donnie angrily argued back: “Yeah, because he’s just going to say ‘oh no, please go home I don’t want you here'!” "Did you ever consider he can speak for himself!?” She gestured to the grinning slider with an outstretched hand, and as the heated argument continued X leaned his head closer to Mikey to whisper: “Are they always like this?”“This is nothing,” Mikey replied. “Last pizza week April joined us and Donnie insisted it was a ‘brotherly’ thing. They argued like that ever night for the whole week, and two weeks after!”Leo and Mikey’s eyes bounced back and forth between the boisterously arguing April and Donnie while they calmly continued their conversation.“Pizza week, hey? That sounds fun.””Oh it is! Once a year we visit our favorite pizza places every day for a week! You should join us next time.”Mikey smiled at Leo but he kept his eyes on the entertainment, and simply replied: “Yeah.”Mikey’s face was beaming from that verbal confirmation, and then X’s smile grew, too, because when Raph tried to break up the argument, both April and Donnie turned on him.“Popcorn?”Leo looked down in surprise at the buttery treat offered out to him - wondering when and how Mikey pulled that out without his keen ninja senses cluing him in - and asked: “Where’d you get that?” “In my backpack. Want some?”Leo grabbed a handful while saying (more to himself than Mikey): “Pop. Corn. Hmm.” He popped a few into his mouth, Mikey quietly ate some while the yelling continued, and X thought the buttery flavor was nice but the texture was all sorts of wrong and why were they so salty? Not to mention:“Ugh, why are there broken eggshells in this?”Mikey snorted out a laugh and told him: “Those aren’t eggshells, they’re the kernels, that’s what makes them crunchy.” He happily stuffed more into his mouth, but when he offered some out to Leo, the slider put back what was left in his hand instead, and then rubbed his hands together to wipe off the crumbs.By the time that was done, Raph had given up and left the argument to join his two 'sensible' brothers (he hoped), and that was when X got a not-so-sensible, sneaky idea that put a smirk on his face. So he yelled loudly to be heard over the commotion: “You two fight like a old married couple!”That was an expression he heard once from a rooftop, when two humans were arguing in an alley in between two apartment buildings on a hot day, and someone called out that same phrase from his open apartment window. That resulted in the argument on the street being taken to the building when they yelled at him to mind his business, and that louder commotion got the attention of more humans who were in their apartments on both sides with their windows open - providing loads of entertainment for the ninja turtle listening from the rooftop.But X was taken aback when nothing of the sort happened this time. Instead of fanning the fire, Donnie and April’s argument abruptly stopped when they both snapped their heads in Leo's direction to stared at him with looks of pure, unbridled disgust written all over their faces.Leo’s smile fell and, talking over one another, Donnie and April each pointed at the other to simultaneously announce: “He’s my brother!” “She’s our sister!”
“WHAAT!!?”
That was the only word X could get out at the shock of that statement. His eyes darted back and forth between Donnie and April, trying to see any family resemblance, trying figure out how he could possibly have a sister Draxum never told him about, and - most of all - trying to figure out why she was a HUMAN! Draxum hated humans! They were warmongers who were weak and slow and a little bit dumb. That was why they needed his mutagen, to make their lives better.To make everyone's lives better.(At least that was what X had always been taught)But not all humans.Not April.She was different.Must've been the company she kept.Leo’s spinning mind was put at ease when Donnie factually explained: “We’re not biologically related.” "No, but she's still our sister," Mikey added without any further explanation, before stuffing some more of the disgusting popcorn into his mouth.Leo’s composure relaxed significantly, and he commented in a relieved tone: “Oh, yeah, that makes more sense.”Now that the argument was effectively cut off, April looked at Leo with a sparkle in her eye and sincerely offered: “I don’t mind taking off if you wanna be with just your brothers tonight. I got a test tommorow I should study for, anyway.”X gave April his relaxed crooked grin and told her: “Nah, stick around.” Without taking his eyes off her once, he took out his dagger from his breast belt underneath his shirt (the stink returned), threw it up so it spun around in the air, and while catching it said: “For a human, you’re pretty spunky. Look out!”X stepped ahead and, in a wide arch to give her time to block (along with that warning), he swung the dagger at her head. She instinctively unsheathed her bat and blocked with it; the ‘Raph stink’ got worse, and Leo grinned at his human… sister? No. At April and said: “Good reflexes. That’ll keep your head on your shoulders. It already has.” He gave her a playful wink, alluding to the first time he almost killed her at the docks, when she swiftly blocked his real attack, spun the blade in the air again, and caught and sheathed it in one smooth motion.Aside for the initial shock, April took the ‘faux attack’ in stride and put her bat away with a smile at both the compliment and her excellent reflexes. X smiled, too. But not only at her. He turned around to walk past Raph with a cocky ‘what are you gonna do about it?’ grin for the overprotective big brother of the family.If Raph was going to peg him as the ‘bad guy’ might as well play the part and let his true colors show.They would find out who he really was sooner or later, anyway. This way made it easier for him, because the sooner they found out his dark secrets, the sooner he could get the rejection over, hopefully before he had enough time with them to get too attached.If it wasn't already too late for that.He would enjoy the ride as long as it lasted, but he had to admit he was going to miss them when they finally turned their backs on him for being a heathen, a ruffian, a street thug, a thief, and a murderer, like the ex-pirates he worked for and with.Especially Mikey."So, where are we going?” April casually asked. She didn’t notice the smug grin or stern look Raph and Leo exchanged, but Donnie did.When the team leader didn’t hear her, instead of outright answering April, Donnie asked: “Raphala, aren’t you the turtle with the plan?” to give him an opportunity to change his mind.“Uh… oh, yeah.”X turned around and smiled sincerely at the grinning Mikey, who looked eager to share something with him, if the way he was biting his bottom lip and bouncing on his toes was any indication.Raph nervously scratched the back of his head, second guessing his decision after what Leo just did, but the choice was taken away from him when Mikey couldn’t hold himself back any longer, and let out an ear-piercing squeal before enthusiastically exclaiming:“Raph found the perfect place for us to spray-paint graffiti!”A big smile stretched across Leo’s face, and he looked at Raph to playfully say: “Heeey! And here I thought you hated my guts!”Raph’s mouth fell open from shock; Leo noticed but pretended he didn't and happily went over to Mikey; April glared at Raph, wondering why Leo said that; and Donnie clicked at his wrist tech, inputting new data about his long lost brother.“Where is this perfect place for your artwork?” Leo asked his little brother.His little brother.The little brother who was still alive. And who was his little brother.“Our artwork and its an abandoned hospital! It only shut down today, so we’ll be the first ones there!” Mikey excitedly replied, eager to get started spray painting on the untouched crisp, clean white canvases that were hospital walls, with his older brother, Leo.His older brother. Leo.The brother he thought was dead long ago. The brother he fantasized about frequently since the day Splinter told them about him - wondering what he looked like, what his personality would have been like, what his favorite color and weapon of choice would have been, if they would have pranked Raph and Donnie together......if they would have ever painted together.Raph was much less excited, especially after what Leo did to April, but even moreso after hearing what Leo just said to him, and he fumbled over his words when he tried to apologize.For the second time that day. On the first day they got to meet face-to-face.“Leo, I didn’t mean to… I don’t…” “Hospital, hey?” X asked Mikey with a smile, effectively cutting off the big snapper. “We don’t have many of those in the Hidden City. Yokai are pretty tough, and they don’t get sick much.”“Don, help me ou…” “Hidden City?” Donnie asked, completely ignoring his big brother. They had gone to Draxum’s that one time, through the portal outside his house. But his place was on the outskirts, with the city out of sight, about a twenty minute walk away.“Yeah,” Leo replied dismissively, before asking Mikey: “You got many colors in the backpack?” “You bet! And I got a surpriiise for you for later!” Mikey playfully told him with glint to his eyes.“Explain!” Donnie demanded.Leo ignored him and excitedly asked Mikey: “What are we waiting for?”He and Mikey were the first ones to begin scaling the fire escape to the rooftops, and Donnie ran after them, yelling: “Explain yourself! . . . Leo!”Raph stared at Leo - who was on his way up to the roof with a big grin and chatting with Mikey the whole way - shocked that his overprotective behavior led his long lost brother to conclude he hated him.Leo disappeared on the roof with Mikey, and on his way to catch up, April stopped Raph and angrily demanded: “What did you do!?” “I just…” “I don’t care!” She thrust out her arm to point behind her back at the roof where Leo was, and barked the order: “Go make it right!” “Yeah, Raph needs to make it right,” Raph humbly agreed. He began scaling the fire escape with April, and on her way up she called out to Donnie (who was on the top level of the fire escape, taking a quick break to try to research 'yokai hidden city', but getting nowhere):“I can fail one lousy test, We’re watching that video tonight!”Leo’s smiling face popped over the edge of the roof and he asked: “Do you mean the one from the hidden cameras in his fake shell, or the new one he’s got in his mask!?” “Once again it’s not a fake shell, it’s a tech shell and how do you know that!?” Donnie loudly demanded. With a big, cheeky grin, Leo pointed to where his eyebrow would be if he had one, and happily replied: “I see it in your left eyebrow. Are those drawn on, by the way?”His smiling face disappeared on the roof again, Donnie joined him, and on their way up, Raph and April heard the softshell yelling: “Forget that for now, we have more important things to deal with. Like WHAT’S THE HIDDEN CITY!!!? It's not really a city, right? That's just the name, like sea 'monkeys' are in no way related to primates, right? RIGHT!!?”"Bro, what's a monkey?" came the overly casual reply."I'll answer your question if you'll answer mine. Deal? Hmm? Leo? Don't ignore me! Mikey! You better not be showing him pictures of monkeys on your phone! LEO! EXPLAIN YOURSELF!!!"* * *
~About Three Hours Later~After they got to the newly abandoned hospital where a highway was scheduled to be built in three years, Mikey and Leo had a blast painting graffiti inside, with the box turtle chatting up a storm, hogging their new brother for most of the night.During their discussions, X learned quite a bit about them and their ‘Mad Dogs’ team of mutant turtle heroes; something which the box turtle had a clear passion for. (Yeah, Mad. Dogs. X couldn't believe it, either)Mikey was quite emphatic while telling Leo about their various exploits. Like meeting up with a mutant capybara named Todd; who was 'the nicest guy in the world', ran a puppy rescue park, and whose lemonade 'tasted like sunshine' (Leo didn't know 'sunshine' was a flavor, and wondered if it tasted anything like the lemonade Yolinda chucked in his face). And how running into Todd somehow led to him and Donnie getting their hands on some sort of - apparently fantastical - thing called the Jupiter Jim Moon Buggy from yet another mutant who owned a junkyard.(Draxum’s bugs were really getting around)Mikey also regaled him of their 'ninja vigilant action hero' run-ins with criminals, like two mutant crabs in the sewers and some 'foot faces' with flames on their heads who were making origami paper ninjas that 'magically' (mystically) turned into real ninjas they had to fight, out of plain white sheets of paper.(Plain white paper? Like the kind Draxum stole from the shipping containers the very first night X came face-to-face with his brothers? There had to be a connection. 'Eugh boi, this can't turn out good,' the slider thought)He also learned they were using 'the nice spider lady's' webbing to catch oozesquitoes. Something he very sternly discussed with Donnie in private (because he didn't want to unnecessarily worry his little brother and he was not having a 'heart-to-heart' with Raph right now), and he was reassured: "Don't worry, I got it under control."All the while, the not-yet-vandalized walls of the newly abandoned hospital made the perfect canvas for their artwork.Well, Mikey’s artwork. Leo didn’t think his amounted to anything when compared with Mikey’s. Although he was a little pleased with himself when Mikey complimented his art style after he found out Leo painted the face outlines and gold stripes on his cheshire fox mask.Throughout the night, the five of them made their way to the bowls of the hospital, with Donnie pulling some sort of tech whizz genius thing by somehow turning on the electricity so they had lights in the room they were now in. And running water in the room's attached bathroom - with nothing more than a few clicks on his wrist tech.X was beginning to wonder if he was almost as smart with tech as Draxum.Inside the bright, white room, Leo spray painted the background with shades of blue Mikey gave to him after he found out that was Leo’s favorite color. When he was done, he stepped back to let the real artist finish the job.Throughout the night, Raph had tried on many occasions to talk to Leo, but every time he did he got choked up with nervousness. And Leo always seemed oblivious to his plight with the way he kept his eyes glued to Mikey’s artwork and abruptly interrupted the apologetic snapper time and time again to either engage Mikey in conversation or compliment his paintings.The highly skilled ninja wasn’t oblivious, of course. He just didn’t want to deal with this whole situation right here and now.But the time seemed ripe when Leo quietly stood beside Donnie, admiring Mikey’s art as he painted, and April gave him a loving nudge in the right direction by elbowing his arm and smiling up at him while gesturing with her head to their caped brother.Raph let out a deep sigh and slowly dragged his feet over to finally have that important talk with Leo.“How’s the shell?”Raph stopped and pretended he was only getting a better look at Mikey’s artwork when Donnie asked the slider the important question he figured he shouldn’t interrupt.“I can handle it,” was Leo’s vague reply. He kept his eyes glued to Mikey’s painting with a grin on his face and exclaimed: “I don’t know how you can be so good and go that fast!” Mikey looked behind his back with a purple paint splotch on his nose and a grin on his face. “I got the razzmatazz, bro!” he ‘explained,’ before getting back to his art.Leo mumbled under his breath: “Razz-ma-tazz, huh.” “Are you going to give more details than ‘I can handle it’?” Donnie asked seriously. X popped the ‘p’ when he casually replied: “Nope.”His relaxed composure and his ‘happy’ smile did a good job of masking both the physical and emotional pain he was in; as one thing was progressively becoming abundantly clear as the night went on.A murderer like him didn’t belong in the company of ‘do-gooder’ heroes like them.Donnie didn’t object and at April’s next prompting, Raph nervously rubbed the back of his head and softly said: “Uh, Leo?”Leo stared at Mikey’s mural in progress.‘He’s really not gonna let it go, is he? Oh well, might as well get this over with.’Leo tore his eyes away from Mikey’s wall art to look at Raph with his crooked grin, pretending to be oblivious. “Yeah big guy?”“Can we talk?”Raph pointed his thumb at the open door behind his back, Leo replied with an overly casual: “Sure,” and they both left, with Raph leading the way. But halfway out of the room, Mikey called out to him: "I'll take out your surprise when I'm done!”X couldn’t help but smile when he looked at his grinning little brother to reply: “Can’t wait to see it, bro!” “Sure thing, bro!” Mikey energetically called back, with his huge grin and that twinkle in his eyes X kept noticing all night.Seeing the innocent, trusting eyes gazing back at him made the knot in his stomach tighten.Leo followed him out of the room for some privacy, and Raph seemed more nervous (worried) than tense this time, and he started the conversation with a sincere, heartfelt apology.“Listen, Leo, I’m sorry. Raph didn’t mean to make you feel . . . that way. I don’t hate you, you’re my brother.”X gave Raph his best fake faceman crooked grin, and as a joke to relieve the guilty, sickening knot in his stomach, he referred to himself in the third person, too.“Leo already told you it’s fine. You gotta protect your own. I get that, it’s the first rule on the streets.”X was genuinely surprised Raph didn’t nervously stumble over his words when he said the tender (seemingly heartfelt) statement:“I’m sorry you had to live on the streets Leo, but it doesn’t have to be that way anymore, because you’re our family. That means Raph’s gonna look out for you, too. I’m your big brother, and I wish I could’ve been there before now to protect you like I would’ve if I knew you were alive. But we’re together now, right? And . . . Leo? Are you ok?”Leo’s fake smile felt like it weighed a thousand pounds, so it fell at the same time his eyes glazed over from the caring, sincere words of his 'hero' big brother. And although he was looking right at Raph’s eyes, the blank gaze showed that he was really a million miles away.Raph looked at him with his nonexistent eyebrows furrowed in concern.“Leo…” “I can’t do this to you,” Leo quietly and absently interrupted.Immediately Raph’s overprotective big brother sense went into overdrive and he thought it happened for the totally wrong reason.Instead of trying to help his ‘new’ brother Leo sort out the inner working of his troubled mind, he went on the defensive, thrust a finger at his face, and harshly demanded: “Did that Draxum guy order you to take us to him? Is that why you’re doing this!? Mikes poured his heart out and...”"No."Raph abruptly stopped when Leo gently raised his hand to push down the snapper’s arm and replied with his soft yet firm answer. He silently gazed at Leo, who still had a blank look in his eyes, but they were no longer on his face - they were looking over Raph’s shoulder to stare at the white wall behind him.Raph believed him.And now he understood why his big brother sense was tingling.It was tingling because Leo needed him, and for the third time that day, Raph turned on him - on the one brother who needed him most of all every day for the past sixteen years. The one who was alive, standing right in front of him, staring blankly at the wall, with a busted lip and a black eye and a bandaged knee and shell injuries under his shirt and cape that Raph couldn't see but knew were there and were bad enough to make the usually apathetic Donnie worry.“I’m doing this because I thought it would work.”Raph’s worried stink filled the hall, and the crevice between his eyes deepened with the slider abruptly and unexpectedly burst out a laugh as his ‘using humor to cope’ approach to life’s troubles.Raph looked on in confusion during Leo’s laughter, and when he was done he briskly paced in front of the snapper, gesturing with his hands and refusing to look anywhere near his big brother while he smiled and somehow managed to sound factual, bitter, and amused all at the same time.“You’re right about me. Not that I would hurt them.” He gestured to the room behind him. “Or you…” He abruptly stopped his pacing to look Raph straight in the eyes and told him in all seriousness: “I didn’t come here to hurt you.” “I know that…” “No you don’t!” “But Le…” “Would you shut up and listen!”Raph shut his mouth at Leo’s curt demand, and the slider’s shoulders dropped, he hung his head to stare at the floor, and said in a sad voice: “I’m a…”‘Bad guy? Thief? Slave? I do what Draxum tells me, or else.’. . .‘Murderer?’Raph patiently waited for him to keep going but Leo didn’t finish his sentence. Instead he turned around to gaze through the open doorway at the happy and chatty Mikey, who was talking with April and taking an orange plastic container out of his backpack, apparently finished with his mural and ready for the surprise.His eyes were glued to the box turtle, who noticed him now and was holding up the container, while pointing at it with a big grin on his face for the turtle he only knew as his brother Leo, and nothing more. To appease his little brother one last time, Leo stuck his genuine-looking fake crooked grin on his face while looking at Mikey, and quietly, in an almost whisper, requested something from the snapper.“Tell Mikey I said I’m sorry.”“Wait Leo, we're not done talking!”Leo didn't wait. He casually walked up to his little brother to try his very best to push through the pain in his heart that hurt worse than the pain in his shell, to give Mikey a happy farewell that the box turtle didn’t know yet would very likely be their final one.But his guilt was eating him up inside, he didn’t know if he could hold it in.A guilt he hadn’t felt once since his very first murder, immediately before he parted ways with ‘Little Donnie’ and took Draxum’s advice when the goat alchemist put a heavy hand on his little shoulder and told him:
“Good. The first one is always the hardest, but If you are strong you will persevere. Only the weak give in to fear and remorse, and I have no room for weak, ruined experiments in my life.”
X thought he could hold himself together as he walked through the door and past the bathroom on his right. But as soon as he got far enough in the room to see Mikey’s completed mural on the right wall, his smile fell and he stopped and stared at it in amazement.Or, more precisely, at himselfThere, smiling back at him, was the life-sized painting of him, standing amongst his brothers with a huge smile, a katana resting on the lip of his carapace over his shoulder, and wearing a blue mask that perfectly complimented the red face stripes peeking out over the top and bottom edges and coordinated with his three brothers red, purple, and orange ones.One big, happy family.It brought a tear to Leo’s eye, but not for the reason Mikey thought.The gnawing guilt tightening a knot in the pit of Leo’s stomach was overpowering all his emotions, and felt so sickening he wondered how he wasn’t vomiting on the floor right here and now.“I knew you'd love it!” Mikey excitedly exclaimed. Then, more for his own reassurance than anything else, he said: "I worked really hard to get your smile and your face stripes just right. And I used your favorite color for the mask. Do you like it?"Leo’s mouth moved and his voice slowly sounded out the words, but he was not in control.“Yeeeah. I love it."Mikey squealed in excitement and then shoved the open, orange container under Leo’s nose.“And look! I made you pizza puffs!”Raph silently watched Leo from behind his back, standing near the open doorway with worry painted so thickly over his face that April and even Donnie noticed, making the tense atmosphere in the room feel thick; palatable.(to everyone but Mikey)April walked over to stand beside Raph, putting a comforting hand on his arm; and Donnie stood by Mikey’s side, facing Leo and trying to read the blank expression on his face.Leo tore his eyes away from the mural to stare down at the delicious smelling little puffs in the orange container just as blankly as he stared at the painting.He tried to say a word of appreciation, but his mouth went dry and refused to open for him.Unlike Donnie, Mikey didn’t notice the look on Leo’s face right away, and he happily said: “They’re Rupert Swaggart’s recipe. He’s the best chef ever! He has his own gourmet cooking show and I… Leo? What’s wrong?”Mikey’s smile fell when he finally realized something was seriously wrong with his ‘new’ brother.And that was when Raph’s nervous stink filled the room.If he had looked behind his back, X would have seen a human and a turtle face looking just as worried as the two gazing at him. Not an angry ‘hero’ snapping turtle ready to haul out his tonfas to protect his family from the bad guy. But a genuinely honest-to-goodness worried one.Worried about him.Like the two turtles who were facing him.Nobody worried about him.Until now.It felt wrong.X swallowed nervously, and then opened his dry, pasty mouth to try and save this moment for Mikey’s sake.But things had already gone too far past the point of no return for him to turn back, now.“It . . . they look great . . . I can’t wait to . . . thanks, uhhh…”. . .“Mikey.”“Leo, what’s wr…?” “Did you tell them!?”X interrupted Mikey when he snapped his head to stare at the intelligent softshell who he shared a telepathic connection with.When Donnie just stood there, staring at him without replying, X repeated the all-important question:“Did. You. Tell. Them?”“Uhhh, tell them . . .whaaat?”Donnie grimaced when he remembered he sucked at lying and the words came out sounding more incriminating than anything, as the bloody memory of his very last dreamworld encounter with 'Little Leo' played in his mind in all his usual 'photographic memory' vivid detail.
“I don’t think I can be a hero like you and your brothers anymore.”
Mikey stepped back from surprise when 'Leo' took an aggressive step toward Donnie and yelled: “I know you know what I’m talking about! Answer me! Yes or no, did you tell them!?”Like how X often coped with humor, when an overload of stress ‘shorted out’ Donnie's brain, his genius, scientific mind coped by shutting his emotions off and going into ‘analytical scientist’ mode. That was why he voice sounded so calm and factual when he replied:“No, I did not tell them.”Leo clenched his fists tightly. “So they don’t know?” he sternly demanded.“No, they don’t know,” Donnie calmly replied.X’s eyes narrowed in anger, and he unclenched his left hand to briskly tap his index finger against his prosthetic leg while continuing to glare at Donnie, who looked unusually calm. And this time the tension in the room was so palatable even the usually oblivious, chatty Mikey felt it.Out of the three shocked mutant turtles and one human in the room, April was the first to feel brave enough to speak up; and she asked: “Tell us wha…” “Tell them now,” X curtly demanded.Donnie cleared his throat, but before he got a single syllable out, Leo interrupted: “On second thought, I’ll tell them.”‘I’m a murderer,’ he thought but didn’t say.‘I took hundreds of lives,’ he once again only thought.‘I’m not a hero, like you.’Yeah, that was the one.X took a deep breath, kept his eyes glued to Donnie's, and this time he sounded sad instead of angry when he told them the words that took on the same meaning as the ones he said to Donnie a lifetime ago in their real life dreamworld.“I’m no hero.”He swallowed the lump in his throat and added: “I’m nothing like you and your brothers."X abruptly spun around and stuck his eyes on the floor so he didn’t have to see Raph and April's faces as he stormed away. This time, instead of ‘Little Donnie’ reaching for him it was his little brother, Mikey, whose hand grazed his on his way past.“You’re our brother too Leo! Wait!”X kept going, but just before he left the room, he stopped in the doorway at the sound of Mikey’s pitiful little voice when he softly requested:“Please?”He stayed back-on to the ones he had foolishly hoped could one day be his family.The ones he thought he could love; who he fool-heartedly believed could one day love him.(He didn't know if the feelings he already felt for them could be classified as love, because he wasn't exactly certain what that felt like. The one thing he did know was that whatever he was feeling, it was stronger than his feelings toward the only father-figure he ever knew, who raised him from an egg.And he supposed: 'If that's not love, what is?')“Don’t go, Leo,” Raph pleadingly requested. “We can work through this, together.”“Yeah Stripes, stay with us,” April kindly requested, using a nickname she used a few times that night, that Leo liked because it was in reference to the stylish red markings on his face and the yellow ones on his arms and legs.Donnie didn’t contribute anything. Not because he didn’t want Leo to stay, but because his normally fast-processing mind had gone completely blank.When all he did was stare blankly at the back of Leo’s head, Mikey roughly elbowed Donnie and whispered an angry-sounding: “Say something.”This time it was Donnie’s mouth that went dry, and he opened it for just a couple of seconds before shutting it without uttering a sound.What could he say? He didn't know.Leo stayed back-on to them, standing in the doorway, repeatedly clenching and unclenching his left fist like a nervous habit (it was) while he waited for Donnie to take a turn to speak. When no such thing happened, he took a step away, but abruptly stopped before taking the second one when he unexpectedly heard Donnie telling him in an unusually soft tone of voice:“Give them a chance, Leo. They won’t hate you.” Then he did the clearly distasteful task of expressing his emotions when he forced out the words:“I . . . don’t . . . hate you. . . Bro.”Mikey held his breath, hopeful that Leo would respond to Donnie’s ‘bro’ with one of his own - that he was turn around with that crooked grin on his red-eared slider face the youngest of the bunch loved to look at, and talk through their issues like a family.But his hope was dashed to pieces with the next thing Leo told them.When he was ready to speak, he turned his head a little, but not far enough to see any one of them out of the corner of his eye.“You will when you see.”“No Leo…” “See what?” Donnie interrupted Mikey to ask. He quickly stuck his hand out to put a firm grip on Mikey’s shoulder when he tried to approach Leo, and when their little brother looked at him with a pair of worried eyes, a simple, stern head shake ‘no’ was sufficient to hold him in place.Donnie kept his hand where it was and instead of answering his question right away, X wanted to give them a little brotherly advice before he left. So he swallowed another lump to relieve the tension in his throat, and told them:"Keep practicing with your mystic weapons. Learn how to meditate, it'll help get those rad powers of yours under control. And look out for each other. Don't forget to always watch your backs, stay away from Draxum, and be careful around strangers, don't trust just anybody. Remember that and you'll stay alive long enough to do great things with your lives.”Tears filled the corners of Mikey's eyes, and he sadly fiddled with his paint-coated fingers and timidly asked: "Why are you talking like that, Leo? We'll get together again soon. Right?"X couldn't take any more of this; it was time to leave.“Go to Hueso. Ask him for the tapes,” he instructed in a tense voice; referring to the tapes of his many gory Battle Nexus fights that Bully told him they had. “I’ll tell him I sent you.”The room fell silent when X paused for a moment, still clenching his left hand over and over.He swallowed that persistent lump that wouldn’t go down, and in a softer voice that still held tension, said:“If you don’t ha…” The word 'hate' got stuck in his throat. He cleared his throat and tried again.“If you still want me for a brother after you see…” ‘My bloody murders.’He didn't bother finishing his sentence. Instead he clenched his fist twice more before unclipping his fox mask and holding it up, facedown in the palm of his hand, prepared to bolt.“We’ll talk. Deal?”X was surprised that it was Raph instead of Mikey who kindly said: “We can talk now…” “Deal?” X asked firmly this time.“Deal,” Donnie agreed for all of them.X gave one firm nod of his head, put his mask on over his face, and grasped the hood on his cloak to pull it up on his way out of the room.The second Donnie released his grip on Mikey’s shoulder, the grief-stricken box turtle rushed to the doorway yelling: “Leo wait!”When he reached the hallway to gaze out and see their stealthy ninja brother was already gone, the tears in the corners of his eyes fell down his cheeks, and he softly said: “You are our brother, Leo. We love you.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
X crouched in the shadows on a rooftop overlooking the abandoned hospital from a safe distance. He had on his fox mask, more for comfort than anything; and with the dark cape covering his body plus the hood up over his head, he blended in well with the darkness of the night.After leaving his brothers and April behind at the hospital, he went to Hueso’s to grab all his things, and brought them here; because he found the perfect place to spend the nights while he was stuck above ground in New York, unable to return home.Eventually he saw the three mutant turtles and human girl leaving out the door they went in through, and walk away. He left his things behind and stealthily followed them for a few blocks to ensure no one planned to return for some reason. Once he was satisfied they wouldn’t be back, he went back, got his stuff, and jumped down to land on the ground in front of the hospital.With the stealth and speed of a trained ninja warrior, X quickly made his way past colorful graffiti paintings littering the walls to one room in particular. He stopped once along the way to briefly admire Mikey’s artwork of something he was told was called a humpback whale, swimming on a background of swirled blackish-blue with stars scattered around; which was one he painted after Leo told him his favorite color was blue.When X reached the room he wanted, he abandoned stealth and speed to casually walk inside.Instead of being in the center of the wall, the door was to the left to make room for the bathroom built into the front right, next to the entrance. And just past that on the right wall was the life-sized mural of him with his three brothers.And on the floor in front of it was the orange plastic container with Mikey’s delicious smelling pizza puffs inside.X put his things on the floor, took off his satchel to lay it with the rest, and raised the mask covering his face to rest it on the top of his head; revealing a crooked grin from the sight of the beautifully designed painting.If he couldn’t have his brothers for real then he at least had this for now.For the first time, X noticed April was also painted in the picture, with her curly hair up in two buns, her baseball bat resting over her shoulder, and her bright red glasses adorning her smiling face.Earlier when he first saw the mural, he had been so focused on staring at himself that this ‘extra spicy’ detail of his brothers honorary sister escaped his notice.“There you go again, missing what’s right in front of your nose,” he told himself. He walked up close to the painting to put his hand on April and admire her face, before bending down to pick up the container Mikey left behind.At first he assumed it was empty and Mikey left it behind because he picked up the bad human habit of wasting perfectly good stuff that could be reused. But when he lifted it, he realized from the weight that it was still full.X peeled off the lid, looked down at the pizza puffs, and while reaching in for one, thought out loud: “He really is impossibly optimistic,” coming to the conclusion Mikey intentionally left them there in case he happened to return.When he popped the tiny, delicate puff into his mouth, his tongue was hit with an explosion of flavors that - he had to admit - were even better than the pizzas he ate at Hueso’s.“Mmm! He’s an artist and a chef!” X popped another puff into his mouth and said to no one but himself: “Move over Run of the Mill, I found a new favorite!” He popped one more in his mouth, moaned: “Mmmm,” in satisfaction, and put the lid back on to save the rest for later.“Alright, time to make this place my new temporary home.”X laid the puffs with the rest of his things, gave consideration to the possibility Mikey might return if he left the puffs behind for him, but shrugged it off, figuring the chances were slim at best, and if he did return he could deal with it.And he also had a secret weapon at his disposal.The first thing X decided to do was to secure the room against any intruders. He reached up under his shirt to haul out a small, flat round disk from inside one of his belt pouches, that he never left home without. He whistled to himself, tossed it up baseball style, and caught it again on his way over to the door.When he stepped outside the doorway, he reached up and stuck it on the door frame. Then with a few clicks at his wrist tech, a purple lazer shot down and swept from the right to the left, scanning the opening below it. When it was done, like magic a white wall matching the rest of the wall appeared right where the door belonged. He knocked on it a couple of times with his knuckles to make sure it was working right, feeling satisfied that even if Mikey returned he would never find the room again. Then he clicked at his wrist tech once more and put hand straight through the mock wall where the doorway to his new bedroom was located, to ensure this setting was working right, too, and he could go in and out when it wasn’t set to the ‘solid’ setting.That little treasure was something Draxum gave him ‘for the greater good’ when he was younger, because it was a handy way to keep a ninja concealed in a bind.X gave a satisfied grin to his new secret room, left the settings as they were for now so he could easily go back and forth with stuff, and set out to gather supplies.The hospital was newly abandoned and, as was common for humans, he noticed quite a large number of useful things left behind in some of the rooms when he was here earlier - the foremost being a hospital bed in decent shape, mattress and all. He also found and gathered up numerous bandage kits, first aid kits, disinfectants, and even a few sterilized suture kits that were left behind in a surgical ward.He wanted to collect as much as he could before others broke in to ransack the place, so it took some time and effort, but eventually he was satisfied with his scavenging adventure, and his new temporary bedroom was large enough to hold it all.Now that he was done, he surveyed his new room with a smile. Pushed up against the middle of the left wall was the hospital bed, positioned directly across from Mikey’s expertly painted mural so the first thing he'd see when he woke up every day would be all of their smiling faces.X hadn’t found any blankets in his search but he did find one clean, white fitted sheet left behind in the basement laundry room that he put on his new bed. The room was cool, but New York wasn’t supposed to get it’s first frost for a few weeks at least, so he felt confident using his cloak as a blanket would be fine, because for sure Draxum would calm down and call him back before it got too cold.There were plenty of pillows left behind to choose from, as well as modular, metal shelving units that fit nicely along the back wall, with a smaller one in his personal ensuite bathroom.The shelves were stocked full of useful things a ninja fighter would need, like first aid kits, bandages, suture kits, disinfecting wipes, hydrogen peroxide, and so on and so forth. There was even some human food leftover in the cafeteria that he took. Like plastic cups with brown glop called ‘chocolate pudding,’ ‘fruit cups’ (‘Why don’t humans just eat fresh fruit?’) jello, bags of chips, and other packaged snack food made with ingredients he didn’t understand or know how to pronounce.He was soon to discover that one thing the so-called 'food' he collected had in common was this: it was all disgusting. X couldn’t understand why humans needed everything to be super sweet, super salty, or clearly full of chemicals that likely didn't classify as 'food' if his sensitive palate was correct. It was an offense to his taste buds, but he still collected what was there, figuring in a pinch having disgusting food until he had a chance to get better stuff was better than no food.(He hoped there was a human equivalent to chorus fruit)At least there were plenty of water bottles available at his disposal. Along with bottles of other overly sweet drinks he left behind called ‘juice.’ And what was the deal with the thing called ‘pop’ that he tried!? Those fizzy, chemical-laden, super-sugar-infused abominations were all sorts of wrong! It reminded him of a time Draxum made him drink a mystery experiment as part of a punishment for something or other he did that he long since forgot. His upset owner told him at the time it would take 'some time' to take effect without further elaborating, but after eight months passed by with no side effects, he figured the alchemist made something harmless and only did that to frighten him into submission.And now he wondered if Draxum had made him drink pop all along.The bathroom shelf was likewise stuffed full of all the toilet paper he could find, with some overflowing onto the floor. A couple of shelves were dedicated to white hospital towels, face cloths, soap, mini tubes of toothpaste, and other common toiletries.In the bedroom, tucked away in the right corner between the wall with Mikey’s mural and the bathroom wall was a practically new recliner that X couldn’t believe was left behind for garbage.That was humans for you. Tearing things down just to build them up again and wasting perfectly good stuff like they thought the world would never run out of finite resources, or there would always be room for the waste of land they called ‘dumps.’They all really needed Draxum’s mutagen to smarten them up.Well, almost all of them.The final pieces to his new bedroom were two side tables with shelves, one on each side of the bed. The one closest to the back wall had a lamp on top and the other one closest to the door held his odachi, which he routinely practiced with in between gathering supplies, with very little progress.Unless you call ‘spiting myself out on top of an apartment roof two blocks away instead of a different city when I was aiming for one of the storage rooms’ success.X did not.The ninja turtle was quite satisfied with his night’s work and he planned on practicing with his portals some more when he was done, but now he was tired out. His sore shell ached and throbbed worse than ever before, and was down right agonizing. That constant pain contributed to his fatigue and his eyelids were so heavy and droopy he could hardly keep them open. But before he could go to sleep, there was still one more vitally important thing that had to be done.X took off his cloak and hung it up on one of the three door hooks, alongside where his mask already was. Next, he pulled his shirt off over his head, tossed it on his bed, and pulled open the top drawer of a nightstand to take out the stiff brush and shell scraper; then he took those things into the bathroom where his sealed turtle shell disinfecting wipes already were to take care of a very unpleasant but absolutely necessary task.* * *~The Next Day~X didn’t get much shut-eye before he woke up early, because it was cold in his room. He was laying on his side, huddled up under his cloak, and when he exhaled through his mouth, he could see his breath in front of his face from the cold air.It must have gotten below freezing outside while he was asleep. Weeks ahead of when the weather was supposed to change.“That’s not good,” he thought out loud. He decided the best thing to do would be to get up and move around, so he sat up, draped his cloak over his blue striped pyjamas, and unplugged his fully-charged tech prosthetic before putting it on. Then he slipped his feet into his fuzzy blue slippers, that he (thankfully) originally bought because they looked nice, not because he needed warm slippers in his warm, underground home. He wore both more for the aesthetics than anything else, and it didn’t take long for his cold right food to warm the insides.X felt grateful to his past self for realizing his pjs and slippers would be useful things to take to New York considering it was autumn above ground (the weather and temperature never changed in the Hidden City). But he wished he had been given the time he needed to grab his blanket from off his bed before Draxum showed up. X let out a big yawn and started his day with a round of stretches, to warm up his sluggish muscles - wondering how cold it would have to get before he went into a hibernation-like state Draxum warned him about, called brumation.It was a turtle thing.After his stretching, X got ready for the day by going to the bathroom to change the bandages on his carapace, and take care of other necessary business.But his entire body still felt sluggish, and his shell ached even more than the night before.* * *~Some Time Later~ X showed up at the restaurant where he worked far too early for the start of his shift; even before it was open for the day. Which was good, because he wasn’t there to wash dishes.He went to the kitchen door in the back, and used the keypad to enter the security PIN Bully gave to him. There was a ‘click’ when the door unlocked, and a hooded figure went inside.The door opened to the back of the kitchen, and when he went in the lights were on, but the room was quiet and empty.He carefully closed the door behind him so it wouldn’t make a sound - being naturally stealthy, like he was trained all his life - and went over to Chef Bully’s workstation to wait for him.The counter was full of flour and bags of dough ingredients, so he knew Bully couldn’t be far away. When he got there, he hugged his satchel close to his chest, hung his head, and waited silently for his kitchen boss to appear.When he came out of the food storage room, Bully kept his eyes on the caped turtle whose face was hidden from view under his hood. But he didn’t say anything the whole way over to his workstation, knowing Scrubs would speak up if and when he was ready.Once he got back and put down the bottle of oil he retrieved, Bully reached ahead for the dough he had been working on, but stopped when Scrubs slowly took a stiff, brown scrub brush and scraper of some kind out of his bag and laid them on the clean edge of the counter.“I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t need it,” was the only thing the despondent turtle had to say.“I got a place we can go,” Bully immediately replied he picked up the tools X put out for him and led the way out, and Scrubs hugged his bag tighter to his chest and followed behind with his head hung low; partly from the incredible pain he was in, and partly from embarrassment of needing to ask for help.Draxum was always the one who took care of this sort of thing when the need arose.When Bully unlocked the door to the stairs leading to Hueso’s second storey home, X hesitated for just a second, before following behind - hoping Yolinda wouldn't be home to see him. Thankfully they didn’t go too far past the top of the stairs before Bully raised his key to the first door on the right and unlocked it so they could go in.Inside was a big room full of filing cabinets with a brown wooden table and chairs near the middle. Bully pulled out one of the chairs for X to sit on, and the injured turtle put his bag down on the table before slowly removing his cape and then his shirt, revealing the bandaged shell underneath.Bully patiently waited as X slowly took the bandages off himself, and when he was done the tough yokai took a good hard look at the state of his shell.“It looks worse than yesterday,” the ex-pirate commented.“That’s because I couldn’t get the dead scutes off in the worst part,” the seasoned ninja warrior replied, before asking: "Does it look infected?"“What does an infected shell look like?” Bully inquired.. . ."I don't know."X sat down, mentally kicking himself for not asking Donnie what signs to look out for, and brushed over that issue for now when he said: “It’ll get better once the scutes are off.” ‘I hope,’ he thought but didn’t say; being quite certain the offer from the ‘professional,’ family medic, Donnie, expired as of last night.Thankfully Bully let it go too, and he looked down at the brush in one hand and the scraper in the other. “I don’t know much about turtle shells,” he admitted. “Use the brush first, scrape what's left behind, finish with the brush. There’s shell wipes in my bag for when you’re done and scrub hard, only use the scraper for the stubborn bits you can’t get.”Bully looked up from the brush in one of his left hands to look at the grotesque injury in the middle of Scrub’s shell. The damaged parts of his shell X got himself were smooth but darker than the rest of his carapace, with a blackened hue to them. And the dead scutes in the middle where he couldn’t reach were black and flaking and peeling off in thick, rough layers. And smack dab in the middle of that was a red spot that had been bleeding recently but scabbed over.“Do I scrub the bloody stuff, too?”“Yeah.”“Can you feel from your shell?”Bully realized before the words finished coming out of his mouth that his question was unnecessary; if turtles couldn't feel from their shells, Draxum would not have centered his torturous punishment on Scrubs' shell.. . .“Yeah,” X said softer than before.Bully raised the scrub brush up against Scrubs' shell and told him: “Brace yourself, this is gonna hurt like the...” “I know just hurry up and get it over with,” X curtly interrupted.Bully started and X instantly curled in on himself. He stuffed his face in his left hand, clenched his jaw tight from the pain, dug his fingernails into his right leg, and fought against the urge to ‘show weakness’ by crying from the agony of it all.Although, there were a number of pained groans as well as the occasion he couldn’t help himself and gasped in a deep breath through his mouth when the pain was at its worst; like when the brush scrubbed at the scabbed-over wound, opening it up again and making it bleed anew. But that wasn’t even the worst part yet.Because after the long process of diligently scraping off all the loose, blackened scutes, came the really fun part. Scraping off whatever stubborn, stuck-on bits of dead scutes were left behind that needed to go.The sun had barely risen no more than an hour ago, but when Bully started with the scraper, X knew in his heart today was going to be another long day.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
X felt much better after his shell was scraped, and even moreso after he went to his temporary home and had a nice, warm shower (thanking Donnie in his heart for somehow using his tech to turn on - and keep on - not just the plumbing in that room, but also the hot water).The dirty feeling of having layers of dead scutes stuck to his shell was finally gone, and he had high hopes that it would continue to get better day by day. In fact, the smallest, shallow burns on his plastron had already healed to the point the stinging pain was replaced with an incessant itch he couldn’t scratch because that would make them sting (he learned the hard way).After his shower, X kept the wound unbandaged and didn’t wear anything over his shell, to let it fully dry without it rubbing on his clothes, and potentially reopening. He also didn’t want to deal with the sore, raw parts of his carapace that were under the dead scutes and got exposed from his two scrubbing sessions, to rub against the fabric on his shirt. Unlike skin, most shell wounds that weren’t oozing or bleeding were better left unbandaged to hasten the healing process.For those reasons, even though the room was cool, the only thing X had on were his black shorts under his shell. The shower helped to warm things up for a bit, but overall his hidden hospital bedroom remained a little on the cold side after the frost they had late last night. It wasn’t anything he couldn’t handle, though, and he had plans on how to get his hands on a warm blanket or two before the temperatures dropped below freezing later that night.When it was time to start getting ready for work, he put on his belt that went around his waist, with the attached band that went down diagonally over his chest hanging down by his legs, because he still had to bandage the wound in his carapace.Next, X took his odachi off the nightstand and stuck it in the belt sheath on his left hip so it was on him, where he could grasp the hilt to channel his powers. Then he tried something he had tried a few times before but without success.X focused his mental and emotional energy on opening a portal in the right location. After thirty seconds or so, a glowing blue orifice opened midair in front of him, with an exit portal likewise opening somewhere behind his back.Neither portal was big enough to step through, which was intentional because they were big enough for their intended purpose, to stick his hands through and bandage his shell. He looked behind his back to see the other portal was too far away, closed it while keeping the first one open, and willed another one to open in a different spot.This one was closer, but it was much too high, hovering halfway between the back of his head and the ceiling. Once again, the portal closed and this time it opened at the right height behind his back, but not quite close enough. He decided to give it a try, picked up a square adhesive bandage, and reached in to try attaching it over the bad spot in the middle of his shell.X felt around but couldn't do more than brush the tips of his fingers against his shell. Once he knew for sure it still wasn’t going to work right, he let out a deep sigh, conceded defeat this time, and closed them both to affix the bandage the old-fashioned way - by standing back-on to the bathroom mirror and trying his best to stick it to the right spot. All while doing this, he was grumbling and griping that Draxum should be doing it for him; and giving serious consideration to the thought of portalling into the Battle Nexus med bay to get one of the unsuspecting medics to patch him up and send him on the way, being none the wiser that he did not just come from a fight.If his portals worked right, that was, providing they didn’t dump him out in some random location - like in the middle of the fighting ring - instead (wouldn’t Big Mama be surprised to see that!)In the end, he decided against it; so the old-fashioned ‘fumbling around in front of a mirror to stick the bandage in the hardest to reach spot’ was the choice for today. But he would keep practicing with his portals to get it right.It took a good twenty minutes to affix the bandage, so it wasn’t too high or low, bunched up in any places, or put on crooked. Once he was satisfied, he began the unpleasant task of getting dressed with shell burns. His breast strap attachment sat flush to his shell, once he got it on, firm and secure, so it didn't rub against the burns when he moved around.Although the pressure was . . . uncomfortable his belt went just below the worst burn wound on his shell, so he took that as a win and opened a drawer in his nightstand to haul out an oversized blue shirt he had, that went halfway down to his knees; and was one of two shirts he grabbed from his room, that he normally only wore when he decided to spend some of his free time lounging around at home (preferably by the pool).Aside for the shorts he was already wearing, his cloak and mask, and his pyjamas, that was about it for the clothes X had, because the Hidden City was always warm, and he normally avoided New York like a plague when it was cold above ground (unless Draxum sent him out to collect another 'specimen', in which case he was out and back again in fifteen minutes flat).Being a ninja fighter also meant it was advantageous for him not to have any concealed weapons he might need in a pinch in a difficult to reach spot, underneath a layer of clothing.After that, X sheathed his dagger on the strap over his chest before attaching every concealed weapon he currently had that he could fit. Then he pulled on his oversized blue shirt and cringed from the sensation of it rubbing against his shell, but put up with it so his burns would be concealed when he took his cloak off in the hot kitchen.Finally, X finished off with his cloak, attached his fox mask to a strap on his right hip, and checked himself out in the bathroom mirror. He gave the good-looking turtle gazing back at him his signature crooked grin - noting the black eye and busted lip on his fast-healing mutant body were already beginning to look much better.“Hey, there’s that faceman,” he commented with joy. He gave his reflection a wink (it winked back) and said: “Missed ya, buddy!”After that, X grabbed the orange container to pop a few of Mikey’s delicious pizza puffs into his mouth before heading out for his work day, that he hoped would go smoothly for a change considering everything else he had to deal with right now.Maybe Yolinda would call in sick?Or maybe a scrappy fox with a short fuse, a predisposition to start battles she only sometimes won, and who squeaked her voice when she was really mad was just what the doctor ordered.X smiled at the thought on his way out of the hospital to go to his new job, changing his mind and hoping that Yolinda was there.* * *The first hour or so of Scrubs' workday went surprisingly smoothly. Yolinda had come in and out of the kitchen, working early to pick up the beaver’s shift until Hueso could hire a new part-time server.For the most part she didn’t bug Scrubs too much, kept conversations with him brief, and flirted with him here and there (he did not reciprocate, which seemed to irk her a little). Overall X was enjoying himself, and even looked forward to her brief visits, when she would pop by and talk about claw manicures and spa treatments and fur care like he was a friend she was in to. Until . . .“Pepino, your brothers are here asking for the tapes. Are you certain you want to go through with this?”Hueso had just come in the kitchen from the dining area, and X noticed when Yolinda gave her ninja turtle ‘crush’ a mischievous grin before walking with a little bounce to her step to pick up the next outgoing order and take it to the dining area.“Yes, Seňor Hueso, I’m sure,” X respectfully replied. He continued on with his work, and Hueso frowned at him but didn’t object any further. Then he told him in a solemn tone of voice: “They’re asking for you.”X let it be known he wasn’t going out to see them with a hum of acknowledgement and a nod of his head, while continuing on with his work. In reply, Hueso patted him on the shoulder and left.* * *~A Short Time Later~Yolinda spent an unusually long time serving customers in the restaurant.But that was because she wasn’t serving customers.When the sneaky fox came back, she glanced at the orders ready to go out; making sure none of them were for her tables so Bully wouldn’t have a valid reason to interrupt her conversation with Scrubs. Then, she walked right up to him, leaned against the counter in her usual spot on his right, and looked at him with a mischievous glint in her eyes.“That brother of yours, Ralph, told me he can bench press four hundred and fifty pounds, that’s so hot.”X didn’t acknowledge her comment beyond thinking: ‘Eugh boi.’X hoped Scraps had enough of a head on her shoulders not take things too far trying to antagonize him into asking her out with her flirting wirh 'Ralph'.“I told him maybe we should go to the Hidden City gym some day so he can show me.”. . .“Those other two brothers of yours were really excited when I mentioned the Hidden City.. . .X’s left eye twitched. Yolinda didn’t see.“What were their names? Nevermind, it doesn’t matter.”‘Take a deep breath and count to ten. You’re a skilled ninja, trained in the art of deception and patience. Hold yourself together and don’t let a silly girl make you lose your temper, dumb-dumb.’“Can you believe those buffoons have never been to the Hidden City before!? It’ll be like showing a bunch of dumb tourists around. I bet they take pictures and everything! Especially that little hyper one in the bright orange mask. I bet he gets excited over something silly, like a chorus fruit. He's always good for a laugh.”‘How does she always know the right buttons to press!? Why do I let her make me so MAD!?’“I suggested we all go there together tonight. You know. Them, me,” she leaned in closer to Scrubs - who tried his best to ignore her and continue on with his work - and batted her pretty eyes at him a few times, before saying a flirty: “You.”This time X noticeably tensed. Yolinda smiled and stood up straight again to lean her back on the counter once more.‘Yeah, good idea, let’s go to the Hidden City! We can stroll around main street and visit the Market while we’re at it! Heck, why not take them back home so Draxum can…’“Ralph blushed when I suggested it. I think he’s gonna ask me out while we’re there. I'll take him to witch town so he can do it there; that place is so magical.”‘I knew it! Sorceress!’That little inside joke helped X to calm his mind, and he couldn’t help but grin when an idea popped in his head to turn the tables in his favor.“Yeah, Ralph’s a good guy. And he’s just coming off a bad breakup, too. He could use someone like you in his life right now,” he lied through his teeth.“Someone. Like. Me?”‘Ooo she’s getting mad already! This is great!’“Yeah, you know…”Scrubs stopped his washing to look straight into her eyes.“A rebound girl.”
“Rebound?”
Bully snorted out a laugh from that one, and X smirked with a twinkle in his eyes.“Yeah, you know what I mean. Someone you have a little fun with for a few weeks but don’t take things too serious because you know it’s not going anywhere.” He resumed washing, but made sure to keep her face in his peripheral when he casually asked: “On a separate note, how long do your relationships usually last?”Yolinda’s eye twitched this time.X couldn't keep going, could he? That would be mean.He couldn’t help himself; he just had to.“I just wanted to make sure you’re not in the habit of getting into anything serious,” He put a plate in the drying sink and looked at her angry face with his smug grin, just aching for that twitching top lip on her cute little black muzzle to curl up into a snarl.“I want to make sure you’re the right kind of girl. You know…”He casually began washing another plate.“For Ralph.”Her top lip curled up into a snarl, showing off her pearly whites underneath.It gave him a thrill that shot up his spine, and he just knew he couldn't hold back his big smile if he tried (which he didn't, of course).“The right kind of girl?” Yolinda asked, incensed.X was so overjoyed from this happy turn that it even distracted from the pain in his shell.A little, anyway.But she hadn’t squeaked her voice in the cute way she only did when she was really mad.X just had to hear it.“Yeah, you know what I mean.” He looked at her from the corner of his eye with a big grin on his face.“One of those hot. Chickies.”X knew she hated being lumped together with those ditsy girls often referred to as 'chickies' on the Hidden City streets, and he caught what he was fishing for when she clenched her fists and tensed her body so tightly she was practically vibrating.‘Here we go!’ he thought with excitement.Yeah, this was just what the doctor ordered.He casually rinsed off the next plate and put it in the drying sink with the others, patiently waiting for the ‘clever fox’ - who was about to blow a fuse - to find her words.“CHICKIE!?” she yelled, in her high-pitched, squeaky voice X had been waiting for.He couldn’t keep going, could he? That would be really mean. She was already so mad at him she was left speechless.A rare occurrence Bully only ever witnessed a handful of times in the years he knew Scraps - all of which were centered around her interactions with Scrubs.She was in to him big time. Both Hueso and Bully had never seen her fall for a guy so hard and fast ever before.But desite everything the hard-working mutant had going for him, Scrubs was one of them, and they wanted better life for her - something the observant ninja noted and respected.Still, this was an opportunity X couldn’t possibly afford to miss!While still washing dishes, X casually told her: “You said you were just looking for a little fun, right? That’s exactly what Ralph needs right now. A cute chickie on his arm…”Bully huffed out another laugh.Yolinda’s eye twitched again.X noticed.He was overjoyed from this pleasant turn of events. This was a serious distraction from all the unpleasantness with his brothers last night; and the even more traumatic unpleasantness with Draxum.And it just kept getting better when she finally got her words together and sputtered out:“Why . . . why you . . . you . . . I HATE YOU! WIPE THAT SMILE OFF YOUR UGLY MUG!"Leo’s smile widened. Yolinda squealed louder.He was having the time of his life! Until..."I HOPE WE GET SO MANY CUSTOMERS YOU HAVE TO STAY ALL NIGHT SO DRAXUM CAN PUNISH YOU AGAIN!!! AAHHHUGH!”X blushed a little bit from embarrassment at that one. He put his head down, scrunched his shoulders and got back to work. Now the whole kitchen knew what happened to him.He glanced around at the hard-working yokai, but luckily they were all so used to Scraps tantrums none of them seemed phased in the least; and they all continued on with their work, with not one of them as much as glancing in his direction. That helped him to relax a little, and as he was mentally reading the room, Yolinda spun around to face a big bowl of Bully’s homemade salad dressing he just finished making for the week, and hadn’t transferred to squeeze bottles yet.“Not my dressing!” Bully yelled when she grabbed it off the counter with the intent of dumping it all over Scrubs’ head.This time he didn’t allow it, and reached up to abruptly stop her, took it out of her hands, and very calmly said: “Stop doing that.”He walked around the angry fox to put the dressing back where it belonged, and Bully was quick to pull it closer to him so Scraps couldn’t get her hands on it once more.Yolinda let out a high-pitched squeal.“Order up!” Bully told her.She was too mad even for yelling and screaming right now, and she didn't want to look at Leo's 'ugly mug', so Yolinda spun around, grabbed the order for one of her tables, and stormed away.Bully sprinkled toppings on a pizza while she banged open the kitchen door to leave.“She’s a real firebat, that one. All cute and cuddly if you scratch her behind the ear just right, but watch out! She’ll burst into flames if you rub her the wrong way,” he told Scrubs as a fair warning that she was capable of taking things further than they already were if he kept provoking her.X gave Bully a mischievous grin.“Behind the ear, you say? I happen to like playing with fire.”He got back to work and Bully sternly warned him: "Watch out you don’t get burned worse than you already are.”Scrubs looked up at him with his crooked grin and a glimmer in his eyes.“That’s the best part,” he playfully replied - referring to getting ‘burned’ bugging the adorable fox and not to the burns on his shell that Bully was referring to.“Maybe for you, but I spent an hour making that dressing just right. Now git!" Bully pointed with one of his thumbs to the back door and ordered: "And dump that trash on your way out. That dressing’s not ready to put in the cooler yet and I don’t want you anywhere near my workstation when that firebat flies through the door and you try scratchin’ behind her ear!”X grinned from amusement at the thought of reaching up to scratch behind Yolinda’s ear and hearing that cute, fiery fox squealing and loudly and emphatically expressing her ‘dislike’ for the red-eared slider she had a love-hate relationship with, via various idle threats and wishes for misfortune to rain upon his bald head.Scrubs obediently took off his dish gloves to take out the trash, gave Bully a two-fingered salute with his three-fingered turtle hand, and responded: “Aye-aye cap’n!”He took off the apron next, waked over to tie the bag in the garbage bin, and Bully factually told him: “First mate you mean. Bones was always the captain.” Then he smiled at Scrubs when the slider quietly said to himself: “I knew it!” and hauled the big, black garbage bag out of the bin to take it out the back door to the dumpster in the alley.Along the way, Bully sternly ordered: “Take your fifteen minute break while you’re at it!”“You keep using this word. It doesn’t mean what you think it means,” Scrubs replied in a comical tone. He visibly cringed when he walked past the back door to his left, where the terrorworm portal was located, and opened the back kitchen door leading outside, when the ex-pirate chef joked back: “I already told you, it means git out of the kitchen or I’ll break your other leg.”X looked behind his back to grin at Bully while shaking his head in faux disapproval.“You’re getting soft old man. Last time you threatened to break my arms, too.”A throwing blade whizzed through the air and stuck into the wall beside X’s head. Naturally, the Battle Nexus champ was unsurprised and didn’t flinch.“I’ll show you who’s gonna be soft when I tenderize you with my meat mallet if you don’t git out that door now!”X casually gave the handle of the knife sticking out of the wall a passing glance, calmly said: “I’m going,” and left it stuck where it was on his way out; deciding to yank it out for washing on his way back to his workstation.No sooner had the heavy steel door shut behind X than the 'firebat' came in, looking for him.“Where is he!?” she demanded, when she saw he was nowhere in the kitchen.“Break,” Bully gruffly replied.Yolinda’s eyes settled on the back door with the throwing blade sticking out of the wall beside it.‘He didn’t come out the front, so he must be out back,’ she reasoned.Bully watched her as she briskly walked up to the back door to the alley outside. But when she picked up the mop bucket beside the door, Bully pointed the butcher knife he was using at her and yelled: “You leave that kid alone! He’s got enough going on, he don’t need you throwing dirty mop water in his face!” ‘And getting’ that nasty wound infected,’ he thought but didn’t say.Yolinda turned around with a smug grin for him, ‘innocently’ replied: “The bucket stinks, it needs to be emptied,” and then made a show out of pulling his blade out of the wall with her free left hand, to make sure he saw her.She cocked her hip, showed him the blade, and told him in a playful tone: “You got to stop leaving your blades lying around, Bully. Someone’s gonna steal them.” He just huffed out a laugh and let her take it.The upper lip on the fox yokai’s muzzle curled up in disgust when she noticed the small handle, with a delicate flower design that she liked, was sticky with oil and grime, and complained: “Ew, wash your blades, Bully, don’t you take care of your weapons?” “Nah, I got someone else to do that fer me,” Bully joked, referring to Scrubs. She expertly spun the blade in her hand, looked him in the eyes, and pocketed his weapon for herself right in front of him; before pushing the back door open.So she could go out to have a little fun with that infuriating ninja turtle who sported those stylish red and yellow stripes, and who stubbornly kept refusing to ask her out.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The same instant X turned around after closing the dumpster lid, a bucket’s worth of dirty water came flying at his face.By pure instinct alone, in a flash of blue light X teleported five feet to his left, the water missed its target, and Yolinda’s eyes popped open from surprise; but she didn’t say anything in the moment about Leo’s awesome mystic powers that she knew nothing about until now.X also didn’t say anything. Rather, he pretended he did it intentionally by concealing his own surprise, and sternly asked her: “What’s with you and dumping whatever crud you get your hands on all over my face!?”Yolinda smugly grinned at Scrubs with her arms loosely crossed, and told him in an arrogant, teasing tone: “I’m going to tell Bully you called his salad dressing crud.” “You do that,” X grumped in reply, not caring in the least because he knew Bully wouldn’t believe a word of it; and also still grumpy with her over the whole 'Draxum punishment' comment she screamed at the top of her lungs for the entire kitchen to hear.Yolinda turned around to open the kitchen door and do what she threatened by calling out to Bully, but before she could get the door open more than a few inches, X banged his outstretched hand on it, up beside her head, it to slam it shut.When he sternly looked at her from a few inches in front of her face, into her eyes, both of them paused for a second - with him really wanting to lean ahead the five extra inches to kiss her, and her really hoping he would.But Yolinda was disappointed when he calmly but firmly told her: “You gotta stop throwing stuff at me.”Her disappointment turned to frustration and she angrily snapped: “You don’t get to tell me what I can or can’t do! I can do whatever I want!” Her voice squeaked on the last word and she continued. “And on Thursday when Bully makes chili, I’m gonna dump the whole bubbling pot over your ugly, bald, green head!”Her voice squeaked again on the last word, but X didn’t smile. Instead he kept his hand firmly in place and slowly and sternly repeated: “Stop throwing stuff at me.”“WHY SHOULD I!?” Yolinda yelled in her high-pitched, squeaky voice.X took his hand off the door, clenched both fists, and yelled: “Because my shell’s damaged and it has to stay clean and dry or it’ll get infected!”He threw his hands up at the same time he turned his back to her, yelling in frustration: “But that’s impossible with you around!” feeling just as mad at himself for losing his temper as he was at her for provoking him to this point. Then, she picked at the ‘right’ sore spot when she said in a condescending way: “Good, I hope it does! It’ll be your own fault for not letting me help you when I offered the same day it happened, when Draxum gave you what you deserved!”She didn't really believe what she said In the heat of anger - honest she didn't - and she felt a twinge of guilt when Leo silently stayed back-on to her, repeatedly clenching and unclenching his left fist over and over, as a nervous habit when a flashback from that day played in his head.Yolinda stayed silent, too - hoping she hadn't taken things too far for the turtle who she knew was Baron Draxum’s mistreated slave - while X mentally relived the horrible memory.In his mind, he could see it as though it was happening right before his eyes.Draxum stood in front of his slave where he was chained to the floor, and looked down on him, straight into his eyes. X respectfully raised his head to make eye contact, like he knew was expected of him, and calmly (with an undertone of residual anger and resentment he harbored against his other turtle creations) his angry owner told him: “This is your fault. You bring these punishments on yourself with you consistent. Incompetence. You deserve what you get here today. Say it!”
X swallowed nervously (even though there was no saliva to swallow in his dehydrated body) and shot his eyes down to the floor for a second.
“LOOK at me!” Draxum ordered, a little too harshly.X abruptly snapped his eyes back on the warrior disciplinarian’s face. Although he didn’t believe anything he did could possibly justify this he knew disobedience would enrage his already angered owner, and humbly and obediently said a tense: “I deserve this.”
Draxum’s eyes narrowed in anger, and X’s eyes looked down on the end of the searing torture device, which was smoldering now that it had heated up sufficiently.
“Good. I'm glad we are in agreement.”
The ninja slave stayed back on to Yolinda and raised his right hand to gently rub his shirt over the very first sore and itchy burn mark Draxum left on shell that day. He kept his voice down but let his anger against Draxum out at her with the cold, quiet, spiteful tone when he broke the silence by asking: “What do you know about shell repair?”“What’s there to know?” Yolinda innocently replied, in a much sweeter voice than X was expecting. “Treat it like any wound. Clean, mend, salve, and bandage.”“Hah! That’s what you think, little fox.” X blurted out in an angry, condescending way. She abruptly abandoned any feelings of pity or remorse at his patronizing attitude, clenched her fists in anger, and yelled: “Don’t call me that and don’t laugh at me! I was only trying to helllp!”He kept clenching his fist repeatedly and refused to turn around to look at her when he, once again in a cold tone of voice, replied: “If you want to help, you’ll stop bothering me when I’m working. It took me over an hour to reclean those dishes you dirtied with your tail. And do me a favor, stay away from…” ‘Raph,’ “my brothers. They’re good guys and they’ve been spared the hard realities of life so far. I don’t want to see them get hurt.”“Well now I gotta take them to the Hidden City,” Yolinda teased.That got the response the cunning ‘little fox’ wanted from the ninja turtle who was determined to protect his brothers from harm. She grinned at him when he spun around, glared at her with fire in his eyes (and were those blue sparks in the corners?) and aggressively yelled: “I don’t get you!” He gestured vividly with his hands, and - referring to the name of one of the Hidden City gangs who didn’t like how his ‘insta portal chips’ saved some yokai from them - he continued yelling at her smug little grin that he wanted to…‘No, stay focused.’“I can face a dozen Tiger Claws on the streets and keep my cool, but one…” He raised his hands to gesture like he wanted to ring her neck: “Girl. Makes me so mad it’s . . . it’s . . .” “Infuriating?” Yolinda calmly finished for him, repeating a word she used once in reference to him.He lowered his hands, relaxed his tense muscles slightly, and with a little attitude, calmly choked out: “More like insufferable.”She grinned at him and playfully teased: “That’s because you liiike me.”X turned his body so he wasn’t fully facing her but could still see her in his peripheral, and deadpan replied: “Dream on, sister.”But what bothered him the most was that they both knew she was right.He clenched and relaxed his fist a couple more times, and Yolinda looked down at his hand, waiting. But when nothing happened (like a gorgeous turtle ninja warrior sweeping her off her feet to carry her in those strong arms of his) she asked: “Aren’t you going to ask me out?”X clenched his fist tightly, and without looking at her, bluntly said: “I gotta get back to work.”He stormed to the door without once looking in her direction, not even when she stepped in front of it (and the doorknob) to block his entrance.“Move,” he ordered; clenching and unclenching his fist a little more forcefully.She looked him up and down like she had done once previously (like he was a delectable bug trapped in her spider web) and with a smile and a cheeky inflection, ordered in return: “Make me.”He wasn’t playing this game right now and abruptly turned to walk away without another word, heading to the front portal entrance to get back to his station before he could be penalized for being late.Her smile fell and she yelled: “Don’t walk away from me!”No response.“Come back here!”Still nothing.“Where are you even GOING!?”Without turning around to face her, he stopped long enough to say: “I already told you. Some of us have to work.”He took a step ahead, feeling nervous over the thought of what would happen to him if he didn’t get back in time and Seňor Hueso reported to Draxum that he took thirty extra seconds on his break; and hoping it would be at least explained to his harsh (currently angry) owner that he was ordered on a mandatory break.Bully’s words: “…Hueso don’t report to Draxum…” sounded in his mind. But he still didn’t quite believe it yet.“The dirty dishes aren’t going anywhere, you can be a little late,” Yolinda told him in a calm, but spiteful tone. Then her voice softened when she requested: “Come back and talk to me some more," as though she was enjoying this heated conversation.X ‘came back’ alright. He spun around, stepped ahead with his flesh and bone right foot, and once again gestured wildly with his hands when he yelled: “No! People like you get to be a little late! People like me,” he gestured to himself with both hands. “can’t!”Yolinda skipped past the incensed: ‘What do you mean, people like me!?’ question on the tip of her tongue to instead ask demand: “What do you mean, people like you!?”X opened his mouth. Slowly and very purposefully (and a little loudly) he replied: “Slaaaves.” Then he turned to the side so he wasn't fully facing her, and crossed his tense arms in front of his chest while blurting out in anger:"Worse than that, I'm not even yokai! I'm lower than a slave, 'cause all I am is another one of Draxum’s experiments. A pet turtle," (he said that part with disgust) "mutated in his lab like I was made from some sort of witches brew. What does that make me?" he rhetorically asked, but with sincerity, before softening his tense body and saying in what seemed to be a sad tone of voice: "I gotta get back to work before Draxum finds out I stayed out on break too long."Yolinda didn’t miss a beat. She knew now she couldn’t make him stay, so casually opened the door a crack, looked in the kitchen, and yelled out to Bully: “Hey Bully! Scrubs is taking an extra long break!” “Good!” Bully called back. “But you git in here and get that…” *Slam!*X relaxed at little at Bully’s reply because the fear of a harsh retribution for returning late from his break passed.Yolinda looked at him and - completely skipping over the whole 'mutant turtle experiment' thing - huffed out offended-sounding: “You’re not Tío Hueso’s slave!” Feeling the need to correct the erroneous thinking that her beloved Tío would ever stoop so low as to purchase a slave for his restaurant (or for anything else for that matter).“I’m Draxum’s slave and he ordered me to work here,” X abruptly replied without hesitation. With a calm anger (directed at Draxum's unjust, torturous punishment and not her) he continued: “You already know what happened when I broke curfew.”Yolinda asked with full sincerity and concern mixed with confusion: “Why do you let him treat you that way?”X huffed out a condescending laugh. “Let him?” he asked in a sour tone. “Something tells me you don’t live in the Hidden City.”Yolinda leaned back against the door, casually inspected her claws, and replied: “Not since I was five, when I moved in here with my Tío Hueso.”The trained ninja who was exceptionally good at reading body language realized there was a whole lot more to that story than she was letting on; but he kept that to himself and crossly commented: “You live with Seňor Hueso? And you wonder why I never ask you out?”She looked up from her claws and snapped: “What’s that supposed to mean!?”“Let me clue you in, princess,” X said in an angry but calm tone, completely ignoring her incensed question. She narrowed her eyes in anger at the ‘princess’ reference, but didn’t say anything about it, and resumed ‘casually’ looking over her claws - pretending to inspect and admire her new manicure because she couldn’t bring herself to look him in the eyes with the horrible truths he revealed to her next.“Down there in the Hidden City,” he aggressively pointed down to the ground. “Us slaves don’t have any rights. Our owners" he saw her shutter from a chill at the harsh reminder that Draxum owned him. "can do anything they want to us and the law’s on their side. I’ve seen slaves beaten in the streets and no one bats an eye. And you don’t want to know what happens to runaways when the cops get their hands on them. And yeah, I said when not if, prinncesssss.”It ruffled the fur on the back of her neck when he called her ‘princess’ again - a little more forcefully this time - but she wanted to hear him out so pretended it didn’t bother her and kept looking at her shiny black claws.“Down there we’re nothing more than property, I'm nothing more than property,” X firmly continued, with his insides squirming around, wanting to lash out at someone from the cold anger he felt. “At least with Draxum I always know when it’s coming and why, that’s more than I can say for any of those other slaves I know.” ‘Why am I sharing this with her!? SHUT UP!!!’ “As far as slavery goes, I’ve got the good life!” ‘STOOOP TAAALKINGGG!!!’“I got my own room, a soft bed to sleep in,” X continued against his own will.“All the food I want…” ‘Why does this keep happening to me!?’“Training, an education, free time where I can go where I want and do what I want; even earning a few yen I can spend on myself! He gave me my weapons, everything I have from him is always the best quality!”‘Fine, keep going, I’m checking out,’ X’s ‘brain’ flatly told him.He kept going.She kept 'inspecting' her claws.“None of the other slaves I know have anything like that! Most of them can’t read or get enough to eat out of whatever scraps their owners leave behind for them. But not me. Draxum even raised me himself from an egg…”Yolinda seemed a little uncomfortable at the 'I'm a mutated turtle and not a yokai' reminder, because all yokai - no matter the type - were born like human babies after gestations of varying lengths.X took it to mean that deep down it bothered her to know he - a lowly mutant - wasn't on level ground with her - a yokai. But really she felt a twinge of pity for him because he viewed himself as being 'even lower than a slave,' and nothing more than 'another one of Draxum’s experiments'.It didn't matter to her where he came from, what mattered was who he became - a strong (gorgeous) ninja turtle who was fiercely protective of his family; who wasn't afraid to bite back at her; and who didn't let her walk all over him - unlike all the guys she ever dated before.Leo continued with one more thought that, although sounding a little angry, carried a hint of fondness."He treated me like a son for the first six years. I owe my life to him.”‘That’s it! I know what’s going on! She really is from Witch Town! She put a spell on me, that’s the only explanation,’ he reasoned. (but knowing deep down it wasn’t one eensy bit true)Yolinda gazed up at him and the empathetic look in her eyes made him feel uncomfortable; but he didn’t tear his angry eyes off hers.“Why did he stop treating you like a son?”The genuine compassion in her eyes and her soft tone voice was too much for him to bear, so he had to look away. Yolinda glanced down when he resumed clenching and unclenching his left fist over and over; and she was beginning to think it was a nervous habit - reaffirming her previous belief that X hid his fear behind a wall of anger.Leo gave consideration to Yolinda’s sincere question and thought: ‘You already dug your hole this deep, mind as well jump in.’ But he couldn’t bring herself to look her in the face due to the misplaced shame he felt, as though it was through some shortcoming or flaw on his part (it certainly wasn’t a flaw in his mutant design) that downgraded him from the position of ‘beloved son’ to ‘consistently incompetent slave’. Not knowing that the real reason this happened to him was because Draxum fully understood the importance for a child's proper brain development - slave or not - to be treated with consistent patience, kindness, and ‘loving’ attention in the early, formative years.“He will again, one day, when his life's work is done,” he told her, resolutely believing every word he spoke. His firm conviction carried through in the soft, sincere tone in his voice.“He’s made it his job to help yokai everywhere; to make the world a better place for everyone. Even those disgusting humans who don’t deserve it.”Yolinda was surprised - and a little taken aback - by that unexpected comment. She had been raised in New York, spent most of her time above ground, and had many friends among the humans who knew about yokai for one reason or another. She even dated a few of them, and even among her friends who lived in the Hidden City she had never heard anyone mention something overly negative or critical about the human species. She considered speaking up in their behalf but didn’t want to spoil what she viewed as a tender, heartfelt moment between the two of them, so filed that away for now.X didn’t notice her reaction because he was busy, locked away in his own mind, picturing the blissful scene he just spoke of with such hope and longing Yolinda noticed the tenderness in his voice when he continued. “When that’s done and this world’s a better place, he promised me thing’ll go back to the way they were before for us.”Yolinda saw the hardened ninja turtle’s eye dilate and the corner of his mouth go up in a half smile when X thought about a fond memory between him and Draxum from when he was four or five years old, and asked his genius alchemist guardian (even then he wasn’t allowed to call him ‘dad’) to call him ‘Leo’, after being called that name by an ‘imaginary friend' in his dreams. At the time, Draxum sternly insisted that names are something to be earned, not just given away, and he was to continue being called ‘Experiment'. But shortly thereafter his identification tag was shortened to X, and that statement was followed up with a loving promise that X shared out loud - so lost in his own mind he half forgot Yolinda was still there and he wasn’t alone.“Back when I was a kid,” he reminded himself out loud, “he even promised to give me a proper name; something honorable that fits, for my years of loyal support and hard work furthering his life's goal."* * *
"I Believe" (video)
* * *X looked up when the memory in his mind ended, only to lock eyes with the compassionate face of the cute fox who had been hanging on to his every word.
‘Oops.’
She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and asked in a soft, kind tone of voice: “What do you mean a proper name? What is your name?”X relaxed his worried expression and gave her his signature crooked smile.“Scrubs.”His smile got bigger when she laughed and relaxed a little more.‘Deflection. A ninja’s greatest weapon,’ he gladly joked to himself.She bashfully averted her eyes by looking to the side, and then gently told him: “I like Leo more.” She kept her head turned to the side but looked up at him with her eyes to gauge his reaction to her saying the name he kept telling her not to call him because ‘that’s what my brothers call me, but it’s not my name.’Whatever residual tension was left in his body melted away, and Leo gave Yolinda one of the most genuine smiles he had ever given her.“Me, too,” he agreed sincerely.She playfully swished her white-tipped, silky smooth maroon tail around and broke eye contact to look down this time.“That sounds like a proper name to me,” she said in a somewhat flirty tone.“Yeah, I guess it is,” Leo agreed once more; not having thought about that little truth that had been staring him in the face for years; until now.Next, Yolinda walked over to stand beside him, clasped her hands behind her back, and dropped the flirty attitude when asked in all seriousness: "Do you wanna know why they call me Scraps?"X huffed out a laugh with a grin on his face and replied: "I can take a few guesses," figuring it was because of her fierce, scrappy attitude that he found endearing; because most yokai were too afraid of the clearly hardened street thug (who also happened to be the ninja assassin for Baron Draxum and a long-time Battle Nexus Champ) to talk to or treat him the way she did - without fear.But Yolinda surprised him when she pointed to the ground, beside the dumpster, and with a softness to her voice, shared something from her life."It's because Bully found me there, sitting on the ground, eating scraps that fell out of the dumpster.""Oh."X's smile fell and he gave her his undivided attention while she continued gazing at the empty spot where she sat, all alone, as a five year old cub, and continued."My parents fled the Hidden City, I don't know why. We lived in New York for a few months, until late one night we had to leave our home in a panic. They dropped me off here, probably because they knew it was outside the back door of a yokai restaurant. Then they each gave me a kiss and a hug before they left, telling me to wait here for them, and they would be back. But they never returned. I waited for them all night and over half the day before Bully came out the kitchen door. He brought me inside to warm me up and give me something hot to eat, and I've been living with Tío Hueso ever since."Yolinda paused, before saying in a quiet, sad voice: "I never found out what happened to them."There was a moment of silence where 'Scrubs' and 'Scraps' stood together, gazing at the ground next to the dumpster, with each understanding one another a little better. Then she shared one more heartfelt memory when she told him:"I didn't like my nickname at first, and I wanted them to change it. But Bully told me he picked that one for me because our weaknesses are what make us stronger, if we let them..."(X laughed internally at that, not because he thought she was wrong, but because Draxum had always taught him the exact opposite)She continued with: "...and he wants me to be strong. He gave me my first blade..." X glanced down for a split second when she gestured to the high quality dagger he eyed when he first met her, that was strapped to a sheath on her thigh, "and taught me how to use it, so I can handle myself if the need ever comes up. Tío Hueso didn't want me learning how to fight at first, but Bully insisted I learn because he could tell even back then I was a real feisty one, and they can't always be around to protect me."X huffed out a laugh, in full agreement with Bully, and they silently stood together for a few minutes longer. Until he started tapping his finger on his prosthetic, because he was getting concerned that he hadn't gone back to work yet. Then he nervously cleared his throat, stuffed down all his warm, fuzzy feelings for her, and half-joked in a more ‘factual’ less ‘tender’ tone: “I really gotta get back to work before another one of those servers tries to steal my job.”But when he turned around to go back in, 'Scraps' beat him to the door and stood in front of it, blocking his access to the doorknob. Again.The 'feisty fox' looked up at him with a glint in her pretty dark brown eyes and a mischievous grin on her adorably short muzzle (one that made him want to wrap his arms around her and smother her with kisses). Then she asked him in a flirty tone of voice:“Are you reeeallly not going to ask me out, Leeeo?Leo smiled back, and she got a thrill when he locked eyes with her, stretched his right arm out to put his hand on the door beside her head, leaned his smiling face in closer to hers, and opened his mouth to saaay…. . .“Keep my brothers away from the Hidden City. Draxum wants them dead. Chickie.”She completely breezed over the part about Leo’s owner wanting his brothers dead, and instead tensed every muscle in her body and glared at him; so angry with him she was left speechless.Leo was (once again) having the time of his life, and he heartily laughed out loud when a few high-pitched sounds finally escaped her mouth. Then she sputtered out an angry:“Chickie!? CHICKIE!!! I . . . I . . .”“What’s the matter? Used up all your brain cells for today, little fox?" X smugly joked.That only fueled the flames of her fire, but instead of giving her space so she didn’t lash out by slapping him across the face (he kind of hoped she would), he kept his hand where it was and continued smiling at her; grinning from ear-to-ear when she practically screamed out her next high-pitched: “AAAUGH!!!” before yelling so loudly her voice made his ears ring (but he still didn't pull his smugly grinning face away):“I HOPE YOU GET THAT INFECTION SO I CAN LAUGH AT YOU WHEN YOUR SHELL ROTS OFF!!!”X kept that relaxed, crooked grin on his face and calmly watched the entertainment when she spun around and tried to pull the door open three or four times, but it wouldn’t budge. Then he followed her gaze with his eyes when she stopped to look up at where the problem was coming from: his hand - that he was leaning all his weight on, to keep the door firmly shut.Next, he looked her in the eyes when she spun all the way around to fully face him, and loudly demanded: MOVE!”He pulled his hand back, put them both up by the sides of his head, and backed up two steps to give her room to open the door.But now there was something prominently spinning around in his left hand.Yolinda snapped her angry eyes on Scrubs' hand, where he was skillfully twisting a throwing knife back and forth between his three fingers without taking his eyes off her.Her eyes widened from surprise at the sight of Bully’s blade that she stole in his ninja grip, and she blurted out: “How did you know… when did you…” while rummaging around in her apron pockets.She cast her eyes down to look in the pocket where the blade she took should have been, but it wasn’t there. So she snapped her eyes back up at him and delighted Leo even more by squeaking her voice on the last word when she loudly demanded: “Give that back!”Yolinda tried in vain to snatch the blade out of the highly skilled ninja’s hand, but for obvious reasons his reflexes were much faster than hers. So he easily yanked his hand back, and teased: “Uh-uh-uh, that doesn’t belong to you.”Leo was super amused by her cute, endearing reaction when she squealed again and screamed: “STOP GRINNING AT ME! THIS ISN’T FUNNY! I . . . I . . . I HATE YOU!!! I HOPE YOU DIE!!!”When she was done her loud (adorable) rant, she stared at the blade X tauntingly held up within reach, twirling it around between his fingers and still grinning savagely at her; but she didn’t bother making another grab for it because she already knew how that would turn out.X gave his attention to the blade they were both looking at and casually replied: “Tell me something I don’t already know.” “Ok, how about this…”She crossed her arms and smugly grinned at him again; but despite how hard she tried to hide it, he could easily tell from the way she briskly tapped her foot on the ground and kept her body tense that she was still majorly pissed.(He was so happy with the reaction his playful teasing elicited it sent goosebumps up his skin and made him wish he could freeze this moment in time and put it in his pocket to relive again and again)In her smug little voice with a hint of anger, 'Scraps' threatened: “I really am going to tell Tío Hueso you tried to kiss me.”X seemed completely unbothered.He didn’t take his eyes off the twirling blade.“Ok.”She let out a condescending laugh with a snarky grin for him, fumbled around with her hand before grabbing the doorknob behind her back, and spun around to open the door and march into the restaurant to do just that.As soon as the door closed behind her, X abruptly stopped the twirling blade between his thumb and the palm of his hand, smiled up at Seňor Hueso’s security camera - positively elated over the fact she apparently forgot all about it from her angry tantrum - and used the blade of Bully’s weapon to wave at it before happily whistling and opening the door to go back to work.‘Something tells me her ‘Tío’ doesn’t take kindly to being lied to,’ he thought to himself on the way in; happy over this pleasant turn his otherwise dreadful week day took, and over his instant, effective and effortless teleport that he planned on trying to recreate during his daily ‘Draxum ordered’ mystic training sessions.By the time he went in the kitchen, Yolinda was already gone, having stormed up to Hueso’s office with her usual fiery passion; and Leo gave Bully a playful salute with the blade of his throwing knife when the pink, muscular, six-armed yokai looked up from his work to smile at him.Scrubs kept right on whistling his merry tune as Bully commented: “She was in a mood, kept muttering something about my homemade dressing being crud.” He continued on with his work and asked: “Get burned much by the fiery inferno you set ablaze in the back alley?”“Of course,” X replied pleasantly, still with his big grin plastered across his face. He got to his station and the water made a *plop* when he tossed Bully’s blade in the sink to wash it. Then, as he put on his waterproof splash apron to get back to work, he joked to the ex-pirate:“I told you, that’s the best part!”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Shortly before Scrubs' shift was over for the night, the dining room was quiet, and there was only him and Bully left in the kitchen. So since everyone else was gone, he wasn't wearing his blue shirt in the warm room while he finished his work, because there was no need to hide his injuries away.Scrubs was almost done drying the last of the dishes and Bully was cleaning up his workstation when Hueso walked in through the swinging 'in' door with a bag that had a note attached to it, and laid it on the counter beside his hard-working dishwasher.The slider kept on with his work, and looked at it while asking: "What's this?""It came in with our Hidden City order," came Hueso's reply. He and Bully shared a knowing glance as X laid down the cloth and pizza tray he was drying, to reach out to the bag and rip the tag off.'Now we're even' was all that was written there.Incidentally, Bully had overheard Scrubs ask Scraps if humans have an equivalent to chorus fruit during one of their many conversations (the answer was no) so he added it to their Hidden City food order. And Hueso had been trying to figure out the best way to give it to Scrubs as a gift, without breaking the 'not taking something for nothing' rule on the streets. He knew ruffians often got around that rule by doing favors for one another that was to be paid back with something of equal value, and figured Scrubs no doubt had some accomplices in the Hidden City who knew his whereabouts and owed him a favor, so he decided to give this a try.At first, Hueso and Bully exchanged a brief grin when Scrubs looked in the bag and a big smile spread across his face. But then their smiles fell, when the excited mercenary of Baron Draxum happily blurted out the unexpected phrase:"Alright! Someone's trying to poison me again!"Hueso raised one eyebrow at that curious response, as Scrubs picked up one of the three chorus fruits that were inside the bag to squeeze it, and then held it up to his ear so he could hear the heavenly: "ahhhh," sound it made; which was the perfect pitch, indicating this one was ripe for the eating."Poison you?" The bone yokai asked. Then Bully huffed out a laugh, and smiled at Scrubs when he asked in his rough-sounding voice: "Again?"X felt comfortable enough around Hueso now to know it was perfectly fine to eat in front of his Draxum-sactioned boss, and peeled the chorus fruit from the top down, (somewhat like an orange) while replying dismissively like it was nothing at all: "Yeah, Draxum made my body immune to poison, drugs, toxins, venom, all that stuff. But that doesn't stop some of those thugs who got on his bad side from trying it on me to get me out of the picture, even though it never works."When X finished pulling down the peel, it revealed wedges similar to the inside of a grapefruit, that each had a white skin on the outside, were pink on the inside, and tasted absolutely nothing like citrus fruit. He peeled off a piece to stuff it in his mouth with a satisfied grin on his face, let out a contented "Mmmm," and said: "They always put it in the best stuff."Bully laughed again while slowly shaking his head with a fond smile on his face for the mistreated slave, before putting it down to get back to his work; and Hueso smiled, simply said: "I'm glad you like it," and turn to leave. But that was when a very grumpy Scraps came into the kitchen and stomp her way to the back door, where the mop bucket was sitting on the floor.When Yolinda picked up the mop bucket, X pulled off another wedge, and casually commented: "That's not your job," before stuffing the delicious tasting fruit into his mouth."I know but someone," she glared at Hueso, "put me on scrub duty for a month," Scraps replied in a very annoyed tone of voice.Hueso pointed at her and sternly replied: "That is correct, mija, and if I catch you lying to me again your new permanent job will be disposing of the scraps at the end of every day, in addition to an extended scrub duty!"X grinned from ear to ear when Yolinda let out one of her cute high-pitched squeals, and gestured vividly with her hands while rapidly firing off something in Spanish.Señor Hueso gesture just as vividly and sounded just as angry when he likewise replied in Spanish; and Scrubs picked up what was left of his chorus fruit - peel and all - brought it over to Bully's workstation, leaned against the counter on his elbow, and watched the amusement while asking Bully: "Do you understand Spanish?""Ha! I barely understand me own language with the way some of those prissy yokai from the right side of town use it," Bully replied as his way of saying 'no'.X nodded his head once in acknowledgment, and tore off another piece of 'poisoned' chorus fruit to casually eat it; while the cute, feisty fox argued with her Tío Hueso - not needing to understand a single word to get loads of enjoyment out of this entertainment.X picked up the last piece of fruit, happily commented: "This day just keeps getting better and better!" and watched with rapt attention while eating it, as Hueso seemed to get in the last word, and with a firm nod of his head walked away and briskly left the kitchen.But then his smile fell when Yolinda let out a frustrated huff, picked up the mop bucket, and brought it over to his station to fill it up."Hey! Don't put that dirty bucket in there, I already scrubbed out the sinks for the night!" he complained. He gestured to the back storage room door where the dreaded yellow portal was located, and angrily snapped: "Fill it up in the storage room sink, like everyone else!"Yolinda give him a snarky grin in return and continued on her way toward his workstation. That was until Bully spoke up and sternly told her: "Don't do anything dumb again by causing more trouble for Scrubs then he already got! Go fill it up in the back sink, like he said!""Stop calling me dumb!" Yolinda snapped in anger, squeaking her voice on the last word.In reply, Bully slapped down the cloth he was using to wipe off his counter, came out from behind his workstation, and sternly replied with anger: "I'll stop calling you dumb when you stop acting dumb, and drop the attitude! You forgot all about that security camera in the back alley because you let that fiery temper get the best of you again, and worst of all you lied to Hueso! If you don't learn to get that temper of yours under control, one of these days you're gonna really hurt yourself, or someone you care about!" Then he quieted his voice and hit her with the stern, powerful words: "You didn't only break your trust with him when you did that, you broke your trust with me, and it's going to take a good long time for you to build that back up again."Yolinda's entire countenance fell, she hung her head in shame, and quietly replied with: "You're right, Tío Jack, I'm sorry," before turning around to humbly fill up her bucket in the storage room sink.X's smile fell at the sight. "I better finish up," he told Bully, while grabbing the rind and going back to his work station. He knew all too well how it felt to be humbled by a stern rebuke, so he had a good idea of how Yolinda was feeling right about now, and there was nothing funny about that.The hard-working slider laid the leftover peel in the bag with the other two chorus fruits - because the garbage had already been emptied for the night - and washed his hands at the sink, so he could get to work putting away the last of the clean dishes; while Bully put away the pots and pans Scrubs had cleaned (because it was his workstation after all; something X was grateful Bully respected, even though it meant more work for him). Then Yolinda came out of the back room with the half-full mop bucket in one hand, and a container of disposable, food-grade disinfectant wipes in the other.When she laid down the bucket and began disinfecting the counter below the cupboard where the clean plates belonged, X picked up a pile of plates to go put them away beside her.They worked side by side in silence for a moment, until - without looking at her and carrying on with his work - X gently offered the advice: "I was always taught discipline makes us better." He put away a plate, intentionally going slowly and doing one at a time, while saying: "It lets us see our weaknesses to strengthen us where we need it, and helps us keep our head on our shoulders out there in the world."Yolinda glance at one of the burn marks on Leo's shell; knowing that Draxum put them there as his form of a punishment and feeling a little ashamed of herself for getting so fired up over a 'scrub duty' discipline. Then Leo really nailed his point in, when he looked at her to give her a playful wink, and added: "And you've got the added bonus of being disciplined by your tío, who does it out of love."He broke eye contact after he said that and nervously cleared his throat, wondering if he should have shared so much. Then Yolinda gestured to him with her head while looking down at his injured shell, and asked: "You call that discipline?"Leo put away another plate, and once again without looking at her, calmly replied: "It's not usually like that, and yes." He added another clean plate to the pile in the cupboard, and continued his work while telling her: "Everything Draxum does will heal, and it might have been over the top," the plates clinked together as he laid another one on top of the pile, "but it taught me a valuable lesson." Then he put away the last plate while adding: "And the world can be far less forgiving," before looking down on his left prosthetic leg.The 'spicy' Yolinda followed his gaze, and pointedly asked the question: "How did that happen?" She heard a disgruntled grunt coming from Bully's workstation, but the brute yokai didn't interrupt their conversation as Leo walked back to his workstation to grab a pile of bowls, while calmly replying: "I got cocky and overconfident in a fight, and let my guard down." He laid the pile of bowls down on the counter to the left of where he just put the plates away, opened up the cupboard above it, and put them away while continuing."It was a lesson I never forgot, but it was also one I almost never walked away from." Then he gave her a cocky grin, and cheekily said: "Pun intended, and I nailed it."She smiled and even laughed a little at his well-timed joke, that did a good job of easing her tension at the seriousness of their discussion. Then he told her a light-hearted: "Welp, that's it for me tonight! Catch ya later. Scraps." And with that, he walked over to the wall pegs, put on his blue shirt and cloak, grabbed his satchel, and then got his remaining two delicious chorus fruits. Then, after a wave of his right hand for Bully and a playful wink goodbye for Yolinda, he unsheathed his odachi and left through the door to the alley outside - expecting an ambush to be awaiting him from whatever enemy of his or Draxum’s that found out about his new job, and sent him 'poison' fruit as a gift.But, of course, no one was there.(And was it wrong that a small part of the trained killer was a little sad that his brothers weren't there to greet him?)* * *~Some Time Later~X lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. It was nighttime, not long after work, and he had just finished a shorter than usual training session with his mystic odachi and was now laying on the bed, wearing only his shorts, cape, and ninja gear; resting his body and mentally preparing himself for the task ahead.Because tonight was the night.It was time to get his katanas back, like Draxum ordered. Time to face the very real possibility of coming face-to-face with his ‘doting auntie,’ Big Mama, in the process.Although it was still a struggle for him, X’s portals were opening fairly regularly now, and more often than not they were the right size. And his end portals were spitting him out in the general vicinity he was aiming for; such as the roof of a building he wanted to portal inside of instead of the roof of a building in a different city, and an alley two blocks away from his destination rather than the middle of Death Valley, like it did to him once (it was a good thing he always left his portals open for just such an occasion).His mystic vision was completely under control now because it was easy to practice and didn't require the use of his mystic-energy channeling odachi; but unfortunately his quick, accurate teleporting abilities were hit and miss as to whether they would work at all or not. Definitely something worth working on.The biggest problem he had, though, was that when his emotions were especially raw - especially when he was stressed - his powers didn’t want to work for him at all beyond a few blue sparks flashing along the blade of his sword. That was something he most definitely had to learn how to get under control - even moreso considering the new, conflicting, and sometimes confusing emotions he had in his head over the many twists and turns his steady, predictable life had been taking, beginning with the first day he discovered his brothers were very definitely still alive.After his hour long ninpo training, X ate the rest of Mikey’s pizza puffs and finished his meal with another chorus fruit, because he hadn’t gone shopping yet and didn’t have anything else to eat - beside the disgusting sugary sludge humans had the nerve to call ‘food.’(He was really beginning to understand why Draxum kept calling human food poison)By ‘shopping’ he meant using his ninja stealth to break into a store after hours to get what he needed, like food and a blanket. But since he had human money there was no need to resort to the act of theft. Even though Draxum taught him from a young age that theft against humans wasn't 'theft', and that stealing was an acceptable and sometimes necessary task to accomplish one’s goal, the act of taking what didn’t belong to him always seemed to leave a bad taste in the Hamato descendant's mouth, for some reason he couldn't explain.If his assignment tonight went the way he was hoping, he would simply portal into Big Mama’s vault, check for booby traps, grab his katanas, and leave through the portal he came in from. That would give him plenty of time to go 'after-hours shopping' afterward.Easy, peasy, lemonade squeezy ('No, wait, that's not right. What's lemonade made out of again? lemonas? No, that doesn't sound right, either. Yolinda would know, I heard it from her. STOP GETTING DISTRACTED!!! Ugh, even when she's not here she's in my head!')Considering nothing had ever been ‘easy peasy’ for the mistreated ninja slave who always seemed to have to learn his lessons 'the hard way', he had his doubts that this night would be any different.X moved his eyes to look from the ceiling to Mikey’s mural, and then turned his head to gaze at the shiny odachi on his nightstand. He took a deep breath, and was planning on hyping himself up by saying ‘it’s go time’ on the exhale, but when his lips parted to speak, before he got a sound out he was interrupted by a voice in his head.“Leo?”Donnie.A sickening dread filled up the pit of his stomach. His three brothers had shown up at the restaurant for the tapes hours ago; he knew it because Hueso came in the kitchen to confirm he really wanted to go through with this, and to tell him they were asking to see him.He didn’t go out, of course, but that annoying . . . fox did, only to see his brother ‘Ralph’ and then bug him about it on and off until he found a way to shut her cute muzzle with a well-timed 'chickie' joke.('How'd she get in my head again!? FOOOCCCUSS!!!')They picked up the tapes and left with time to get a good picture of his life via the overall brutal, gory, murderous way Draxum insisted he perform in the ring - to appease Big Mama for the enjoyment of the blood-thirsty, paying (and betting) crowds, as part of their deal.(With none of them knowing Hueso strategically left out the tape of his traumatic fight against the giant razor-fanged terrorworm, when he lost his leg, to show respect for the newest member of his misfit ruffian family)They also had ample time left over to discuss it as a family.“Leo!”Donnie sounded firmer this time.X lay back on his bed instead of getting up. Not because he was going to reply, but to wait Donnie out so he didn’t have his brother’s distracting voice calling out to him when he needed concentration to portal in and get his swords back.“I know you can hear me.”X huffed out through his mouth in frustration. He didn’t understand why Donnie couldn’t just leave him alone. Why did he need to tell him to his face that they wanted nothing to do with him because of who he was!?“Leo. Leo. Leo.". . ."Leo answer me!”. . ."Leeeeeeoooooo! LEO!". . ."I learned from the best, Leo, we've got Mikey as a little brother, don't expect me to lay off anytime soon.". . ."🎶Lee-ee-o, oh oh Leee ee-ee-o🎵"“Uuughhh!” X slapped his hands on his face and dragged them down in annoyance. Then he tried something he had never done before. Instead of closing his eyes to sleep here and go to the ‘dream dimension,’ he closed them, and then directed his next thought at Donnie.“Go. Away.”“I’m not going anywhere until you come talk to me.”Message received.“Later, I’m busy.” ‘Later’ being an indefinitely long time, of course (aka 'never').“No you’re not, you’re laying down somewhere, otherwise you couldn’t do this.”“How do you know that?”“Come here and I’ll tell you.”“Yeah, let me get right on that.”“I’m not leaving until you come talk to me face-to-face.”“Don’t you have some sappy brotherly bonding thing to do or something?”“Yes, with you.”“Leave me alone.”“Not until you hear me out.””Seriously I gotta go now, I'll reach out to you when I'm done.”"Yeah, right 'when you're done'. I'm not buying that, come talk to me now.”“No.”“Alright, I have all night and apparently yooou don't. I started on a new piece of tech, do you want to hear about it?”. . .“I’ll take that as a yes.”. . .“I’m working on the design for a new hover technology. I got my inspiration from…”X groaned and dragged his hands down his face again when Donnie went off on a boring monologue that was very similar to the 'speech mode' Draxum sometimes droned on in while working on one of his experiments. He tried to ride it out, but when - forty minutes and five subjects later - the genius softshell not only showed no signs of slowing down anytime soon, but also seemed to be enjoying his captive audience, X finally yelled to him in his mind:“Alright! Stop! My ears are bleeding! I’m coming!”Donnie’s voice abruptly cut out and X could practically sense the smug grin he knew was on his brother's face. Then he relaxed his breathing to enter the telepathic dream realm.As soon as he entered, the first thing he did was avert his gaze from his brother, put one hand on his hip, and roll his other hand around in the air, saying: “Come on, come on, get it over with.”“We watched the tapes.”“Yelp.”X crossed his arms and kept his angry face pointed away from Donnie.“Do you know what we saw?”“A cold-hearted murderer, thanks for the talk don’t let the dream door hit you on the way out.”“A remorseful person who hated every moment.”X snapped his head up to stare at Donnie in disbelief, and the softshell continued talking in his calm, factual tone of voice.“You fell to your knees and vomited after every fight for the first three and a half weeks..." 'It would've been longer if Draxum didn't order me to stop,' the 'Nexus Champ' thought. "...you shut your eyes the instant any attack landed for the first eight, you never once looked at you’re opponent’s face or at the crowds, even when the fight was over and they were cheering for you, you never smiled or waved or celebrated your ‘victories’ at any point, all you ever did at the end was wipe off your blades and leave the second you could; and eventually you hid behind masks, capes, and disguises. That leaves me with one question we can’t figure out. If you hated it so much, why did you keep doing it?”“Because I didn’t have a choice, brainiach!” X snapped in a harsher, more bitter tone than even he expected.“We do have a choice to fight for what's right as soon as we're strong enough to do that.”“Not people like me!”“What do you mean ‘people like me’?” Donnie asked with air quotes.There was no way X was revealing his position in yokai society and in his very home as Draxum’s slave, so instead he lashed out with anger and yelled:“You don’t know what it’s like in the Hidden City! You do what you have to, to survive! To be the one giving the blows instead of taking them! You don’t know anything about me or my life and you come here and tell me how to live it! Tell me all I had to do was STOP!? Like it was that EASY! Acting like I never once TRIED! Like it’s the simplest thing in the world all because YOOOU got to live that CUSHY LIFE while I was…”X slammed his mouth shut and literally bit down on his tongue to stop himself from saying ‘left behind to rot by that deadbeat you call dad.’ That was a whole can of worms he did not want to open right now, and his jaw was so tight from anger that he had to watch himself so he didn’t bite his tongue too hard while glaring straight at Donnie, daring him to try and say something so stupid again.“You’re right, I don’t know,” Donnie frankly admitted. “But I want to learn more. I have questions.”Donnie’s calm tone and reassuring body language and facial expression helped X to calm down, and he blurted out a grumpy: “Alright. I can do questions. But there has to be rules.”Donnie raised his big eyebrow and asked: “Like?”For a second X wondered if Donnie's cameras worked in here, so he started with: “Like no recording with those hidden cameras of yours. Or any microphones you got!" “I can’t record, my tech doesn’t work in here.” ‘Good,’ X thought, before saying: “I’ll answer your questions but in return you leave me alone for twenty four hours. I got stuff to do.”“Don’t you have questions for me?”‘Yeah, hundreds. Starting with ‘how’s Mikey?’ 'Does that deadbeat dad of yours even know you're risking your lives running around on the streets of New York with your hero vigilante work?’ and 'Does he know I'm still alive and does he even care?''“No.”“Agreed. Anything else.”“Yeah, I can pass whatever question I want, no asking the same question twice, that includes rewording it so it seems different wiseguy, and I can stop and leave whenever I want.”“Deal.”X nodded his head up once to indicate he was ready for Donnie to start, and he sounded factual with his questions, like he was a teacher in the classroom reading out questions for a test (not that the privately tutored slave had any personal experience with learning in a classroom environment).“What happened to your shell?”“I fell in a lava pit.”“You have to be honest with your answers.”“That’s not part of the deal.”“It is now.”“Only Big Mama can change deals after they've been made.”“There’s no point in doing this if you’re going to lie.”“Fine. I’ll tell the truth or pass.”“Are you telling me the truth now?”“Yes.”Donnie looked at him suspiciously with one of his big eyebrows raised. “Alriiight,” he said slowly, before asking: “What happened to your shell?”“You can’t ask the same question twice.”“That doesn’t count, you lied.”“I lied before we added the deal about no lying, so that doesn't count,” Leo replied with a cheeky grin.“Fine. Will you let me look at your carapace?”“No.”“Is it getting better, worse, or staying the same?”“What’s with you and the shell questions?”“Answer or pass.”“Better.”“Care to elaborate?”X leaned ahead with a smug grin and said: “Pass.”“Fine. Will you at least tell me if it’s infected or not?”“I don’t know, what do I have to look out for?”“You don’t know!? You’re a turtle! you should know these things!” Donnie blurted out.“Hey, I know a lot about shell care and maintenance but I never had a reason to learn anything about infections because Draxum assured me it was practically impossible!” X snapped.“Yeah, practically, did he care to elaborate?”“No,” X grumped out as his response. He squirmed a little and repositioned his crossed arms like this subject made him feel uncomfortable. (Which it did! Donnie finished watching those gory tapes of his murderous fights in the Battle Nexus to come here and start out asking shell questions!? What was with this guy!?)“In peak condition infections are impossible for our mutated bodies,” Donnie explained, “but not if our system is compromised by something else. In Mikey’s case, he cracked his shell the day before he caught the rat flu, and in your case, you have hairline cracks that are still healing on top of numerous burns on your shell, so I would say you are definitely at risk.”“Hmm,” X hummed with a nod. He gave a passing thought to asking about this ‘rat flu’ Donnie mentioned once before, but pushed it aside to give consideration to something else.“Ok, so what do I look out for…” He smirked at Donnie, “professor?”“I’m so glad you asked.”X wished he could smack that overly smug grin off Donnie’s face and go to the Mystic Library to find a book on the subject instead, but considering it was smack dab in the center of the Hidden City…He hated studying, anyway.“The first obvious sign of a shell infection are tiny white specks,” Donnie said in a tone that sounded almost as prideful as the look on his face. "Then you need to check for soft spots in the affected area, to ensure the infection isn't deep.”“By check for soft spots you mean…”“Push in really hard. Any give whatsoever means the infection is bad because it went through more than one layer of scutes.”“Sound like fun,” X said sarcastically, thinking about how painful that would be. His aching shell started throbbing at the thought.“Anything else?”“Yeah, shell rot spreads fast. In only a few days it can infect healthy tissues, spread across your carapace within a week, and in just over two weeks it can spread across your plastron - unless it reaches the underlying bone layer first. That section of your shell is porous, so if it's there, the infection spreads much faster. It absolutely needs to be inspected regularly and treated at the earliest signs possible or you run the risk of death.”“I don’t suppose you’re a doctor, too, Professor Donnie?”“That’s Professor Donatello and I am not.”Donnie was surprised when X snorted out a laugh and commented: “Donatello! No wonder you shortened it with a name like that.”Donnie leaned his smug face in closer and said: “Ok, Leonardo.” He straightened up and added as an afterthought: "Hmm, Nardo has a nice ring to it."X’s face and hands dropped.“Leonardo are you kidding me!? Is that one of those dumb human names or something?”Donnie raised his finger, took a deep breath through his mouth, and…“Don’t answer that. If I want to hear someone drone on in ‘speech mode’ again I’ll go ask Draxum about his experiments.”Donnie lowered his hand and closed his mouth.“Speaking of Draxum…”“Shell rot?”“Right.”“Anything I can do to lower my chances of getting it?”“Keep it clean and dry, stay well hydrated, and make sure to keepy your body warm.” ‘He had to say warm.’ X grumbled to himself. “We may be warm blooded thanks to our human dna, but we are still turtles. Our internal systems slow down in preparation for brumation if we’re cold for too long. That includes the immune system, and it can take hours for it to get back up to peak performance after even thirty minutes of cold exposure.”“I’ll stay out of the walk in fridge at work,” X thought out loud, partly to deflect from the fact that his sleeping conditions were less than ideal.“Good idea. I’d offer you one of our extra heat lamps, we use them every night around this time of year, but I imagine it’s warm all year long living underground.”X lowered his eyes to stare blankly at Donnie’s feet, and softly replied: “Yeah, it’s warm all year long in the Hidden City,” not wanting to reveal the embarrassing fact that he was sent away and temporarily living in a (cold) above ground New York abandoned hospital, instead.“So, what do I do if it gets infected?”“You come to me for help before it gets to that point so I can inspect it and treat it properly so it doesn’t get infected in the first place.”X barked out an abrupt: “Pass!”Donnie looked unamused, and pointedly asked: "I suppose loosing your life is a better option?”X huffed out through his mouth in frustration, clearly very irritated by this whole situation. Donnie saw his chance and bluntly said:“Let me look at your shell.”“Fine,” Leo agreed without hesitation but with a whole lot of annoyance. Then he firmly pointed a finger at his brother and demanded: “Wipe that cocky grin off your face, don’t freak out, don't touch my shell, and don’t ask any dumb questions you don’t need the answers to.”“Agreed,” Donnie abruptly replied, wanting to hurry up and do this before Leo changed his mind.X pulled his cape off, wondering if doing that in here would affect his body in the overly cool room out there as Donnie walked around behind his back, where he reached up to peel off the bandage, starting at the top left of Leo's shell. And despite every ninja nerve in his body yelling at him to not let Donnie take it off, X stood tense and allowed his brother to do that until it was hanging off from the bottom strip of adhesive.“Holy truffle mac and cheese.”“I don’t know what any of that means, but if it’s your way of freaking out, don’t.”Donnie bit back the words he wanted to say (‘How did that happen!?) and forced himself to shut his mouth the entire time he gave Leo’s shell injuries a good look over. Eventually, when he was finally done, out came a tense-sounding: “You did an exceptional job of scraping off the dead scutes. How did you reach the middle?”X was too grumpy over this combined with the mounting tension of having to go to Big Mama’s as soon as they were done, so he didn’t bother saying anything at all. Donnie took that to mean it was his brother’s way of saying 'pass', and leaned in close to get a really good look at the scabbed-over open wound in the center of his shell.For safe measure, without warning, Donnie raised his right hand and quickly pushed his thumb in on Leo’s injury as hard as he could.“Aaah! What was that for!?”X spun around, glared at Donnie, and yelled: “You better have seen a white spot!” Not that he wanted it to be infected, but really meaning ‘there better have been a good reason for doing that!’Sweat beaded on Donnie’s head and he let out a slow, nervous: “Yeeees.” Leo saw right through it. Everyone saw through Donnie’s lies.“So you’re telling me it’s infected?”Donnie’s nervous expression fell and he replied: “No, not yet. Keep up what you’re doing and remember, it has to stay clean and dry, change the bandages every day, and stay warm and hydrated, do that and you should notice significant improvements within a couple of weeks.” “Good to know.”X craned his neck to see his back and grabbed the bandages to replace it himself. Donnie motioned to help and said: “Here let me…” Leo snapped his head forward and glared at his brother with such ferocity Donnie backed away two steps. “Or not.”After he was done and put his cape back on, Donnie sighed, decided it was worth a try to ask something again, and inquired: “Will you let me know what happened?”Leo stared straight into his eyes and firmly said: “Pass.”That got the scientific genius mind of Donatello back in ‘data collection’ mode and he went back to the factual-sounding questions he started with.“Where have you been all this time?”X got into ‘blunt, short answers’ mode.“Underground.”“With Draxum.”“Yeah.”“In the ‘Hidden City’ you won’t talk about?”“In the outskirts. You saw the place.”“What’s the Hidden City?”“Pass.”(The last thing X needed right now was a group of overexcited turtle mutants trying to find ways to go ‘sight seeing’ in the Hidden City where Baron Draxum had informants scattered throughout, so less was better)“Did Draxum raise you?”“Yeah.”“Himself?”“Practically.”“Explaaain,” Donnie said in a tone that reminded Leo of when he was a wide-eyed, curious, inquisitive youngster following Draxum around, bombarding the yokai who placed a high value on learning and knowledge with one question after another.X mimicked Donnie’s tone and inflection when he replied: “Paaass.”Donnie went on.“Is he good to you?”“Yeah,” X replied with a dismissive shrug of one shoulder, as if the answer was obvious."In what way?"“He trained me, taught me practically everything I know, gave me everything I could ever need, and everything I get from him is the best quality.”Donnie raised one eyebrow and bluntly replied: “Training, teaching, and providing for your basic needs doesn’t mean he’s good to you.”“That’s not a question.”“Ok, how about this: how does he treat you?”“For someone who can make such genius tech you’re sure dumb sometimes.”“Thank you and pardon moi?”“You reworded your 'is he good to you' question, that’s against the rules. Or did you think I wouldn’t notice?”“Sigh. Fine. What is he like as a person?”“He’s a genius, focused, passionate, strict, honest, diligent, hard working, tough. He wants life to be better for everyone and works hard to make that happen.”“Define everyone.”“Humans, yokai, mutants like us, everyone.”"How?""Pass."“Did he give you that black eye?”“What’s with you griping over things that don’t matter?” X leaned in and half yelled when he firmly said: “It’s a black eye! Get over it!” then straightened up and said calmly: “You can hardly even see it anymore.”“Answer or pass,” was Donnie’s only firm reply.X smirked at him, crossed his arms again, and said a half-amused, half-sarcastic:“I got it doing that stupid human thing called skydiving.”“You broke a rule this time!” Donnie accused. X was unbothered, his crooked grin spread across his face, and he smoothly replied:“Now we’re even.”Donnie gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. He was coming to understand that ‘debating’ with Leo was going to be very different than debating with their other two brothers, who often didn’t notice or overlooked his faux pas.“Alllright,” he forced out, before relaxing his tense muscles and surprising the slider with the sincere question: “Are you ok?”X dropped his crooked grin and paused at that one; taking time to consider the scope of the question Donnie asked.The short answer was ‘no,’ he was not ‘ok’. He wasn’t ok by any stretch of the imagination. He was cruelly tortured, leaving him with numerous injuries on his shell, a badly burned carapace, and an even more badly burned memory; kicked out of his home with nowhere to go; banished from the warm Hidden City to the coldness of the above ground New York in autumn with no food or warm clothes; left to fend for himself with a serious injury that could become infected; had a falling out with his new found family, who were self-proclaimed ‘heroes’ and discovered the gruesome truth of who he really was; routinely bested by that annoying fox he loved to pester and couldn’t get out of his head; non-verbally ordered to train his guts out with the mystic odachi in between working almost ten hours a day at Hueso’s restaurant and slinking around on the cold rooftops and alleys of New York to stay out of sight of the humans; and the list went on.It was very tempting to lie. X tried to think of ways he could get around the ‘no lying’ rule - ways to be so vague with his answer it could be taken a number of different ways - and even ways to deceive himself into believing ‘yes’ was an honest reply. But in the end, like what seemed to be happening to him more and more lately, his brain went on autopilot.He didn’t know why he did it - a cry for attention?A plea for help, more like it.His mouth opened, his lips moved independent of his thoughts screaming at him: ‘Pass pass PASS!’ and out came the slow, bland, single-syllable word:“Nooo.”Donnie’s eyes widened from both the blunt honesty of Leo’s response and the verbal confirmation that his long lost brother was very much not ok.Leo was apparently equally surprised from his own answer as well, because as soon as the word came out of his mouth his cheeks blushed bright red from embarrassment and he turned away, opting to gaze at the black floor instead of his brother's face.Donnie’s mind reeled with question after question, but instead of asking a single one, his mind went on autopilot and he made the equally bland but impactful statement:“We have room for you if you want to stay for a night, a week, a month.” He mumbled: “The rest of your life,” and then gave a dismissive shrug and finished with: “Whatever,” to make it appear as though his offer wasn’t a big deal and it didn’t matter whether Leo said ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ (It was a big deal he hoped his brother would readily accept, give up that horrendous life he was apparently forced into in the Hidden City, and become a hero by fighting for good, like them)X didn’t reply with either, instead he gave a hum in acknowledgement which could have been taken any which way (Donnie’s fast-processing genius brain was calculating the percentages of each possible meaning as they spoke) and Leo kept his eyes glued to the floor when he timidly asked: “H… How’s Mikey?” “Worried,” Donnie bluntly replied. “About you.” ‘You should come home with us,’ he thought but didn’t offer a second time.X huffed out a single laugh, and replied: “He would.” “We’re all worried about you, Leo.” X’s shoulders dropped, his head drooped a little, and he kept his eyes firmly planted on the telepathic dream dimension floor without in any other way acknowledging Donnie’s heartfelt comment.Donnie pushed his luck and continued.“We know you didn’t do those things in the Battle Nexus of your own prerogative, someone made you do it. That someone is Draxum, isn’t it?”X shifted his weight uncomfortably. He didn’t want to answer. He wouldn't break the ‘no lying’ rule he agreed to by saying ‘no’ - like Draxum, (and unlike Big Mama) his word was his oath. He didn’t want to outright acknowledge the truthfulness of that statement by saying ‘yes,’ and he likewise didn’t want to indirectly reply with a yes by using the option to pass. He didn’t want to say anything, and a part of him wished he could reverse time in here and take off before Donnie had a chance to formulate those words and put him in this uncomfortable position in the first place. But an even bigger part of him wanted - no, longed - to stay. To be here with his brother, as though that was where he belonged.Something felt right about this. Something always felt right about being with his brothers; and as much as he tried to fool himself, something also felt ‘right’ about being with that human, April, as though she really was his sister. Something - perhaps a long ago forgotten part of his mind that was pushed away because it was viewed as 'weak' and 'pathetic' by those around him - wanted to resurface; was pushing him to open up and pour out his heart to this brother of his who he barely knew but yet somehow felt connected to. Not a ‘telepathic experiment’ connection, but the same kind of internal connection he felt with all his siblings; like some unseen force - their awakening ninpo perhaps? - was pushing them together.That same part of his mind was begging him to take Donnie up on his offer of a home. To hide away in the abandoned subway tunnels and stay hidden away when Draxum called him back. He even let his mind consider for a moment how the dynamics would work living in close proximity with the deadbeat ‘dad’ who abandoned him, and what lengths he would have to go through to stealthily avoid seeing or conversing with him when they lived in the same home.His portals would be a good help for that.“I’m . . .”‘taking you up on your offer. Moving in with you. Telling you everything you want to know...'. . .'Never betraying Draxum.'“Done. I’ve got something important I need to take care of.”Donnie’s face fell. For a moment, he was hopeful Leo would take him up on his offer to move in with them.“Uhhh, yeah,” he said, just as flatly as Leo. “But, uh . . . we don’t hate you, Leo. But Raph has some valid questions before he's ready to welcome you with open arms."X hummed and nodded his head again without once taking his eyes off the floor. “Yeah, I can do questions," he agreed. "But not tonight." Then he added: "See you in twenty four hours,” as his ‘farewell,’ which Donnie correctly took to mean: ‘Please reach out to me in twenty four hours.’ He gave his red-eared slider brother a soft smile and gently agreed: “See you in twenty four hours, bro.”Without adding a 'catch ya later, bro' in return (like Donnie was expecting), Leo was gone, under the deal that he was not to be seen or heard from again for another full day.But as the ninja mercenary already knew, deals don't always go as planned. Especially when Big Mama was involved.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
After his conversation with Donnie, X needed to clear his head; so took some extra time practicing his kenjutsu moves and his portals before carrying on with the real work. Then he clipped his fox mask on his right hip, underneath the cloak he was wearing, took a deep breath to calm his pounding heart and racing mind, and whispered to himself: "Its go time," before opening a portal in front of his face.One he hoped would take him to Big Mama's office vault.But - as expected - no such thing happened, and it actually took him two tries just to portal inside Big Mama’s hotel.The first attempt landed him on the roof of the Grand Nexus. When he got there he threw his head back and loudly groaned: “Why’s it always gotta be the roof!?" He tried again and his second portal ‘conveniently’ opened in the air, up by the ceiling in a corridor on one of the yokai floors......directly above Gus, Big Mama’s oversized guard dog yokai.X landed right on top of Gus when he fell out, unceremoniously taking the guard dog to the floor along with him, and he was much quicker in righting himself and getting on his feet than the slow-witted canine.While Gus was getting himself off the floor, X rested his odachi over his shoulder on the lip of his carapace and greeted his ‘friend’ with his crooked smile and a pleasant: “Hey Pup, it’s always good to bump into you.”Gus scratched his head in confusion for a second, thinking over X’s words. Then his face lit up when he got that little joke and he busted out a laugh (splattering drool the skilled ninja evaded) and said: “Ohh I get it! Bump into you because you bumped into me when you fell out of the ceiling! Ha! That’s a good one, X!”“What’s with the formalities, Pup? Am I not your Bud anymore?” the slider asked with a little bit of tension, wondering what Big Mama might have told him, and referring to his nickname ‘Bud’ that Gus always called him.Just like he always called Gus the nickname ‘Pup’; not only because Gus was a pretty good fellow (as long as you didn't get on his bad side), but also because he took a personal interest in the big lug as soon as he was old enough to comprehend the advantages of having close ‘friends’ who were of the big, strong, muscular dumb-dumb variety - who were the easiest to manipulate and the most beneficial to have around, when his back was up against the wall and he needed a little extra help putting some difficult-to-deal-with yokai back in their place.(Especially when this particular set of muscles was very closely connected to Big Mama - the yokai even the most hardened criminal didn't want to be on bad terms with)Gus wagged his tail and excitedly replied: “Oh yeah yeah, you’re my Bud, but Big Mama’s been missing you! She told me to bring you to her office right away if I see you, so let’s go!”Gus gestured to go to the elevator, naively expecting his ‘buddy’ to follow behind - like X was going to do something as foolish as announcing his ‘visit’ by waking right in through Big Mama’s office door.No thank you. The last time he did that it did not turn out well for him (and he had the leftover hairline cracks in his shell to prove it).Gus stopped and turned around to face the turtle fighter when X casually said: “Hang on, Pup, I’m trying to surprise auntie with my rad new mystic powers. Watch.”He opened a portal in the air, stuck his free left hand out under it, and was relieved when a big, juicy dog bone fell out into his open palm, just like he was nervously hoping had planned.Gus wagged his tail and drooled a little. “Is that for me?” he asked eagerly. “You bet, buddy! But you gotta do me a favor and don’t tell Big Mama you saw me. I’m practicing for the big surprise when I portal into her office to show off my rad new skills right before my next big Nexus fight!”Gus innocently nodded his head vigorously with his eyes stuck on the bone, and hastily agreed: “Yeahyeahyeah! Big Mama loves mystic fights! They make her so happy! And she keeps saying how much she misses watching your fights!”“Yeah, I bet she does,” X muttered under his breath, knowing the flashy light show mystic fights provided generally brought in bigger crowds, and also that she must have been losing a lot of money with the prolonged absence of her all-time fan-favorite ninja warrior champ.The sarcastic tone in his voice completely went over the guard dog’s head, and drool began dripping onto the floor while he stared at the bone, eager to take a big chomp out of it as soon as Bud gave it to him.“So whatdoya say? Yoou don’t spoil Auntie Big Mama’s big surprise and keep this between us two buddies, and Iii give you this nice, big, juicy bone. Deal?”“Yeahyeahyeah! You got it Bud! It’s a deal!”X handed out the bone and it abruptly went in the dog yokai’s slobbering mouth. While Gus chomped away at it, X casually spun the blade of his sword in circles with a relaxed, crooked grin on his face, and looked up at the thoroughly deceived dog to ask: “I wanna practice now for the big reveal. Is Big Mama in her office?”In between the slobbering and the chewing, the mutant ninja heard the words: “No, she’s bringing some new kappa yokai to the Battle Nexus.”‘Kappa yokai? Eugh boi, this night just got a whooole lot longer.’X maintained his relaxed composure even though his heart practically sank out of his chest.“Thanks Pup, you’re a real good friend,” he said with a little less enthusiasm than before. Gus didn’t notice and cheerfully replied: “You too, Bud!” without taking his eyes off the bone sticking out of his mouth.Then, a blue circle lit up under X’s feet and he fell through to begin his search for those dumb-dumb brothers who didn’t know how to heed a warning to save their lives.Literally.* * *It didn’t take long for the stealthy ninja turtle to trace Big Mama’s steps on her way to the Battle Nexus fighter’s rings. Mostly because after his portal spit him out in the middle of a dining room full of higher-class yokai instead of the discreet location he wanted to go to, he abandoned his mystic approach to rely on ninja stealth to find the three bozo who were in serious hot water.Hopefully not literally.Now here he was, laying on his belly in a cramped, dusty air vent, looking down on the turtles on their death march below him; with Big Mama right behind them and the four of them surrounded by her loyal cronies.The voices in the hallway carried well, and X could hear the conversation happening down below.“I told you we should’ve listened to Leo!” Donnie loudly complained. Then, in a high-pitched, condescending tone, he continued: “But nooo! ‘One quick visit won’t hurt’, he says. ‘We’ll drop off the bugs, grab more webs, and be out in under five minutes. What could possibly go wrong?' he asks!” He dropped that tone to continue with an angry: “Oh I don’t know! How about she leads us to an ambush, steals my valuable Bug Slapper and my bō..." "She took our weapons too, Donnie," Mikey piped up. In a dismissive tone of voice and without looking at Mikey, Donnie blandly agreed: "Yeah, yeah and your weapons," before continuing on with his angry rant as though he hadn't been interrupted."...and marches us to her Battle Nexus to be the next rodeo clowns! Look at this face, Raph!” Raph glanced at him with two tired looking eyes when Donnie thrust a hand up to point to himself and yelled: “A big red nose does not go well with this face shape! And don’t get me started on the color clash with my distinguished shade of green! Mikey on the other hand…”Both Donnie and Raph looked at Mikey, who was grinning from ear to ear.“What’s with the goofy grin, Angelo?” Donnie asked.“Angelo!? What’s Mikey short for? Mikeyangelo?’ Leo thought. “Oh nothing,” Mikey replied in a smug tone that matched the grin on his face. “Only that my online rodeo clown course wasn’t a total waste of time like some turtles tried to convince me. While you two amateurs bumble around in the shadows I’ll be stealing the spotlight!”Unknown to everyone below, X groaned along with Donnie and Raph, but his was for something totally different. ‘Red nose and stealing the spotlight? Something tells me human rodeo clowns are a whooole different thing from yokai ones. The only one ‘stealing’ any ‘spotlight’ will be Kraken Tom when he pulverizes them into turtle mincemeat for his lunch,’ Leo thought.Incidentally, rodeo clowns in the Battle Nexus were nothing more than cheep entertainment one night a month when any dummies who dared defy Big Mama were all rounded up and brought to the Battle Nexus for the ‘Kraken Tom Feeding Hour.’And tonight was that night.“Save my dumb-dumb brothers, then get my swords. How hard can it be? Alright portals, don’t fail me now!”X focused, not just his thoughts, but his emotions on saving his siblings before they became ‘pet food’. Big Mama hadn’t ever seen his mystic powers before - he wasn’t aware if she even knew about them yet (Draxum certainly wouldn’t volunteer that information to her), so he ignored stealth to opt for speed - combined with a healthy degree of confusion and chaos when a mysterious glowing blue portal of unknown origins abruptly and unexpectedly opened up beneath his brothers feet, which they promptly fell through without a single one of the cronies having a chance to grab them first.At the same time he loosely connected his portal to theirs, and everyone came out a few short meters away from the intended alley outside, with an outside door leading to that alley conveniently located along the back wall.Raph, Mikey, and Donnie fell from their portal suspended above a giant hamper where the employee uniforms, hotel room bedding and towels, and everything in between, were sent down through chutes to be washed, and he walked out of his exit portal a few feet away, on the solid floor of the Grand Nexus basement laundry room.X rested his sword on his shell over his shoulder and smiled from the comical sight of three ‘ninja rodeo clowns’ fumbling around in a big mess of dirty clothes, trying to make their way out of the giant hamper, with a lot of grunting and groaning and a whole lot of grumbling and complaining that made X happy his portals didn’t open at quite the right location.Donnie was the first to reach the edge, and when he did so he looked up to see Leo’s amused face smiling at him.“Dirty laundry? Really?" he griped. “Trusting Big Mama, reeeally?” X replied in an animated voice that sounded just as amused as he was.“Leo!” Mikey exclaimed when he realized his brother was right there with them. He literally climbed over Donnie to get out - shoving his face back down in the dirty clothes along the way - and with his typical unbridled passion, he ran up to Leo and wrapped his arms around him in a big hug.“You saved us! You’re here! I was worried I'd never see you again!”X kept his grip on the odachi resting over his shoulder and hovered his left hand out, behind Mikey’s back - in no way returning his hug - and surprised out of his mind over his little brother’s eagerness to accept him just like that after everything he witnessed via the Battle Nexus tapes.Or maybe he didn’t see them himself, but if his older brothers didn’t let him watch the tapes with them, he for sure knew the bloodbath contained in each and every one."Oh! I made something for you!" Mikey abruptly exclaimed with excitement. He pull out of the hug and reached into his belt pouch to take out a blue strip of fabric and shoved it into Leo's hand.X looked down on the blue mask Mikey made for him in disbelief, and Mikey grinned wildly at him. "Well, try it on!" he urged."Uh, yeah, I...". . .His voice trailed off and he didn't finish his sentence because of how stunned and speechless he was left from this generous gift, and kept staring down on it.It was blue - his favorite color and in a shade that was very similar to his mystic powers. The material was soft and lightweight - unlike the rough, heavy material of his cloak - but yet the turtle with an eye for detail noticed it was excellent quality. Perfect to wear in combat to be breathable and light, while keeping the sweat out of his eyes.Leo wondered how it never occurred to him to wear something so practical when fighting prior to now.The mask itself looked exactly like the one Mikey painted on the mural in Leo’s hospital bedroom. It was a strip like Mikey's that didn't go up over the top of his head like the ones Raph and Donnie wore, but unlike Mikey's, it had long tails, like Raph's. Overall, the whole thing fit in with the 'brotherly ninja heroes' theme.X didn't feel like he deserved to even hold such a cherished item, let alone wear it.Mikey kept gazing at him expectantly for far longer than X thought reasonable, making him feel super uncomfortable. He was about to tell his little brother that he wanted to put it on in front of a mirror the first time, but as soon as he opened his mouth, a big shadow appeared over him.Leo looked up to see the bigger, stern-looking snapper standing right in front of him. He hastily (but carefully) stuffed the mask in his inner cloak pocket, and Mikey's smile fell the same time Raph crossed his arms in front of his chest; while the whole aura in the room changed to one carrying a heavy tension.And when the big brother of the family opened his mouth, it looked like the hammer was about to drop, so that was when X gently pushed Mikey aside, so he was unobstructed and could point out the exit and (hopefully) quickly portal away when the inevitable ‘you’re nothing more than a crazed, psychopathic murderer and you’ll never be our brother’ speech commenced.Raph opened his mouth and Leo involuntarily winced when he sucked in a deep breath to begin with:“Leo, I’m sorry, I know I've been a dofus up 'till now, but Raph's just trying to protect his family,"That sounded an awful lot like one of Draxum’s stern, sarcastic ‘apologies.’(“It's a shame I created you so poorly to have missed such an obvious flaw. No, wait, that was another one of those unique personality traits shining through, wasn’t it? Hm, so it seems the fault lies with you. Again.")His voice softened a little but still sounded tense and stern when he added:“Raph doesn’t want to lose you again.”‘I . . . I don’t want to lose you, either,’ X’s heart urged him to fumble out. But given the tone and inflection of Raph’s voice combined with his tense posture and stern, unbreaking eye contact (that X felt was screaming at him ‘you’re not good enough for my family of heroes’) instead of doing that, he fidgeted with the handle of his mystic sword still resting over his shoulder, and let out a tense: “But?”The tension became palatable after that; so-much-so even Mikey felt it and gazed back and forth between the two of them with a frown and a worry crease lining the top edge of his mask.“Raph has some questions before Raph’s ready to welcome you with open arms,” the snapper said in his firm, protective big brother voice.‘I guess that ‘talking in the third person’ is a regular thing for him,’ X thought to himself. He felt torn between staying long enough to answer a few questions and portalling away before Raph verbalized what X thought he thought (aka ‘you’re not good enough’).In the end, he remembered he already agreed with Donnie to answer some of the eldest/protector of the family’s questions, so now was as good a time as any to get that unpleasantness done and over with. He opted to keep his odachi where it was while nervously fidgeting with his sword handle. But he was saved from the uncomfortableness for a few extra minutes when Mikey groaned at Raph and whined: “Come ooon Raph, we’ve already been over this!” he gestured to Leo behind his back and continued in his childish whine: “He’s with us now, and he doesn’t fight in the Battle Nexus anymore, right Leo?”X opened his mouth to reply but Mikey didn’t give him a chance when he snapped his head back up at the taller snapper and added in an overly optimistic tone of voice: “He’s a hero now, like us! Right Leo?”This time when Mikey’s smiling face beamed at Leo, he waited for an answer.They all did.All eyes were on him now, but X couldn’t tear his focus away from those innocent eyes gazing at him - so full of hopefulness, with joyous expectation radiating from his entire body at the prospect of hearing his ‘new’ brother’s resounding ‘yes.’The seconds ticked by with no response; the tension in the room tripled (especially between Leo and Raph); and everyone’s eyes were on him, awaiting his answer. But he wasn’t ready to speak yet, nor could he tear his gaze away from those heart-wrenching eyes that held such love and joy and hope and so many other positive emotions, all aimed his way - that it choked him up and he had to fight back the tears that kept threatening to creep up and show themselves before he could speak the truth to them.‘How can he feel so much without exploding and lashing out at everything in sight!?’ X thought in wonderment and confusion - having trouble processing his own conflicting emotions and still unable to tear away from Mikey’s gaze; even though with each passing unspoken second the hope in his eyes was flickering and dimming; progressively being replaced with a fear and sadness threatening to swallow X up whole with grief and remorse.So, since he couldn’t take his dumb eyes off Mikey’s, X decided the next best thing was to try and lessen the crushing blow he knew the truth would bring to his little brother.“Yeah, that sounds great, I’d love to be the hero…”He abruptly coughed into his hand a few times from choking on his own words.‘Love!? Why’d you say love!? Dummy dummy dummy.’‘Because it’s true,’ a quieter part in the back of his mind responded for him.The sorrow in X’s heart deepened when Mikey gasped in a breath from his excitement, looking like he was about ready to pop but not wanting to make a sound so he could hear what his 'soon-to-be hero brother’, Leo had to say next, along with the hopeful look that extended to both Raph and Donnie; and he realized he now had to crush all three of their hearts because of not starting with the cold, hard facts.A big, big part of him begged him to tell them ‘I’m Draxum’s slave, I do what he orders me or else, I don’t have a choice, and there's nothing I can do about it,' but he literally bit his tongue to force his heart to swallow down those words, and told them: “I don’t fight at the Nexus anymore…” he thrust up a hand toward Raph with his index finger raised, denoting ‘one minute I’m not done’, and the snapper who opened his mouth shut it again.Then he answered Raph’s unasked question when he added: “And I’m never fighting there again,” having full confidence that Draxum - who was not one to go back on his word - ordered him not to return. Not to mention the fact that Big Mama’s torturous punishment for ‘bailing’ at the beginning of a sold-out match ‘compromised the integrity of the natural armor of his warrior,’ as Draxum was prone to mumble under his breath in complaint over Big Mama’s choice all throughout the first half of his healing process.“But…”That one, simple word effectively served to squash both Mikey’s mounting excitement and the looks of hope in all of their eyes.X’s figurative heart sank more (in correspondence to the deepening crevice between Raph’s eyebrows), and he wondered if it could possibly fall right out of the bottom of his feet.Maybe that would be a good thing he figured, because then he could walk away and never have to pick it up ever again.“It’s gonna have to wait.” ‘Indefinitely,’ he thought but didn’t bother to add. “I’m not saying no, but I’m tied up helping Draxum reach his life’s goal right now.”“You mean by mutating innocent people?” Raph asked with a hint of anger. But X ignored his question to focus on Donnie’s less-difficult-to-respond-to sarcastic (with appropriate air quotes): “Ah yes, your ‘helping’ that mad scientist reach his life’s goal by washing dirty dishes at a pizza joint.” X stepped ahead with one foot and pointed an aggressive, accusing finger at Donnie.“That’s only because some four destroyed his lab!” he defensively countered with a little too much anger (that was really directed at the unjust way his enraged owner chose to punish him to an extreme degree with something that was nothing short of outright torture, because he was angry at his brothers and not him).X straightened up, crossed his arms like Raph, and continued in an angry, but not as loud, voice.“I did all I could to help him with that and now he’s got me training with my ninpo for when he needs me again.” “Needs you for what?” Raph snapped, not missing a beat. X picked up what he was laying down, (once again defensively) narrowed his eyes in anger, and replied in a cold, quiet voice: “Whatever he wants.”“And you’re ok with this!?” Raph once again snapped, but louder this time. ‘No, but I don’t have a choice,’ X thought but didn’t say; followed by that annoying tiny voice in the back of his head that had been popping up more and more lately: ‘Help me. I can’t do this alone.’But there was no way he was dragging his flesh-and-blood brothers into something like that, especially considering Draxum currently wanted them dead (wanted him to kill them; with this being the very first time he openly rebelled since the whole ‘I’m not going back to the Battle Nexus!’ incident that ended badly for him).But that would blow over with time. Their creator couldn’t stay angry with them forever.Right?Once again, the ninja slider took a moment to think out the words he wanted to say, and settled on the simple phrase: “I didn’t say that.”A very small amount of relief washed over the snapper’s face at the direct verbal verification (right from the turtle’s mouth) that his long-lost, raise-by-an-evil-genius- scientist brother did not, in fact, want to kill but only did so because he felt he had been forced into this life by no choice of his own.The relief was too minuscule for Raph to uncross his tightly crossed arms considering the next thing he wanted to ask:“So you’re saying if that creep sends you out to murder someone, you’ll just do it?”‘Murder, maime, lame, blind, dispose of when the job's done, whatever Draxum orders, all of the above and more. Better them than me.’(That nagging part in the back of his mind that kept getting louder, told him: ‘No it’s not. Ask for help.’ But he stubbornly refused to let it take control)X’s body tensed with angry energy directed at . . . who? He hated to admit it was himself, so he projected it onto Draxum, instead.Then, without once taking his eyes off his big brother’s gaze, he firmly answered:“You saw the tapes. You know who I am, what I’ve done…” he leaned ahead to stress: “what I’ll do again,” then straightened up. “If you want me as your brother, you can’t pick and choose which parts you’ll take and what you’ll throw out for scraps." A vision of the terrorworm lunging up to snatch the pizza scrap he dropped into the sandy pit flashed in his head for a split second, followed by a phantom pain below where his left leg ended."You either take all of me or none at all.”“If you’re gonna keep killing, then the answer is none.”. . .Frankly, X was shocked at the abruptness of Raph’s immediate, no hesitation response. That, combined with the clear, unwavering conviction in his voice - that was also written all over his face - left the slider without a doubt that there was no way this self-proclaimed ‘hero’ would ever change his mind and allow the likes of him into the warm family life they all enjoyed.X was also surprised with himself. He should have expected this - he thought he was prepared - but apparently his heart never got the memo from his brain. His tense, angry face fell and he looked down at his hip to sheathe his odachi, for the one and only reason he didn't want his brothers to see the tears that involuntarily welled up in the corners of his eyes at the thought of being permanently separated from the one and only family he ever knew and loved.What would X Leo do now?He really didn’t know.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leo raised his gaze to put his attention on Raph’s face, so he didn’t have to see Mikey’s heart-wrenching eyes looking up at him.But somehow, that ended up being worse than he had anticipated.The face that looked at him and was filled with hurt and sadness he could eventually learn to live with, was also riddled with something else.Disappointment.Disappointment at him for not reaching up the expectations Raph had apparently set for him in his own mind and heart.Disappointment was something Leo was familiar with because he had seen it many times before on Draxum’s face; but this was different. When his owner looked at him that way, it was because he was disappointed that his turtle slave didn't rise up to the impossibly high expectations he set because Experiment Alpha 002-2 was his ingenious design, his flawlessly exquisite mutant creation - and nothing the warrior alchemist ever did was less than perfection (in his own eyes, of course).But seeing that look plastered all over his big brother’s eyes and face brought incomparable anguish to his heart; a type of heartbreak he had never felt before.Not only because it was the one and only big brother he had, but also because that look with all the other emotions attached to it, told him with words unuttered one simple truth:‘I believed in you. I believed in you and you let me down.’No one had ever believed in him before - truly believed in his ability to choose to do the right thing and stick with it no matter the consequences - and he knew the look on that face staring back at him would haunt him for the rest of his days if he walked away now, never to look back.The ‘hot soup’ of emotions swirling around in his mind, threatening to overtake him and force him to curl up in a ball on the floor and cry his little turtle heart out right here and now, over the realization that someone actually, truly, from the bottom of their heart believed in him, combined with the fear - no panic - over the realization that if he didn’t do something to fix this now, he faced the very real threat of losing his brothers forever, and he couldn’t handle it anymore.Leo wished he could blame what happened next on that nagging part in the back of his mind that kept rebelling against him, but not this time.This time what happened next, was allll him; and he couldn’t deny it.He couldn’t help it, he couldn’t stop it, but tears filled the corners of his eyes and when he opened his mouth to speak, his bottom lip quivered, so he hastily shut it, to give himself time to get over these brand new emotions this whole situation threw at him.He wanted to run and hide. He wanted to scream!He wanted to take out his frustrations in the only way he knew how - by finding someone to antagonize and fight.. . .He wanted to tear his eyes away from the parental-like gaze of his big brother. But he couldn’t do any of those things, because his feet were firmly nailed to the floor and his body frozen in place like he was encased in a tomb of ice.Everyone’s tension softened at his unexpected (but hopeful) reaction. And this time, when he opened his mouth, he spoke the simple but powerful words:“I won’t kill anymore.”The initial, involuntarily reaction was to flinch at the thought of the punishment that surely awaited such a decision, but that was immediately followed by an equally uncontrolled laugh that was evoked by an overpowering wave of relief washing over him.Relief from the sudden realization this promise meant he would never again raise his blade to violently end another life.The relief was far more powerful than the anxiety and dread welling up in his stomach over the prospect of dying a slow, painful death at his creator’s hands, when he inevitably had to informed Draxum of his decision rebellion. And if he had known before now how profound an effect those four simple words of promise would have on his entire being, even the threat of torture and death would not have stopped him from vowing never to harm another soul from the very first time Draxum ordered him to murder his opponent at a tender young age.How many lives could have been spared in exchange for one if he had made this decision years ago?Leo had to chase that thought away before the guilt and remorse swallowed him whole, knowing it would resurface again and again for a long, long time - perhaps for the rest of his life.Mikey squealed with excitement over Leo’s promise, but Raph put a hand out to hold him back when he eagerly stepped ahead to embrace his new brother in a hug; while Donnie’s fast processing mind was computing all the possible reasons why Leo would have immediately flinched from his own words, only to laugh out loud 0.83 second after.With 87.629% certainty, he concluded all the arrows for the cringe response were pointing straight at Draxum, while the following laugh that bubbled out was a result of the joy Leo felt at the prospect of never again harming another living person. That was enough for him to welcome their brother into their lives and their home with open arms, since it provided clear, undeniable evidence to his scientifically-driven mind that Leo was telling the truth and had every intention of following through on his word, because he wanted to from the bottom of his heart.But apparently it wasn’t enough for the overprotective big brother of the family, who hadn’t noticed Leo’s immediate two reactions following his own statement, because the only thought in his head was this:‘He’s lying to save face.’But Raph wasn’t about to up and abandon the one brother who needed him most of all right now based on nothing more than a hunch or a feeling. He would give Leo time to prove himself, but he had to keep an eye on him for the time being for the protection of his non-murderous loved ones. So for his own sanity - while Mikey bit his bottom lip and watched on with nervous anticipation with his eyes flitting back and forth between his big brother and his ‘new’ brother - Raph stuck out his hand and asked: “Deal?”Leo glanced down on the outstretched turtle hand, crossed his arms against his chest, and replied in just as firm of a voice as the snapper's: “Deal.”That should have been the end of it, but the big snapping turtle’s hand remained where it was. Leo kept his eyes glued to Raph’s face, inaudibly challenging him to dare continue insulting him by keeping it held out, feeling like it was a slap in the face more than anything.He gave his word, what more did Raph want? A handshake? Why? Some superstition or custom humans clung onto for forgotten reasons, like so many other things they did? It was outright insulting to the integrity of his words; when he made a deal, he stuck with it through hell or high water (whatever that meant, all he really knew about both was that they had neither in the Hidden City).Leo kept his stern gaze locked on Raph’s eyes and in a half annoyed, half angered, and all incensed tone of voice he asked: “What’s the matter? Don’t believe my words but you’ll believe my hand? Either I’m lying or I’m not, a handshake doesn’t change anything.”Donnie joined Mikey in looking back and forth between their two brothers now; who were stuck in an uncomfortable stalemate, and the nervous box turtle even had to stop himself when he stuck his hand out not once but twice, with the intent of shaking Raph’s hand in Leo’s behalf. But he knew that gesture would be pointless, and ended up holding his right hand up by his chest and nervously biting his bottom lip.Raph likewise kept his determined eyes glued to the slider’s, and in a firm ‘I’m not backing down from this or changing my mind’ tone of voice, he replied: “A friendly handshake seals the deal. It’s important.”Leo's body stayed tense but he blurted out another laugh - this time a sour, condescending laugh over the absurdity of that meaningless statement. He didn’t know what was more hilarious: the fact that something as inconsequential as two people putting their hands together and moving them up and down was anything let alone ‘sealing’ something as vital as a deal; or the fact that Raph was dead serious right now (‘dead’ serious over the agreement that Leo won’t kill anymore. A clear pun he wasn’t going to overlook).Unless, of course, ‘sealing the deal’ with a ‘friendly handshake’ somehow involved the use of some sort of adhesive; but when Leo glanced down to check, he didn’t see anything sticky on the palm of Raph’s hand. So he straightened up, and using his ‘humor to cope’ approach to life, a crooked grin came on his face; but still in a very serious tone, he asked: “You’re dead serious about this, aren’t you?”Donnie groaned and rolled his eyes over the bad pun, but Raph’s two figurative feet were firmly planted in ‘overprotective big brother shoes,’ so the little joke had no effect on him, and he kept his hand out, his eyes locked on Leo’s, and firmly stressed: “Yes, I am; because it’s im-por-tant.”Leo huffed out another silent laugh over Raph’s words and he still wasn’t interested in turning this curious human oddity into a life-long habit; unless there was a valid reason for it, of course, then he would be willing to concede. But considering the only reason he was given as to why was the nonsensical ‘it seals the deal,’ despite the lack of any form of bonding or adhesive, made absolutely no sense whatsoever.He gave brief consideration to the thought of mystic properties somehow governing deals between humans that were activated by the shaking of hands. But that seemed just as absurd as anything else because as far as he was aware, humans didn’t possess any mystic energy - certainly not enough for them to gather and combine the plethora of ingredients required for the impossibly complex mystic truth serum. So, just to be sure, Leo briefly used his ninpo to search for mystic energy signals being emitted by the snapper.There weren’t any, which meant he clearly wasn’t tapping into his ninpo right now or in possession of any mystical items, minus Draxum’s his tonfas. But he kept his eyes on the snapper’s hand, his crooked grin on his face, and decided to confirm the matter when he sternly asked in a condescending tone of voice: “So you’re telling me, I give you my word but that means nothing to you? And shaking hands does what? Makes me tell the truth? Reveals to you if I’m lying or not? What’s the point?”Raph replied in just as stern a voice as ever: “The point is, it’s a very important custom, Leo. Your handshake is your word, and I want you to show you respect that.”Leo’s small grin fell. This was not amusing to him at all anymore.“No, my word is my word,” he argued back, sounding so noticeably angry (incensed) that it made Mikey and even Donnie squirm uncomfortably a little. Raph did not, and Leo leaned in to get his face closer to the snapper's when he added: “Let me clue you in on my customs, brother, that I want you to respect.” That last word oozed contempt, which was directed at this whole situation and not at the snapper himself. “In the Hidden City, your word is you life. You make a deal, you hold your end or they take your life, it’s as simple as that.” He straightened up, squirmed uncomfortably when he looked down at Raph’s hand once more, and his tone softened a little when he added: “This is nothing more than unnecessary physical contact.”At the same time Donnie’s right eyebrow went up Mikey’s nonexistent eyebrows furrowed in concern; because at Leo’s words he suddenly realized that even though he hugged Leo, his brother never returned those hugs, and now he was wondering exactly why.Donnie knew Raph was too stubborn to back down, so he wanted to try to do something to help change Leo’s mind; and in his usually ‘Donnie’ way he factually said: “Actually shaking hands to seal a deal does come from important ancient customs. You see…” “Booor-ring!” Leo interrupted. He glanced at Donnie long enough to see him close his mouth and pursed his lips into a frown, and then put his eyes back where they belonged - on the big, dumb snapping turtle, of course.“Just shake my hand, Leo,” Raph flatly demanded.“Just take my word, Raph.”“Why are you doing this, Leo!? Stop being so difficult and shake Raph’s hand!”"Why are you doing this!? It makes no sense!""Because it's important to me!""Why!?""Because . . . it just is!""Ha! You don't even know!""Why are you doing this Leo!? I bet you don't know, too!"Leo's immediate cocky, crooked grin told Raph he was 'dead' wrong, and the slider leaned his face in as close as he could get to Raph without moving his feet, and firmly told him with conviction (and those fun air quotes he learned from Donnie): “I’ll tell you why I’m ‘doing this.’ Again, my word is my word, a handshake doesn't change that. And there’s only three reasons to ever touch anybody. I don’t need protecting,” ‘Yes I do. Save me!’ “Something tells me you’re not looking for a fight, and we're brothers, so this handshake thing better not have anything to do with the last one.”Although unpleasant, punishments fell under the category of ‘fight,’ with ‘protect’ being like how Bully protected him when he had a meltdown. And Yolinda’s cheeky fox face popped in his head when he thought of the third one, but he chased it away as quickly as it came up to stay focused on the very important matter at hand.Leo snickered at Donnie’s immediately cringe response from his unspoken joke, but Mikey’s reaction was even better because he didn’t get it right away. So Leo took his eyes off Raph for a quick 'tension break' to watch the confusion all over the box turtle’s face with amusement. Then he barked out a single laugh when the ‘lightbulb’ moment hit and Mikey inaudibly mouthed the word ‘ew!’ before sticking his tongue out with a disgusted “Blah!” and a very dramatic whole-body cringe when he finally caught on to that little sarcastic joke.But Leo’s smile fell once more when the full weight of that statement really sunk in for the box turtle, and Mikey looked back at him with pity and sadness over the fact there must be a terrible reason why his long lost brother never wanted to be touched.Leo wondered how it was possible for someone to frown with their entire body, like what his little brother was doing right now, and hastily remedied this situation by hinting he was ok with Mikey's hugs with the words: “Four reasons.”That jubilant smile returned to the box turtle’s face, but the entire time Raph stood tense and unmoving, like a statue, expecting demanding Leo conform to this useless human custom with a ‘friendly handshake’ to ‘seal the deal’ (despite the fact the Hidden City raised slider gave valid reasons for his refusal) by using nothing more than his tense posture, unbreaking eye contact, and unmoving outstretched hand to convey his message loud and clear.But two could play this game, and Leo wasn’t one to back down from a challenge. So they stayed in a silent standoff for a while; and it was around this time Donnie raised his eyebrow again and asked Leo: “Why were you ok with it when…” The fiery anger in Leo’s eyes when he shot Donnie a look that said ‘don’t you dare bring that up now!’ was enough to make him eat his words; and he finished that sentence with: “Uhhh, nevermind.”By ‘that’ Leo was referring to the handshake he willingly gave to Donnie during their telepathic dream realm; which was nothing more than a novelty to him at the time; something to satisfy his (sometimes morbid) curiosity, but this was different. The stakes were much higher and by conceding to the human-type handshake he would be setting a precedent - possibly for the rest of his life - that handshakes were an acceptable way to ‘seal a deal’ as though his word meant nothing at all.A precedent he did not want to set.That ‘nevermind’ was the last word spoken before the silent standoff resumed; with Mikey’s occasional whimpers and whines being the only soft sounds heard in the otherwise quiet room, and the two equally stubborn and persistent turtles refusing to give in while adamantly expecting the other to cave.Since it was late at night, there was no concern of any employees coming in to wash bed sheets and uniforms, and the normally patient slider (whose patience had been wearing thin ever since everything changed for him and he was thrown headfirst into this new, above-ground life) wondered how long the muscular snapper, who could apparently bench-press 450 lbs (Leo didn’t doubt it) could keep his arm out like that until he wasn’t able to hold it up anymore.Under any other circumstance Leo could have easily waited him out all night - and even been willing to move this stalemate to a private location once the workers arrived in the morning. He was interesting in testing the limits of the big guy’s patience and stamina, but instead he squirmed a little at the thought of needing to get his katanas back before the end of one full week since Draxum ordered him to do so - the end of which was rapidly approaching. He was also more than eager to do it this very night, so that if he had to face Big Mama in the process he could get that uncomfortableness over with and put that chapter of his life behind him for good. And he also knew that Gus was crummy at remembering what he was and was not supposed to tell Big Mama. It wouldn’t be long before he forgot himself and excitedly shared the story of how he got a big, juicy bone, including the details of their little ‘deal,’ putting Big Mama in a position to be prepared and make his life even more difficult by laying a trap or an ambush for him (if she hadn’t already done so).Leo cast his eyes down on Raph’s hand again, beginning to feel a little unsure of himself as to whether he should hold on or if this ‘handshake to seal the deal’ was so important it overrode the other vital business he had to take care of tonight. But yet another problem he faced was this: shaking hands with Donnie was ok, partly because they were basically the same size. But Raph’s hand was much bigger; being about the same size as the harsh warrior scientist who recently tortured him for no good reason at all.Leo squirmed a little at the thought and gently rubbed his right wrist with his left hand from the memory of Draxum grabbing that hand for the one and only reason of yanking his slave face-down on the floor, before stretching his arm out to roughly attach the first of two abrasive and much-too-tight metal shackles to his wrists.Then he abruptly withdrew his hand and snapped his eyes on Donnie when he noticed the softshell looked down on the wrist he had been rubbing. The slider was annoyed by how he kept his eyes on the chaffed skin that was still a little red and bruised in one spot where the edge of the shackles cut into his flesh.Donnie didn’t shy away by averting his eyes when Leo glared at him; rather, once he was done with his brief assessment, he looked up to lock eyes with the previously tortured slider (and Leo had to admit, that was a pretty bold move that earned him a little respect from the weathered ninja warrior).But the look of pity mixed with a little horror in Donnie’s eyes told Leo everything he needed to know, and he was struck with the sudden realization that he had over-shared when he previously blurted out in the dream realm that he could defend himself and he only got the black eye because he was ‘chained to the floor when that happened.’‘Dummy,’ he thought, referring to himself, of course.Raph continued staring straight at Leo like he was before, completely unaware of the significance of the small interaction between the slider and Donnie; and Mikey didn’t give any acknowledgement either (beyond a quiet whimper, but that didn’t mean anything because he had been doing it all along) while Donnie kept his eyes on Leo for much longer than he felt comfortable with.The Hidden City raised slider considered sarcastically blurting out a human phrase he once heard: ‘why not take a picture, it’ll last longer,’ but there was no point in doing that considering Donnie was actively recording this interaction (like always). Besides, he didn’t want to be the one to break the silence - which was practically the same thing as admitting defeat. So he bit his tongue and rested his angry eyes back on the determined snapper, who didn’t show any signs of weakening in his resolve anytime soon. And Leo was beginning to think maybe the big guy really could outlast him given the circumstances surrounding his katanas; so he tried to resolve that issue by focusing his thoughts on figuring out a plan to get his swords back the following night, with Big Mama anticipating his arrival.If it wasn’t for the fact that he really reeeally wanted to get the whole ‘stealing back what his ‘doting auntie’ first stole from him’ thing done and over without having to come face-to-face with the spider lady, he would have held on as long as necessary to win this small but significant battle. But just as the thought came to mind that it would be better to take the loss and shake Raph’s hand, Donnie cleared his throat to say something.No doubt to try and ‘save’ him by speaking up in his behalf (and he was right).But Leo didn’t need ‘saving’ by anyone.(That was what he kept telling himself, anyway)Leo couldn’t shake Raph’s hand now and have everyone believe he really did need ‘saving.’ That would be humiliating.So 'stick it out to the bitter end regardless of the consequences' it was, and Leo firmly and stubbornly tucked his right hand in the crook of his elbow when Donnie spoke up:“Uh, Raph, perhaps a friendly fist bump would…”“Pleeease?”Leo’s heart instantly (and very unexpectedly) went to mush at the pleading sound of Mikey’s soft voice, combined with those big, penetrating eyes begging him to concede, that pierced right through to his bones when he looked at them. In response, his shoulders dropped, his whole body softened, and he rolled his eyes with an annoyed huff and an irritated: “Fine.”Mikey’s jubilant smile returned and he squealed with excitement. Then the baby brother of the family kept his gaze focused so intently on Leo’s hand as the grumpy slider slowly extended it, he half expected mystic lazers to shoot out of his eyes.The slider looked up at Raph’s now-smiling face, but just before ‘sealing the deal’ with a ‘friendly handshake’ that didn't involve any sealing whatsoever and apparently meant ‘I give my word’ even more than his actual word did, Raph frowned and tensed again because Leo bent his arm at the elbow to snap his hand up alongside his head, and clearly conveyed how angry he was over this whole situation when he blurted out: “Don’t expect this to become a habit! If we’re gonna be brothers, you gotta learn to trust me when I give you my word. WITHOUT any stupid, meaningless human customs!”Raph’s smile returned - only bigger - and Leo noticed that Donnie was smiling now, too, with Mikey bouncing on his heels from excitement at the mention of the word ‘brother.’ But Leo ignored it to keep his angry, resentful eyes on the snapper’s face.“Deal,” Raph agreed, with relief painting every letter. Leo couldn't help but smile at the rare wave of happiness he felt over this new deal that officially labelled him as their brother, and he lowered his hand again to give his really real and alive big brother for the rest of his life a firm handshake.With that annoying little voice that kept speaking up in the back of his mind telling him perhaps now would be a good time to try out one of those sibling group hugs his new family seemed to be so fond of.But of course, the hardened warrior ninja slave of Baron Draxum didn't ever need to be held in a warm embrace by anyone.At least, that was why he kept telling himself.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“There’s the door, try not to get yourselves captured again on your way out.”Leo pointed to the exit door leading to a back alley and opened a portal to step in, but before his raised foot went through, he heard Mikey’s pleading sort of voice ask: “Aren’t you coming with us?”The red-eared slider turned his head to smile at Mikey behind his back, gave him a playful wink, and said: “Not this time mi hermano, I’ve got katanas to rescue."”Rescue? What do you mean by that?" Raph asked in a stern tone Leo didn't yet know was his ‘I’m ready to protect you at all costs’ big brother voice.If he did know that, he would have most definitely responded differently than his pleasant-sounding: “I mean stealing them back from Big Mama, of course!” before abruptly disappearing through his portal that he left open behind him.“Big Mama!” Raph and Mikey exclaimed after he was gone. Donnie, on the other hand, seemed unconcerned and walked toward the exit while calmly commenting: “Well, I hope Leo gets home ok. You guys ready to go?”In response, Raph gestured to the glowing portal left open in the room and chided: “Donnie! We gotta help Leo!”Mikey nervously gazed at the portal as Donnie calmly replied: “On the one hand Leo says he can handle himself but on the other…” “He’s too stubborn to ask for our help even if he needs it?” Mikey suggested. “No, I was going to say we need to get my tech bō back. And my Bug Slapper.”"And our weapons too!" Mikey angrily blurted out."Oh yeah yeah I forgot she took those," Donnie replied dismissively.“It’s settled then,” Raph said. He stood in front of Leo’s blue portal that he had only gone through once before - when their red-eared slider brother ejected them above the dirty laundry bin - and thought out loud: “Now how does this thing work?”Meanwhile, on the other side of the portal, Leo stepped out into Big Mama’s empty office instead of the vault he was aiming for. He rested his odachi over his shoulder, shrugged it off with a casual: “Beats the roof,” and decided to keep his portal open for a quick retreat. Then he walked over to the vault door to input the password he knew, saying the numbers out loud as he turned the dial lock on each digit.“1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1.” *click.* “Heh, one of the most powerful yokai in the world and she never figured out how to reset the default code. Priceless.”Leo reached up for the handle to pull the thick, triple wide, heavy metal door open, and his grin got bigger when he saw his two katanas prominently displayed on a four foot tall display mount in the center of the jumbled mess that was Big Mama’s vault.Before venturing in, he searched for any signs of hidden traps, and then gazed around with the help of his ninpo vision, searching for any mystic ones. This search proved valuable, because he discovered various random items within that, if touched, would trigger the door to slam shut and lock behind him.The mystic-imbued forcefield protected door that once closed, could not be forced open from the inside. The only way to get out would be to use something very sharp and exceptionally powerful to pierce through one of the reinforced walls, floor, or ceiling; or use mystic powers to portal out.When he was sure nothing else would trigger something, he stepped ahead; but at that moment a mutant snapping turtle unexpectedly tumbled out of his open portal and landed flat on his stomach, with Donnie calmly stepping out behind him and looking down to ask: "Did you consider stepping through?" immediately before Mikey fell through the portal with a big: "Whoa!" and his arms spinning around frantically as he lost his balance, banged into Donnie, and knocked them both down on Raph's spiky shell.The impact knocked Donnie's goggles off the top of his head onto his face, and he let out a winded: "Oof," when he landed on top of Raph and was sandwiched in between his big brother and his little brother - who fell on top of him. Then he turned his head to glare at Mikey, pushed his goggles back up, and let out an annoyed: "And ow."“What are you doing here!?” Leo curtly ‘greeted.’ The three of them got to their feet, and Donnie sarcastically replied: “We came to help, you’re welcome.” In response, Leo gestured wildly with both hands to his katanas and snapped: “Does it look like I need help!?”Raph walked up to him and sternly replied: “We weren’t letting you face Big Mama alone! We do things together in our family!” “Plus we have to retrieve my tech,” Donnie factually piped up. "And our weapons!" Raph and Mikey yelled at him in unison. "Oh, yeah I suppose you want those back, too," Donnie dismissively replied.Leo conceded and replied with an annoyed: “Fine. But hurry up and don’t. Touch. Anything but your stuff, Big Mama has her vault booby trapped.”Leo led the way into the vault and walked up to inspect where his swords were displayed, searching for any signs of a trap he missed that would be triggered when he took them before touching anything. But just before reaching up, the door automatically slammed shut, imprisoning them inside.Leo snapped his head around to see Mikey holding a shiny orb in his hands. “What happened?” he asked innocently. In exasperation, Leo exclaimed: “I told you not to touch anything is what happened! What part of ‘Big Mama’s vault is booby trapped’ did you not understand!?”“Oops. I forgot.”Mikey let the orb slip from his fingers, and it clanked onto the floor and rolled away from his feet into a pile of Big Mama’s valuable junk. “It’s too late for that now,” Leo complained. “How do we get out?” Mikey asked, as Raph punched his fist into the palm of his hand before exclaiming: “Raph smashes us out!”Leo roughly grabbed his katanas, one at a time, to sheathe them on his hip belt so he could keep his odachi out at the ready. And then he turned around to face his three brothers.Donnie was the only one of them who had enough sense to grab his weapon, which he was currently holding up smushed against his cheek, stroking and talking to it like a beloved pet. Mikey picked up the shiny mystic weather orb again (that Leo briefly considered might be a useful thing to steal for himself so he had a reliable way of predicting the cold snaps); and Raph’s eyes were firmly locked on the door, as he backed up to get ramming speed, until he was standing alongside Leo in the middle of the large room.Leo rested his odachi over his shoulder, grinned at Raph, and said: “As much as I would love to see you leave a Raph-sized imprint behind in that door, it’s secured with a mystic forcefield even you can’t smash through with those rad ninpo fists of yours. And there's no way you're getting through anything else, the entire vault is double enforced with titaneium.”"You mean titanium?" Donnie asked with one eyebrow raised."No," was Leo's blunt reply."And where would one procure this titaneium? Perhaps in the yokai Hidden City you refuse to talk about?" In response, Leo flopped his hands down by his side, threw his head back in annoyance, and groaned: "Uuugh, not this again!"Meanwhile, Raph scanned the room for his and Mikey’s weapons at the mention of his ninpo, and Donnie gave up his questioning and moved on to find (and subsequently hug) his tech Bug Slapper (patent pending), while Mikey was sitting on the floor, shaking the weather orb like it was some sort of magic 8 ball.Leo watched his little brother for a moment to give himself time to calm his nerves before attempting a portal. When Mikey stopped shaking the orb, the gray clouds within remained unchanged, so he moved on to trying to twist it open, even going so far as chomping on it with his teeth.“That’s not how it… nevermind, have your fun,” Leo told his little brother. He left him to his ‘toy’ and took his odachi off his shoulder to hold it up with both hands, at the same time Raph dropped Mikey’s kusari fundo on the floor beside him. He smiled at Raph and put the orb down to grab his weapon, and Donnie calmly inspected the locked door and asked Leo: “So how do we get out of here?”When Donnie turned around to face Leo for his response, he instead watched Raph rummaging through some of Big Mama’s interesting stuff, while Leo stayed intently focused on his sword.“There’s only two ways out now. My portals, or someone opens the door from the other side,” Leo replied. He lowered his sword slightly to make eye contact with Donnie and said: "Unless you've got summoning tech and finished that giant drill Mikey told me about.""No, my drill is still in beta," Donnie flatly replied. "However I do have a smaller drill in my tech bō." He calmly looked down on it to click a button, but the only thing that happened was a flashing red 'low battery' symbol appearing on a small display screen built into the purple titanium (not titaneium) shaft."Or not," he added rather calmly, despite the current situation they found themselves in."You know you should really tap into those mystic powers of yours. If they're anything like the tech you make, you could've probably busted us out of here by now with a mystic tech drill or something," Leo gruffly complained."Ah yes, the unscientific magic that doesn't obey any known laws of physics. Let me get right on that," Donnie sarcastically replied."That 'magic' is what's keeping us from busting the door down and getting out of here!" Leo snapped in anger. Then he readjusted his stance, held his sword out in front of him, took a deep breath, and slowly released it on the exhale as he tried to focus on using his 'magic' powers to get them out of trouble and in to safety (Which weren't at all like the sorcery and potions that were a commonplace part of life in Witch Town. But that was something he was not getting into with his scientifically-minded brother right here and now).Then he was interrupted when Raph took his tonfas out and gripped them tightly, stared at the door with a determined look on his face, and firmly said: "Raph can still try to smash us out!"Leo rested his odachi over his shoulder, looked at his brother with a crooked grin on his face, and decided to amuse the big snapper by stretching his left hand out toward the door and saying: "Go ahead; give it a try, big guy."Without once taking his eyes off the heavy, mystically reinforced vault door, Raph punched his fists together, sparking his ninpo powers which formed into glowing red forcefield fists over his turtle ones; and Leo's grin spread across his face as he watched his older brother run at the door while yelling: "Power smash jitsu!"And as expected, the only thing Raph managed to do was to leave an impressive imprint in the impenetrable door - one that didn't in any way go through the mystical forcefield layer inside of it."Oh," was all the surprised snapper said as he looked down at the big dent he made, that was completely flat in the middle where the inside layer of the door made contact with the mystic forcefield."Do you wanna try smashing through the wall too, or are you gonna listen to me now?" Leo asked in an amused tone that carried a hint of sarcasm. "No, Raph'll listen," the big snapper replied, before turning his attention to a pile of random stuff beside the door. Then the ninja red-eared slider got back in his stance, with his feet spread apart and the odachi grasped with both hands, ready to try and open one of his unpredictable portals; but first sternly told his big brother (and by extension all of them): "You shouldn't announce your attacks in advance. The only reason I got away from Donnie's spinning tech bō the first night we fought is because he yelled 'fibonacci' before he threw it at me.""Hm, what was that?" Donnie calmly asked, looking up at Leo from something he had been giving his focused attention to: an expensive-looking, high tech weapon that was laying on top of one of the many piles of Big Mama's collectibles, among the random stuff she threw in her vault over the years and subsequently forgot about."Nevermind," Leo grumpily replied, before giving his attention back to his portals. The amusement he felt over Raph's ninpo smash attempt was replaced with the mounting tension he felt over the prospect of Big Mama showing up before he could get them out, so he tried his very best to stay focused on the task at hand. But his concentration was broken again when Raph blurted out: “Hey guys, look at this! Big Mama even has a Jupiter Jim limited edition action figure in here!” He held up the toy and smiled at it while playing with the ‘real chopping action’ feature, but Leo knew Big Mama wasn’t one to collect useless human junk, so he used his ninpo vision to see it was infused with a sickly green parasitic mystic energy that was creeping up under Raph’s fingernails.“That’s not an action figure, it’s a mystic parasite!” Leo snapped. “Put it down before it contaminates all your ninpo!” Raph abruptly dropped the toy, and when Leo was satisfied the green glow on his big brother’s fingertips had all dripped off, he grumbled: “Stop touching stuff, you don’t know what any of it does! I’m looking at you, Donnie.”Donnie gave Leo a big, nervous grin and pulled his hand away from an interesting artifact that looked like an elaborate chest. One that Leo recognized as being the mystic ‘chest monster’ Big Mama bought one day when he was younger and she took him to the annual International Yokai Mystic Market and Food Festival. Which happened to contain rows upon rows of sharp, serrated teeth that snapped off the hand and arm of anyone unauthorized to open it.“Stop fooling around and be quiet!” Leo snapped in frustration. “Big Mama knows her vault was tampered with, she’ll be here any minute and I need to focus for this to work!”“Why?” Mikey asked innocently. He was sitting cross-legged on the floor now and looked up at Leo from the weather orb laying in his lap that he resumed playing with.“Don’t you have to focus when you use your powers?” Leo asked sourly. Raph shook his head with a: “No,” Mikey calmly replied: “It just comes naturally,” and Donnie didn’t speak up because he hadn't yet tried to tap into his 'unscientific magic' that didn't obey the know laws of physics (in the human world at least, but mystic energy was a thoroughly studied and well-understood normality in the secret underground lives of yokai society).“Of course it does,” Leo muttered under his breath. Then he sternly told them: “It doesn’t come naturally for me, so shut…” “I wonder who Big Mama trapped in her web this time?” they heard from the other side of the vault door.A surge of panic was instantly followed by the sensation of Leo’s ninpo retreating up his hands and arms, back to his chest, where it always settled and stubbornly stayed whenever he was really stressed.He flopped his arms down by his sides and muttered under his breath: “Just great. There’s no point in even trying now.”“I’ll have to override the security commands, this will take a few minutes, mum,” came a voice from the other side. “Take your time, it’s not like they’re going anywhere,” Big Mama replied in an obnoxiously amused tone that got Leo’s blood boiling over his laughable stupidity of walking right into one of her traps.Again.Not that he set off the trap, but it was his fault in the sense he knew his three brothers were under-trained, still learning the ropes, and Mikey had an easily excitable personality often coupled with a short attention span. Therefore he should have kept a closer eye on them instead of putting all his focus on safely getting his katanas back.At least Draxum would see things that way if he ever found out.Then again, he was supposed to kill his brothers on sight, so if Draxum found out about this whole situation...Leo didn't want to think about it and gazed around at his three brothers, figuring he would be in more hot water over being with them than walking into Big Mama’s obvious trap.(Hopefully not literal hot water with the mood Draxum was currently in)That fearful thought made the ninpo energy retreat in on itself a little more and tighten like a fizzy ball of electricity buzzing around inside his chest.That was the moment Raph picked to walk up to the slider with a big, toothy, nervous grin; and he sounded more like he was talking to a little baby as opposed to his teenage brother when he asked: “Hey buuuddy, no pressure but now would be a good time to open one of those super handy portals and get us out of here.”Leo responded by holding his sword out in his right hand to show that all he got were sparks of blue ninpo electricity when he tried, and replied with a sour: “My powers don’t work when I’m stressed, do yours?” being sure to keep his voice down so Big Mama wouldn’t hear him.“Yelp,” “Mm hmm,” Raph and Mikey confidently replied without hesitation. “Of course they do,” Leo groaned. “And you…” He took his anger out on Donnie by thrusting an accusatory finger at him while the sound of clicking and tinkering continued coming from the other side of the door. In a high-pitched, angry tone he copied Donnie’s words to him when he said: “‘Don’t worry, I got it under control’! Does this look like under control to you!?” He gestured to the room they were locked inside, and then aggressively pointed at Raph.“And you!” he whisper snapped. “‘One more visit won’t hurt,’ ‘we’ll be in and out in under five minutes!’ I showed Donnie the cracks in my shell! The ones she gave me! Why didn’t you listen to him!?” “Cracks!?” Raph exclaimed in as loud of a whisper as he dared - not having known about that because Leo always kept his shell concealed around them, and was currently wearing the black piece over his plastron that was a part of his cloak.Leo opened his scowling mouth to say something in reply, but stopped when he heard Big Mama complain: “Oh really you need a piddly hammer now? Why is this taking so long!?”When the vault filled with the loud sound of hammering outside the door, he glared at Donnie and angrily exclaimed: “You didn’t tell them!?”Leo batted Mikey’s hand away when the box turtle reached up to push his cape back with the intent of peering in between his cloak where the black piece in front and the cape in the back overlapped, to sneak a peek at Leo’s injured shell; while the slider kept his angry gaze fixed firmly on Donnie, who defensively replied: “It got lost somewhere between ‘Someone burned Leo's shell,’ and watching you murder yokai in the Battle Nexus together!”Leo batted away Mikey’s hand a second time and opened his still scowling mouth to reply: “You all watched those tapes together but wouldn’t warn them about the cracks she put in my shell!? Your priorities are messed up. And you!”Leo batted Mikey’s hand away a little aggressively this time and curtly told him (but with an undertone of kindness he didn’t display toward his other two brothers): “We’re in this mess because you picked at stuff after I told you not to touch anything!”Mikey nervously twiddled his fingers and bashfully replied: “I know.”The tender tone in his voice made Leo drop the attitude, and he rubbed his forehead in frustration and told him: “You need to be more careful than that, Mikey. One day your impulsiveness is gonna get someone killed.”Leo stopped rubbing his forehead and dropped his arm to gaze at the door in front of him, while the cessation of the hammering was followed by clinking sounds inside the thick, heavy door where the gears were located - signaling Big Mama was one step closer to revealing who she had 'trapped in her web'.“Big Mama wants to make you her rodeo clowns! Do you even know what a yokai rodeo is!?” Leo asked, exasperated. Mikey opened his mouth with a smile as though he knew the answer, but Donnie slapped a hand over it and asked: “What is a yokai rodeo?”“The rodeo is a big event every month when Kraken Tom and all the rest of Big Mama’s Battle Nexus ‘pets’ are brought out to the ring for feeding time," Leo responded. "After they tear apart their animal ‘appetizers’ comes the main event, when whatever hapless saps her and her lackeys scrounged up are dragged into the ring to be ‘rodeo clowns’ for a free-for-all feast. No one gets out alive, and feeding time is tonight.”They all froze in place for a second when a clunk was followed by a loud screeching noise from the unlocking mechanism inside the vault door seizing up.“Oh for biddy sake what’s the holdup now!?” Big Mama loudly complained. “The gears seized, mum, you really should get this serviced more than once every ten years.” “Nevermind serviced, you’ll be served as the next main course for my beloved Kraken Tom if you don’t get this door open right this second!” Big Mama yelled in anger. “Yes, mum!”“Mama, mama!”Leo slapped his hand over his face and groaned: “No, not Gus, too!”They all listened carefully to the conversation on the other side of the door while engaging in their own hushed argument in between.“My dear, sweet Gussy-pup, it’s always a pleasure to see you. Big Mama could use some good news right now,” the spider lady told her guard dog yokai pet in a pleasant, upbeat tone.“How do you know we couldn’t take on those pets of hers with our awesome new mystic powers?” Mikey asked with genuine curiosity.“Yeah, yeah, I got good news, look at the big bone I got!” Gus told Big Mama excitedly.Leo bluntly replied to Mikey’s inquiry: “I know because you three already lost your weapons to her once, and walked right into Big Mama's trap twice tonight! After I warned you both times! And then you couldn’t get away from one spider and a few of her bumbling henchmen without help! But, you think you can get out of a fighting ring filled with dozens of vicious hungry beasts! Oh, and did I forget to mention no one gets out alive? Because no one gets out alive!”“Who gave you the bone, my pet?” Big Mama asked Gus in a pleasantly polite tone.“My Bud! He was here toda…uh oh.”“Uh oh is right," Leo thought out loud.“Oh your bud was here today!” Big Mama replied in an overly happy tone that told Leo she knew exactly who his ‘Bud’ was and that he was also the one on the other side of her vault door this very moment.It was nothing short of infuriating.Leo groaned, rubbed his forehead in frustration again, and told his ‘hero’ brothers who came to ‘help’ him: “April was right about you three when she called you a bunch of bozos! Now I gotta face Big Mama! Uuughhh, what else is gonna go wrong tonight?”“Hey, we came here to help you!” Raph defensively snapped. “And get my tech back,” Donnie piped up, calmly inspecting his titanium tech bō for scratches as though they weren’t about to be attacked by Big Mama. Until Mikey and Raph angrily glared at him, so he muttered under his breath with an eye roll: "And your weapons."“Almost there, mum, just one more turn ought to do it.”Leo protectively stepped ahead so he was standing between Big Mama and his poorly trained brothers, unsheathed a katana with his left hand so now he had two swords at the ready, and said: “Let me handle the talking, but Big Mama's not one to back down peacefully, so be prepared to fight our way out of here.”Raph gave a firm nod of his head, put his tonfas in hand, checked that his other two brothers were likewise armed and ready, and the sound of gears clinking inside the heavy metal door signaled it was about to be opened.“It’s about bloody-well time!” Big Mama snapped.Leo took in a deep breath through his mouth, readied himself for a fight; and when the door swung open the four mutant turtles were greeted by a random yokai mechanic, the devious grin of Big Mama in her spider yokai form, and, of course, Gus - who was completely oblivious to the tension in the room and emphatically greeted Leo with a joyful:“Buddy!”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
As soon as the heavy vault door was opened to reveal four armed-and-dangerous ninja turtles - weapons in hand, ready for a fight - the yokai who unlocked it blurted out: "Don't mind me, I'm only the maintenance guy," just before turning tail and bolting out of the office to safety.At the same time as that was happening, Leo locked eyes with Big Mama; and when he narrowed his eyes in anger and tighten his grip on his swords, Gus finally clued in to the fact that his 'Bud' was really a threat to his 'benevolent' Mama; so he threw the bone to the floor, growled at the turtle who used to be his buddy, and firmly said: "You tricked me! I don't like to be tricked!""Yeah, I know," Leo firmly replied - really wishing he didn't have to deal with an angry, oversized guard dog on top of everything else - without tearing his gaze away from the deceptively sweet spider yokai, who greeted him with a pleasant-sounding: "It's positively scrumputus to see you my turtly-boo. You're looking well."Leo replied to the devious spider smiling at him with a spiteful:“Hello. Auntie.”“Auntie!” Raph and Mikey chimed in unison. “Oh my Newton is that an authentic A Eighty…” “Donnie, not helping!” Raph and Mikey snapped - once again in unison. Donnie tore his eyes away from whatever intricate piece of weaponry he had been admiring to put them where they belonged - on the threats in front of them - and flatly said: “Mm hmm, Auntie Big Mama, I’m up to speed." Then he stretched his hand out towards the spider yokai and sounded as though he was giving her permission to speak when he said: "Go on.”Big Mama gave him a passing irritated glance before putting her eyes back on Leo, to say: “Is that any way to greet your dear Auntie Big Mama, Tampy?”“Tampy!?” Raph asked in surprise."Is your name Tampy?" Donnie inquired.Instead of replying to Donnie's enquiry, Leo quietly groaned and rolled his eyes up into his head when this distracting conversation showed no sign of letting up anytime soon, because - from behind his back - Mikey gestured to him with an outstretched hand and very emphatically informed Dee: "No, his name is Leeeo, remember? Say it with me. Lee-oo.""I mean what Draxum named him, Mikey," Donnie factually replied, before sarcastically adding: "You know, the guy who raised him in the Hidden City that we know almost nothing about? Say it with me Hid-den Ci-ty."This time it was Big Mama's turn to roll her eyes while muttering something under her breath over this impromptu, sensless conversation, when Mikey continued it by casually replying: "Ooooo, I never thought of that before. I always just assumed his name was Leo." Then Raph repeated Donnie's question when he asked: "Is your name Tampy, bro?"One of Big Mama's eyebrows went up at the sound of the word 'bro', and without taking his eyes off the threat in front of him, the overly stressed slider turned his head enough to see Raph from the corner of his eye and sternly replied with a hint of anger: "No, it's not, now shut it.""What is your name?" Donnie asked. "I'm asking for my archives, of course."Leo's eye twitched, but he otherwise ignored Donnie while thinking: 'Uuughhh, this is worse than loosing an argument with that scrappy fox I can't get out of my head!'"They're your brothers, how quaint! This is like one big splenderifous family reunion!" 'Auntie' Big Mama commented in a happy tone with a smile on her face. "Please excuse the mishap, Big Mama would have never sent them off to be rodeo clowns if I had known, my sweet twiddly-widdly Tampy bug.""Whhhy did you have to say that?" Leo groaned in reply, just before (as expected) his three brothers talked over one another; with Mikey sincerely commenting: "Aw she has a cute nickname for you! Can I have a nickname too Auntie?" Donnie clicking at his wrist tech while factually saying: "Twiddly-widdly Tampy bug, I need to add that to my archives," and Raph pointing a finger between the both of them and commenting: "Something tells me there's more going on between you two then you let on."This time Leo let out a much louder, clearly audible groan, and decided to take his eyes off the threat for just long enough to snap his head around so he could glare at Mikey to sternly order:"Don't call her Auntie she cracked my shell remember!" "Oh this was all one big kerfuffle of a misunderstanding," Big Mama try to sweetly insist, Leo spun his head around to face her and the growling dog yokai who was baring his sharp teeth, but completely ignored what she told him to continue with his stern, no-nonsense words - first to Donnie, and then to Raph:"If I ever hear those words come out of your mouth again Donnie, I'll glue your lips shut for three days with Draxum's organic bonding spray. And there's a lot of stuff you don't know, Raph, and even more things you don't need to know!"Big Mama watched the curious sibling interaction with a slight grin on her face, when Donnie factually objected:"Your statement is mathematically impossible. And can you tell me more about this 'organic bonding spray'? Is the spray made from organic ingredients, or does it bond organic matter? Perhaps both?""Would you shut your yaps we need to get outta here!" was Leo's frustrated reply."Ok, *snicker* Tampy.""You better watch it Mikey, I'm not one to make idle threats. I'm telling you I learned the hard way, it takes three days for that stuff to wear off turtle skin. Don't think I'll back down just because you're my little brother."Mikey opened his mouth wide so he could shut it in an overly dramatic way (even though Leo couldn't see him from behind his back), while Donnie actually attached his bō to its magnetic sheath on his tech shell to free up his hand, so he could type better on his wrist tech as he asked Big Mama: "Since I have you here, what information could you provide about the Hidden City? Leo - if that is your real name - is being less than cooperative on the subject," just before Leo groaned in reply: "You're the one who told me the name dummy, and don't put your weapon away!"Next, the frustrated slider - who was so tired and just wanted to go home to his house in the Hidden City and sleep in his warm bed for the next week - rolled his eyes when Big Mama commented something-or-other that really didn't matter about his 'new' name, but she was otherwise ignored as Raph crossed his arms and sternly commented: "Really, Don? You're asking her about the Hidden City?""Whaaat? I can't collect some empirical data before we fight the bad guys!?" Dee objected in a whiny, defensive tone.Big Mama shook her head in disgust before pointing back and forth between the three extra turtles in the room, as she asked Leo: "Are you really quite certain they're your piddly brothers?""You can point out nearest New York to Hidden City portal and give me the code to open it if that's easier for you," Donnie calmly said while looking at Big Mama, ready to input whatever she told him into his wrist tech.Leo's eyes shot up into his head again from his frustration, and he groaned out the exacerbated reply to Big Mama’s question:"Yelp. They're my brothers."Then Donnie scanned his eyes around the messy vault and continued where he left off as though he was the only one talking this whole time."Or if you have something laying around with information about the Hidden City I'll be glad to take it off your hands. Maybe a book or a map? What about a pamphlet?"In response, Leo yelled at him: "STOP trying to go to the Hidden City, Draxum wants all of you DEAD! Now would you three FOCUS!"Instead of focusing on the threat at hand, Raph exclaimed: "Draxum wants us dead!?"And when Big Mama heard that dreadful news she tutted with her mouth and said in a sweet, faux-concerned tone of voice: "Their creator wanting the demise of your very own bimbly brothers. How cold-hearted of him. Your dear sweet Auntie Big Mama would never treat you in such a gastly manner. Why don't you put those shiny tizzy blades away and the five of us can retire to my private dining room, where we can sort out this whole crap-a-do together over tea. Hmm? What do you say, Tampy? For old time's sake?""Yeah, sure, why don't we just go to your dining hall for a quaint little chat? Maybe a snack of rock nuts with an ambush on the side would be nice," Leo replied, being very heavy on the sarcasm - at the same time something in a pile of Big Mama's valuable junk caught Mikey's eyes and he happily exclaimed: "Oh, shiny!" But when he reached out to grab whatever it was, the gold disc-shapped thing opened up like a big toothless mouth with a fat, gooey pink tongue and grabbed him instead by chomping down on his hand like a clamshell, and subsequently slobbering all over it with that disgusting slimy tongue inside its mouth - making Mikey drop his kusari fundo and shake his hand around wildly while screaming from fright.Raph rolled his eyes at the sight and muttered the curious phrase: "Not again," before sheathing his tonfas and walking over to help.The highly skilled ninja warrior and deceptive spider lady completely ignore the ruckus inside the vault, with Big Mama saying: "Please Tampy-boo, give Big Mama a chance to explain," and Leo showing he wasn't budging an inch with his sarcastic reply: "Do you wanna explain before or after ordering your croonies to lead them off for Kraken Tom's next meal and chaining me to the wall to try and pop me out of my shell like a fizzlepop rock?"In an defensive tone of voice Big Mama blurted out: "Well I certainly didn't know they were your dimbly brothers! And can you blame me!? I mean look at them!" just before Donnie asked his brother with one of his big eyebrows raised: "Wall? I thought you were chained to the floor?"In a voice that sounded so done with everything Leo gruffly replied: "I was, now can we please stay on subject, or am I the only one who wants to get out of here?"Meanwhile, in the background Mikey was screaming and running around inside the large vault - more from fright than anything else - frantically shaking his arm, and yelling: "Eew eww get it off! Get it OOOFFF!" with Raph chasing behind, trying to grab him while yelling at him to calm down and hold still. But the panicking box turtle was oblivious to his big brother's attempts at help, and kept inadvertently staying one step ahead of him with the way he was twisting and turning and slipping out of Raph's grip like some sort of out-of-control slippery wild snake.Big Mama briefly looked up from her conversation with Leo to watch the entertainment unfold with a mixture of disgust and curiosity, before leaning her head in closer to him to quietly offer: "I can still make them rodeo clowns if you want, deary, and we can keep this whole embarrassing craptastrophie between ourselves.""All I want to go home to my nice warm bed and maybe eat a few snapple berries, is that too much to ask?" The poor, exhausted slider replied, as though he really was talking to his doting sweet auntie; even though he stayed stiff and unmoving, facing her and the snarling, drooling, angry Gus with his swords out - being the only one of them prepared to defend themselves against the potentially deadly spider and the equally dangerous muscular lug of a guard dog standing right there in the room beside her."Oh please Tampy-poo, you don't still blame your dear sweet doting auntie for that messy business? Come now, I'm sure Draxy-pie settled this whole kerfuffle of a misunderstanding when you got home, didn't he?" Big Mama asked in an overly sweet tone of voice. "Oh, he straightened everything out alright," Leo replied in a cold, angry tone."Tampy-poo and Draxy-pie. And can you tell me more about these snapple berries and rock nuts?" Donny calmly commented, with his eyes down on his wrist tech inputted this new data into his app on Leo; while Raph finally cornered Mikey and was in the process of trying to pull off whatever the strange thing was that was chomping down on the poor box turtle's hand, who was whining: "Gross it's licking my fingers! Hurry uuup!""Donnie, I swear, if I ever hear those names come out of your mouth again..." "Hey Don, would give us a hand over here!?" Raph called out in an annoyed tone of voice; either not realizing or not caring that he was interrupting Leo in the process (and also not seeming to care about the angry, snarling brute of a guard dog who could turn deadly with the snap of a finger).Instead of helping them, Donnie thought this was a good time to hold up one of his 'Genius Build Apparel' business cards between his two fingers, and comment to Big Mama: "If now's a bad time I can leave this with you and you can email me stats on the Hidden City at your leisure.""Donnie, heeelllp!"Donnie likewise ignored Mikey's cries of help to calmly tell Big Mama: "I text, too. We can exchange numbers..." "Would you get that thing off Mikey's hand and stop fooling around!? This is serious!" Leo snapped in anger."Sigh, fine," Donnie finally acquiesced. He closed out of his app with an eyeroll whispered to Big Mama (who scowled at him in return): "We'll talk," and leaned ahead while stretching his arm out to leave his business card on top of her desk. Then she watched with interest as he stormed over to help the big snapper get Mikey unstuck, while complaining: "How do you keep getting yourself into these situations, Mikey!? Don't expect me to share my hand sanitizer when we get you unstuck!"Leo kept his eyes where they belonged - on the threat in front of him - as Big Mama continue looking over his shoulder at the hilarious bumbling entertainment happening inside her very own vault.Raph wrapped both arms around Mikey's shell, ordered Donnie to grab hold of the 'mystic thingy' clamped onto his hand (with the softshell complaining that he should have worn his spider shell today), and when the big snapper firmly ordered: "Pull!" he tightened his grip around the whimpering box turtle and pulled back with Donnie pulling with all his might in the opposite direction, gradually hauling off the strange mystical item with a big, long *sluuuuurp* followed by a *pop* when it finally came loose.Raph and Mikey fell back one way and Donnie fell back the other with the gold disc, that was still connected to Mikey's mucous-coated hand by a trail of thick, clear slime.Donnie abruptly dropped the item that looked like it was nothing more than a simple, slimy gold disc, grateful that he didn't get any disgusting mucus on himself, and about to reach for his hand sanitizer. That was, until Mikey emphatically exclaimed: "Eeew that's disgusting!" and vigorously shook his hand to get the thick, gloppy slime off - splattering cold globs everywhere, with a big one landing right in the middle of Donnie's face, which slowly oozed down the side of his mouth and off his chin.He urged into his hand a few times from the sensation, with the other one wrapped around his gut, in between telling himself: "Ugh, keep it dooown, Vomitello!"That was when, once again, Big Mama leaned in closer to her 'Tampy-boo' and offered: "You know, they would make fine bimbly comic relief in between matches for my splendiferous Battle Nexus if you want Big Mama take them off your hands, and no one has to ever find out about your unfortunate relation to them."Leo didn't bother replying, and that was when Mikey finally got all the gunk off his hand and walked over to stand directly behind him, where he dropped his kusari fundo when he was 'attacked.' But just after saying: "I'm alright now," and picking it up, movement coming from outside the window in Big Mama's office caught his eye.Meanwhile, poor Leo was so done with all of this chaos - that started off as nothing more than a short, one-person, in and out stealth mission to retrieve his katanas - he expressed his frustrations by grumbling in a partly irritated, partly angry, and somewhat whiny sort of voice:"Will this night neeever ennnd!?""Uh, Leo?" Mikey tentatively asked."WHAT!?" The angry slider who was quickly losing his patience snapped in reply.The youngest of the bunch pointed to the window and commented: "I don't think your night's gonna end anytime soon."Leo turned his head to look out the window, and the only thing he had time to do was widen his eyes at the sight, gasp in a sharp breath of air from surprise, and turn around to shield Mikey with his body from the shards of glass blasting into the room, when none other than Draxum burst through the window, sending shards everywhere as he rode atop the magenta and purple mutant vines he controlled, heading straight for Big Mama.The enraged warrior alchemist effectively used one of the vines to pin Big Mama's vicious, snarling attack dog to the floor when Gus lunged at him, while Leo spun back around and was froze in terror at the sight of his angry owner - who had ordered him to destroy the same turtles who were standing there with him, right now, in this very room.The three 'specimens' he wanted dead.“How many times have I told you Draxum, it’s rude to smash into someone’s office unannounced? You really must learn how to use the dimbly door!” Big Mama snapped. Draxum pointed at her with an outstretched arm and firmly replied: “How many times have I told yoou to stop interfering in my business!? Your attack on my perfectly designed warrior weakened the integrity of his natural armor, and now you’re stealing my bugs to mutate fighters for your pathetic Battle Nexus!”The fact that Draxum didn’t gesture to his 'perfectly designed warrior' in the room hinted to Leo that he hadn’t been spotted yet, and perhaps there was still hope for him and his brothers to escape the powerful warrior's wrath.If only he could tear his eyes away from his cruel owner and get his feet to move for him!While that was happening, Donnie smugly grinned at Raph and commented: “Oh look at that, she's not using the bugs to help us she wants them to mutate humans for her Battle Nexus. If only there was, oh I don't know, a ruggishly handsome, intelligent turtle who could have passed along a warning about her.”“You are a poor winner, Donnie,” Raph flatly replied."Uh, guys?" Mikey said, while pointing at the aggressively snarling yokai dog - who was thrashing around, biting and tearing into the vine pinning him to the floor, getting dangerously close to freeing himself."Get outta here, I'll grab Leo, we'll be right behind you," Raph ordered.Donnie and Mikey nodded their heads in agreement before making their way to Big Mama's open office door, while Raph went in the opposite direction, to grab their other brother, Leo.“C’mon Leo, the way out’s open, hurry up before Gus chews outta…Leo?” He stared at the petrified slider in confusion, who he noticed for the first time was frozen from fear with his eyes firmly locked on the goat yokai standing atop a vine, arguing with Big Mama like they were an old married couple.Which prompted Mikey - who was standing in Big Mama's open office doorway - to lean his face closer to Donnie's head, and whisper to him: "Are they a family or something?" with Donnie replying: "That would explain the pet dog and this whole 'Auntie-Tampy-Draxy' thing," as he clicked at his wrist tech, adding new questions he wanted answers to, to a 'My New Dummy Brother' app he madeMeanwhile on the other side of the room, Raph snapped Leo out of the supor he was in when he put his hand on his brother's shoulder and said his name again. The highly skilled warrior ninja's almost instantaneous response was to act on his overwhelming desire to keep his three brothers safe and alive, so he leaned in very close to Raph - hoping Draxum wouldn't hear him through his and Big Mama's loud argument - and sternly (quietly) ordered: "Take our brothers and get out of here, now! I'll distract Draxum.""We're not leaving without you, Leo. We do this to-ge-ther," Raph sternly hissed back."Oh yeah, cuz that worked real good when I came here to get my katanas! And he doesn't want me dead, dummy, he wants..."Leo abruptly stopped his sentence and whipped his head forward, when he felt a pair of cold, angry eyes settle on him.Draxum’s cold, angry eyes to be precise.The petrified slider thought flames would burst from Draxum’s eyes any second with the furious rage he saw staring back at him peacefully standing beside one of the three turtle specimens he was directly ordered to kill on sight - with Raph gazing back and forth between the two of them with a mixture of worry and confusion.“Heh,” Leo nervously laughed with a shaky smile on his face. He raised his left hand to show off the katana in his grip, and said: “I got my swords back, boss.”Without warning, a giant mutant vine came right at him and Raph. But it slammed into the wall instead of hitting the two mutant turtles, because they fell through a big portal Leo opened by pure instinct; leaving Donnie and Mikey behind to deal with Draxum, Big Mama, and Gus, who had almost chewed his way out of the slippery, slimy vine.The exit portal materialized in the air about ten feet above the roof of Big Mama’s Grand Nexus hotel, and Leo landed on his feet and rolled out of the way of the unsuspecting snapper, who came out directly behind him to fall flat on his back.Leo ignored Raph’s groans and: “Where are we?” to quickly sheathe his katana, so he could tightly grasp the hilt of the mystic odachi with both hands and shake it in front of his face. “Come on come ooon, get Raph out of here!" he yelled at his sword; to no avail. Then he looked up from the shiny metal blade to his big brother, and cried out in a panic: "Where are those two bozo brothers of ours!?"Raph opened his mouth to reply but was cut off when Draxum burst up through the roof on his vines, right between them, forcing Raph one way and Leo the other.At first, Draxum motioned to go after the big snapper, but he stopped and whipped around when Leo cried out in desperation:"NO! Don't HURT him!"Instantly, the slider was knocked off his feet onto his back by a vine with an: "Oof!" and he stared up at Draxum’s furious face, petrified. In fact, he was so dazed from fear he made absolutely no motion to defend himself or dodge away when another vine ripped the odachi right out of his hand, and then a third one slammed his body across the roof and against the parapet so hard Leo didn’t know if the crunching sound he heard was the concrete or the crack in the weakened, injured spot on his carapace reopening.(Judging by the new sharp pain in the center of his back, it was at the very least a little of both)Leo’s ears were ringing so loudly he didn't hear Raph’s desperate: “Leo!” and without really knowing how it happened, the very next second he was dangling over the edge of the building, hanging by an ever-tightening vine around his throat. He gasped and grasped at the vine to try and ease some of the pressure of his body weight that was pulling down on his head and neck; but it was hard to get a purchase on the slipppery surface.Once he had done the best he could, he looked down at the street far, far below, with his vision doubling from the scary sight, before putting his eyes on Draxum.
“Let my brother go!” Raph demanded.“Not literally!” Leo gasped out in a hoarse voice under the crushing grip slowly but steadily closing off his airway.Draxum prominently held the mystic odachi in one hand for his disobedient slave to see, glanced down to look over the edge of the parapet, and then looked at Leo with a cheeky grin.'Uh oh,' the dangling slider thought, knowing what that look meant. One way or another, he was going to be dropped off the building as part of his punishment for spending his time above ground making brotherly bonds with the mutant experiments he was supposed to kill on sight."Oh, brotherly loyalty," Draxum said, oozing sarcasm without taking his eyes off his disobedient slave; and making clear his view of his slave's choice. Leo gasped and tried to cling on tighter to the vine when it squeezed around his neck a little more, and the warrior scientist continued - still keeping his eyes on his turtle, even though he was addressing the snapper behind him:"But my bugs are important to you as well. Which one will you choose?"In his hoarse, raspy voice from the tightening grip around his throat, Leo exclaimed: “Just give him the bugs! *cough, cough* And get out of here! *cough cough cough*,” before pointing his eyes down again; this time to get a good estimate of his plan for survival when Draxum inevitably let him go.Whether or not Raph handed over the bugs, Leo knew he was going to be dropped off the building and have to rely on his skills and training to stop himself from becoming a spatter of roadkill far, far below; but he also knew that handing over the bugs peacefully and bolting exponentially increased Raph’s (and by extension Donnie's and Mikey's) chances of survival.But apparently Raph had other plans.Leo's eyes widened from a mixture of fright and shock and he stared, dumbfounded, at the inexperienced ninja 'action star hero wannabe' when Raph confidently replied: “I’m not giving him the bugs. These villains are all talk. He ain't gonna…” “Okay.”One instant Leo was clinging onto a slippery vine wound tightly around his neck, and the next he was surrounded by nothing but thin air.One instance Raph was grinning smugly over his misplaced confidence, and the next he stared into the wide-eyed gaze of his red-eared slider brother, just before the vine unwound and Leo disappeared below the rooftop, to plummet to the cold, hard streets below."NOO!” Raph cried out in terror. He abruptly dropped the jar of oozesquitoes to rush to the edge in a fearful panic, and joined Draxum in gazing down at Leo - who was hanging off a pointy gargoyle horn, only held up by his cape, that he held tightly in his turtle grip with all his might.The turtle slave looked up at Draxum and yelled: “Ha! You said my cloak would get in the way! Who’s laughing n…” *riiip* “Uh oh.”Draxum smiled when Leo fell two feet because his cloak ripped under the weight of his body and heavy shell. Then he turned away, picked up the jar of oozesquitoes, opened the lid to release them, and calmly left through his portal with the mystic odachi.Leo grabbed his cape, having pulled himself up just far enough to be able to cling on with his hands and knees for dear life - but when he tried to climb up the cape like a rope to the gargoyle's ledge, he heard another rip and lost his grip with his legs when he fell some more.“Leo!” Raph cried out. “What’s the matter with you!?” Leo angrily yelled. He pulled himself up as far as he could; and this time his cloak didn’t rip.“This isn’t one of your fictional action hero movies, it’s real life!” he continued. The ledge the gargole was sitting atop was almost in reach; his fingers came less than two inches below his salvation......if only he could......reach......a little......further...“Don’t you know Draxum could've…” *riiiiip* "Whaa!" "Leo!"Leo fell another foot and he grabbed hold of his cape for dear life once again. Raph stretched his hand out for his dangling brother, as though that would do anything from as far away as they were, while sweat beaded on the slider’s head as he gazed down to get his bearings straight so he was prepared to save himself if he couldn’t reach the ledge before his cape tore all the way.“I’m sorry Leo, just hang on!” Raph called out in a panic. “WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE I’M DOING!!! ” Leo yelled in an even more panic-stricken voice.*Rriiipp.*Leo’s cloak was almost ripped all the way through. There was no way he could reach the ledge now, so he looked down instead, getting mentally prepared for plan B.He knew he would be going far too fast to be able to grab onto something and stop himself, but he could use his momentum to swing off another gargoyle below him, to change his trajectory, sending him toward the flag pole - which couldn't hold the full weight of his mutant turtle body without snapping off but would make the perfect tool to grab onto, spin around, and let go at just the right angle to send him in one of the two trees in front of Big Mama's hotel.He didn’t doubt that the spindly branches wouldn’t be strong enough to stop his descent, and he would get scraped, bruised, and pretty banged up along the way, but it would be enough to slow his fall so that he didn’t die - with a high likelihood of walking away without any broken bones, reopening any more closed cracks in his shell, or receiving one of those concussions he seemed to be so adept at getting.Then it happened all too fast…...the cape tore all the way…...Raph called out his name one last time in desperation as he helplessly watched his brother plummeted to almost certain death......and then something so insanely unpredictable occurred that Leo had absolutely no way to foresee or prepare for it.Something that totally ruined all his plans for survival.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A flash of red engulfed Leo’s vision and he looked up to see Raph in the middle of a giant red mystic forcefield body.The dumb-dumb had thrown himself right off the roof!Leo had to completely abandon his escape plan because Raph blocked his access to the flag pole from the gargoyle. There was no time to come up with a contingency plan; now his life was literally in the hands of his big brother - whether he lived or died was solely dependant on whether or not Raph could catch him before he face-planted the cement sidewalk ‘road-kill’ style.And catch him he did - mystic ninja hero style!"Sa-ving like a boss!" Raph loudly proclaimed as he very dramatically shot his way past Leo.But - as Leo repeatedly insisted to himself - he didn't need saving, and he hated the vulnerability this situation brought with it.The oversized mystic Raph form landed with the real one smack dab in the middle, and Leo subsequently landed in his surprisingly soft, giant glowing hands - feeling a little dazed and shook up from that unwanted adventure.Just as suddenly as it appeared, the red ninpo form popped out of existence, and both Raph and Leo were left behind, hovering around eight to ten feet in the air, before plummeting to the hard sidewalk - with the slider having just barely enough sense after that surprisingly unexpected dumb-dumb move to twist his body so he landed hard on his right side and arm instead of on his injured carapace.“Oof!” was the only grunt of pain Leo involuntarily let out from the rough impact. His shell hurt worse than before with a sharp, throbbing pain in the center, and he was really quite sure the crack he heard on the roof was his compromised shell cracking and not the concrete parapet he was slammed into by Draxum’s vine.“Leo!” came Mikey's panicked voice. He and Donnie ran out the back door of Big Mama’s hotel sometime between after Draxum threw Leo off the building and Raph broke his fall.Leo pushed himself up off the ground in the alley behind Big Mama’s hotel, wiped himself off, and grumbled: “Is that what skydiving’s like? Because I don’t get it.”“Leo! You’re ok!”Mikey grabbed Leo in a a tight hug, but he didn’t hug him back, and his mind was far, far away. Draxum took the odachi he was supposed to train with and left. That could only mean one thing.He was expected to report back to his currently furious owner for a (no doubt) harsh punishment, without delay.The fear made anger surge up, and he pulled away from Mikey to take that anger out on the first available target.The turtle who saved his life got in his way.He gestured vividly up to the roof with two outstretched hands and yelled: “Who throws themselves off a roof!? Did you even know your ninpo would do that!?”Everyone stared at Leo in shock at his bad attitude. But he wasn’t done yet and his voice oozed disgust when he clenched his fists, glared at his big brother, and yelled: “I had it, Raph! I can handle myself, I don't need yoooou to swoop in and save me like I'm nothing more than one of those weak humans!""It didn't look like you 'had it' to me," Donnie muttered under his breath (with appropriate air quotes, of course). In reply, Leo switched his anger to the softshell and yelled: "None of this would've happened in the first place if you three didn't follow me through my portal into Big Mama’s office!" He gestured out with his hand as though he was pointing to something that wasn't there, and loudly continued his angry rant with the words:"I'd be sleeping in bed by now if it wasn't for you three ninja wannabes getting in my way and messing up everything!" Then in an angry but somewhat desperate, fearful sort of voice he accidentally blurted out in the heat of anger: "I would've been in and out before Draxum showed up and found out about this whole situation if it wasn't for you!""What whole situation?" Mikey asked timidly, while twiddling with his fingers. Donnie raised one eyebrow and Raph crossed his arms, both of them waiting for an answer like their youngest brother; but Leo realized his mistake so instead of replying, he pinched the skin between his eyes in frustration and said a quiet but angry: "This isn't one of your fictional movies, you three could've died tonight, don't you understand that?"In a calm but yet somehow firm tone of voice, Donnie countered with: "It didn't look like we were the ones Draxum wanted dead tonight."Leo flopped his arm down and dropped the angry undertone in his voice. Although he still sounded a little frustrated, this time his voice carried an air of fondness when he made eye contact with Donnie and said: "I had it under control and Draxum knew that. I can handle myself, like how I've handled myself all on my own just fine before you three bozos came into my life."That was when Mikey took the wind out of Leo’s sails when he surprised - no shocked - their long-lost brother with his empathetic, tender words:“But you're not alone anymore and you don’t have to handle things all by yourself, because you got us now.”Leo’s angry expression softened. He didn’t know what to think or how to feel after hearing such an incredibly heartfelt statement like that thrown his way. Then he was surprised even more when his other two 'bozo ninja wannabe' brothers expressed the same sentiment in their own ways.“Yeah, you got us now, Leo. We got each others backs. You don't have to be alone ever again,” Raph told him with a smile, and Donnie nodded his head in agreement.Leo stared at Raph, dumbfounded, and - more on autopilot than anything else - he let out a flat: “Yeah. I'm not alone anymore."The words were foreign to his tongue and sounded strange to his ears; but felt right in his heart, making him smile just a little from the warmth he felt inside.Mikey and Raph's smile grew, and even Donnie looked at him with a smile that appeared to be just as genuine as their other two brothers.But that heartfelt brotherly bonding moment was abruptly over when that nagging voice in in the back of Leo’s mind reminded him that Draxum took his odachi and was expecting him home post haste to retrieve it face his punishment like a warrior.“I . . .”Everyone continued smiling at him, expecting him to finish with a heartfelt apology for his attitude and an expression of gratitude - perhaps followed by their very first complete, four-turtle, brotherly group hug (and maybe he would even decide to leave that hard Hidden City life behind and go home with them).“...gotta go smooth things over with Draxum.”All their faces fell simultaneously, and Leo abruptly spun around with the intent of rushing to the Hidden City portal he needed that would spit him out in front of Draxum’s house.“Leo are you crazy!?” Raph called out to him. “Draxum tried to kill you!”In response, Leo slowed down his pace long enough to turn around and walk backwards, so he could face his brothers with his relaxed crooked grin and his hands casually held out to the sides, like this was just another ‘run of the mill’ night in the life of the Hidden City raised creation of Baron Draxum.(And it kind of was)“Like I said, I had it under control!” he told them in a pleasant-sounding voice. “Draxum trained me, he knows what I can do!” Then Donnie lowered his goggles down over his eyes and followed where the slider was pointing when Leo pointed up to a gargoyle and told them: "Off that goyle, around the flag pole, and into that tree."While Donnie was hyperfocused on using his tech goggles to calculate the trajectory, speed, wind velocity, etc, Leo gave them a pleasant wave good bye and a: “Catch ya later!” before spinning around to continue his sprint to the portal he needed.While finishing his final calculations he was fully absorbed in, the oblivious genius of the family commented: "That . . . would have worked." He raised the goggles while turning around to address Leo - who was already gone - and said: "Although you would have gotten banged up... and he's gone."Just after Leo turned the corner out of sight but hopefully not out of hearing range, Mikey thought of something, cupped his hands on either side of his mouth, and yelled: “Why was he mad at you!?” . . . “LEO! WHY WAS DRAXUM MAD AT YOU!!?”He was met with nothing but silence.Raph and Mikey continued staring down the street where Leo just disappeared, hoping he would change his mind and come back, while Donnie was looking down at his wrist tech that he was clicking on, bringing up the tracker he managed to discreetly stick on Leo's shell at some point.When they realized he wasn’t coming back, the big snapper crossed his arms in front of his chest, furrowed his brows in worry, and said: “Raph doesn’t like this.” “Do you think we should follow him? To… to make sure he’s ok?” Mikey asked.‘Yes,’ the big brother/leader of the Mad Dogs family team thought and wanted to say, but didn’t. Instead, when he opened his mouth, he replied: “No. Leo wasn’t worried, sooo, we shouldn’t be, right? And, uh, he seemed pretty mad that we followed him through his portal to help..." "And get my tech back," Donnie casually piped up without taking his eyes off his screen. Raph simply glanced at him before continuing."We don't wanna push him away after we just got him back. Right?" he asked, seeking reassurance that he was making the right ‘leader’ decision. Mikey continued gazing down the street with him - feeling just as unsure and uneasy as the snapper was - and said an uncertain-sounding: “Uhhh, I guess?”Raphael absently nodded his head and told him: “Yeah. Raph doesn’t wanna lose him again. Leo needs his space,” before trying to reassure himself by repeating his previous phrase - but in a bland, monotone this time: "Leo wasn't worried, so we shouldn't be."“If you say so,” Mikey replied in just as uncertain of a voice as the look on his and his big brother's faces.Then Donnie abruptly got their attention when he unexpectedly yelled: “Offline!?” The techy softshell flopped his hands down and loudly groaned: “That’s the third one! How does he keep finding them!?”“Howdoeswhofindwhatnow?” Raph blurted out. Donnie ignored him to click at his touch screen, inputting notes for a new tracker design he wanted to work on, while muttering to himself: "That's it, I'm going subcutaneous. The design itself is simple enough and I already have schematics and the supplies I need in my lab. The challenge comes in finding a quick, efficient, non-irritating way to inject the..."When Dee finally sensed two pairs of eyes on him, he looked up to see Mikey and Raph's stern, angry faces staring straight at him."Inject the what, Don?" Raph firmly asked.Without missing a beat, Donnie put his eyes back on his wrist tech and continued clicking at it while calmly saying: "Only a brilliant new design for a piece of subcutaneous tech I plan to begin work on tonight. One that will bypass the epidermis and fit snugly in the subdermis layer of the organic symbiotic host organism. Would you like to hear more about it?"Very emphatically, Mikey let out a long, firm: "Nooooooo," at the same time Raph nervously scratched the back of his head and stuttered out: "Uh, maybe next time. I, uh, I think I hear Pops calling my name."Donnie smugly grinned to himself at the genius (if he did say so himself) way he was able to detract from that potentially uncomfortable conversation. Then just as he clicked out of an app he had open on his touchscreen, dozens of Big Mama’s cronies began pouring out of the back door of her hotel, coming after them.“It’s time to go,” Raph urged. The three ninjas rushed away to head back home to their hidden sewer lair, and went out of sight just before the angry Big Mama came out to join her minion.* * *When he exited the portal across from Draxum’s house, Leo saw two human-looking yokai coming out of his boss's front door, walking toward him.He knew they were yokai and not humans, not because of the giant red footprint on each of their faces (that could have been drawn on or tattoos) but, rather, the mystic red fire hovering above each one's head.Brothers, most likely; despite the fact one was short and somewhat spindly, and the other was a big muscular brute.They locked eyes with each other and silently walked past on the rock bridge; not exchanging pleasantries of any kind or trying to hide the fact they were staring at - examining - one another.There was something creepy about them Leo did not like.After they passed and were behind his back, Leo rolled his shoulders to release some of the pent-up tension he was feeling - not only from their presence, but also from this whole situation he found himself in - and walked up to Draxum’s front double doors (really wishing he was there to go to sleep in his soft, warm bed). Then he reached for one of the handles to pull the door open and went inside to face his fate - not giving further thought to the two creeps who had no doubt made some sort of deal with his powerful alchemist boss - because he had more important things to deal with right now.After closing the door, Leo stood in the doorway and gazed inside the dark and very, very quiet house.“Hel-looo! Draaa-xum!? Are you there!?”There was no answer, but he could see down the dark hall that the only dim light was shining from the training room on the far right. So clearly that was where he was supposed to report for whatever punishment would be dished out for his disobedience.Leo swallowed down his nervousness, gazed around above his head, checking for any traps Draxum might have activated in preparation for his disobedient slave's return, and then crept down the hallway toward the only light source; feeling a deepening sense of dread and fear of impending doom all along the way.When he got near the entrance to the training room, he unclipped his mask from his hip and took off his ripped cape because he knew Draxum wouldn’t allow them for what came next, while hoping his warrior alchemist boss wouldn't exploit his obvious weak point where the bandage lay smack dab over the worst of the injuries on his shell.Leo unsheathed both katanas, readying himself for one of Draxum’s inpromptu ‘training’ sessions (which was really the currently angry yokai impressing a lesson into his slave the hard - aka painful - way), by taking two quick breaths in and out through his mouth before jumping in front of the entrance to Draxum’s training room - swords out at the ready.But no one was there.Which was even worse because of what was there, and what that indicated.The entire room had been completely emptied of all the training equipment, weights, fighting dummies everything; and even the normally weapon-lined walls were bare, save for one item......which was prominently displayed on a wall mount straight across from the ninja turtle, with the only source of light in the entire big area being a spotlight cutting through the darkness and shining down from the ceiling onto it.The mystic odachi.All of this painted a grim picture that could only mean one thing.Leo was expected to engage in a mystic battle. Portal v portal. Draxum’s expertise with his yokai portals against Leo’s new budding ninpo.The second he laid his hand on the hilt of the odachi, his ‘training’ would begin.The biggest problem of all with this setup was that right now, with all the stress he was under, it felt like his warm ninpo ‘electricity’ was doing exactly what he wished he could do at this very moment:curl up in a tight ball and cry himself to sleep.Leo gazed around the room, making sure the coast was clear and he wouldn’t be ‘greeted’ by any nasty surprises the second he stepped past the threshold.With a few nervous laughs thrown in that seemed to come out on their own, Leo pressed his luck by calling out: “Hey Draaaxum! Heh heh…” He gazed around some more before sheathing both katanas, knowing he would be expected to at least start the fight with the one and only mystic odachi, and go from there.“I came to get the odachi like you waanted! I’ll just grab it and get out of your sight, okay!?”No response. The room continued eerily quiet.“Eugh boi, I’m in trouble,” he muttered under his breath; thinking that maybe hiding out in New York until his harsh owner’s rage subsided would have been a much better option. But he had gone too far past the point of no return now.Actually, scratch that idea, adding the cowardly disobedience of not coming home to ‘face his punishment like a warrior’ - like was clearly expected of him - would have only added to Draxum’s fury over the whole ‘making brotherly bonds with the experiments he was suppose to exterminate’, resulting in a much more sinister fate when his warrior alchemist yokai owner in high places eventually tracked him down and literally had him dragged home to the dungeon where all the torture devices were located.At least this way he had a fighting chance to be able to defend himself - and if he did meet his untimely demise, he would go out with honor, like a true ninja warrior.Unless the ‘training’ session was only a warm up for the real punishment awaiting him in Draxum’s dungeon basement.The thought sent a chill up his spine, and Leo decided he had lingered long enough so stepped into the room, stopping briefly to gaze around once more, just in case something came at him from out of nowhere.Nothing happened.. . .Yet.So Leo continued walking discreet-ninja-style straight to his Draxum’s odachi.When he got to the other side of the room, he stood in front of the odachi, within reach; but instead of grabbing it right away he loosened the tight muscles in his hands and arms by wiggling his fingers while staring at it.It didn’t matter that doing this meant he was standing back-on to the room, because he was so alert that all his heightened ninja senses were ablaze with activity; meaning he was so acutely aware of his surroundings that if even as much as a teeny tiny spider scuttled across any one of the walls, in an instant it’s little life would be over with a shuriken launched at it with pinpoint accuracy.(an above ground animal that was common in the Hidden City, along with rats and pigeons that somehow made it through the secret yokai portals in abundance)The sudden distracting thought of doing that to a bug-sized version of the traitorous Big Mama was pushed away just as quickly as it entered his mind; and Leo took deep, purposeful breaths, readying himself to hastily grab the odachi - thus signaling the start of the fight.He stared intently at the shiny blade of the sword hanging on the wall in front of his face, took in one final deep breath, and on the slow exhale through his mouth he reached up for the hilt of his odachi so the ‘training’ could begin.The very same instant Leo's hand made contact with the hilt, the light went out......leaving him in total darkness.. . .But not for long.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A pitch-black room.A flash of light.A magenta portal.Draxum came out, both arms up to the elbows covered in the impenetrable magenta yokai armor he activated with his mystic powers, like how Leo had mystic vision. The left one ended in the usual clawed fingers, but the claws on the right one were three times longer than usual, for better reach.He meant business.An attack from behind Leo’s left side.He spun around just in time to raise his sword and block.Another flash. Draxum was gone.Leo did a one-eighty and was ready for the next portal-boosted attack behind his back.He blocked again.The blade of his sword crackled and popped with blue ninpo electricity, but nothing more happened.Another flash.Another portal.Leo was stuck spinning in place, blocking swift attack after attack after attack with the same speed and accuracy Draxum was striking; bouncing through his magenta portals so quickly from one place to another Leo was beginning to feel dizzy with the frequency he had to continually spin around in place.But he couldn’t get out without the use of his portals, which weren’t working for him. The only thing he ever accomplished were a few weak sparks of blue lightening down the length of his blade that did nothing but contribute to the blindingly dizzy array of flashes all around him in the dark room.He was getting frustrated - no enraged - with his own ineptitude; so much so he felt the sharp tingle of electricity on his face when blue sparks flashed from the outside edges of his eyes.A rare occurrence among mystically blessed yokai, indicating a higher than average level of mystical energy.His anger was compounded when, while blocking with his odachi, he reached his left hand down for the katana on his right hip, only to have it ripped out of his hand by a mutant vine when it was less than one third of the way unsheathed; and subsequently sent spinning across the floor, along with the katana that was snatched out of its sheath on his left hip in like manner.That was breaking an unspoken rule that only physical prowess and mystical powers were allowed, but the vine also sent a clear message that Leo wasn’t permitted to use anything other than the singular mystic odachi in his right hand.Which explained why Draxum was only ever attacking with the long claws on his right hand - to even the playing field. Giving Leo a glimmer of hope that Draxum’s intention wasn’t to maim or mortally wound him right this moment, but that this particular fight was really meant as a training session to test out the mystic abilities of his slave, as opposed to his punishment.Which would come later.Leo knew that in Draxum's eyes, weak mystic abilities meant weak training even though that couldn't be further from the truth.He would draw the wrong conclusion that his slave had been disobeying the direct command to train.Explaining that training with his powers was exceedingly difficult for him and progress was slow would only be viewed as an excuse worth intensifying his punishment. Leo kept blocking, the blue sparks kept crackling, portals kept flashing, Draxum kept attacking without actually landing any blows thanks to the ninja turtle's enhanced mutant reflexes and skills in battle.“Defend yourself!” came the harsh demand.Meaning: ‘defend yourself with your portals!’When only blue sparks once again met his next attempt, Leo cried out in anger, and his growl-like yell was instantly followed by a two-foot-wide bolt of blue ninpo electricity zapping out from his feet, across the floor all the way to the wall, where it spread halfway up as hundreds of tiny bolts of blue electricity spreading out like a fan, at the same instant Leo teleported in front of it in a bright flash of blue light, facing the threat.The lightning fizzing behind his back and under his feet cast a deep shadow on his now-menacing turtle frame; with a dim glow he wasn’t aware of (and Draxum didn't understand the significance of) coming from the Hamato family crest hovering in front of his chest.Tiny blue sparks of electricity lit up around the edges of the mutant turtle eyes that were staring straight at Draxum, which the yokai alchemist noticed for the first time, and understood the significance of.As fast as it happened, the flash of blue lightning was gone, leaving the room in total darkness once more, save for the dim blue symbol on Leo's chest that looked very much like a five-sliced pepperoni pizza.He didn’t look down to see what it was. Instead he kept his eyes straight ahead in the darkness, where he knew - could sense - Draxum was standing, until long after the dim blue light faded away into nothing.The goat yokai alchemist was so impressed by this unexpectedly powerful display of his marvel of creation, he held back from his next attack; weighing the options of what would be the best course of action to take from here.Leo could feel his ninpo coursing through his body; like he was electrified.Like it was being pumped from his heart into every artery, vein, capillary, and even infused into every cell of his being - his very essence was alive with ninpo energy such as he had never felt before.(With such ninpo power as Draxum had never seen before)He felt like he could do anything.. . .Anything.By nothing more than the force of his will, blue sparks of ninpo electricity came alive from below his feet - both feet, even his prosthetic. He knew because he could feel his left leg all the way down to and including his rubber-padded metallic foot and toes. How? He didn’t know and now wasn’t the time to ponder over such things, but the left prosthetic leg was just as alive and real as the flesh and blood right one.Or, at least, it felt as alive.In under four seconds more blue electricity jolted across the floor, shot up the walls, and spread through the ceiling to make contact with each and every one of the lights.They all flickered on the same instant the electrified blue ninpo disappeared, revealing Draxum standing near the middle of the room where Leo just was; and a singed, two-foot-wide, zigzaged lighting bolt-shaped black mark etched into the shiny floor, connecting where Draxum was standing to where he was standing.Leo didn’t know it yet, but behind his back the white wall was contrasted by a fan-shaped black pattern likewise burnt into it.The ninja turtle kept his eyes firmly fixed on Draxum, who was standing up straight in a non-threatening pose, with his arms down by his sides and a serene look of wonder on his face.Leo had been skillfully trained in the art of deception - both using it and being aware of it in his surroundings - and Draxum never looked at him like that. He assumed this calm posture was nothing more than a ruse, and knew better than to let his guard down. So he kept his perfectly-engineered warrior’s body tense, tightly gripping the hilt of his sword at the ready - and although he knew he could quite easily do so in a literal flash of light, he held back from going on the offensive because he was specifically ordered to defend himself.And despite everything, Leo respected Draxum as much as he admired his ingenuity, intelligence, strength, might, and - most of all - his unwavering conviction to do right for all yokai-kind; for everyone living on the earth.Sure there was some blood spilt along the way; but the end justified the means. Right?Something deep down in Leo's heart that he continually pushed away over the years (and had gotten louder since coming in contact with his brothers) told him 'no'.In many ways, the yokai-raised mutant strove to be like his master, mentor, trainer, teacher, and father-figure; the great Baron Draxum.Many, but not all, as would be made plainly evident before the end of this very night.Draxum watched as the turtle he only knew as X - Experiment Alpha 002-2 - maintained strict eye-to-eye contact while readjusting his grip on the hilt of his impressive mystic energy channeling sword.Draxum looked him up and down, and while Leo awaited his owner's next move, he gently wiggled his fingers on his left hand, with tiny blue sparks of ninpo electricity lighting up around the tips; along with a limited few smaller sparks coming from the corners of his eyes once more.His ‘bring it. I can handle anything right now’ determined stare never once broke away from Draxum's gaze. And in a calm, confident, yet respectful tone of voice, Leo told him: “I’m ready to defend myself, boss.”To the empowered ninja turtle’s great surprise, a smile broke out on the warrior yokai’s face, and he echoed the words Leo heard him say to his very own brothers the day they broke into his lab (words he had never spoke to his slave), when he let out an impressed-sounding: “Accidentally impressive.”That surprisingly unexpected remark got Leo to relax - to let his guard down. Praise critical observations were only ever given after a training session was completed from start to the (often bitter) end, usually after many grueling hours.Under normal circumstances, Leo would have wondered why his mystic training was cut short, but nothing was ‘normal’ about this whole situation.Draxum casually walked toward his red-eared slider creation, retracting the mystic yokai powers on his left arm and hand to gesture with it, but putting his clawed right hand behind his back - which was a common stance for him. Not suspicious at all, considering he seemed to have fully retracted the powers on that arm as well; as far as Leo could see.And his mind was put more at ease when Draxum gave a plausible reason for cutting his training short.“I assume damaging my floor and wall was purely accidental,” the warrior scientist said in an upbeat, almost happy (still impressed-sounding) tone, while he steadily walked closer.Leo turned his head and looked at the wall behind his back, to witness the sight of electric-like black marks burned into the surface - fanning out from the bottom halfway up to the top and looking very much like the tropical fan coral Draxum routinely purchased from one of his long-distance, above-ground yokai contacts, as part of a base ingredient for some of his experiments.“Oh,” Leo said at the sight, not having realized until now that he - very much accidentally - did that. He turned his head to face his boss and mentor once more, not concerned by the damage he unintentionally left behind because it clearly didn’t bother Draxum; and then he couldn’t help but smile a little at the warm words of commendation and approval he heard.“With a little focus and training, you will become a formidable opponent to any who oppose us. One strong enough to fight by my side against those who stubbornly resist my work when my life’s goal has come to fruition and we make this world a better place for all.”‘By my side? We make this world a better place?’ To Leo, those words reflected the fact that Draxum was actually-for-real including him as a future equal for the very first time ever in the lowly turtle slave’s life.Leo’s heart fluttered in his chest from the overwhelming excitement of it all, adding to the pleasant warmth of the flowing ninpo he could feel freely circulating throughout his body, and the overall positive atmosphere in the room.Things were finally beginning to look up for the mistreated slave of the great Baron Draxum!He had his brothers.Was in the company of real-life (ex) pirates who took him under their wings.Had a feisty (spicy) fox to playfully antagonize and banter (argue) with.Was out from under Big Mama’s deceptive ‘care’ and her horribly bloody Battle Nexus, with the promise of never having to return again.And now he finally had the one thing he had been longing for his entire short, miserable life:The approval of the only father he ever knew.Maybe now Draxum would call off his 'kill on sight' command against his other three mutant creations.Maybe X would even be declared a son and given an honorable name this very night, like Draxum promised all those years ago!The thought thrilled Leo’s senses, and the injuries to his shell and how he sustained them paled in comparison to all of this!Draxum stopped his approach and stood in place once he was only a few short feet in front of his mutant creation.(Easily within striking distance)He kept his right hand tucked up behind the small of his back and put his left one out, palm-side up, indicating he expected Leo to hand over the odachi.Draxum was right-handed.Leo dared to let his smile grow and handed out his sword to let the impressed-looking yokai look it over.Draxum accepted it and twisted and turned the curved sword in front of his face, calmly inspecting every inch in the same manner he inspected rare, unique, valuable, and expensive items when he was deciding whether they were worth purchasing or not.Then, alluding to the other three mystical weapons he obtained along with this odachi, Draxum calmly told his turtle creation: “These weapons are made of the finest and rarest material in existence.”He continued meticulously looking over the sharp, shiny blade as he spoke.“They were one and all forged together in the mines of Maroseth by the highly skilled mystically gifted dwarf-yokai race. They are quite unique as they were imbued with mystical properties at their creation, rather than after, which is how most yokai artifacts are typically crafted. This and the other three are all priceless, one-of-a-kind, hand forged weapons. The uniquely crafted blade of this particular item is incredibly deadly, even able to pierce through heavy armor."The naturally armored turtle warrior should have taken that as a threat.He didn't.Draxum calmly continued."Only one of each exist in the world. They can never be duplicated or replaced."Draxum was alluding to the two weapons his ‘failed’ experiments stole from him on the night they came to his home, interfered in his business, and set him back in his work by destroying his lab.It was another subtle threat Leo should have picked up on but missed; partly because of Draxum’s pleasant attitude, and all because of his overwhelming sense of pride and accomplishment over his powers, that were so impressive it prompted Draxum to take notice and even see him as a potential equal one day.But for some reason he couldn’t explain or understand, his ninpo instinctively and gradually began retracting in on itself; like a ravenclaw chick curling up in the bottom of its nest among the warm downy feathers of its mother, to protectively conceal itself at the first sign of any threat.Because his subconscious was warning him: ‘danger!’That last calm, unassuming remark was a direct threat to him, for his disobedience in forging brotherly bonds with the ones who so foolishly made themselves enemies when they stole from Draxum and put themselves between him and his life’s work.But Leo foolishly blinded his eyes to the warning signs in lieu of basking in Draxum’s (deceptive) commendation and praise.“I wonder if it’s possible for you to have reached the point in your training where you are capable of using your powers without the use of a mystical weapon?”Draxum looked up from the shiny blade to cast his eyes on Leo. With nothing more than a nod of his head, he instructed his slave to try. But considering he felt that his ninpo had already retreated halfway up his arms and leg - and he could no longer feel his left leg past where the flesh-and-blood part ended - Leo doubted that even with the odachi he could manage more than a tiny portal to fit his hand through and scratch an itch on his back.As expected, when he tried, nothing at all happened.Draxum shifted his gaze from the turtle back to the blade he was holding up horizontally between him and Leo. “Hmm. Keep practicing. It will come. . . . With time.”The entire atmosphere in the room shifted at the very moment Draxum spoke those last two deceptively calm, yet menacing and authoritative words.Leo’s ninpo retreated all the way inside his chest, to protectively curl up in a tight ball that refused to come out.And his muscles tensed even more than his tight ninpo.The goat yokai never took his eyes off the odachi blade, but Leo ‘opened' his eyes to finally see that his harsh owner’s calm exterior was a facade.One hiding a very dark danger lurking inside.The slider nervously swallowed and cast his eyes down to join Draxum in looking at the incredibly sharp blade of the deadly 'armor piercing' (shell piercing) weapon in his hand.The blade Draxum angled in such a way to ensured his disobedient slave could see the reflection of his own two terrified eyes gazing back at himself.Leo shot his eyes up from the blade to look at Draxum’s face.Draxum was staring straight at him now.The room went cold.Or maybe that was Leo’s blood running cold.The visual thought of being pierced through by the sharp blade of his very own weapon numbed his mind, sent his ninpo into a panicked frenzy of a tight ball inside his chest, and made his body break out in a cold sweat......with the one and only thought that he could process in his numb mind being:‘What a dishonorable way to die.’
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
*Slash*“Aaaugh!”Leo instantly fell to his knees.Draxum tossed the odachi behind his back like it was a piece of refuse.The injured ninja covered his face with his hands. Blood pooled in the palms, seeped out from the cracks between his fingers, and ran down his arms.“You never scarred my face before!” Leo bitterly cried out in anguish of heart.The slider’s blood dripped off the tips of the three triple-long claws at the end of Draxum’s armored right hand; and a calm, stern, cold-hearted response was thrown back at him.“You never gave me a reason before.”Leo kept his head down; his disfigured face covered.Blood dripped off his elbows onto his legs.Leo very clearly got his point across with his bold, almost desperate sounding reply:“They’re my brothers, Draxum!”“They’re nothing more than FAILED EXPERIMENTS!” the alchemist screamed, before regaining control of himself and adding in a much calmer, yet cold and hateful tone: "Experiments that have passed their expiration date."The hurtful words coming from the only father figure he ever knew that were directed at Leo's very own flesh and blood brothers stabbed him straight through the heart - hurting far worse than any mortal sword strike could.'What does that make me?' he wondered, not for the first time and definitely not for the last time.Leo’s physical heart missed a beat; he exhaled through his mouth from the uncomfortable sensation and from his figurative pain of heart; cringing a little but holding back from crying.For now.Draxum stared at him in silence.He kept his horribly injured face down and covered.. . .The mutant - who had no idea he was a descendant of the honorable Hamato clan - had something more that needed to be said.There was no reason to hold back now. If Draxum was going to kill him for this additional act of defiance - outright rebellion - he might as well get the grueling, torturous death over with here and now.In a quieter, less confident/more timid and unsure voice than he anticipated, Leo told his cruel creator and master:“I don’t want to kill anymore, Draxum.”He tensed in expectation of a swift and brutal reply, but never once looked up to witness what he figured was an enraged expression on the final face he would ever see.Nothing happened.He was met with silence.He stayed where he was, hunched over and kneeling on the floor, sitting back on his legs at Draxum’s feet; his red hands covering his bleeding face with his blood pooling onto the floor from where it was drizzling over the sides of his legs.Waiting.. . .Draxum wasn’t stupid.He understood the countless benefits of having an ally who was mystically gifted to such an incredible degree.Having such a powerful, useful subordinate working for him in the creation of a better world for all (who deserved such an honor) exponentially increased the percentages of his plan achieving world-wide fulfillment.Then again, he also fully comprehended the far-reaching consequences of having such a powerful - possibly unstoppable - enemy. Having no choice but to admit his creation’s mystical strength even surpassed his own, that he was so arrogantly proud of.This mutant was someone who - despite being under-trained mystically and lacking skillful control of his fabulous abilities - even now possessed the power to kill him in a heartbeat.Draxum reasoned that this was why training with his newfound powers proved to be so challenging for his intelligently-designed marvel of creation.Greatness took time and much patience.The warrior alchemist had plenty of both.Draxum stood still, staring at his turtle slave, who was 'pathetically' hunched over on the floor at his feet, bleeding significantly but not nearly enough to pose any concern, coddling a non-life-threatening injury for the only reason that it added a displeasing aesthetic to his ‘stylish good looks’ - as Leo often referred to his own face and red markings.Deciding if the benefits of having such a powerful slave - one who had rebelled against his authority this day - was worth the risk of having him as a equally powerful enemy.His mutant slave could have killed him this very day during battle when he summoned all of his ninpo might; but he didn’t. And he respectfully obeyed the boundaries set for their fight, even speaking in a respectful tone, and humbly referring to him as ‘boss.’Draxum decided his disobedience was nothing more than the whims of a young, teenage warrior who still dealt with a childishly guilty conscious over the many deaths he was responsible for; not yet understanding the full breadth and depth and weight of his own powers.The threat wasn’t imminent.The warrior alchemist came to a conclusion. Providing his ingenious creation didn’t pose a risk to his personal safety or the fulfillment of his life’s goal, he would let the mutant live until his grand purpose had come to completion and he no longer required the benefits of a mystical prodigy in his company.Then he would swiftly kill him before he had a chance to become a real threat.But he needed to tread carefully. Draxum had to ensure he didn’t behave in a way that might tip his intelligently-designed slave off about the magnitude of his own powers and abilities.Calling him home now for intensive, guided mystic training - considering everything that transpired between when his lab was destroyed and now - would definitely be a big tell.But he needed his slave to continue furthering his training, because the more powerful a yokai’s (mutant’s) mystic energy, the longer it took to learn how to fully keep it under control. Even moreso when strong, nagging emotions like guilt and shame were tugging at the mystic wielder's heart.(Which was why Leo struggled so much more to get his powers under control than his three brothers who didn't have the spilled blood of their victims on their hands)So he would permit his slave to keep the mystic odachi and continue training with it.The overall risk was minimal.For now.Draxum opened his mouth to issue his next command, but closed it again when his slave took advantage of the unusually long silence between them to ask in a tender, heart-broken voice:“Is that all I am to you, Draxum? Another one of your experiments?”There was another moment of silence.Draxum weighed his options.Leo held his breath.“No.”Leo released his breath and might have laughed out loud from the relief he felt if not for the current deplorable state he was in.Draxum slowly paced back and forth in front of his slave, while giving his next instructions.Leo kept his face covered and didn’t move from his pitiable position on the floor.(Pitiable to anyone who wasn’t a harsh, cold-hearted slave owner)“I will allow these two concessions while I focus my time and attention on resupplying my refurbished lab with an adequate stock of mutagen, among other things.”Leo breathed another sigh of relief. His bottom lip quivered slightly when he did so, but he held back the tears for fear a harsh retribution would follow if he dared shed a single tear in front of his owner.“It would be advantageous for you to continue your training as you have been, until I am ready to begin focused and intensive mystic training with you," Draxum instructed. "And in honor of your request I have granted, I will spare the lives of the three experiments, providing you keep them away from me and my lab.""Yes, Draxum," Leo obediently replied.Draxum retracted his yokai powers until only his normal left hand and arm remained.He calmly turned around to walk away.“Now get out of my sight.”Leo snapped his bloody, injured face up to stare at the back of his owner. Already the bleeding from the three long gashes was slowing down, thanks to the ingenious design of his fast-clotting blood.“Aren’t you gonna stitch these first!?” he cried out in desperation.Draxum stopped walking but didn’t turn around or in any way reply.“I can’t get even stitches in a mirror! And I can't get my hands on mystic yokai stitches! It’ll scar worse if you don’t do it!”In a rage, Draxum whipped around.Leo fell back on his carapace in fear and tensed his entire body in expectation; but didn’t make any move to protect himself when Draxum lunged at him......and slammed his three yokai claws straight down through the floor directly beside his useful slave.Leo hadn’t even seen when the yokai warrior took them out again.Draxum leaned his furious face in far too close for comfort for the turtle soaked in his own blood, and aggressively demanded: “Now! Unless you want your shell to match your face!”Leo immediately scrambled to his feet toward the odachi, grabbed it with a bloody grip, gave up his katanas as lost, and made a beeline for the exit - leaving dark red footprints all along the way.Draxum stayed where he was, hunched over with his claws stuck halfway in the floor and his head down; determined in his heart that if his normally obedient slave foolishly decided to stay and object again to the lack of stitches, after being ordered to leave twice, the positive benefits of keeping him alive would no longer outweigh the potential risks, and he would strike him down and kill him here and now.Whether it was courage or foolhardiness, neither he nor Draxum knew, but when Leo got to the entryway leading to the hall, he stopped his mad dash, turned around to look at his enraged owner, and Draxum turned his head to cast his eyes upon the turtle smeared in his own blood when he loudly proclaimed:“Joke’s on you! My shell already matches my face!”Then he disappeared around the corner.Not rebellion. Nothing more than the typical teenage attitude Draxum had long since prepared for and expected.He would let it slide.On the other side of the room - just around the corner in the hallway - Leo sheathed his odachi on his left hip, leaving a blood-soaked handle behind when he let go (that he could deal with later) and took a few deep breaths through his mouth because of how hard his heart was pounding in his chest.After he decided he had lounged around long enough, he carefully picked up his torn cape and mask and walked away; knowing he would have heard Draxum making his way to the hallway by now if he was expected to rush out the door.On his way down the dark hall to the equally dark foyer where the front door was located straight ahead of him, Leo used the edge of his torn cloak to gently pat away some of the blood getting into his eyes.If Draxum wanted to, he could have easily slashed straight through his left eye; permanently blinding him in the process. But leaving his warrior slave with another major handicap to learn how to work around would have only been non-essential had he planned to finish him off this very night. That understanding was what gave Leo the courage to speak up about the stitches.His heart was what gave him the courage to speak up about the other stuff.Instead of blinding his left eye, the ninja turtle ‘faceman’ slave of Baron Draxum was left with three unsightly gashes going down diagonally across the entire length of his face - one to the left of his left eye that went down through the left corner of his mouth; one to the direct right of the same eye that went partway down his nose but didn’t reach his mouth, and another one between his left and right eye that cut through his right cheek - with a bigger gap between the two surrounding his left eye than the two between his eyes; showing that Draxum very skilfully and intentionally avoided permanently blinding his useful ninja slave.Three lacerations that would most definitely scar.Worse still if he had to resort to stitching them himself with human stitches that left unsightly stitch scars behind.Leo shoved his stained cloak under his left arm and reached his right hand out to open the door, but stopped short of touching the handle.The intricately designed, one-of-a-kind, hand-crafted, imported and very expensive pair of handles - one on each of the double doors - were never cleaned or polished with the use of Draxum’s highly sophisticated array of cleaning tech - he always had his dedicated slave delicately and meticulously care for that tedious job instead. Meaning Draxum would either have to hand clean it himself or call his disobedient slave back to do the job if he left as much as a droplet of blood behind.That was probably why he didn’t chase his slave away once he left the training room - because he wanted to ensure his turtle ninja had time to properly open the front door without depositing blood on one of his expensive door handles.At least that was what Leo figured.The agonized, heart-broken slider reluctantly bloodied another section of his cape when he put it over his red-coated hand to grasp the handle and pull open one of the doors, so he didn’t leave a dark red smear behind. Then, when he got outside and shut the door behind him, he stood still for a moment, gazing around, deciding where to go from here to clean up, before patching himself up as best he could in the bathroom mirror of his temporary abandoned hospital bedroom.When he turned his gaze to the right, his eyes settled on the small, unassuming cave opening that lead to a tunnel connected to a vast network of underground crystal caves and caverns; with one in particular being a peaceful place he often longed to go when the troubles of this world were weighing him down. One that also contained a mystic pool where he could wash off.The physically abused, emotionally exhausted slider was so done with everything right now that he didn't care if he technically disobeyed the 'go above ground command' for just long enough to clean himself off in the tranquil waters of the crystal lined pool inside that inviting cave.And his current frame of mind unexpectedly put him in an interesting position where he could feel the energized warmth of his ninpo freely flowing throughout his entire body - reaching all the way down to the toes on his right foot.(But not down his left prosthetic leg, like it was before when his intense anger directed inward got his ninpo sparkling and fired up)He had no doubts that he could portal anywhere in the world right now.Even to a faraway, secluded tropical island where the abusively cruel Draxum would never find him.For the first time ever in his life, Leo gave serious consideration to the thought of abandoning his owner, master, and the only father figure he ever knew.But that would mean leaving his brothers behind to deal with the warrior alchemist’s wrath when they inevitably got the bad idea in their heads to interfere in his business again.The scary thought of what would happen to them made his ninpo retreat up his fingers and toes a tiny amount.So he pushed the thought aside, opting to wallow in his sorrow and self-loathing a while longer. And since teleporting was still wildly unpredictable as of the last time he practiced that ability, he made a portal open up in front of his face, instead.Before moving though, Leo stared at the glowing blue light in front of him, and quietly reminded himself: "I'll never betrayed Draxum." But his quiet, uncertain voice lacked the conviction it had on the day he uttered those same words to Big Mama.Leo stepped through and his portal shut again, leaving the front of Draxum’s house as empty and quiet as it was the moment before he stepped outside.But at least he was reassured of being something more to Draxum than just another one of his experiments.Exactly what that made him in cruel father figure's eyes, he didn’t know......or care to find out.
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Leo came out of his portal somewhere within the vast network of caves and caverns making up the area known (and generally feared) among yokai as 'the Mystic Crystal Caverns.'He knew the area well because Draxum routinely sent him there to collect crystals of all shapes and sizes, typically for use in his mystic experiments.The mystic crystal caves were mostly harmless, with a few he avoided that led to an untimely death via crystal-generated mystic portals to the unknown, mystic mazes where there was no way out, one that was really the mouth of a giant mystical creature that ate its victims alive, and so on and so forth.Every cave glowed brightly with light that matched the color of the crystals in that cave. The greens, pinks, yellows, and so on added to what Leo felt was an overall pleasant aura of the entire area, making what would be a boring activity the most peaceful, enjoyable task Draxum sent him on.And there was one circular cave in particular Leo had his mental eye on when he opened a portal in front of Draxum’s house. The one he was standing in now, that had smooth rock walls surrounding the entrance where the pebbly beach was, but contained mostly white crystals of different sizes covering the walls and ceiling around the body of water, with the exception of some colorful ones surrounding the edges of a crystal clear mystic pool of ultra purified cave water.He often paid this cave a visit on his way back home after hours of carefully selecting and collecting the perfect crystals for Draxum’s experiments - mostly because of the overall sense of tranquillity he felt inside here. An unusual peace that didn't escape the notice of his anguished heart and mind right now.The smooth, cramped entrance opened up to a pebbly beach of sorts that always felt cool and soothing to the pad of his sore foot, and led up to the deep pool of crystal clear water.In the past when he came here, it always felt like the pool was drawing him near; and as tempting as it was to jump in for a late-night swim, Leo never came within five feet of the water's edge, because he had been warned that this pool was mystical and only permitted mystic beings to enter. Anyone else who dared plunge into or even touch the surface of the crystal water was immediately sucked in and sunk down to the bottom, where they either drowned or - in the case of yokai capable of breathing underwater - slowly died of hunger. Sometimes over a period of weeks, depending on the type of yokai.With the exception of crystals of various bright colors touching the water's surface along the perimeter, the white crystals lining the perfectly vertical cave walls extended far below the water, all the way to the bottom, where Leo saw proof of Draxum’s words the one time he came close enough to look down, at his master's order.The entire bottom of the deep pool was littered with the pure white crystal encrusted bones of non-mystical yokai, who either didn’t know the dangers when they stumbled upon this cave and met their demise after innocently jumping in for a refreshing dip or reaching out for a cool drink, or the ones who were brought here against their will by some of the few murderous criminal yokai who wanted to properly dispose of their victims without leaving a trace of evidence behind.The thought of spoiling this little piece of paradise for himself by doing such a thing never once crossed the mercenary-trained ninja's mind.Leo once watched Draxum swimming around in this very pool, that he occasionally came to because he also found the cave quite peaceful and the water refreshing. That was the day Draxum warned him about the dangers of the pool, while also informing him the clean, clear water was good for the mystical health and rejuvenation of a yokai with mystic powers, but absolutely deadly for a non-mystic one.But that wasn’t a problem the mystically-gifted mutant turtle had to worry about anymore.Still, as a precaution when Leo walked up to the water he crouched by the edge, carefully put his blood-stained things aside, and dipped the tip of his finger in to gently splash the water a few times.Nothing happened, beyond feeling a surprisingly cool and refreshing, yet somehow warm sensation along with the wetness, all at the same time.But it was mystic water, after all, so Leo felt he shouldn’t have been that surprised by the perfect contrast he knew would feel just right to his tired, sore body.Without further ado he eased himself into the pool, even managing to let a small smile escape his mouth over the pleasant peacefulness washing over him like a gentle wave.He closed his eyes to fully immerse himself in the sensation, feeling like the rest of the world and its trouble melted away and the only thing in existence for all time was him and this pool inside this cave.Even the pain in his shell and face eased to a dull ache in the background; and if it wasn’t for the sticky sensation of drying blood all over his face he might have forgotten the slashes were even there.That was when he remembered the secondary warning he learned this cave by his private tutor who taught him about mystic energy in nature.Weak-willed mystic yokai who ventured into these waters were lulled into a state of peaceful bliss, where they gradually forgot all about the world around them and stayed here, in this pool, powering the mystic properties of the cave with their slowly draining lifeforce over a period of weeks; while their physical body literally faded away, until there was nothing left of them but a few more colorful crystals lining the water’s edge.That was why the crystals in closest proximity to the pool’s edge - the ones in and near contact with the surface of the water - were an array of bright colors, each matching the color of the energy their original owners had.Now Leo, for the first time, understood why the pool always seemed to want to draw him in whenever he came here.Because it was luring him into a deathtrap.Even at a young age the tug on his ninpo he didn’t know he possessed was minimal due to his well-trained self-discipline and willpower; and was more like the gentle hand of a mother he never knew reaching out to him, beckoning him to join her for a refreshing dip.It was something that - to him - added to the overall appealing, peaceful, and desirable aura in this cave, moving him to visit here time and time again whenever he was sent to the Mystic Crystal Caverns to collect crystals.Leo abruptly opened his eyes again at the revelation, berating himself for forgetting the one warning that currently applied to him; believing it was the mystic properties of the crystals in the cave that made him forget - but only because he let it.He decided not to waste any more time in here and splashed his face with water to wash off the caked-on blood.That was when he noticed his blood below the surface being drawn to the edge of the pebbly beach, like tiny red streams being pulled away from him by a nonexistent current.Leo watched all through the process, and when it reached the edge, a handful of tiny crystals formed among a small cluster of alike crystals that weren’t there before. Crystals that were brightly glowing the same shade of blue as his ninpo powers.That was the moment he remembered the second thing he let this oddity of nature that was a mystic cave make him forget, and broke the serene silence with a well-timed: “Eugh boi.”During his lessons as a young boy with one of the private teachers Draxum hired to advance his ninja slave’s training and education, Leo had been taught the fundamental truth for all living creatures - mystic or not, yokai and mutant included: the life is in the blood.And mystic energy was interwoven with all life. That was why Leo’s ninpo always settled in - and felt strongest and most stable inside - his chest, right where his heart was.That simple yet profound teaching also brought with it the realization that this was why his energized ninpo at its peak, during his training-turned-cruel punishment, felt like it was infused into his very essence - was one with his entire being.Although Leo still felt the sense of being at ease and in peace, there was a sense of urgency present in the back of his mind and heart, spurring him to finish washing off the final traces of blood and swim back from his position in the middle of the pool to the pebbly shore, eight feet away.When did he drift away from the shore? He didn’t know how it happened, and a part of him wondered if perhaps he had been peacefully floating longer than he realized.Perhaps there was a weakness to his strong will that he wasn’t aware of.Yolinda’s face came to mind.Yes, he was such a dummy! There was a weak point he hadn’t given thought to when he plunged in.If a simple, headstrong, antagonistic fox could find, poke at, and expose the weaknesses in his self-control, surely a centuries-old, mystically-imbued cave - that drew its strength from the lifeforce of its mystical victims enticed into its alluring pool of water - could locate and exploit those same weaknesses for its own gain.And he foolishly strengthened its grip on his heart and mind by entering the pool soaked in his own blood.Leo reached the shore and pulled himself out of the water to lay on his back on the clear, colorful, glass-like pebbles making up the only beach.The pebbles that never once broke through the surface of the water despite the fact they came right up to the edge and there was a sheer drop-off immediately past that.He looked up at the cramped cave opening.The opening of which looked slightly smaller than before.Then lay on his back again, his shell injuries not hurting in the slightest, catching his breath as though he had just swum a marathon.Plus he felt soo tired.. . .And when was the last time he ate?He clicked at the touchscreen on his waterproof wrist tech to see the date and time was exactly what he expected it to be, so he hadn’t been floating in a blissful state of ignorance for any concerning length of time.He let his arm fall to his side, and there was a heaviness weighing down his eyelids from the whole-body tiredness; threatening to lull him off to sleep right here in the peaceful presence of the mystic cave he both loved and was coming to loathe.Without even realizing he was doing it, his eyes slowly closed, and his breathing calmed and quieted to soft, even breaths.His could feel his ninpo pulsating inside his chest in harmony with his gently beating heart; the sound of which was the only thing he heard.Like music to his ears.. . .Ba-dump.. . .Ba-dump.. . .Ba-dump.“Leo?”He wasn’t in the cave anymore. His consciousness was hovering somewhere between the physical realm of his body and the dream realm where Donnie was calling his name.When did he fall asleep?In this position, he could still hear his gentle heartbeat, reminding him of where he really was.Ba-dump.“Lee-o!”He could also hear - but not see - the dream realm.Ba-dump.In fact, he couldn’t see anything.Ba-dump.But that didn’t bother him or disturb his peaceful slumber for some reason.Ba-dump.Where was he again? Ba-dump. “Leo, we’re worried about you.”. . .Ba-dump.The sound of Donnie’s voice, although anxious, added to the overall comforting tranquility of the background noise.Ba-dump. He quietly listened at first, without any intention of responding.Ba-dump.“Leo, please answer me.”. . .Ba-dump.“At least let me know if you’re ok or not.”. . .Ba-dump.“We’re ready to go to Draxum’s to find out what happened to you if you don’t respond.”Ba-dump, ba-da-dum.The peace was shattered.The soothing sound of his heartbeat stopped when he inched a little closer to the telepathic dream realm, so Donnie could hear his voice, but not so close he could see him and the grotesquely large slash marks across his face.“I’m fine.”His words came out sounding every bit as sour and annoyed as he felt inside.“If you’re really fine you’ll come here and show me to prove it.”“Once again my words mean nothing to you New York raised ‘ninjas’,” Leo countered, this time sounding every bit as condescending with that last word as he intended.“Words can lie. Eyes do not. Let me see you.”“Eyes can lie, too. Or are you saying everything you see in those ninja hero movies is real?”“That’s where critical thinking skills come in.”“That’s your mind, not your eyes, let me repeat my point in case your critically thinking intelligent dumb-dumb mind forgot. Eyes can lie, too. I’m not showing myself. Leave me alone.”“I’m coming to understand that debating with you will be a whole different ball game than debating with our other two brothers.”“I don’t know what that means, but I’ll take it as a compliment. So thank you.”“How can you not know what ball game…ugh. We’re getting off topic.”“Correction. You’re getting off topic, I’m leaving.”“Show yourself first.”“I’m coming to understand having brothers will be just as annoying as it is fun.”“Correct. And this annoying brother is not relenting until you come here so I can see you with my own two eyes.”“I already told you no. I’m here, talking to you, I told you I’m fine, now leave me alone and go back to tell those two other annoying brothers of ours there’s nothing to worry about.”“Listen, Raph gave me strict orders to verify you’re ok by seeing you because you're too stubborn to let us know when you need help. If I go back to him with nothing more than ‘he said he’s fine’, he’s going to make us come to your place so he can see for himself that you’re ok.”'Your place' being Draxum’s house, of course.“Do you always do everything Raph says?” Leo asked in a patronizing tone.“Do you always do everything Draxum says?” Donnie countered in a sarcastic tone; knowing Leo ended hundreds of lives in the Battle Nexus against his own will at Draxum’s bidding.“Ouch.”“Are you going to come here so I can see for myself you’re ok, or are we paying Draxum another visit?”In a playfully sarcastic tone Leo replied: “Ok, I’ll show myself. But I’m warning you, you caught me snoozing in the tub, sooo…”“Say no more, I’ll tell Raph you’re fine but indisposed. He’ll probably want me to check in again in the morning, though.”Which was his way of saying ‘I want to check in in the morning.’“Make it afternoon, it’s been loong night and it's not over. I’m gonna collect ravenclaw eggs before going bed,” Leo lied - leading up to his pre-planned excuse to explain the gashes on his face, so his brothers wouldn’t know how he really got them.But what was this weird feeling in the pit of his stomach when he told that lie?“Ravenclaw eggs?”Even without seeing him, Leo knew one of Donnie’s big, drawn-on eyebrows was raised.“Yeah, they’re the best eggs anywhere. This is egg laying season and I wanna check out a new nest I saw. Gotta get there before the eggs lose their speckles or they’re no good for eating; and the mama only leaves at night.”Guilt.That was what he was feeling.Guilt for lying to his brother.He hoped this unpleasant feeling didn't come back to bite him later.“I assume they’re called raven claw for a reason?”“Yeah, big brutes, huge talons. That’s why I gotta go while the mom’s away from the nest.”“And you are doing this because…”“Like I said. Best eggs anywhere.”“An underground biome harboring life sounds almost as fascinating as an underground hidden city I keep hearing about but have yet to see. I would be interested in data collecting. And perhaps engaging in the potentially dangerous venture is best done in the company of family?”More than anything else, Leo suspected this was Donnie’s way of saying ‘I’m worried about your safety,’ which made the steadily growing guilt he felt in the pit of his stomach over his lie tighten into a sickening knot.“Another time, egg collecting needs to be quick and stealthy. Get in, grab the eggs, get out, unheard and unseen.”“Scoff, are you saying we can’t…” “Big Mama’s vault? swipping back my katanas? Would’ve been in and out if not for someone’s ’help?’ Sound familiar?" Leo listed off before asking in a playfully sarcastic way: "Wasn't that earlier tonight bro?”“Point taken. What time do you start work?”“One. But no work Mondays.”Leo held his breath, hoping the mystical properties of the cave he was still inside wasn’t messing with the clock and date in his wrist tech, and he had actually been here for days instead of minutes.Maybe that was why he was soo hungry (or maybe it was because of the 'exciting' night he had).“I shall see you at one thirty pm sharp.”Leo released his breath when Donnie didn't make the comment that tomorrow wasn't Monday.“Deal.”Leo immediately pulled away from the dream realm before another word was spoken, feeling an unusually large amount of guilt for lying to his brother.Ba-dump.The guilt washed away, and the peace returned.Ba-dump.He had to remind himself it was bad thing and he needed to leave a-sap.Ba-dump.In the cave, the red-eared slider opened his eyes, and curled his legs up close to his body, taking the right foot he unknowingly put back in the water out of the pool.Or perhaps he never took it out in the first place.The mystically gifted slider gasped in a sharp breath of air when the peaceful tranquility he felt was instantly replaced with anxious dread; at the same time the aura in the room abruptly shifted. The lighting changed from a pure white to a dull, ominous, fog-like gray that thickened further up, clouding and completely obscuring the cave ceiling.The sharp onslaught of pain in his shell and face abruptly overloaded his senses.“Augh!”The agonized slider abruptly rolled off his injured shell onto his side to ease the pain of his significant burn wound.The cave did not like that this particular mystic life form possessed a stronger will than its enchanting, alluring pull, so-much-so he was able to separate himself from the mystical water.Making him a potentially powerful threat instead of a victim.Something like this never happened when Draxum got out of the water that one time he brought Leo here with him.Then again, he didn’t contribute a fraction of his mystic lifeforce like Leo had via his spilt blood.Nothing about this cave was inviting anymore. If anything, the opposite was true - like it was trying to vomit him out rather than draw him near.There was a blackness descending upon the pool from the effect of all the crystals under the water’s surface no longer emitting a warm, inviting glow.Or perhaps the water itself turned black, blocking the light of the crystals from reaching his eyes.Leo wanted to get out of there before something worse than 'transforming his traces of mystical lifeforce into crystals' happened.The crystals that were now glowing an ugly, dim, grayish-blue, like how the rest of the crystals were also grayish; hinting at the mystic cave’s ‘ownership' of that little part of him now.The first thing he did was twist his body to look up at the cave’s entrance toward the one and only opening.It had closed up, and now was the size of a mouse hole.He couldn’t feel his ninpo. Was it even there?Leo turned his head to gaze at the fog hugging the ceiling over the pool and beach, and called out in frustration:“For something that wants me to leave you’re sure making it hard to get out!”He instantly regretted that choice and fearfully pulled his knees up close to his body, making himself as small as possible, while darting his eyes all around the fog above his head, half expecting some sort of giant hand to reach out from the abyss, grab him, and pull him into the fog along with it - never to be seen or heard from again.Nothing happened.The dimly lit cave remained eerily silent.He couldn’t even hear his own heartbeat anymore.Leo pushed his sore body up onto his feet and hastily gathered his things, not really sure what to do from here.But when he raised his eyes, he saw the rocky cave opening had somehow expanded to twice his size, leading to a dark cave on the other side.. . .Something wasn’t right.The crystals in the cave on the other side should have been glowing a bright green.The risk was great; but what other choice did he have but head out? He wasn’t able to access his ninpo - it feeling as nonexistent as it did every day of his life before awakening it under the guidance of Draxum, and with the assistance of the mystic-energy channeling odachi.After briefly glancing back at the literal dead-end that was the crystal-lined mystic pool, Leo swallowed down his nervousness, hugged his things close to his chest, walked up to the cave opening, and resisted the urge to hide away by covering his face with his cheshire fox mask, because it would rub against the open wounds.He gazed into the total blackness beyond, took a deep breath in, and held in that breath as he stepped past the threshold, all alone, and all along the way thinking: ’I really wish I could hear Donnie’s voice right about now.'The cave entrance closed up behind him, leaving him venturing into the pitch black unknown somewhere deep inside the bowels of the Mystic Crystal Caverns.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
It was dark and quiet.Suffocatingly so, like Leo was trapped inside a small box barely bigger than his body.He tried to access his ninpo vision to see if there were any mystic objects in his direct vicinity.Nothing.Not even the warm spark of his ninpo energy in his chest.He fumbled with the stuff in his hands to tap on the touchscreen of his wrist tech so he could use the little light it provided to guide him.Nothing.The screen stayed black.He reached down for the flashlight built into his prosthetic leg, silently detached it, and pressed the button to turn it on.*Click**Flutter*Leo froze in place, not moving a muscle and grateful that simple little click wasn’t his death sentence, and that the light didn't turn on.He would recognize that sound anywhere, after all the long hours he had to spend on research and study in the Mystic Library.Hushbats.They were genetically wired to instinctively go after any sound and carry the offending yokai away to a specific cave, where anything from a blind sloth bear with claws as long as his leg to a mystic vortex to another dimension, or perhaps nothing at all awaited the hapless victim.As in literally nothing, like a mystic cave version of limbo.The largest known hushbat cave in existence was in the Hidden City and led to a mystic black whirlpool vortex to certain death. Or, at least it used to before it was converted into the Mystic Library.Yokai learned a long time ago how to manipulate natural-occurring vortexes, and that one now dropped noisy yokai off in the kids room.The stealthy ninja turtle had never been taken there himself, but he had strategically sent others there who were annoying him in one way or another when he needed to concentrate, and he heard stories that made him glad he was never carried away by the hushbats. Stories of yokai crying out: “New toy! New toy!” in their sleep for weeks after.If the hushbats were here, that meant this was most definitely a mystic cave, because they neither ate nor drank, but rather fed off the mystic energy in the air.And there was only one cave in all the Mystic Crystal Caverns that housed hushbats.The Black Crystal Labyrinth.Leo had to pass by the dark, black-crystal encrusted cave opening many-a-time when collecting crystals for Draxum. Just walking past made his skin crawl, as though the dark mystic energy was seeping out and reaching for him with hundreds of tiny, invisible, groping hands.But he never had a choice but to pass by because the cramped tunnel the entrance was located in was the only junction between the Rose Mint Cave and Green Tundra Cave - both of which contained some of the most essential crystals Draxum required for whatever it was he did in his lab.And now he was inside it.The cave with no way out.The cave that silently changed its layout behind any poor victim who dared to enter, leaving them wandering until either the hushbats carried them off to an unknown destination, or they died from dehydration.Or suffocated if the path behind them closed off at a dead end, leaving the victim quite literally buried alive in a tiny cave with no external air supply.Most crystals in mystic caves generated their own breathable air, but not the Labyrinth. These crystals exuded a mystic waste product the hushbats here must have adapted to feeding off.Leo did his best to try not to panic. Panicking would only waste precious air if he was already enclosed in a dead-end tomb.Which he suspected considering how hot and stuffy the place was.Gingerly and carefully he explored the area directly around him by lifting his right foot to feel around with his toes. He could have been standing on a cliff, for all he knew, after all. Or surrounded on all sides by black, piercing crystals.Leo abruptly pulled back when something sharp - like a needle - poked his toe, piercing the skin just enough to leave a droplet of blood behind on a black crystal.The tip of the black crystal glowed as it absorbed his blood droplet; although not enough to even show if there were more crystals tightly packed around it or not.He took in a deep breath, steadying himself before trying another spot.What other choice did he have?That was when a soft blue glow came from his chest. Just enough to light up the general vicinity about two feet in front of him, highlighting a wall full of tiny, sharp black crystals like the one that pierced his toe.He looked down, and although it was difficult to see at this angle, what looked like a blue pepperoni pizza hovered in the air in front of his chest.The same symbol he saw etched into the three ancestral weapons he ‘borrowed’ from his brothers during one of their fights back before they knew who he was.This wasn’t the time or the place to ponder over such things, though. Especially since at that moment his ninpo came alive inside of him. Electrified energy sparkled to life like he was plugged into Draxum’s central power supply that took up the entire center of his lab, and he felt the power flowing freely throughout his entire body.He snatched up the opportunity, and with a *bzzt* and a flash of blue light, he was gone. Not knowing if he would wind up near his intended destination, but anywhere - even the other side of the world - was better than here.Hushbats swooped down at the empty spot where he was standing no more than one second prior, at the sound of his electrified ninpo taking him out of there.Leo teleported to the location where he envisioned: the bathroom in his temporary abandoned hospital bedroom.His legs felt like rubber at the realization he was finally somewhere safe after however many hours he had to be on high alert, ever since he first snuck into Big Mama’s to retrieve his katanas.He immediately collapsed to the floor, an emotional wreck, and finally was in a place where he could let himself fall apart. So he allowed himself plenty of time to weep profusely over the bitter turn his life took this very night, when Draxum attacked him, leaving him with a disfigured face for the rest of his life and questioning what exactly he was to the warrior alchemist who created him as one of his experiments.Leo allowed the tears to flow freely, heaving and sobbing loudly with a few hiccups in between. This would be his only chance to let it all out before the bandages he didn’t want to get wet had to be placed on his healing face.If only he had someone who could stitch the gashes for him, then his face wouldn’t scar so badly.Someone proficient, who knew what they were doing. Someone with years of experience, like Dra……like an ex-pirate.The thought was like a shock to his system. He clicked at his wrist tech to see what time it was. It lit up for him and the time on display made him realize he had been out all night and the sun outside was undoubtedly just breaching the horizon.He got to his feet and the first thing he did was put his bloody cloak in the tub to let it soak before he repaired it, so it wouldn’t stain before he had a chance to deal with it.But when he dumped it in the tub along with his mask, he noticed there wasn’t a spot of blood to be seen anywhere.The first thing he did was glance down at the likewise clean, blood-less blue handle of his odachi before picking up his cloak to hold it up before his face.Not only was it completely clean, but the top-to-bottom tear had somehow been mystically repaired.If that had something to do with his mystic powers or an unknown quality of one of the mystic caves he had been in, Leo had no idea.As a precaution, he used his ninpo vision that allowed him to see mystic energy signals, to make sure there hadn’t been any foreign parasitic mystic energy deposited on him or any of his stuff. And he was relieved to see there wasn't a trace of dark energy anywhere.Leo picked up the mask, but when he flipped it around to see the face, not only was it also cleaned of any blood smears, but the two gold stripes that matched up with the red ones on his face looked shiny and sparkly like they were made of real gold. And the lines making up the cheshire grin, nose, and eye-hole outlines he painted on were crisp and clean and a deeper, darker shade of blue that made them pop on the white background, and better suited the shimmering gold markings.He didn’t understand what happened or why, but he liked the results.Now wasn’t the time to sit back and admire the new face, though. He had something much more important to deal with.Leo carefully put the mask and cape down on the edge of the tub, grabbed a couple of bandage kits off the shelf, and put his head down when he walked over to the sink, where the mirror was.This time he fought back the tears when they threatened to overflow once more, took a trembling breath in through his mouth, and raised his face and eyes to see.The reflection staring back at him took his breath away.But not in a good way.The lacerations looked just as bad as he had imagined.He swallowed down his anguish of heart, ripped open one of the sealed bandage kits, and got to work closing them as best he could with the butterfly bandaids to tide him over until he found out if Bully had any experience making small, even stitches.* * *~Not Long Later~The first Monday of the month.The restaurant was closed every Monday but Hueso was busy at work in his office, confirming his online supplies order was correct as information trickled in from the kitchen, where Bully received the order and was inputting the inventory into the portable scanner as he unboxed each package to put everything away where it belonged.He left the kitchen once to restock the bathroom supplies room that was located in the ‘Maze of Death’ corridor.When he returned, a hooded, cloaked figure was silently standing at the end of the counter of his workstation. Scrubs' head was down so he couldn’t see the face at all under the edges of the hood, and the cloak covered his arms and the front of his body.Bully kept his eyes on the cloaked figure all while he walked closer, not in any way revealing the intense anger he felt inside, thinking: ‘What did Draxum do to that kid this time?’ and realizing whatever he did…It was serious.Leo didn’t raise his head.He didn’t move an inch as Bully walked closer.The brute yokai stopped at his station, but he didn’t get back to work taking inventory. Instead he quietly kept his eyes on the ‘kid’ he fondly knew as Scrubs. Waiting.When Leo felt he could proceed without tearing up (again), Bully watched him take a trembling hand out from under the cape to lay two suture kits on the table, without a word.No: ‘Can you?’ or 'Please' or ‘I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t need it.’Nothing.Just stood there silent and hopeful, with his head hung low, waiting for a ‘yea’ or a ‘nay’.Bully stared at them, wondering why Scrubs didn’t come with the better yokai suture kits instead - considering perhaps he had to rob a human hospital or medical supply store to get those. But that wasn’t a question worth asking right now. Instead, when he opened his mouth he simply said:“Show me.”He cast his eyes back on the distraught turtle as he very slowly raised two trembling hands to pull back his big hood, revealing his masked face underneath; still hung low, looking more at the floor than anything else.‘No, not the face,’ Bully thought to himself. The hardworking slider’s voice came to mind from the day he was bragging about his skincare routine. In connection to wearing his mask when he fought, he had said with a grin:
"Gotta protect my good looks."
The mistreated slave of Baron Draxum didn’t have much, but his ‘good looks’ was something he was proud of. Something that brought his dreary life a glimmer of happiness.Next, Leo’s trembling hands reached for what looked like a brand new cheshire fox mask. The big grin painted on the front was not mirrored on his sorrowful face when he raised it up to take it off; and looked up at Bully with his eyes only. Revealing a heavily bandaged face from his eyes all the way down to his lips.Bully locked eyes with the pitiful-looking turtle gazing back at him, restrained himself from aggressively venting the anger he felt against Draxum with a string of curse words he learned as a pirate, and raised his hand to put it on top of a suture kit and gently pat it twice.“I got better stuff upstairs. Won’t leave no stitch scars behind. C’mon, you came to the right person. Stitchin’ was my speciality.”Leo silently followed behind. The naturally stealthy ninja didn’t even make a sound with his feet as he walked. At one point Bully discreetly checked behind his back to make sure he was still there, noticing he had put his hood back up.The mercenary slave of Draxum could have run a sword straight through the tough brute yokai’s heart from behind and taken off before the seasoned ex-pirate first mate knew anyone had even been there, if he wanted to do such a thing and Bully didn’t already know he was there.A real trained ninja assassin if ever there was one.An assassin who didn’t want to kill.Such a pity this life was forced upon him against his will.In any other life, he could have really made something of himself. Been like one of those superheroes the humans seemed to love so much in their shows and movies.Going up the stairs to Hueso’s place was no different. Not even a single creek of the old wooden stairs could be heard behind him. Like Scrubs already knew where to step and not step before he raised his foot.If he didn’t know any better, Bully would have sworn he was being followed by a ghost floating behind him.At the top of the stairs was the familiar hallway. Three doors on the left, two on the right. The first door on the left was a staff washroom, the next one Hueso’s office, the locked third one, storage.On the right, the first door was the room full of filing cabinets and paperwork that Bully took him to when he scraped the dead scutes off his burned shell, and the next one was the staff break room, where he was leading Scrubs now.At the very end of the hallway, straight in front of them, was an open door separating Hueso’s apartment from the rest of the upstairs, that opened to his kitchen.Bully opened the staff room door and stood back to let Scrubs go in first, because he had to get his personal suture kits from the storage room.Around that time was when Yolinda walked into the kitchen, apparently having just gotten out of bed if the fuzzy teal slippers and matching robe was any indication.She yawned and stretched, then movement down the hall caught her eye. When she looked, she was surprised to see Bully with Leo here this early in the morning, on the slider’s day off.Leo stopped just before entering the staff room because he sensed someone was watching him. He raised his head and turned it just enough to see the surprised-looking fox yokai staring straight at him, from the corner of his left eye.She saw just enough to get a glimpse of the bandages on his face.Leo silently disappeared into the staff room without a word.Yolinda took two steps closer but stopped when her Tío Hueso came out of his office, with his head down looking over some paperwork in his hand.“Bully, I haven’t received your inventory for the upstairs suppli…” “I’ll get to that as soon as I’m done in here,” Bully solemnly interrupted. Hueso raised his head to see his chef and life-long friend gesture to the staff room with his head, indicating someone was in there, waiting for him.And with the serious look on his face, whatever was going on Hueso knew it wasn’t good.“Is it…” “Yeah,” Bully answered, before Hueso finished asking his question ‘is it the boy?’ He gestured again with his head, but this time looking toward the kitchen where Yolinda was still standing, staring at them. Hueso correctly took it to mean: ‘the kid needs food.’Hueso returned to his office to drop off his paperwork, while Bully shut the staff room door to get a couple of his good suture kits.As soon as they both disappeared, Yolinda took two more tentative steps closer, intending on sneaking into the staff room to find out what happened to her friend, but stopped again when Hueso came out and walked toward her; knowing he would disapprove.He went in the kitchen, walked past her to the stove, and took out a frying pan to make a yokai version of an omelette BLT.“Take out the bread,” were the only solemn words he spoke to his adoptive daughter.She did as she was told, and while doing that Hueso cracked the eggs - that were from his yokai supply and had speckled gray shells with blue yolks.“What happened to Leo?” Yolinda asked while they worked together. “I do not know, mija,” Hueso replied in a soft, tender tone of voice. Although he didn't know the details, his tone and overall body language, along with the way he kept his eyes on the eggs he was beating instead of looking at her when he talked, told her whatever was wrong was likely just as serious as she suspected.Yolinda laid two slices of bread on a plate she had already taken out.“I saw bandages on his face.”Hueso tensed a little but kept on with his work.“His face you say?”Yolinda put the bread away and reached into the fridge for some lettuce and a tomato. "Mm hmm."Hueso poured the eggs into the hot pan and Yolinda took the plate of bacon out of the fridge, that was left over for her from when Hueso cooked his breakfast earlier that morning."I was thinking of asking him if I can help in some way. When I bring him his sandwich.”Yolinda laid the plate down on the counter and kept her eyes on her Tío. She expected him to reply with a curt demand to stay away from him for now, but was surprised by his soft, kind-hearted reply when he told her: “That is very nice of you mija, but perhaps a quiet conversation would be best for now.” Meaning ‘don’t start something that’ll turn into one of your frequent arguments.’He took his eyes off the pan to look at her with a fondness - as well as a sadness in his eyes she rarely saw from him - and gently smiled at her while saying: “And you are helping. Get the bacon ready, the eggs are almost done.” “Yes, papá,” Yolinda replied in just as soft of a tone, before resuming working on Leo’s breakfast side-by-side with her beloved Tío/adoptive father.Meanwhile, in the staff room, Leo was sitting on a chair at the lunch table when Bully came back. His hood was up, his head was down, and he was hunched over with his arms resting on his lap. The spot on the table in front of him was also full of the bandages he already peeled off his face.The face that Bully couldn’t see yet because the despondent slider was sitting back-on to him.Bully carefully closed the door behind him and walked up to Scrubs. When he laid the yokai suture kits on the table, Leo slowly raised his head to look up at him, so he could see the extent of the injuries.Three long gashes covered in butterfly bandages to keep them closed.Bully was disappointed to see the damage done to his face was just as bad as he suspected.“When was the last time you ate?”That firm, direct question clearly caught the kid off guard, and Leo lowered his eyes to avert his gaze and shifted uncomfortably in his chair. His mouth opened but no words came out at first because he changed his mind at the last second, opting instead of just saying ‘half an hour ago’ to ask: “Does that human junk called chips and pudding cups count?”“You said it yourself, it’s junk,” Bully replied as his way of saying ‘no.’“I was supposed to get supplies last night but this happened,” Leo told him as his round-about way of saying ‘not since yesterday’ (which felt like a lifetime ago).Judging by the way the kid’s whole body was trembling, Bully estimated a lot more than sleep and a single attack happened between when Scrubs left work and now (That was, if he slept at all).Even with the three gashes, Bully had no idea how right he was.“Ain’t Draxum feeding you at that place, kid?” was Bully’s next question.Leo expected that subject to come up and he replied with honesty: “I was sent away until he needs me again.” He nervously tugged at the edge of his cape to cover his legs, kept his head hung low, and softly added: "I gotta stay out of the Hidden City, too"The rage bubbling up inside Bully was threatening to overflow, but he kept his cool as the conversation went on.“Got a place to stay?”“Yeah.”“Any food at all?”“Yeah. Mikey made me something, I only just ran out. And I raided an abandoned hospital down by the docks. They had some stuff, but it was all junk. Not a single fruit or vegetable in sight. It’s no wonder they need so many hospitals if that’s how they eat.”That response answered Bully’s unanswered question about wondering where he got the suture kits and why they were human ones, and he wholeheartedly agreed: “You got that right.”“I was good ‘till yesterday, but…”There was no need to reiterate that he didn’t go out for food, because the evidence was clearly written all over his face.Literally."Here." Leo reached into his belt pouch, pulled out one of his last four portal chips, and held it out as 'payment' for stitching the gashes.Bully graciously accepted it, and looked it over while saying: "Haven't laid my eyes on one of these in a long time. They're hard to come by, considerin' there's only one guy in town who sells them on the streets.""You're lookin' at him," Leo replied as his way of saying 'I'm that guy'."Thanks kid, this'll come in handy," was Bully's reply, before pocketing the portal chip and focusing his attention on the three gashes he was about to stitch closed.“I can’t get even stitches with you trembling like that. Hueso’s making something for you to eat," he told the despondent slider.Bully was a little surprised when Scrubs didn’t object to ‘getting something for nothing.’ Rather, Leo was so utterly exhausted from his very long, harrowing night out that all he did was hum in acknowledgement and hang his head a little lower, looking like he might just about nod off right here and now.“When you’d sleep last?”Leo didn’t answer, he just looked to the side, away from Bully, still with his head down.“Sleep on the couch when we’re done,” Bully practically ordered, pointing to the brown leather staff couch push up against the wall, and prepared to repeat his phrase but louder and more sternly when his ruffian friend inevitably disagreed."Mmm," was the only non-argumentative reply he got, just before Leo hugged himself a little and rubbed his hand over his wrist, thinking about the recent cruel punishments Draxum dished out, before volunteering: “A crack in my shell opened up again last night. I didn’t look at it yet.”“I’ll take a look now.”Leo slowly hauled his cloak off over his head. He balled it up in his lap for comfort, and with the way he was sitting hunched over with his arms blocking access to his plastron, Bully assumed the crack was on the bandaged back, so he walked around to get a good look.Leo sat still and quiet and half asleep, while Bully searched around for a minute, before saying: “I don’t see no open cracks.” “It’s under the bandage,” the weary slider offered, too tired to have thought about that little fact until now. “Of course it is,” Bully muttered under his breath. He peeled back the bandage covering the center of Scrubs' shell, revealing the two inch crack split right through the worst burn wound of all.“Yeah, I see it.”“Any white spots?”Bully gave the area a close inspection to make sure he didn’t miss anything.“None at all.”Leo tensed a little and hugged the cloak on his lap.“Push in on it. Hard. Tell me if it's soft at all.”“Alright, if you say so.”Bully raised one of his hands, rested a big thumb right on the center of the crack, and then pushed in with all his might.“Mmft,” was the only pitiful sound of pain Leo let escape his mouth as he instinctively sat up and leaned forward, grimacing with tears in the corners of his eyes from the agony of it all.But even though pushing in on a crack in a burn hurt worse than he anticipated, the tortured slave of Draxum knew better than to let himself cry out from pain.“No soft spots.”A tense, somewhat hoarse: “Good,” was the reply. Then Leo asked someone who wasn’t Bully: “Got a good view from there?”Bully looked behind his back to see Yolinda standing in the now-open doorway with a breakfast sandwich on a plate in her hand, staring right at the terrible blackish, scabbed-over burn with a crack running through it, that was in the center of Leo’s shell and she hadn't seen before today.“Ain’t you ever heard of knockin’!?” Bully snapped. “I brought Leo’s breakfast,” was all she said in reply, without once taking her shocked eyes off the horrible wound, that was even worse than she had imagined.Bully pointed to a a small end table beside the door, between her and the staff couch, and ordered: “Leave it there and git!” He turned around to stick the bandage back on and Yolinda did the exact opposite of what he ordered by walking into the room, right up to Leo, to lay the plate on the table in front of him, not taking her eyes off his horribly mangled face the entire time.Yolinda stayed in place, obviously staring straight at Leo’s new injuries. Bully watched her with disapproval, and Leo kept his head down.Yolinda was full of unexpected surprises and Leo learned for the first time that (like him) she sometimes used humor to cope when she smirked at him and blurted out: “Your face looks like it went through a cheese grater.”Bully sucked in a breath through his scowling mouth and was about to yell at her to get out, but he stopped himself when Scrubs shoulders bounced because he was laughing, and he cheekily replied: “It’s no worse than that tail of yours. You stop conditioning or something?”She let out a cute, high-pitched incensed: “Ugh!” and snapped in reply: “I haven’t brushed it yet!”“Ah, yeah. That’s why it’s full of split ends. Because you haven’t brushed it,” Leo replied with his crooked grin, making sure to be heavy on the sarcasm.She put her hands on her hips and said an angry: “The only splits I see here are the three on your…” “That’s enough!” Bully yelled. He thrust out all three left hands to point to the door and ordered: “Git out before I drag you out by that bushy tail of yours!”“I’m going, I’m going!” she yelled in reply, making Leo smile again by squeaking on the first ‘going,’ as she stormed out the door, making sure to slam it closed behind her.“For someone who can be so clever, she’s awful dumb sometimes, especially when that temper gets the best of her,” Leo heard Bully complain; not for the first time and he knew it wouldn’t be the last.“She can be cute when she’s mad, though,” Leo commented with a tiny grin on the corner of his mouth. He picked up a piece of his sandwich to eat, at the same time Bully picked up a suture kit and replied: "It’s a good thing you like it, ‘cause I ain’t never seen no one so good at gettin’ her riled up as you.”Thinking back over one of his first arguments with Yolinda, Leo replied with the words she told him when she provoked him to the point of losing his temper. “That’s because she likes me.” Then he took a bite of his sandwich, and Bully replied with a laugh: “She likes you alright. She’d like to serve you up as turtle soup. Gave me a recipe and everything.”Leo swallowed his food and replied: “Not me, just my leg, so you can make me eat it. I told her then I’d have a matching pair.” He playfully raised his left leg to wiggle his prosthetic foot and toes before taking another bite, and Bully huffed out a laugh and replied: “I bet that got a reaction.""Heh, yeah," Leo replied with a smile at the fond memory. But his smile fell at Bully's next words when he said: "Alright, I’m good to go as soon as you give the word."Bully laid an open suture kit down and Leo gazed up at the glowing mystic suture thread in his hand (that would completely disappear from view after applied, taking with it any sign of stitch marks that would have otherwise left stitch scars), before putting his head back down and finishing off half his sandwich. He ate enough to satisfy his hunger sufficiently so the trembling settled down, with plans of finishing the rest after all this unpleasantness was done and over with.“I’m ready now,” Leo told him as soon as he was finished his last bite. And with that, he reached up to begin taking off the butterfly bandaids to get them out of way before the real work began.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
After the stitches were done and Leo ate the rest of his breakfast sandwich, he promptly passed out on the staff room couch, wearing his cloak as a blanket.He had no idea how long he had been out of it until…“Leo?”Donnie.If Leo knew Donnie as well as he thought he did he suspected it was 1:30 pm on the nose.The injured slider wasted no time entering the telepathic dream realm to get this over with as soon as possible. But he made sure to go in with his back to his brother, and his hood up over his head.(Thankfully he fell asleep in his cloak)“Leo?” Donnie asked softly; looking at his brother with worry, and scanning his eyes around Leo’s body for any sign of blood.Because the last time his long-lost brother entered the dream realm standing back-on to him when they were young turtle tots, it was really, really bad.“I did something stupid, Donnie.”‘Oh no.’Donnie swallowed down a lump in his throat and his mouth went dry, expecting the worse. Then his lips parted and tentatively he asked: “Whaaat did you do?”Donnie noticed Leo went through the motions of clenching and unclenching his left fist.He was 98.7% sure this was a nervous habit.Donnie’s anxiety mounted.“I was impatient.” “Uh huh.” “I didn’t wait long enough when the mama ravenclaw left the nest.”Leo’s fist clenching and unclenching got more rapid.“She came back. My portals wouldn’t work. I couldn’t get out of there fast enough.”All of Donnie’s fear that Leo was going to confess ‘I killed someone’ was replaced with concern for his brother’s well-being. Concern that was amplified by Leo’s next words.“I’m gonna turn around. Don’t. Freak. Out.”Donnie watched with bated breath as Leo clenched his fist twice more - leaving it clenched tightly on the last one - and the slider’s entire body tensed just before he slowly turned around.His hooded head was down. Donnie couldn’t see anything.Leo took a breath and raised his head to look him in the eyes; showing three long, closed gashes going diagonally down the length of his face.“Oh my banana pancakes.”Leo cast his eyes to the blackness that was the dream realm floor, hid his hands and arms under his cape for comfort, and fought against the sorrow that threatened to swallow him up whole and unleash a waterworks of never-ending tears.“Weren't you wearing your mask!? Doesn't that protect your face!?”Leo abruptly searched for his mask attached to his hip. It wasn’t there, and he remembered that was because he laid it on the floor in the physical realm just before drifting off.He relaxed his body and put his head down, obscuring his face with his hood again. Not because he couldn’t bear Donnie looking at him, but because he couldn’t bear the guilt and shame he felt in his heart for lying right to his brother’s face.Leo opened his mouth with every intention of telling Donnie that the ravenclaw mother ripped off his mask and he has to make a new one. That would explain the changes to his mask with no questions asked. But instead of saying that, the pesky part in the back of his mind that kept getting louder ever since he began drawing close to his brothers took over yet again. So that he blurted out - seemingly against his own will: “I’m lying to you.”And then he was gone.“Leo come back!!”Leo suddenly woke up with a gasp. He hastily grabbed his mask, putting it on his face as he jumped up to leave. All thoughts of using his new portalling abilities were out of his head as he rushed out of Hueso’s at breakneck speed, wanting to go anywhere where he could be alone.This was all getting to be too much for him.Gone were the days where it was only him and Draxum.Now he had a whole family of people in his life.A whole family of people he cared about and wanted more than anything to protect - not only to protect their lives but also to protect them from the cold, hard realities of the life he had to live, but they have been sheltered from up until now.There was nothing easy about any of this.Then again, when was his life ever easy?Leo completely ignored Donnie’s voice in his head calling out to him, begging him to return. He rushed down the stairs, through the dimly lit, empty restaurant, and flew through the likewise dim, empty kitchen, to the back door.Donnie stopped calling out to him, likely to go discuss this whole situation with his brothers.Their brothers.Leo almost got out scott free, until he burst through the back door into the alley and rushed over to jump up on the fire escape.“Leo?”Yolinda.He froze in his tracks, hanging off the edge of the fire escape, his cape hanging down behind him and his masked face pointed up at the roof where he longed to go and be alone.But something about the tone of Yolinda’s voice urged him to stop. A warmth? A kindness maybe? He didn’t know. The only thing he did know was that it wasn’t that nagging part in the back of his mind making this decision for him; but, rather, the warmth of the ninpo in his chest gently tugging at him to go in her direction.He followed it, jumped down off the fire escape, and silently slunk his way over to where Yolinda was standing beside the dumpster.When he got to the dumpster, he faced it instead of her, pushed his mask up over his face to rest on top of his head, leaned both arms out over the mostly empty dumpster, and gazed up at the brick wall of the building adjacent to Hueso’s restaurant, as though he was inspecting the individual bricks for something.She silently watched him.“Yeah?” he finally asked, never once casting his eyes in her direction.“Draxum gave you those, didn’t he?” she softly inquired.“Yeah. He did.”Right here, in this moment, nothing seemed to matter anymore.The warmth of his ninpo in his chest pulsated in unison with his calmly beating heart. Telling him this was right. He felt somehow that this was the one thing in his life he could trust with all his heart.So he did.“Why?”Leo laughed at the innocence of her question; clearly showing she spent most of her time above ground and didn't visit the Hidden City very often.'Because I'm his slave and he can do whatever he wants to me,' was on the tip of his tongue. But instead, still without in any way looking at her, he told her the exact reason why.“Because I wouldn’t kill my brothers.”Yolinda walked over to him and leaned back to rest her back against the dumpster beside him. He turned around and did the same, but looked down at his hands while absolutely picking at his fingernails; by doing so obscuring his face from her view with his hood.“Leo…” “I can’t leave him,” Leo firmly interrupted, knowing what she was about to say before she said it. Then he added the simple words: “It wouldn't work,” indicating it was something he had given thought to at least once already.“You could stay here, with us. We could help you.”Leo stopped picking at his fingernails, lowered his hands, and gazed up at the gray, cloudy sky above their heads.“And put all of you in danger? Hard pass.”“Hueso has contacts, he could find somewhere for you to hide. Somewhere you can be safe.”“I’m not running and hiding like a coward.”Leo didn’t snap at her. Normally a comment like that would put him on edge, but that wasn’t the case right now. Instead, he felt an unusual calmness. One that was radiating from the warmth of his ninpo gently thrumming in his chest.“Besides, I need to stay here to keep my brothers safe. Draxum said he’ll spare their lives if they leave him alone. But . . . I know they won’t.”“Can’t they help?”Leo laughed again, but this time at the absurdity of her comment and replied: “They don’t even know I’m his slave.”“Why don’t you tell them?”A dull numbness began clouding the calm serenity in his heart and mind and he cast his eyes down on his hands again, taking out a three-pronged throwing star to spin around in his fingers, like a fidget toy.“Dunno,” he replied dismissively with a shrug. “Pride. Shame…” he watched the spinning blade intently.“Fear.”Leo didn’t question why he was opening up to her, he just went with it.“Fear of what?”He caught the blade between his finger and thumb to abruptly stop the spinning. “What do you think?” he asked, wanting to better understand how ‘clever’ she really was.“Rejection,” she correctly offered as her one-word response.“Yeah, I guess.”Leo pocketed the shuriken in exchange for his dagger; resisting the urge to nick the tip of his finger to feel something, but only because she was here.They stood together for a moment, while Leo played with the blade of his dagger, coming as close to piercing the skin as he dared without actually breaking the surface.“Aren’t you gonna say some kind of nonsense, like ‘they’d never do that’?”“I don’t know them well enough to say that.”‘Hmm. I guess she is a little clever.’“But I do know you can’t hide it from them forever.”‘Clever and annoying.’“Yeah. I suppose you’re right.”“You know I’m right,” Yolinda replied a little forcefully.The little bit of ninpo warmth that was still in Leo’s chest cooled off and his many intense, conflicting emotions came flooding back. So he sheathed his dagger and snapped in anger:“Back off! You’re not my mom! You’re not even my girlfriend!”“Why not!?” Yolinda loudly snapped in return.Leo glared at her with his scowling, angry (badly injured) face, threw his hands out, and yelled: “Your family doesn’t approve!”“Why does that matter!?”Her voice squeaked.It made Leo want to grab her and pull her close for a passionate kiss.He crossed his arms and replied in an angry, but not as loud voice: “Don’t you know? Disrespect your family, I disrespect you.” “That doesn’t make any sense! You're not disrespecting my family by asking me out!” Yolinda yelled, with her voice squeaking again in that cute way he liked, calming down his anger significantly.Leo gave her a crooked grin, relaxed a little, and replied with a hint of amusement: “Bully's right about you. For someone who’s so clever, you can sure be dumb sometimes.” “For someone who’s just a slave you sure got a lotta lip,” Yolinda immediately quipped back without thinking; letting that fiery temper get the best of her yet again.Leo's arms dropped down by his sides, his face fell, and he locked eyes with her; his smile replaced with a look of shock, perhaps with a little shame and sadness thrown in.But the hurt in his eyes was evident above it all.Her words:"...just a slave..."reverberated in his ears, while his voice from when he first opened up to her and poured out his heart sounded in her mind, instantly making her look away and blush from shame and embarrassment at her thoughtless, stabbing words.
"Worse than that, I'm not even yokai! I'm lower than a slave, 'cause all I am is another one of Draxum’s experiments. A pet turtle mutated in his lab like I was made from some sort of witches brew. What does that make me?"
The memory of when Leo said that combined with the look in his eyes right now when she dared raise her eyes to glance at his face made the guilt in Yolinda's heart increase threefold."Leo, I..."She stopped mid-sentence when, with a flick of his fingers, the mask went down over Leo's face and with the speed and stealth of a true ninja warrior the slider went up the fire escape, to disappear on the roof before she even had a chance to finish her apology.“Leo, wait!" She called out behind him.When there was no response she yelled even louder: "LEO! I’M SORRY!!!”She might have called out more than that, but if so Leo didn't know because he was moving so swiftly across the rooftops that those were the last words to reach his ears before he was out of hearing range; swiftly and silently heading for somewhere, where he could finally be alone.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leo ninjaed across rooftops until he got to the harbor, not far from the hospital where he was staying. It was a cool autumn day, threatening to turn into a very cold night; but at the moment the coolness wasn’t too much for him so he decided to go up to a pillar on the bridge, where the wind was the strongest. But it was also the place where he had the best spot in the city to overlook the cityscape and be alone, to think.Unfortunately for him, he wasn’t there long before he heard a voice in his head.“Leo, we need your help.”“Uuughhh!” Leo groaned out loud. He sat back against a beam, relaxed his body, and closed his eyes. Not to enter the dream realm, but so he could get just close enough to talk to Donnie. And in a very sour ‘I’m so done with everything leave me alone’ tone of voice he asked: “What’s wrong.”“April needs our help. Something bad happened.”Leo groaned again. ‘Of course it had to be April,’ he grumped in his mind. She was one of the few humans people Leo respected, so he didn’t want to leave her hanging.* * *~A Few Minutes Later~There was a knock on April’s fourth storey apartment bedroom window, and she hurried to open it. A masked, hooded figure swooped in and stood on his feet to face her; silently nodding his head up once, directing her to lead the way.“It’s Mayhem, Leo,” April said, leading the way to her bathroom. “I was about to give him a bath and this happened!”They entered her (wrecked) bathroom, where Raph, Mikey, and Donnie already were.Donnie was standing in the middle of the room, calmly clicking at his wrist tech, Raph was slumped back in the partly destroyed tub, and Mikey was leaning in close to the mirror, tapping on it with his finger - the same mirror April was vividly gesturing to, that had something unusual in the reflection.Leo smiled underneath his mask at the sight of that dummy of a yokai dog, who went and got himself stuck in the mirror, on the reflective side.Now this was the distraction he needed!Mikey turned his head and was now starry-eyed, admiring the shiny new gold stripes adorning Leo's fox mask as the slider laid a hand on his hip and tipped it sideways, and playfully said: “Well look at what the dummy went and did.”“Raph tried to smash him out but it didn’t work,” the snapper told him in the third person.“Once again, you thought smashing everything but the mirror would get him out of the mirror,” Donnie commented in a factual, yet somehow smug, tone.Leo shrugged his shoulders and casually said: “It’s a fifty-fifty shot it would've worked.”“And what is the other fifty percent?” Donnie asked.In an amused tone and with a smile under his mask like he was getting enjoyment out of this (he was), Leo replied: “Instant. Death.” He leaned his big cheshire grinning masked face in closer to the brightly-colored dog sadly gazing back at him, and condescendingly told him in an comical tone: “Everyone knows you can’t live for long on the reflective side, but something tells me you didn’t know you can’t portal out again, did you, boy?”Leo rapped on the mirror with his knuckles, with the dog wincing with each tap, and then when he straightened up again Mayhem’s entire tail disappeared.“What happened!?” April cried out. “He’s fading away,” Leo replied factually as though this wasn’t serious at all (it was). “Ohmigosh, fading away!?” Mikey exclaimed.Leo ignored him to lean his grinning masked face in closer to Mayhem in the mirror, and tauntingly say: “It looks like someone punished themself for breaking into Draxum’s lab and stealing his mutagen. I better watch out, if dummies like you keep stealing from him, I'll be run out of a job.”“What’s that supposed to mean?” Raph angrily demanded. But Leo was saved having to answer his gruff question when Donnie asked: “How do we get him out?”Leo looked at him, and casually asked: “What makes you think I know?” But then, a pair of hands (human hands) gently rested on his right arm, and when Leo looked into April’s pleading eyes, he already knew he was going to help her before she even got out the words:“Please Leo, you must know something.”Leo let out a disgruntled sigh and groaned, then grudgingly replied: “There is one thing, but I don’t understand the book, it's too complicated.”“Book you say? Where would one procure this complicated book? Perhaps a library in this so-called 'Hidden City' you refuse to talk about or show us?” the genius of the family asked with air quotes.Leo wanted to lie - to get himself out of this situation. But the words got stuck in his throat.‘You just dug your own grave, you know that, right?' he chastised himself. 'Or at least you will when Draxum finds out you went to the Hidden City and makes you dig your own grave before he kills you. Who’s the dummy, now? Dummy.’Leo nervously rubbed the back of his neck, under his hood.“I didn’t say library,” he replied. “But you’re saying there is a book that can help?”That was April’s sad, pleading voice once more.Leo turned his masked, hooded face to look at her, but he wished he hadn’t with the pitiful look in her eyes that somehow managed to melt his heart.Leo raised his mask up over his head and opened his mouth to reply, but at the sight of his serious injuries, Raph jumped up from the tub and yelled: “Donnie wasn’t kidding when he said your face got slashed!”Mikey gasped at the sight, and Raph’s tone turned angry when he exclaimed: “Alright, how’d it happen? Don said you wouldn’t tell him the truth!” He eyed Leo suspiciously, and the slider sternly replied with anger: “I got in a fight and I. LOST! Alright!?”Raph crossed his arms and demanded: “You didn’t kill anyone, did you?”Leo threw his arms out in frustration and cried out: “You’re unbelievable! I gave you my WORD! We even did that stupid human thing and shook on it to ‘seal the deal’ because it was ‘important’ to you!” He used air quotes like Donnie, and then crossed his arms. “But I guess even your own code of honor means nothing to you.”“You lied to Donnie about what happened to your face, you could’ve lied to me!” Raph objected.Leo narrowed his eyes in anger, thinking over the fact that he risked his own life to uphold his sacred word by telling Draxum he didn't want to kill anymore; and in a cold, quiet voice he replied: “I gave my word that I wouldn’t kill anymore not that I’d stop lying. And my word is my life. Besides, I didn’t follow through, I told him I was lying and left ‘cause I can’t lie to you three for reasons I don’t understand.” He briefly glanced at April and corrected: “Four.”Raph uncrossed his arms and calmed his voice when he asked: “So you’re tellin’ the truth when you said you got in a fight and lost?”Leo squirmed uncomfortably with his arms still crossed, and broke eye contact to gaze at the floor.“Yes. Do you really think I’d lie about losing?” he replied honestly, referring to his fight with Draxum, where he ‘lost’ the moment his owner slashed him across the face.But, as per usual, that wasn’t enough for the overprotective big brother of the family.“Who started the fight?” he curtly demanded.Leo squirmed uncomfortably again from the memory of what happened to him and switched to gazing out the bathroom door into the hallway, to get Raph’s big frame out of his peripheral, before replying in a quiet voice: “I don’t start fights I can’t win.”“Um, guys?”April got this whole uncomfortableness over with when she pointed out that a leg on the sorry-looking dog disappeared.Leo calmly gazed at Mayhem, and told her: “Don’t worry about it, he’s got ‘till morning, that'll give you plenty of time to fix this.”"'You' as in us without you?” Donnie asked seriously.Leo looked him straight in the eyes and bluntly replied: “Yeah. You. I can’t show my face in the Hidden City for a bit. I’ll take you to the human library up the road where there’s an entry point to the Mystic Library, but that’s where my work ends.”“So that's it, you’re not coming with us,” Raph demanded in a way that got Leo’s blood boiling. But he kept his cool and quipped back in a slightly condescending tone: “I’m sure your resident genius can find his way around a library. Besides, I’ve got more important things to deal with.”“Please Leo, what could be more important than spending time with your bros helping a poor little puppy who's fading away?” Mikey spat out, like he had somehow found a way to weaponize innocence.Leo looked down at his pleading puppy dog eyes, that were almost as hard to resist as April’s; but when she threw hers into the mix with the way she looked up at him - all hopeful and sorrowful at the same time - he knew the decision was made for him, and gruffed out: “I don’t know why I let you talk me into these things! But remember…” He thrust a finger at Raph, sternly said: “If I see anyone I don’t wanna see, I’m outta there. And…” He glared at Mikey next and demanded: “Be. Quite!”* * *~A Short Time Later~Leo grumbled to himself, still wondering how his family managed to rope him into going to the Hidden City that his cruel, angry owner, Draxum, banned him from; and likewise wondering if he was losing his tough side, that he consistently relied on to help keep his head on his shell on the cold, hard Hidden City streets - and in his own home, where he was lowly, cruelty-treated slave.Or maybe there was a part of him growing ever bigger that kept begging him to rebel against Draxum so he could just accept his fate and get it over with all the quicker. After all, freedom wasn't an option.On the way to the Mystic Library portal, Leo considered keeping his mask over his face while they were there, but everyone who was anyone knew the crazy, mysterious, unnamed masked ninja was a Battle Nexus Champ, and word would no doubt get to Draxum’s ears if he chose to do that. So he decided a huge, grinning, brightly-colored cheshire fox mask would be more conspicuous than his own turtle face, and opted to clip it to his belt under his cape, but kept his hood up over his head.* * *~A Short Time Later, Yet Again~As expected, it wasn’t long before the impulsive, easily-distracted Mikey got away from them and found the perfect spot for an epic echo.Donnie and Raph freaked out (but Leo just rolled his eyes) when a swarm of hushbats flew down to carry him away, yelling with a smile: “I regret nooothing!”Leo was the first to walk away, with his hands casually resting on the back of his hooded head and calmly saying: “Don’t worry, they’ll take him to the kid’s room, we'll pick him up on the way out. C’mon, we gotta keep going.”* * *~Another Short Time Later~Donnie was gone, after singing a song about how he memorized the way to the book they needed (when Raph complained he didn't write down the instructions) and getting way too loud at the end. But to his credit, it was a pretty good song, and in any other situation Leo may have even been tempted to beatbox to it.They didn’t need his directions though, because Leo knew his way around in the Mystic Library, and Donnie’s last line about the ‘waterfall’ brought them right to the book.Which was laying open on a table where a white mountain goat yokai was reading it.Not too far away from the two 'flame head' Foot commanders, who were looking for a book along the shelf three tables down.The same commanders Leo passed on his way to Draxum’s, who were aligned with his boss for reasons he did not know.Leo could not let himself be seen by them here in the Hidden City, so he sent the ‘muscles’ of the rag-tag ‘Mad Dogs’ family team of mutant turtles to get the job done.Unfortunately the ‘pit bull' Mad Dog turtle was nothing more than a pussy cat on the inside, and Leo figured he wouldn’t know how to throw his weight around if his life depended on it.He was beginning to get antsy waiting at the end of the bookshelf, with the two Foot soldiers just around the corner, not showing any signs of leaving anytime soon. He bounced his foot, tapped his fingers on the spines of the books in front of him to the tune of Donnie's song, took out his dagger to spin it around, and even stabbed it through a book in his frustration when - for the fourth time in a row - Raph plastered a big (stupid) grin on his face, trying to reason with the unreasonable yokai refusing to give it up, who was sitting at the table while the book they needed lay open in front of Raph within easy reach for a snatch-and-run.Around that time, the two Foot commanders noticed the big snapper and were talking amongst themselves, deciding what to do about it.“We don’t have time for this,” Leo hissed out as a whisper, and he decided to take matters into his own hands. He hauled out a tiny, silver ball that was about the size of a marble, but was really one of Draxum’s powerful smoke bombs. Then he unclipped a small telescopic mirror out of his prosthetic leg and used it to see around the corner, to judge exactly where the two annoying Foot were, who were looking at Raph and about ready to head in his direction. From there he spun his dagger around in his right hand as a nervous habit, and tossed the smoke bomb at them.There was a gentle *clink, clink, clink* as it bounced to a stop at their feet, followed by: “What’s this?” and Leo grinned to himself at the realization the dummy in charge of the entire Foot clan actually picked up his smoke bomb.The second the blue smoke blasted him in the face, the lieutenant was about to cry out from fright but his ox of a second in command (aptly named Ox) slapped a hand over his mouth to shush him so the hushbats didn’t carry him away; seconds before both of them were completely covered with a dense cloud of blue smoke.Leo didn’t waste a second, he teleported over to the obnoxious goat (grateful his ninpo worked properly for him), appeared in a flash of blue light standing between him and Raph, stabbed his dagger straight down through the wooden table, leaned his grinning face in uncomfortably close to the yokai, and in a calm yet menacing tone of voice that held a strong hint of a threat, he said:“Hello, friend. I see you’re done with that book. Let me take it off your hands.”Raph stared at him, flabbergasted at Leo’s behavior, and torn between making sure his delinquent brother didn’t hurt anybody and glancing back at the thick curtain of smoke that was steadily spreading up over the top of the tall bookshelves and snaking its way across the floor, toward them.Fortunately, things didn’t escalate beyond that point, because the trembling yokai had enough sense to push the book toward the creepy masked guy in front of him.The one who had a sharp dagger and knew how to use it.As soon as he grabbed the book, Leo calmly stood up straight, tucked it under his arm, yanked his dagger out of the table, and spun it his hand before sheathing it and saying: “Let’s go,” feeling pleased with himself, thinking that maybe he wasn’t going soft, after all.A blue portal opened up in front of him, and he stepped through with Raph following behind. As soon as it snapped shut, the ram jumped up to get out of there in case the crazy caped ninja came back, but ended up tripping over the leg of his chair and crashing to the floor, with the smoke clearing in time for the two confused Foot commanders to watch him being carried off by the hushbats.Meanwhile, Leo and Raph stepped out of the portal outside the pickup entrance for the children’s room.As he was stepping out behind his crazy brother, the angry snapper yelled: “What was that!?” Leo calmly continued on his way to pickup the two dummies who got themselves carried off to the kids room, and factually replied: “I was getting the book,” as though he did nothing more than simply take it off the shelf.Raph sucked in a deep breath, about to yell something at him, but Leo cut him off when he exclaimed in apparent amazement: “What is that!?”There, among the numerous yokai kids of differing colors, shapes, and sizes, was Mikey, right in the middle, sitting high up on a throne of sorts made out of big, thick books and jumbo letter blocks. He was even wearing a crown of red feathers atop his head, and Donnie was sitting by his side on his own stack of books, fanning him with a big palm leaf.But that wasn’t all. All the kids in the room were lined up in front of him, in a row to his left and a row to his right, banging on drums like he was the king of the kids room, with dozens of loyal servants.Leo watched on in amazement when the white mountain goat was flown in by the hushbats and dropped off in the middle of the room.With nothing more than a simple point of his green turtle finger and the commanding: “New toy!” the entire ‘army’ of kids jumped up at Mikey's command and ran past where Leo and Raph were standing on the other side of the gated entrance, to gang up on the newcomer, leaving Donnie and Mikey behind, with the disgruntled purple-clad turtle still fanning his ‘king’.Raph seemed completely unsurprised, smiled with a nod, and said: “Yeah, that’s Mikes for ya.” But Leo was so shocked by what he saw from his seemingly innocent, carefree little brother that his arms fell limp at his sides, with the book falling to the floor and his mouth hung open, all while he stared in wonder at the 'king of the kids room'; trying to put the pieces together in his head. But nothing came to mind, and he thought out loud in an amazed tone:“I have so many questions.”“Ha! He probably went ‘Dr. Delicate Touch’ on them!” Raph ‘explained.’Leo looked up at him with his jaw still hung open in amazement. “That doesn’t explain anything,” he objected.At that moment, Mikey saw them and with his cheery attitude and happy grin he cried out: “Leo! Raph! You made it! And you got the book!” and ran toward them to hug Raph, with the grumpy Donnie trailing behind.When Mikey switched to hugging Leo (who still never hugged him back), the ninja slider overheard Raph when he leaned his head closer to Donnie and whispered: “Dr. Delicate Touch?” “Yeah,” the tired-out softshelled turtle replied, before picking up the book, cringing, and saying: “Let’s get out of here, so we can get that dog unstuck and I can disinfect all those koodie germs the snotty-nosed kids infected me with.”Leo patted his back on the way out and, with a cheeky grin, happily told him (lied - all in fun, so it was ok): "Don't woorry! Almost all yokai kids are vaccinated against koodies these days!"Donnie looked at him aghast and completely disgusted, and demanded: "Explain!" But Leo ignored him to run ahead and walk alongside his little brother, Mikey (aka 'Dr. Delicate Touch', apparently)."Hey bro, wanna clue me in on that Dr. Delicate Touch I've heard absolutely nothing about.""Leo! Explaaain yourself!" Donnie curtly yelled even louder. "It doesn't spread to mutants, right? Right!?"But the slider kept ignoring him to chat with his little bro; to the amusement of both him and Mikey.And he had to admit it.Having a little brother was the best!
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Leo stuck around April's long enough to make sure Donnie got the dog yokai out of the mirror, and then he was gone, sight-unseen, true ninja style.Sight-unseen to everyone but the overprotective Raphael that was, who always kept Leo in his peripheral, and who also left the bathroom to go to April’s room and look out the open window where Leo came in through, to see him disappear on the roof across the road.* * *Draxum mentioned more than once that his under-trained, bumbling experiments were ‘accidentally impressive,’ and Leo had mentioned on their night out spray painting with Mikey in the hospital that Raph was naturally stealthy for such a big guy. But he had no idea how true that was, because even a highly-skilled ninja such as himself didn’t suspect he was being tailed as he made his way across rooftop after rooftop, to finally stop on the roof of a supermarket.Raph watched with concern and interest from two buildings away, on this cold evening that was turning into a cold night. One that was even getting to the bigger turtle, as Leo got to work practicing with his mystic powers along with his ninjitsu, for over five hours.The cold was getting to Raph, and the snapper was about to call it a night and head home when Leo picked at the locked door to the roof that led inside, and opened it up to go in. With his timing suspiciously close to after the store closed and all the employees left.Raph clenched his fists and followed behind, convinced his delinquent brother was a crook who was about to rob the place, either for his own personal gain, or at Draxum’s bidding.The first thing he saw when he got in was Leo leaving the security room. The slider got a ninja chill and whipped his head around, but Raph hid from sight around the corner just in the nick of time.Raph breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Leo walking away, and when he knew the coast was clear he went in the empty security room to see what the slider had done. Which amounted to nothing more than shutting off the ‘record’ feature on the store’s many cameras, while leaving the screens harmlessly running.So when Raph saw his masked, caped brother enter the sales floor from an ‘employees only’ entrance on one of the monitors, he settled down in the cushy, oversized security chair to watch the presumed thief in action.It wasn’t long before Raph was surprised by Leo’s actions, because the first thing the slider did was grab a shopping cart at the front of the store, and completely ignore the expensive stuff on display there to go straight for the produce section.The next thing Leo did before shopping was to take off his cape and mask, revealing his heavily injured carapace.Raph’s eyes widened and he gasped when he saw for himself the seriously damaged, blackish burned scutes on his shell that Donnie had mentioned to him and Mikey.What bothered him the most, though was that a number of the scutes had been so heat damaged it looked like at least three or four layers had been scraped off. Along with a bandage smack-dab in the middle of the bluish-blackness, hinting at an even worse injury underneath.Leo clipped his mask to his belt and draped the cape over the edge of the cart he was pushing around, like he was a bonafide shopper. But when he started ‘shopping,’ Raph noticed he looked a little lost and out of place, as though he had never laid eyes on something as commonplace as fruits and vegetables before.That wasn’t exactly true. Leo had seen human produce, but he never ate it before, and he didn’t know how to check for ripeness, like he did with yokai produce.The first thing he did was pick up a pomegranate, gently squeeze it, and then hold it up to his ear, because that particular red fruit was the same size and shape as the pink and purple melodious chorus fruit that was Leo’s favorite.Raph, of course, didn’t know that, and thought his behavior odd.After doing this with three or four more pomegranates, Leo shrugged his shoulder, grabbed a produce bag, and dropped two of the bigger, redder ones in, before moving on to the bananas.This went on for quite some time, with Leo spending most of his time meticulously picking out produce. But by the time he was done in the grocery section as a whole, he had only put enough food in his cart to last one person two or three days.In addition to the produce, he bought things he was already familiar with and didn't require cooking, like a premade sub sandwich, and some sushi (which was something he was surprised humans ate too, because ocean fish like salmon and tuna, and sushi in general, were plentiful in the Hidden City food markets)Leo didn’t leave after he picked out his groceries; instead curiosity spurred him to look around at the human oddities to distract his troubled mind. But his back was getting itchy, because it was well past the time he normally gave his injured scutes a gentle scrub in the shower.The ninja - who didn't know he was being watched - stretched, scratched a couple of spots on his carapace and plastron, and pushed his cart to the electronics section, just past the groceries.Raph was sure that now he was going to steal something of value, but Leo seemed disinterested in this area and spent less than two minutes there before moving on to the nearby toy section.Raph sat back in the chair again and rubbed his tired eyes as Leo slowly and meticulously walked up and down every single aisle in the store’s large kids section, seeming to be enthralled by the wide variety of toys available for human children to play with. But he never spent more time in any area of the store as he did in the stuffed toy section.Even through the security cameras, Raph could see that Leo’s eyes seemed to sparkle as he slowly looked over each and every stuffed toy imaginable that was lining the aisle he was in. All in such a wide array of sizes, shapes, and colors, that contained vastly different types of animals - both ‘human’ that he didn't know much about (aka above ground animals) and mythical (some of which came remarkably close to matching some of the underground yokai animals humans apparently knew nothing about).But there was one in particular that caught Leo’s attention more than all the others, and he stopped to stare at it for a considerable length of time.There, in front of his face, was a soft, plushy, plump stuffed unicorn.He had never seen a creature like this before.The round white body was fluffy and almost the same size as his shell. It had four comically small legs underneath that Leo supposed meant it was based off a mythical creature, because they couldn’t possibly support its weight if it was based off a real animal. And at the end of each leg was a pastel blue ‘foot’ that Leo didn’t know were meant to be a soft and fluffy version of hooves.The head was also soft and big with two big eyes and two cute, little ears. Leo might have guessed the stuffy was loosely based off a ‘human’ horse if not for the disproportionate sizes all around.Then, there were two things that caught his attention most of all. The first one was the sparkly, golden horn.Raph watched as Leo unclipped his mask from his belt and held it up to the stuffy’s head, comparing colors between the gold on the horn and the equally sparkly gold on his mask.When he was done that, Leo glanced around uneasy as though he was concerned someone would randomly walk around the corner in the empty store (as though he sensed that he was being watched); and Raph almost instinctively hid when his brother stared straight at the security camera pointing down on him.But nothing came of that, and for some reason Leo put his mask snugly on top of his head. Then, he picked up his cloak to likewise put it on, which Raph didn’t know were both things he did for comfort.After that, Leo fixated his eyes on the most important thing that made him stop and take notice of this particular stuffy.The rainbow mane and tail.Yellow and green were mixed in among the bright red, orange, blue, and purple, which all faded into one another, as though those colors belonged together.Red for Raph.Orange for Mikey.Purple for Donnie.And in between a bright shade of green and the ‘Donnie’ color . . .Blue.For Leo.Not on the end. Not by itself. Not thrown in like an afterthought or omitted all together. But there, in the middle, among and part of the other colors, like it belonged.Like he belonged.Leo tentatively reached his left hand out to stroke the silky tail, before moving on to do the same thing to the mane - like he was petting the stuffed toy as though it was a real live animal. Then he did something that surprised, shocked, and mostly worried the snapper, when he tightly gripped the back of the short neck where the mane was attached, and burst out in tears.Raph sat up and leaned ahead to get a better look as Leo reached his other hand out, pulled the stuffy close in a hug, and lowered himself to sit on the floor, right there in the middle of the otherwise empty store, hugging into the stuffy on his lap and crying.And crying.. . .And crying.. . .And.Crying.For a good, long time.For such a long time, Raph was feeling so overcome with emotions himself that they eventually succeeded in pushing his logical side away, and he felt he couldn’t hold himself back anymore. The big snooping snapper rose from the chair to go reveal himself and offer comfort to his long-lost 'delinquent' brother, who he finally once and for all understood he had been seriously misjudging.But at that moment, movement on one of the monitors caught his attention and Raph stopped himself to watch Leo stand up and wipe off his tears - taking care not to disturb the gashes in his horribly injured face.Raph didn’t care anymore if Leo was stealing (especially considering the essentials he put in his cart) and he planned on telling Donnie and Mikey to each chip in their fair share and give it to April, so she could come here during opening hours to pay for the things he took.He leaned ahead and watched with rapt attention; and then, to Raph’s utter relief, Leo gently put the stuffed unicorn in his cart.But the slider carried himself differently after that.Leo carefully placed the hood of his cloak up over his head, because he liked how his big hood did a good job of covering his face in a shadow, with the way he walked a little hunched over with his head down after that.Raph contemplated whether or not he should reach out to his clearly distraught, misunderstood brother, but in the end he couldn’t think of a good reason to ‘happen’ upon him in an empty, closed store far away from April’s. At least not one that didn’t lead to ‘I was following you ‘cause I still didn’t trust you, but I trust you now, but...’Yeah. There was definitely no good way to explain this to Leo without incriminating himself and possibly running the risk of pushing his long-lost brother away permanently.So he opted to sit back down and watched through the security cameras as Leo went to the bedding department next without making any stops along the way.After taking a considerable amount of time and care to read the labels on different blankets and comforters, Leo picked a striped blue and white queen-sized down-filled one that was sure to keep him comfortably warm on those cold New York nights. But when he looked at the price tag, Raph saw him instantly snap his head up to look straight at the stuffy in his cart.Raph continued watching as Leo gently laid the blanket down on the floor beside his shopping cart, and then he picked up the unicorn to look it over, searching for a price tag.To his surprise, the turtle who wasn’t used to shopping with human money saw that the stuffed toy he wanted for comfort cost almost as much as the expensive blanket he needed for warmth. And the worst part was that after buying the food he likewise needed, he only had enough money left over for one or the other.For a moment, Leo froze in place with the stuffy held up in his hands in front of his face, staring at it. Raph leaned in very close to the monitor with a worried look on his face, and he felt brokenhearted when Leo made up his mind and gingerly laid the unicorn on the shelf in the empty spot where he took the downy comforter from, to replace it with the blanket he needed by putting that in the cart, instead.Leo flicked his mask down over his face - once again for comfort - readjusted his hood to ensure his head was completely covered, and patted the unicorn’s head without looking at it. Then Raph stared at the plushy toy his brother left behind as the upset slider slowly walked away.Everything in Leo’s cart amounted to enough food to last him a maximum of three days, and a warm blanket. Making Raph worry about his living conditions with Draxum - especially considering the considerable length of time Leo spent cuddling with and crying into a stuffy he ultimately left behind.And didn’t Leo once say the underground Hidden City was always warm?So why did he need a thick blanket in the first place?And why was he ‘shopping’ in an above-ground New York store instead of getting his needs met in the Hidden City, where he lived?(Raph vaguely remembered something Leo said about the Hidden City when he showed up to help April with Mayhem, but he couldn't remember what it was)If he was going to steal this stuff anyway, Raph didn't understand why didn’t he just take both the blanket and the stuffed unicorn he clearly wanted and got much-needed comfort from.None of this made any sense to the confused snapper; but the last question was about to be answered when Leo went - not to the ‘employees only’ door, leading to the roof so he could leave, but to the front of the store, where the cash registers were located.He continued watching in silence as Leo walked up to one of the self-serve tills (which were very similar to ones found in the Hidden City), searched around on the back, and flicked a switch to turn it on.Then he did the very unexpected action of scanning in each and every item he had in his cart.When he was done, the total price displayed on the screen with payment options. Leo clicked ‘cash,’ took his money out of his belt pouch, and slipped it into the payment slot - everything he had at the moment.After that transaction some coins and a five dollar bill came out near the bottom that Leo scooped up and stuffed into his belt pouch. Then he grabbed the receipt and put the cart away where it belonged, as his stealthy ninja way of not leaving evidence behind. After that, he returned to the till, and the lights blinked off when he flicked the switch on the back, before bagging up his few items to take home.Wherever that was.Raph had every intention of following Leo all the way to his home to find out if he was still living with Draxum, and if not what his current living conditions were like. But that proved to be impossible, because that was when Leo decided to rely on his ninpo.A blue portal opened in front of the slider, and he stepped through, leaving no evidence of his arrival here, besides the stuffed unicorn sitting in the blanket aisle that he could have easily stolen, but instead was the one thing he begrudgingly chose to leave behind.
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~The Next Day~Leo left the hospital where he was temporarily crashing, and ninjaed across rooftops with the hood of his cloak up over his head, his oversized blue shirt covering his shell, his fox mask down over his face, and one tip from the end of a blue mask tail peeking out over the bottom edge of his hood.It was a dreary, drizzly day, but Leo wasn’t cold because his very thick downy comforter kept him toasty warm all night, and he also enjoyed a nice hot shower before heading out to clear his head by ninjaing around the city, before his shift started.But it wasn’t long before the observant ninja noticed he was being tailed.By a human nonetheless.Leo’s initial thought ‘It’ll be easy to lose this bozo,’ came crashing down to earth with the reality that this particular human was surprisingly quick, skilled, and observant, because he couldn’t lose him. So he went for plan B and jumped down into an empty alley, hoping his portals would work for him.The curly-haired guy chasing him ran into the same alley to ambush the cloaked ninja, but when he got there he was all alone. He reached his hand down to protectively grasp the hilt of a sword strapped to his belt and cautiously advanced further in the darkness of the New York alley.But he didn’t know his target had a few tricks up his sleeve shell.A few mystic tricks.Suddenly, in a flash of blue light, the human was kicked from behind. He would have been knocked face-first into the dumpster, but his reflexes and skills in battle were impressive, so instead he managed to regain his footing and spun around with his sword drawn, ready for a fight.But no one was there.He quietly listened for any signs of another portal and managed to hear a faint, almost inaudible *bzzt* right beside his left side, so he spun around just in time to raise his sword and block a second attack.Their weapons pressed together and when Leo stared into his opponent's eyes his eyes widened from surprise before a smile spread across his face.He would know those eyes anywhere.Instead of ending the fight here and now, Leo decided to have a little fun with the human who was really a yokai.Next, the masked, caped ninja turtle slashed down with the sword in his right hand and tried a surprise attack by stabbing low with the dagger in his left hand that was hidden beneath the folds of his cloak. But the human was too quick for him, blocked that non-lethal attack aimed at his leg, and quickly did a backflip to avoid getting knocked off his feet with a leg sweep.Leo thought for sure he had him this time when he threw a tiny smoke bomb - no bigger than a marble - that should have hit his opponent square in the face the instant he landed on his feet. But instead the impressively skilled 'human' raised his sword straight up as he was landing and the tiny ball clinked off the blade right back at him.Leo dodged, the smoke bomb landed in the dumpster - instantly filling it with a dark blue smoke that seeped out over the edges - and this time the 'human' went on the attack, striking with the same speed and accuracy the slider was blocking.Their weapons clanged together over and over again until Leo got a cheeky idea, and when the 'human' stabbed ahead he opened a portal instead of blocking this attack.The blade went through the portal, out another one that opened behind his opponent's back, and the poor human yokai ended up poking himself in the backside - not nearly enough to cause any harm but it was enough to comically make him jump from surprise with a loud: "Youch!" and to throw off his game just long enough for Leo to get in the winning move by slamming his opponent's back against a building wall, with his sword held up straight across the guy's throat and his face in way too close.Leo grinned wildly under his mask, and the human-not-human smiled as well and said a pleasant-sounding: "Alright, you got me," before looking the cheshire mask up and down and casually commenting: "I like the new mask. Is that real gold in those stripes?”Instead of replying, Leo lowered his sword, sheathed his dagger, stepped back, and then raised his mask to reveal a turtle smile on his very injured face that initially got the not-human widening his eyes from surprise."What are you doing above ground Sagi? I thought you hated New York,” Leo asked, before gesturing to him with his free left hand and asking: “And what’s with this getup? Curly red hair is not your thing.”The fellow yokai slave, Usagi, took a mystic ruby ring off his finger to reveal he was really a white rabbit yokai, with both ears sensibly tied together at the top of his head - thus keeping them out of the way during a fight.The rabbit grinned back at his turtle friend, who was wearing a new blue eye mask (the one his little brother made for him) while asking: “Me? What’s with that blue mask you’re wearing? Going for something different? It looks great with your stripes by the way, very stylish.”Usagi knew better than to comment on the three gashes stretching down the length of X’s face; and after Leo happily replied: "Thanks," he crossed his arms and said an impressed-sounding: “And since when did you get mystic powers? Plus that sweet odachi. Let me take a look.”Leo handed over his odachi and stepped back so his friend could hold it up fighting style and swing it around a few times.“Lightweight, easy to hold, and it cuts through the air like it's not even there,” Usagi commented. He held it up to examine the blade next and let out an impressed-sounding whistle before saying: “And look at that metal. How was it forged? I’ve never seen a blade like that!”Leo reached his hand out to take his sword back and replied: “And you’ll never see one again. It's one of a kind, never duplicated, part of a set of one-of-a-kind mystic weapons Draxum got his hands on.”Leo gave the blade of his valuable odachi a once-over with a grin before sheathing it and repeating his earlier question: “Why are you here? I never thought I’d ever see you in New York.”“My master decided to expand his horizons by accepting contracts on humans. He ordered me out on a few hits while he’s away; told me to ‘have the job done’ before he gets back. But of course he didn’t give me a time frame.” “Of course,” Leo agreed while smiling fondly at his childhood sparring partner and fellow slave - who was first introduced to him when Draxum and Usagi’s owner decided to schedule regular fights between them, as part of their warrior training.“It looks like a lot changed since we last met-up. Mystic powers, a kickin’ odachi, and when was the last time I saw your name on the Nexus schedule? Aren’t there two years left on Draxum’s contract with Big Mama?”Leo casually rested his hands on his hips, feeling like meeting up with Usagi was just the refreshment he needed, and smiled at him while asking: “You got some time? I know a place we can catch up.”A glowing blue portal opened up beside the ninja turtle (that Leo had high hopes led to the scoundrel booth at Run of the Mill after his successful mystic attacks).Usagi’s grin widened when he enthusiastically replied: “Yeah!” and they both walked through the portal......to come out the other side in the men’s room at the restaurant where he worked.“Close enough,” Leo mumbled under his breath, while Usagi gazed around at the unusual exit location and asked: “Uhhh, why’d you take us to a public washroom?”Leo looked at Usagi behind his back on his way to the door and told him: “I’m still learning how these new powers work. C’mon, my booth is right around the corner.”* * *~A Few Minutes Later~Leo spent the very last little bit of money he had left on a soft drink each for him and Usagi.“I’m surprised you took me here,” the white rabbit commented, before gesturing to the human drink in front of X (who he didn't know yet referred to himself as Leo) and adding: “They sell human food.”“Yeah well, Draxum lifted the ‘no human food’ rule,” Leo replied. His arm was resting on the table, with his hand holding his pop, not really drinking it because of how surprisingly sweet it was (wishing he had ordered a yokai refreshment, instead), and informed his rabbit associate: “He did that right around the same time he ordered me to work here and sent me away.”“Sent you away!?” Usagi blurted out, but being careful not to raise his voice so the few other customers who came here for lunch didn’t hear him. Then he leaned ahead to get his face closer to Leo’s and hissed out as a whisper: “You don’t mean he sold you to the restaurant owner?” He sat up a little and added: “This doesn’t have anything to do with that explosion I heard about in Draxum’s lab, does it?”Around that time, Hueso came downstairs from his office to head to the kitchen. The ice in Leo’s drink clinked when he gently swished the glass around - looking down on it instead of making eye contact with Usagi - before answering: “No, he didn’t sell me, but it has a whooole lot to do with the lab fire.”He raised the drink to his mouth, gave a respectful nod to Hueso - who respectfully nodded back before going into the kitchen - and then took a small sip before laying the glass back down on the table, to free up his hands so he could take out a shuriken and fidget with it. Then he huffed out a single laugh and said: “My brothers showed up, and let’s just say they did not get on Draxum’s good side.”“Your brothers!?” Usagi hissed out in surprise a little too loudly. He glanced around to make sure he hadn’t drawn unwanted attention, and then asked: “You mean the three other ex…” “Don’t use that word,” Leo abruptly cut off Usagi with force, glaring straight into his eyes and gripping his shuriken so tightly from anger a tip of it pierced the palm of his hand far enough for him to feel droplets of blood trickling out.Leo put his hands under the table so he could keep fidgeting with his ‘toy’ while hiding the fact he ‘accidentally’ cut himself, and when Usagi’s tense posture relaxed, so did his.“Sooo, they got on Draxum’s bad side, hey?” Usagi asked, to keep the conversation moving and steer it away from the whole ‘experiment’ mistake he almost blurted out to the clearly (currently) temperamental mutant who normally didn’t seem to mind hearing that word uttered from his fellow slaves.“Yeah. My plan to get them out of there alive backfired - literally. His lab was completely destroyed, I’ve never seen Draxum so mad. He, ah . . . he ordered me to kill them.”“What did you do?”“What do you think I did? They’re my brothers. Family’s all we got on the streets. It’s the only thing worth fighting for.”“You got that right,” Usagi wholeheartedly agreed - thinking about his little brother, Bunny, who he hardly got to see anymore after his slave parents died back when they were out on a long-distance mission; leaving him and his then almost-four-year-old brother behind, orphaned. Their owner couldn’t be bothered with the work involved in raising and training someone else’s kid, so he sold Usagi's brother while keeping him, because he was old enough to take care of himself by then, and to go out on assignments.Bunny's new owner was harsh in his dealings and didn’t adequately care for the poor rabbit’s needs, so every day Usagi left a bag of food from his rations alongside the dumpster in the alley where Bunny took out the trash each evening, to ensure he had enough to eat. He also threw his weight around as a highly skilled samurai fighter to ensure no one on the cold, hard streets of the Hidden City made his brother’s life more difficult than it already was (along with the help of his ninja turtle friend, of course).Leo let out a sigh and reached his left hand out to grip his glass again, without drinking anything. And without taking his eyes off his drink, he told Usagi in a frank, no-nonsense tone of voice:“That’s how I got this.”He gestured to his face with his right hand and Usagi hissed out a surprised whisper: “He never goes after your face!”Leo lifted his glass halfway to his mouth, replied: “He said I never gave him a reason before,” and gulped down a mouthful of the disgustingly sweet concoction. Then, at the same time Bully came out of the kitchen with a hot pizza in one hand, Leo laid the glass on the table - keeping his hand on it - and told Usagi: “I thought he was gonna kill me.” He lowered his hand to put it with the other one under the table, leaned back in the booth absently gazing at his drink, and adding in a quiet, almost disappointed tone of voice:“I kinda wish he had.”Usagi was shocked by that statement because he never heard his friend talk like that before. But he didn’t get a chance to reply because they were interrupted when Bully slapped the pizza down in between them on their table, and Leo looked up at him to angrily snap:“I didn’t order this!”Bully aggressively thrust the index finger of his middle left hand at him (with his two lower fists on his hips) and barked in reply:“You ain’t startin’ your shift on an empty stomach again! My staff does shoddy work when they ain’t fed!”Usagi watched with a mixture of confusion and amusement when the turtle he only knew as ‘X’ abruptly stood up with his fists clenched and replied in anger: “I don’t do shoddy work and I already ate today!” (being careful not to raise his voice too loud so as not to disturb the peacefully dining guests in Seňor Hueso’s restaurant)Bully leaned his scowling face in closer to Leo’s and sternly replied in his own angry tone: “You’re eatin’ this food if I gotta shove it down yer throat!”In reply, Leo gestured vividly to the pizza and exclaimed: “I can't afford this! Paydays not 'till tomorow and I’m not taking it for nothing!”“Who said anything about nuttin’? I got an extra job fer ya tonight and this is your payment! And if I hear another word come outta that mouth of yers I’m gonna sew your lips shut with those mystic stitches I used on yer face!”Usagi switched from looking at the brute yokai chef (who he just learned was the one to skilfully stitch his friend's face) to gazing at X when Leo’s composure relaxed, he loosely crossed his arms in front of his chest with a cocky grin, and snarkily replied: “If my lips are sewed shut I can’t eat the pizza, now can I?”Bully’s composure likewise relaxed significantly and he huffed out a stern - but not angry - “I said I’ll stitch yer mouth closed after I shove it down yer throat, now sit! Eat!”Leo sat down but kept his cocky, crooked grin on his face, and Bully walked away, while Usagi gazed at the pizza in amazement and commented: “It seems like they treat you pretty good here.”Leo glanced at Yolinda when she came down the stairs from her home with her Tío Hueso to start her shift; and after their eyes met for just a second she disappeared in the kitchen and he replied: “Yeah, you could say that,” before picking up a slice, and offering: “Dig in.”As expected, instead of ‘digging in’ the rabbit who already ate his fill today took out a red cloth from a bag on his hip, and laid two slices on it to take to his little brother, while asking: “Is that why he sent you away? Because you wouldn’t kill your brothers?”Leo swallowed the mouthful of food he just ate while Usagi carefully wrapped up his slices in the cloth to put away. Then the slider replied: “No, he sent me away before that. He's furious with my brothers and kept taking it out on me. He lost his cool and gave me this before telling me to get out of his sight.”Leo lifted up the blue shirt he was wearing to reveal one of the healing, blackish burn marks on his shell. But it wasn’t the burn Usagi eyed, it was the crack at the bottom of his plastron that really got his attention.“He cracked your armor!?” Usagi blurted out from shock, a little too loudly. Leo lowered his shirt and hissed: “Shhh, do you want the whole restaurant to hear you? Draxum gave me the burns, Big Mama gave me the cracks when he portalled me out of a fight. He was furious with her and ordered me not to go back.”Usagi sat back in his seat, gazing at his fellow slave in shock and understanding now why he was no longer fighting in the Battle Nexus, while likewise understanding why the self-righteous Draxum who never ‘lost his cool’ (aka never lost his ‘perfect’ self control) sent his slave away - so he didn’t ‘lose his cool’ again and wind up doing something in the heat of anger that would cause lasting harm to his useful ninja warrior creation.He silently stared at his friend, knowing better than to ask any more questions about this particular topic right now with the mood X was in, so instead he softly inquired:“Soo, where are you staying?”Leo picked up his slice again and calmly replied: “I got a place down by the docks at an abandoned hospital.”“It’s awful cold to be living above ground in an abandoned building this time of year,” Usagi commented.Leo shrugged it off and calmly replied: “It’s just temporary until Draxum cools off and calls me back,” before taking a bite of his pizza.“You can stay at my place as long as you want,” Usagi kindly offered - living alone in a little hut at the back of his owner’s property (who didn’t care about the comings and goings of his slave’s associates, as long as he always 'got the job done'). It was the same hut he was born in, where he used to live with his mom, dad, and little brother.Leo surprised Usagi yet again when he abruptly replied: “I can’t. You’re place is in the Hidden City,” before downing the rest of his sweet drink, to get it done and over with.“He banned you from the Hidden City too!?"Leo kept his hand on his empty glass while blankly staring at it, and quietly (sadly) replied: “The Hidden City, Gemstone Town, the Crystal Caverns, the Lush Cavern, the Shimmering Hot Springs, everything, he told me to go above ground. Why do you think I’m crashing in a cold New York building?”An all-consuming sadness filled Usagi's heart for the friend he had known since he was a little kit, so he reached his hand out to put it on Leo’s that was still holding the glass; and the slider raised his eyes to see his friend gazing right at him, who significantly softened his tone of voice when he offered:“Draxum wouldn’t know if you spent one night, X. We can take the portal on the other side of town that leads to the caves outside my place. Or you could use those rad new mystic powers to get there.” He smiled fondly at Leo and softly urged: “C’mon, you could use one night in a warm bed. It’ll recharge your batteries.”Leo huffed out a laugh with a crooked grin and gazed down at the furry, warm hand on top of his, while softly telling Usagi: “My name’s Leo now,” without any further explanation. Then, in a somewhat hushed voice - like he was revealing a secret - he added: “But don’t let Draxum hear that name.”At that moment, movement out of the corner of his eye prompted Leo to raise his head and see Yolinda just came out of the kitchen with her work apron on and was looking right at him.Leo immediately tensed and pulled his hand away from Usagi’s, to put it on his lap under the table with the other one.But he never once took his eyes off her as she stayed where she was, silently staring right back at him with a serious expression on her face.Usagi turned his head to look at the curvy, maroon-colored fox yokai, and Leo nervously cleared his throat and averted his eyes by looking down at the pizza in front of him. When he did that she shifted her gaze to look right at Usagi next before turning away to walk toward a table, where she took some customers orders.The words 'just a slave' came up in the slider's mind but he pushed the thought aside, having already decided before now to give her the benefit of the doubt by assuming it was just her quick, fiery temper he loved to ignite that prompted her to (once again) blurt out something she didn't really mean.Besides, the mutant experiment of Baron Draxum had been called a whole lot worse on the cold, mean Hidden City streets than 'just a slave'.Usagi withdrew his hand, looked at Leo with a mischievous smile on his face and a glint in his eyes, and expressed with a hint of amusement:“Oh I see! You’re trying to get with that feisty-looking fox over there.”Leo laugh, picked up his slice again, and looked at Usagi with a gleam in his eyes to tell him: “Oh she’s feisty alright, but she’s not the kind of girl you get with and drop a few weeks later.” Then he ate some more pizza as Usagi slowly nodded his head in apparent understanding - still with a smile on his face - and said: “I never thought I’d see you get involved in a serious relationship. So, when‘r you gonna ask her out?”“I’m not,” Leo bluntly replied. He finished his slice and reached for another one while Usagi’s grin fell and he asked: “Why not?”Leo looked up from the slice of pizza in his hand to factually tell Sagi (mirroring the words Yolinda said to him the previous day): “I can’t get involved in something serious, I’m just a slave. What kind of future would she have with someone like me?” He took a bite of pizza, and after swallowing finished with: “Besides, her family doesn’t approve. They wanna see her with one of those good guys, like my hero brothers cuz they want a better life for her. That’s reason enough.”The red-eared slider was about to take another bite, but as Yolinda walked back to the kitchen he raised his face to look at her, instead. She stopped outside the kitchen door to turn her head and lock eye with him; and Usagi gazed back and forth between the fox yokai and the mutant turtle slave, very clearly reading the attraction between the two of them.That interaction only lasted a few seconds before Yolinda gave Usagi’s face a passing glance and went through the kitchen ‘in’ door.Leo kept gazing longingly at the swinging door Yolinda just went in through, and Usagi asked in all sincerity: “Soo, if you’re not going to ask her out, what does that make the two of you?”Without taking his eyes off the spot where Yolinda had just been gazing at him, Leo very slowly replied with:“I dooon’t know.”They sat silently like that for a moment, before Usagi stood up and said: “Well, I better hit the streets. Those humans aren’t going to take themselves out.” He took out the mystic ring his master let him use that transformed his appearance into a human, and Leo looked at him to tell him: “Take the rest of the pizza for that brother of yours. Like I said, I already ate.”Usagi’s face beamed at that offer. He grinned from ear-to-ear and responded by enthusiastically hauling out the red cloth again, to add the rest of the pizza to the two slices he already took, while cheerfully saying: “My offer stands. You know how to reach me if you change your mind..." He looked up from what he was doing with a cheeky grin and playfully added: "Leo.”Instead of smiling at Usagi, Leo turned his head again when Yolinda came out of the kitchen once more, carrying a tray of various different drinks. He watched her while replying to Sagi: “Yeah I’ll . . . think about it.”Usagi looked at the fox waitress with his friend for a few seconds. And judging by the way ‘Leo’ was gazing at her, he already knew his friend's response was as good as a ‘no', so he said: “Maybe we’ll bump into each other on the streets, I’ll be above ground for a bit.”“Yeah, maybe,” Leo absently agreed, before tearing his eyes away from Yolinda to smile at his long-time rabbit friend and joke: “But the next time you pick one of those mystic transformation gems, get one without the curly red hair.”Usagi threw up his mystic ruby ring, skilfully caught it between two fingers, and held it up to show it to Leo while cheerfully replying with a big smile: “Ha! You think I picked this look?” Which Leo knew meant his boss (owner) picked that particular ‘curly haired human’ mystic gem for him. Then he continued: “I wanted his mystic emerald but boss said I gotta look ‘unassuming’ so I don’t draw attention to myself.” His cheerful grin turned to a playfully smug one, and said: “But I gotta say, with the right gem, even as a human I can be quite the looker.”And with that, after giving his friend, Leo, a playful wink their conversation was over. He put on his mystic ruby ring, transformed into the appearance of a ‘run of the mill’ curly-haired human, and turned around to leave the restaurant to resume his hunt for his next target……just as Raph and the others walked in through the front portal.Usagi eyed the three turtles up and down before glancing back at Leo, who briskly nodded his head up once, communicating without a word: ‘yes, those are my brothers.’And on their way in, as Donnie’s eyes were glued to his wrist tech and Mikey was very enthusiastically waving at Leo (with a huge grin on his face, ecstatic that his bother finally decided to wear the blue mask he made for him) Raph’s blushing face was firmly fixed on the sweetly grinning maroon fox yokai who was gazing back at him.
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~Later That Night~“This is your job for me?”Leo gazed into the (cold) walk-in cooler through the open door and reached a hand behind his back to scratch his itchy shell.The restaurant was closed, Leo’s shift was over, and the only two people in the entire restaurant were him and the brute yokai.Bully had just ordered Scrubs to do the semi-annual deep cleaning in the (once again cold) cooler, which - if done correctly - would take him about two hours.Just enough time to get everything squeaky clean before he (and Yolinda - courtesy of Raphael’s invitation) met up with his brothers to hang out.And, of course, Bully had no doubt that the hard working kid would do the job ‘correctly’ (aka up to his standards). That was the only reason he trusted Scrubs to do the laborious job he only ever did himself up until now.Bully smiled, patted Leo on the shoulder, and said: “I usually do it myself cuz no one else does it right, but I know I can count on you, kid.”Leo squirmed, not under Bully’s touch but because of the feeling in the center of his carapace. Something felt different. Wrong. He reached a hand back to scratch at his shell again and Bully’s smile fell when he looked at him to say: “You’ve been doin’ that all day kid, what’s goin’ on with your shell?”Leo squirmed again as he tried once more to scratch an incessant itch he either couldn’t reach, or kept moving around on him (he wasn’t sure which).While scratching his back, he replied: “I don’t know. Something feels . . . different.”With one nod up, Leo knew Bully was telling him ‘show me’, so he glanced back at the kitchen swinging doors - just as a precaution to make sure they had privacy - before taking off his shirt, to reveal the bandaged shell beneath.Next, Leo spun around to point his back at the brute yokai ex-pirate, and told him: “The one in the middle’s been bugging me.”Bully peeled back the bandages from the top down, to look at the worst of all the wounds; the one right where the healing crack was that reopened the day Draxum threw Leo against the parapet on the roof of Big Mama’s hotel (before subsequently throwing him off said roof).Leo could sense a shift in the air when Bully’s shoulders dropped, and he already knew what his restaurant boss and fellow ruffian was going to say before the words came out of his mouth.“There’s a white spot right in the middle.”Leo’s heart sank and his ninpo felt fuzzy and weird in his chest at the definite confirmation that he had developed shell rot. He swallowed a lump in his throat and in a tense voice told Bully:“It’s alright. Donnie said he can fix it. I’m meeting up with them tonight.”“What do I do?”“There’s nothing you can do, ‘cept take the bandages off. It’s not supposed to be covered now.”Bully let out a grunt of acknowledgement before peeling off the rest of the bandages, and then Leo stuffed his shirt in his leather satchel. Before closing it, he gazed at the blue lightning bolt sticker Mikey made him that he stuck in an inconspicuous spot the day he got them. That gave him an idea and he pulled out the sticker sheet he took around with him everywhere his satchel went.Bully balled up the bandages to chuck in the dumpster on his way out, while Leo was doing something to his shell with his back to him. When he was done, he turned around with a big grin on his face, and a bigger blue lightning bolt shell sticker affixed to the bottom right of his plastron, to cover one of the bigger crack marks leftover from Big Mama’s attack.That one silly little insignificant act gave Leo the emotional boost he needed, and his smile spread across his face when Bully snorted out a laugh at the sight; but didn’t say anything beyond: “See ya tomorrow, kid. Take care of that shell for me,” before leaving the ‘kid’ alone in the kitchen to do his work.Leo rested his hands on his hips with a contented smile on his face - thinking about how fortunate he was to have such a caring little brother, to have met up with his life-long friend and sparring partner for a refreshing visit, and how much he was looking forward to likewise meeting up with his brothers for his first ever 'brotherly bonding night' to watch something called the ‘extreme skateboard finals’ that was taking place in a far-away country called Japan; which was apparently an annual thing for his brothers who were raised in the human world. Something he hoped would become an annual thing for him as well.Initially they wanted him to join them in the rec room of their home, as a roundabout way of getting him to meet the dad he wanted absolutely nothing to do with, and to show him an unused room they turned into a bedroom, in the hopes he would take the hint and move in with them.(With a certain soft stuffy laying prominently on the blue comforter adorning the bed)But Leo adamantly refused to be anywhere near that so-called ‘dad’ who he was taught from infancy had abandoned him. So for his sake they begrudgingly suggested a department store after hours instead, with Raph telling his two brothers they could ‘try again’ to get Leo to move in with them and reunite with the dad who - although mostly being absent in their day-to-day lives - they loved and spoke highly of around the slider.Incidentally, Leo knew what a skateboard was - they were everywhere in New York. He often watched humans pulling off their tricks, thinking of them as inferior versions of yokai hoverboards with wheels. But he had never heard of a skateboard competition before; nor of the human skateboard ‘champ’, Sydney Allen, who was going to do an ‘impossible’ 14-40 as the highlight of the event - something Mikey eagerly explained to him in animated detail when they showed up earlier at the restaurant to invite him out.“I could do a 14-40,” Leo thought out loud, knowing how to use a hoverboard because he had an old one at home he refurbished and sometimes took out in his spare time; and figuring skateboards couldn't be all that different.But then his smile fell when he gazed at the open metal door in front of him, and he scratched the back of his shell again just before shivering from a chill at the thought of having to go inside the walk-in cooler (did I mention it was cold?) without his shirt or cloak - because he had to give his infected shell time to air out after having it covered in bandages all day.But he figured if he worked hard and fast and took frequent short breaks in the kitchen he wouldn't have any trouble keeping himself warm.At least, that was what he hoped.* * *~About Two Hours Later~Leo was almost done his work; but after repeatedly leaving to warm up in the kitchen he was falling behind and decided to cut back on the breaks near the end. The cooler felt freezing cold for the mutant turtle after he skipped three ‘warm up’ breaks in a row; and at the moment he could feel the warning signs of what Draxum taught him was the beginning of brumation kicking in.And didn't Donnie say something about him needing to stay warm when they were discussing shell rot?Leo couldn't quite remember, his memory was just as dull as his mind at the moment.But he already scrubbed the final shelf and only had two rows of cheese left to restock. There was no need to step outside and warm up, that would only slow him down even more. He could be done in under two minutes, so that way he was ready right on time to meet up with his brothers.If only he wasn’t moving so slowly.* * *~A Few Minutes Later~Yolinda entered the kitchen, where she knew Leo was cleaning the walk-in fridge for Bully, so they could meet up with his brothers, who were no doubt already waiting for them in the back alley.When she got there, she expected to see the slider done his work and waiting for her at the back door. But instead, the kitchen was empty, and the door to the cooler was left open a crack, hinting that Leo was still inside, working.Yolinda smirked, eager to bug the hard working turtle she really liked for how slow he was in getting the job done, and all ready to antagonize the ninja fighter who didn't put up with her attitude into giving it right back to her with one of those infuriatingly fun arguments they frequently got into. But when she opened the door and gazed inside, Leo was just standing there, in front of the cheese laid neatly on one of the shelving units, staring off into space, and her smile fell.“Leo?”When there was no response and no movement, the concerned fox yokai walked up to her turtle friend, snapped her fingers in front of his face two or three times, and loudly yelled: “Leo!? Are you ok!?”. . .“Ummmm…”Leo slowly raised his hand to lay it on the shelf, groggily blinked his heavy eyelids a few times, and shook his head back and forth just as slowly as he had raised his hand - clearly trying to break himself out of whatever sort of sluggish trance he was in.Yolinda grabbed his hand, noticing how very cold it was, and told him: “C’mon, we gotta get you outta here.”Fortunately for both of them, when she tugged on his arm Leo willingly (and seemingly mindlessly) followed along, albeit slowly. Then, when she got him out of the cold cooler into the warm kitchen she shut the cooler door behind them, grabbed his cloak off the hook, draped it over his body, and helped to warm him up by rubbing her hands up and down over his cape-covered arms.It took a few minutes of doing this and calling his name before some life started to show in his eyes. And then about another thirty seconds or so later, Leo briskly blinked his eyelids four or five times before his halfway constricted pupils dilated and he gazed around the room, getting his bearing straight.When he came to his senses and fully comprehended what he had foolishly let happen to him, and how Yolinda ‘came to the rescue’ by finding him in and subsequently getting him out of the cooler, he displayed his embarrassment with anger by snatching his fox mask off the wall hook (deciding to come back later for his satchel) and snapping: “C’mon, they’re waiting for us.”Then he spun around to head to the back door while putting the hood up over his head, cuddling under his cape, and pulling the black piece out to clip over his plastron, trying to warm himself up faster; and not wanting to take his blue shirt out of his satchel - but only because he'd have to take his thick, warm cloak off in order to get it on, and he was not doing that right now.“What happened in there!?” Yolinda asked in a concerned yet demanding sort of way.“I was working,” Leo snapped, his tone heavy with irritation and an attitude that clearly conveyed to her 'back off!'Naturally, of course, the fiery fox did not back off and in a high-pitched, squeaky voice she outright demanded this time: “Tell me what happened!”The cold slider got an unexpected thrill from her forceful, argumentative attitude. One that made him want to drag out this argument longer and ignited the fiery passion he felt for her, which combined with the other intense emotions swirling around in his head right now, helping to cool off his anger quite a bit.But he didn't want to let her know that!“It was nothing, let’s go,” Leo firmly told her in reply, with not nearly as much bite to his voice as he intended. He put his hand on the doorknob but left it there, waiting for her reply (because he knew with her, he couldn’t so easily drop the subject).“Fine.”Leo’s eyes rolled up into his head from frustration over the smug tone in her voice. He thought: ‘Oh great, here we go,' and he didn’t have to turn around to know she was crossing her arms and looking at him with a cute smirk on that silky smooth black muzzle of hers that he wanted to smack off with a kiss.(Hugging into her right now would be kind of nice too, especially considering how cold he still felt)“I’ll ask Raph. He might know, he is your brother.”“Uuughhhh…”Leo let his hand slip off the handle, conceding defeat a little quicker than usual because of the overall ickiness he felt from a combination of the shell rot, and his still somewhat dull mind and body coming out of brumation.So he cuddled under his cloak, rolled his shoulders to release some tension and to try and get the itchy cape off his sore spot, and reluctantly told her (in a very sour tone that clearly conveyed how he felt about her stubborn refusal to just let something go for once):“It’s called brumation. It’s a turtle thing, something to help survive winter like hibernation I think, I don’t really remember. Draxum didn’t mutate it out of us. I don’t know why, maybe he couldn’t, all I do know is if I get really cold really fast, or if I’m too cold for too long, that’s what happens.”Leo shivered a little, thinking back over some of his cold nights at the hospital; and grateful his cloak at least kept him warm enough for that not to happen to him when he was alone, in a secret concealed room in an abandoned hospital; and also grateful for his exceptionally warm downy comforter that was really going to come in handy tonight.A part of him wanted to just go back to his hospital room, have a hot shower, and then hunker down under his downy comforter for the next year or so.(Or better yet, go back to his warm home in the Hidden City and lounge around in Draxum’s hot tub)"Let's go, they're outside waiting for us," Leo curtly said next. But when he put his hand back on the doorknob, he stopped himself before turning it, and softly but firmly requested: “Don’t let my brothers know what happened. It’s embarrassing enough yoou know.”Yolinda let out a cute little hum of acknowledgement before abruptly changing the subject by asking in a flirty yet condescending sort of way:“How do you like my claws? I painted them for Raph.”Leo turned his head to look at her behind his back, and after gazing at the red claws that were painted the exact same color as Raphael’s face mask, he glanced at her face, bluntly said: “They clash with your fur,” and turned his head back around again.“It’s no worse than that ugly blue mask on your face that clashes with your red stripes!”A small, crooked grin came on Leo’s face because he knew Yolinda took a liking to his little brother ('who wouldn't!'), and he took that as a win; being quite certain she knew as well as he did that his ‘stylish’ blue mask went 'great' with his red face stripes (something Usagi told him - who had an eye for these things - that he happened to agree with). So instead of antagonizing her further, he simply replied with: “Mikey made it for me.”"Oh," was the only initial reply as 'Scraps' squirmed uncomfortably, not wanting to upset the happy, energetic Mikey, who she was coming to have a sisterly fondness for. Then she said: "I won't tell," with them both knowing she really meant: 'I won't tell if you don't'.Leo's sly smile grew, he took that as another win, and was starting to wish he hadn't stopped taking score of their frequent argumentative debates because he was really quite sure he was the one coming out on top.The slider, who was feeling really pleased with himself right now, didn't say anything in reply before turning the knob and opening the door to the alley, where his three smiling brothers were waiting for him.(Ok, two smiling brothers and one looking down at the wrist tech he was tapping on. But he he didn't doubt for a second that Donnie was glad to see him, too)Leo went out into the alley with a smile for Mikey, who was grinning ear-to-ear in return, still ecstatic that Leo was wearing his blue face mask, and not knowing yet there was one of his homemade blue stickers firmly affixed to Leo’s plastron under the cloak.And when he smiled at Raph, the big snapper began blushing because Yolinda came out the door and looked up at him with a sweet little smile (and thinking that it was time to up her game if Leo was playing along too, with the way he was holding hands with that rabbit right in front of her).Leo glanced at her briefly, figuring the clever fox had enough sense not to take things too far with what he currently viewed as harmless flirting; and tonight when Mikey greeted him with a big hug, his streetwise, battle-scarred ninja turtle brother made his heart skip a beat from pure exhilaration when he hugged him back for the very first time.
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Leo was on edge from the moment he stepped foot inside the closed, empty mall called Gilbert’s Department Store; and it had absolutely nothing to do with his shell.He felt antsy, keeping his cloak on and glancing around uncomfortably while his brothers took off their extra outerwear, leaving everything in a heap at the entrance they came in through, to pick up and put back on when the time came to leave.(An extra layer the fox with a thick fur coat and the slider who normally lived in the warm Hidden City didn’t have)There was an eerie aura in the air the others didn’t seem to take any note of. Like a looming sense of impending doom hanging over Leo’s head and sending his mystic energy into a crazed frenzy throughout his entire body, leaving him feeling tingly all over with electrically charged ninpo.When everyone was done taking off their extra layer of clothes and they all headed toward the food court as a group, the feeling intensified the closer Leo came to a particular jewelry store, and started to ease the further away they got once they walked past. So just before going around the corner out of sight of the store, Leo looked behind his back and slowed his pace to use his ninpo vision that let him see mystic energy invisible to the naked eye.To his surprise, one of the gauntlet-type mannequin hands prominently displaying a ruby ring was oozing so much dark energy it was literally wafting off it in plumes of sickly deep purple and green mystic smoke, that floated down and spread out on the floor in a three foot radius around the hand.The unnerving sight sent a chill down Leo’s spine so he turned around and kept walking; determined to stay far, far away from the particularly powerful mystic item that somehow made its way above ground to be stuck on display in a human store. And deciding to leave from a different direction when they were done for the night, just so he didn’t have to sense the creepy vibes it was giving off on his way out.Donnie noticed his brother had trailed behind the group, so he slowed down to walk alongside him. Leo was so frazzled from what he saw and felt, combined with the wonky things his charged ninpo was doing inside his body, that he didn’t think to take the opportunity to privately ask about his shell. So the softshell started the conversation by bluntly and factually commenting:“It’s a cold night to be wearing shorts.”“My cloak keeps me warm,” Leo absently replied, as though lying to his brothers was the easiest thing in the world.(It wasn’t, he was just still on edge and the words came out of his mouth on autopilot)“Ah yes, your cloak that keeps your feet warm,” Donnie replied, very heavy on the sarcasm.“Uhhh . . . yeah,” was the only absent-minded reply he got in return, that made absolutely no sense.The further away they got, the more his ninpo settled down and the less he could feel that eerie sense of impending doom. While they continued walking, Donnie suspiciously raised an eyebrow, drawing the wrong conclusions in his mind over why Leo seemed to be a million miles away - but still on point about one thing when he asked him:“How’s the shell?”Leo abruptly stopped walking, gazing into the large food court where his two other brothers and Yolinda were finding places to sit; and he scratched an itchy spot on the bottom of his carapace while blankly staring straight ahead.The distracted slider opened his mouth to reply, but at that same time he was abruptly interrupted when the technology-challenged Raph held up his phone to show Donnie, and pointed at it while bluntly saying: “Hey Don, hook a turtle up here, the skateboarding finals already started, we're missing the first five minutes.”“I can’t wait to watch Sydney do the fourteen-forty!” Mikey exclaimed with enthusiasm, while clicking at his phone to connect to the mall’s wifi.“What’s a fourteen-forty?” Yolinda asked Raph, as though she actually cared about skateboarding in the least (she didn’t, but she did care about bugging Leo, who seemed completely oblivious to her flirting and Raph’s blushing as he continued scratching an itchy spot on the back of his shell)‘He’s been doing that all day,’ the feisty fox thought in concern.“PASSWORD!!? Nooooo!!!” Mikey suddenly cried out with all his usual dramatic flair. “Sydney! The fourteen-forty! We’re gonna miss it!!!” He slipped out of a chair onto the floor like his body had turned into some kind of slippery slug, and whined: “Without Sydney, what's the point of living!?”Donnie stuck a smug grin on his face and walked up to Michael while telling him with an air of prideful confidence: “Have no fear Michelangelo, thanks to April’s job here last year I have the wifi password.”Leo had heard Donnie call Mikey ‘Angelo before, and hearing his little brother’s full name for the first time helped clear his troubled mind.‘Hmm, Michelangelo,' he thought, 'Here I thought it was Mikeyangelo. Is ‘Raph’ short for 'Raphala', or is that just another nickname? I wonder if April is short for something, too?’That distraction was sufficient for Leo to shake off thoughts of the ominous dark energy item that he (thankfully) couldn’t sense from here and would (hopefully) never see again; and one of Donnie’s long metal Extend-a-Claws™ came out of his tech shell to hold up a tablet in front of his face.Leo joined Raph, Yolinda, and Mikey, who were crowded around Donnie to watch him connect them to the wifi; with the slider only doing so to satisfy his curiosity because he had never connected to human wifi before.The word ‘PASSWORD’ displayed on Donnie’s tablet screen; and Leo’s shoulders dropped, being thoroughly unimpressed from the overt simplicity of the (human) password when Donnie said out loud: “One,” while clicking the number '1' on his touchscreen.Instantly they connected, to hear an enthused announcer say: “We’ll be right back with more skateboarding, brought to you by Ice Tray brand trays for ice!”Immediately a commercial played that Leo paid close attention to.But only because of how absurd it was.“You ever wanted ice cubes but found pouring water directly into the freezer isn’t helpful?”“What?” the dumbfounded slider blurted out over this stupidity, as the human woman literally poured water directly into the flat-bottomed freezer, where it instantly overflowed ('duh!') and began pouring down the front of the fridge door below it.“Then you need…”Her voice was followed by a little jingle.“🎶Ice Tray brand trays for ice! The thrill of chill in ev-er-y fill!🎵”‘Boi, those dumb humans really do need Draxum’s mutagen,’ the ninja turtle slave thought.Next, Leo was surprised for the second time since getting to the mall (although he realized later he really shouldn’t have been) when Mikey happily announced to his family: “I love you guys, and watching this with all of you is my favorite brotherly bonding day of the year,” immediately before hugging Donnie; with Leo ‘escaping’ in the nick of time by taking one big step to the side when the big snapper wrapped his arms around his two brothers, with Yolinda looking on with a genuine smile.But he wasn’t spared having to ‘endure’ his first ever ‘family group hug’ when Mikey looked up at him with those same twinkling, hopeful eyes he could never seem to say ‘no’ to, and lovingly offered:“Get in here Leo, you’re our brother, too!”Leo looked at the ‘turtle pile’ hug with apprehension; but when he saw that winning smile on his little brother's face - all hopeful and beaming with joy - he just couldn't say 'no'. So he let out an unsure: “Alllriiight,” and tentatively stepped closer.“But don’t go expecting me to...woah!”Mikey abruptly grabbed his hand and pulled him into the hug before he had a chance to object or change his mind; wrapping his arms around him as the snapper readjusted his arms to include Leo in their first ever complete ‘brotherly bonding’ hug.Leo wasn't concerned about spreading shell rot to his brothers because his cloak provided a protective layer between them and his shell. The brotherly group hug felt surprising soft and nice and warm, making him feel all ooey gooey inside, and it was better than a hundred stuffed unicorns that could never hug him back.The hardened ninja fighter/Battle Nexus champ closed his eyes, leaned into the embrace, and let himself smile from the comforting sensation radiating from his ninpo, that seemed to be connecting to theirs as though the four of them were also engaging in a mystical hug. And it felt…Right.Like he belonged here, with them.But all the warm comfort of the physical and mystical embrace fled away the moment Mikey readjusted his hand, only for it to accidentally grazed across the edge of the worst injury on the back of his shell.His smile fell from the shot of pain, and, without explanation, Leo abruptly wiggled out of there, exclaiming: “Alright, that’s enough,” before squirming uncomfortably as though that single act of being held in his brothers embrace was distasteful to him.But Mikey figured it was a big step in the right direction for their brother who didn’t like to be touched at all when they first met, and wouldn’t return a single one of his hugs until earlier that very night.* * *~A Short Time Later~The huggy turtle teens had dispersed to their own respective tables once everyone was set up with wifi on their individual devices.Mikey was sitting on the floor with his legs sprawled out, his back against a chair, and looking up at the phone held straight up over his head with his outstretched arms.Raph was at a bigger table with Yolinda sitting by his side, sharing his small screen as the sly fox feigned interest in the sport by occasionally pointing at his phone to ask silly little questions she probably already knew the answers to, or didn’t really care about (or both, Leo figured, when he first noticed her doing that).Donnie was sitting by himself, looking down on the tablet he was holding in his hands now, instead of it being clamped to the end of one of his Extend-a-Claws™, like it was previously. The tablet Leo had been sharing with him. But the Hidden City raised slider who only ever watched Lou Jitsu videos (as part of his ‘mutant ninja turtle Lou Jitsu prodigy’ training) didn’t see the point of watching a sporting event through a small screen instead of live, in person, and quickly lost interest.Another reason he lost interest was because of how boring it was. The skateboarding competition was way different than those yokai sports he sometimes watched. Which - to be frank - were more exciting than human sports because the weaker human species (without access to anything mystical if they got hurt) had to wear protective gear and worry about ‘safety’ so they didn’t severely injure their frail bodies. Meaning they weren’t able to do any of the wickedly fun stuff yokai did in their sports.(Stuff they could do if they were hardy mutants like him and his brothers, Leo reasoned)Besides, something told Leo that Draxum would not approve of him watching useless videos on a tiny screen that in no way furthered his training.So the ninja slider was currently doing the only natural thing he could think of, by practicing his ninjitsu. Something the observant Leo noticed Yolinda was really in to with the way she kept discreetly looking up at him when Raph’s eyes were laser focused on the Extreme Skateboarding Finals.(Humans threw this word ‘extreme’ around almost as much as they threw around the word ‘magic’ they had no real understanding of)The antsy training slider still felt a little icky from the dark energy he knew was practically around the corner, combined with the yucky feeling from the state his shell was in. He tried waiting for Donnie to remember he hadn’t got an answer to his shell question, but the techy turtle was so absorbed in the sports program when it was on (and the pregame, post-game, and future projections of those ‘stats’ he loved so much in between commercials) that he hadn’t hinted it was even on his mind anymore.So, since Donnie seemed to have forgotten all about it, before he took his ‘twin’ aside the street-wise Hidden City raised ninja turtle ruffian decided to have some fun by ‘stirring the pot’ with a little harmless sibling banter to get some of his antsy energy out.On the next commercial break (because he already knew his brothers didn’t hear a thing he said during the ‘extreme skateboarding finals’) Leo stepped ahead and thrust his sword up for one of his well-trained, perfectly timed practice moves.“So, why isn’t April here?” came a casual (sounding) question.He stepped to the side and slashed out his sword horizontally, as if attacking an invisible enemy coming at him from the right.Without taking his eyes off his screen, Mikey innocently replied: “This is a brotherly bonding night. She joins us for other stuff, but not this.”That was exactly the response he was digging for.Next, Leo spun around and his markings lit up when he thrust his sword down from above his head, opening a portal in front of him.Yolinda had never seen the stylish markings on his face, arms, and legs glowing before (not knowing the beautiful blue marks on his shell likewise glowed underneath his cloak) and she was clearly intrigued.“Oh, ok,” Leo casually replied.He twisted his body to thrust his sword behind his back, and his markings glowed again when another portal smoothly opened just past the tip of his blade.He was really beginning to get the hang of this!(When his ninpo wanted to cooperate, that was)“Sooo, she doesn’t want to join us because it’s a brotherly bonding thing?”The portal closed and Leo stopped his training to stand facing Yolinda, looking innocently at the fox they invited to their ‘brother’s only’ bonding night.“Noo, we never invite her because it’s - like you said - a brotherly bonding thing,” Donnie replied factually, without taking his eyes off his screen, that was displaying the stats of future projections.“Hmm. You mean like pizza week?” Leo asked, remembering Mikey once told him April joined them on their last pizza week - prompting her and Donnie to argue about it nonstop all that week and for two weeks after.(And could you blame him if he was trying to ‘encourage’ a harmless little argument among his brothers with the mood he was in?)Raph smiled and looked up at him. “Yeah, like pizza…”His smile fell from realization, and he looked down at Yolinda, who in turn was gazing at the now smirking face of the mutant red-eared slider looking back at her. The turtle who was using her presence here to antagonize his brothers into arguing with one another, for his own selfish reasons.Mikey shot his head up to stare at Raph and angrily yelled: “You invited her but you didn’t think to invite April!?”Leo's mischievous grin grew. This was just the type of 'fun' distraction he needed.(Besides, it wasn't like he didn't say anything that wouldn't become obvious to them the next time they got together with April, he figured)The snapper fumbled over his words when he nervously replied: “Uh no, it’s not like that, it’s just that Raph…”. . .His shoulders dropped and he hung his head in shame. “...didn’t think to invite April,” he sadly conceded."Good," the apathetic Donnie said bluntly, while staring at his screen.Mikey stood up and defensively exclaimed: “She’s gonna be pissed when she finds out! You know she likes joining us Raph, she didn’t miss a day on our last pizza week!”Donnie kept his eyes on his screen when he piped up in a factual, yet somehow annoyed tone of voice: “Yes, the brotherly bonding pizza week she was explicitly instructed not to join, both verbally and in writing.”“Inwhatnow?” Raph blurted out at the casual ‘in writing’ comment.But that didn’t go anywhere because, in an almost whiny sort of voice, Mikey objected: “April’s our sister! How could you invite Yolinda but not our own sister!?” before looking at Yolinda and kindly telling her: “No offense.” She simply gave him a reassuring smile in return, and Donnie laid his tablet down because that ‘Ice Tray’ commercial was playing instead of the stats. He looked at Mikey to - once again factually - say: “Key word ‘sister’ Miguel. And this is our brotherly bonding night.”Now that his eyes were off the screen (and Leo was sufficiently satisfied with how the ‘pot’ he successfully stirred that got his brothers arguing distracted him from his own woes), the slider took the opportunity to sheathe his sword and gestured to Donnie with his head to follow him, so he could finally tell him about his shell.Donnie picked up what Leo was putting down. One of his long claws came out of his shell, took the tablet out of his hands, and he rose from his seat; while Mikey gestured vividly - first to him and then to Yolinda - when he whined: “Why did you argue with April every day on our pizza week, but you were ok with Raph inviting Yolinda on this brotherly bonding night?”“Raph really messed up,” the nervous snapper commented. “April’s gonna be mad when she finds out I didn’t invite her, too.”Mikey’s angry body was tense when he put his fisted hands on the sides of his hips and glared at Raph to sternly say: “You bet she is, and you’re gonna be the one who tells her!” Then he turned around to face Donnie - who was in the process of walking away with Leo - and firmly called out: “You didn’t answer me, Dee. Why were you ok with Raph inviting Yolinda but you don’t want April joining us?”In a blunt, factual, ‘wasn’t it already obvious to everyone’ tone of voice, Donnie calmly replied: “I assumed he invited her because this is their first date.”Leo’s face fell at that comment. He instantly regretted stirring that 'pot' at the realization he inadvertently got himself thrown right into the mix.“Oh,” was the only tense response the oblivious-until-now box turtle said in reply, before sitting down and picking up his phone again; seeming a little uncomfortable over the fact his big brother was dating, but not currently saying anything about it.The slider stared straight at that annoying fox, who was smirking at him now, from her spot sitting on a chair pushed up close to the now-blushing snapper.‘She wouldn’t play that game,’ Leo thought to himself - hoping and believing the clever fox, Yolinda, had enough of a head on her shoulders to know the difference between ‘harmless flirting’ and ‘disrespecting his family’ by dating his brother she wasn’t interested in, for the one and only reason she was trying to get with him, by making him jealous.Leo could smell Raph’s nervous stink from where he was standing, all the way over at one of the open entrances to the food court; and apparently Donnie could too, with the way an electric fan popped out of his tech shell to blow it away.And while Raph nervously rubbed the back of his head, trying to find his words, Leo and Yolinda never once tore their eyes away from one another. One waiting in anxious suspense, and the other mischievously grinning in return - with that look on her face Leo had seen many times before.Like she was the spider and he was a tasty bug trapped in her web.But then, before another word was spoken, their moment was interrupted with a loud *bang!*Raph’s nervousness over this whole situation would have to wait. He instantly switched over to ‘overprotective, hero big brother mode’ (the fan retreated into Donnie’s shell) and - with a little bit of urgency to his voice - exclaimed: “Did you guys hear that?”Leo scratched the back of his itchy, uncomfortable shell, wanting to have this very important issue dealt with asap. So he opened his mouth and replied with:“You mean that loud bang? Nooo,” hoping Raph would get the hint and drop it.Of course, the hero turtle didn’t, and Leo wondered why he even tried when Raph insisted:“C’mon guys, we need to check it out!”When Donnie heard the announcer say the game was back on, he stuck the tablet in front of his face with that tech claw of his, and calmly looked down on it while dismissively (and somewhat smugly) replying: “This sounds like a job for someone who’s always telling us he’s our leader.”Donnie turned around to leave, and gestured with his hand for Leo to follow along (never taking his eyes off the screen first or last). But when the determined-looking snapper stood up and said with firm conviction: “Raph’s gonna check it out,” Leo threw his head back and groaned out loud; because he knew he couldn’t idly stand by and let his under-trained ‘action star hero wannabe’ brother do this all on his own. So he unclipped his mask from his belt, fit it snugly on top of his head, and abandoned Donnie to storm his way over to join the big snapper; grumbling to himself all along the way because he didn’t understand why his ‘hero’ big brother was so intent on getting involved with something that likely amounted to nothing more than a harmless robbery.“You know that’s what cops are for, right? To catch the bad guys?” the ‘bad guy’ Leo (who had never once been caught by the Hidden City cops) griped to Raph once they were walking side by side, out of hearing range of the others.Not that they would have heard him anyway, with the way Mikey and Donnie were glued to their little screens, while Yolinda took out the blade strapped to her thigh to practice her moves.Leo looked back long enough to see her expertly jump up to twist full circle in the air, and stab straight down over the dead center of a table (and he had to admit, it was hot).Then, he looked at Raph, who hadn’t heard what he said because his eyes were glued to his phone as he walked, while that Sydney human was on screen, answering interview questions.Leo huffed out an exasperated sigh and continued walking alongside his big brother - toward the jewelry store with the creepy mystic item - and he grumbled out loud (not for the first time, and not for the last): “You action star hero wannabe’s are gonna get yourselves killed one of these days,” before scratching the back of his shell again.The ‘action star hero wannabe' snapping turtle - who should have been staying aware of his surroundings - clearly didn’t hear a word Leo said judging by the way he gave absolutely no reaction whatsoever (not even a grunt in acknowledgement) and was holding his phone up inches away from his face, which he was staring at intently; prompting Leo to look at the phone with his mystic vision.He didn’t see anything, so the slider was beginning to wonder if perhaps there was a type of human magic he didn’t know about and couldn’t detect, radiating from those tiny screens that seemed to put his brothers in some sort of a trance every time they laid eyes on one.(Or perhaps this 'Sydney' human was really a yokai, and she was the one who was mystic, he reasoned)So he decided - with or without a ‘brotherly bonding night’ - he would never again watch human videos on a human screen; while scratching his back and searching around for any signs of danger.Because someone had to.
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Raph kept his eyes glued to his phone along their entire way trying to find out what that noise was, and Leo watched with a groan when he saw the snapper was about to walk straight into a mannequin.The slider didn’t stop his big brother from banging into it, but he did reach his hand out to grab the head when it fell off, so it wouldn’t draw any unwanted attention by loudly clamoring across the floor.The snapper glanced up from his phone with a nervous smile for the slider who was glaring back at him in anger.“I can’t believe you left your weapons at home! A ninja should always carry his weapons, they’re you lifeline!” Leo griped. Then, in a more annoyed, less angry tone, he let out an exasperated sigh and asked: “What do you have for backup weapons?”“Backupwhatnow?” Raph asked in confusion.“Uuughhh,” Leo groaned - quietly so as not to be heard. Then he pinched the skin between his eyes in frustration and mumbled under his breath: “You really are gonna get yourselves killed.”But when he looked up, he saw that Raph hadn’t heard him because his focus was where his eyes were: back on his phone.Leo replaced the head on the mannequin Raph knocked off (so as not to leave a trail behind), and got his brother’s attention by covering the phone screen with his hand.When Raph snapped his eyes up, about ready to chastise his brother for blocking his view of his 'precious' Sydney, Leo angrily snapped as a whisper:“If you’re not gonna take this ‘hero’ thing seriously, go back with the others before you give away our location.”“No, no I’m taking this seriously,” Raph casually reassured.His eyes were on his phone, yet again.“How many fingers am I holding up?”“Uhhh, two?”“Try again,” the annoyed slider replied.“Thre…oh.”Raph looked up from his screen to see that both of Leo’s hands were down, firmly planted on his hips as the slider glared at him; so he finally put the phone down and silently continued on behind the stealthy ninja.Down.Not away.Biiig difference.Leo squirmed a little - not from the uncomfortable sensation in his infected shell, but from the mystic sense he was feeling, alerting him to the fact they were getting very close to that eerily powerful dark energy gauntlet.When they were almost within sight of two people he could hear talking, Leo flipped his mask down over his face, crouched low behind two mannequins, and put his hand behind his back to gesture for Raph to stop and wait there.He glanced back quickly to make sure Raph saw his signal (aka ‘make sure his eyes weren’t glued to his phone again’). The snapper made eye contact with him and gave him a firm nod, so he crept ahead and put his right hand under his cloak to grip the hilt of the odachi strapped to his left hip, just in case.And when he crept ahead far enough to find out what they were dealing with, his heart sank at the sight.Not only were those two ‘flame head’ Foot commanders - Ox and his shorter brother, Hawk - the robbers, but of course they also had to be stealing the one thing in the entire mall that was oozing more mystic energy than Leo had in his entire being.An incredibly powerful dark energy gauntlet in the hands of mystic-less humans?Harmless.An incredibly powerful dark energy gauntlet in the hands of yokai with access to mystic energy and who also possess a degree of some type of mystical powers, judging by those red flames hovering above their heads?Very, very dangerous.Especially when those two mystic yokai ‘flame heads’ happen to be of the idiot level ‘dumb-dumb’ variety.Leo’s ninpo energy was swirling around inside his body like it was trying to get out, desperate to find a means of escape from the dark energy of the gauntlet that filled his heart with dread. But before turning away, Leo used his mystic vision to check for something very important.The two dummies who ran the entire Foot clan were busy engaging in a heated debate over which one of them was supposed to be considered the leader, while the shorter one held the gauntlet in his bare hand like it was just a regular, everyday dish glove and not a powerful mystic dark energy item he should take special care around. And the big Ox casually stuffed french fries in his mouth, as though they hadn’t stolen something and ought to get as far away from the crime scene as quickly as possible. Thereby giving Leo enough time to get a good look at it with his mystic ninpo vision.Leo wondered if Hawk was holding the gauntlet in his bare hand because he knew its mystic energy wasn’t of the parasitic type, or because he was just a dummy who didn’t think about that. Whatever the case, when the slider saw the invisible-to-the-naked-eye (sickeningly disgusting) dark energy oozing off it with his ninpo, he was relieved to see it wasn’t in any way interacting with the two yokai, therefore it was not parasitic energy.Good. It didn’t drain energy (mystic or otherwise) or infect its own into someone. Meaning it was safe to touch.Leo didn’t know why Draxum was working with the Foot Clan - a centuries-old clan that was known among yokai worldwide for being one of the only gangs that freely recruited a combination of yokai and those inferior humans Draxum hated so much.The slider knew very little about the Foot - they weren’t talked about much in the Hidden City because most of their activity was done above ground. But what he did know was that his genius-level control freak owner never formed a partnership with dummies like those two he was looking at right now, because the bumbling idiocy of not-so-smart yokai getting involved in something that was way over their heads almost always ended up blowing up in their faces sooner or later.So there was only one explanation that made any sense whatsoever…Draxum had a whooole lot to gain from aligning himself with them.And Leo had a sinking suspicion that incredibly powerful gauntlet was the reason why he struck up some kind of deal with the Foot Commanders in the first place.But he couldn’t trust those two bozos with it, that was for sure.There was no way he was letting those two dumb-dumbs who were so dense they literally picked up the smoke bomb he chucked at them in the Mystic Library leave here with that particularly powerful item.The one that had the destructive capacity to obliterate about a third of the Hidden City in a heartbeat, if one knew how to use it the right way.(Or if a couple of dummies didn’t know how to not use it the wrong way)He had to get it away from them and directly into Draxum’s hands before something terrible happened.Leo groaned internally over the ‘fantastic’ (sarcasm, of course) turn his night took as he slowly and stealthily crept back to where Raph was waiting.Who had his eyes down on his screen again.He flipped up his mask and stared at his big brother in a mixture of annoyance and worry. He knew he had to get his immature, under-trained, inexperienced brothers away from the gauntlet and those ‘foot faces’ (as Mikey aptly call them) so he could get it out of their hands and into Draxum’s without them interfering as ‘hero ninjas’……without them putting themselves in between Draxum and his life’s goal once more because of pitting themselves against the Foot Clan, who Draxum was currently aligned with and who was currently stealing a powerful item Draxum no doubt wanted for himself.“It was nothing. One of those fake people dressed in store clothes fell over,” Leo lied, not knowing they were called mannequins.(And not having any trouble lying to his big brother when it was for his own good)“Huh, what?”Raph looked up at Leo the moment the commercials started, and for some reason the jingle was playing louder than the skateboard competition had been.And the volume kept going up.“Ice Tray brand trays for ice…”The increasing volume abruptly shut off, just before Raph looked up at Leo with a nervous grin, pointed down to his phone, and let out an equally nervous sounding: “Oops. Raph’s thumb slipped.”“What was that sound!? Go check it out,” came a raspy voice behind them.“Someone’s there, I bet they’re stealing stuff! Did you see who they were?” Raph whispered in anger.Leo’s eyes rolled up into his head, he groaned from frustration, and replied in a defeated, somewhat annoyed ‘I’m so done and the night hasn’t even started’ tone of voice: “Yelp. I saw who they were.”Meanwhile the conversation between the two crooks continued in the background, when Ox replied to Hawk: “That sounds like a job for the guy who keeps telling the other guy that he’s the boss, when it’s clear he should be the boss, and that creates a lot of workplace tension.”Raph foolishly popped his head up above the mannequins surrounding them, in plain sight of the crooks, and Leo slapped his hand over his face, groaning again and waiting for his ‘ninja hero’ brother to ruin everything by giving away they were there, thereby starting the fight now.Whether it was thanks to dumb luck or the two dummies who were arguing not paying attention, Raph ducked down without getting spotted and whispered to Leo: “It’s those two flame heads and they stole a ring,” just before they heard the annoyed voice of the Foot Lieutenant order: “Just go and check it out.”Leo knew there would be no talking his hero big brother out of stopping the crooks now, so he came up with an impromptu plan and grumbled under his breath: “I don’t know why I’m even asking this,” before looking at Raph to ask: “Do you trust me?”“Yes,” the snapper firmly replied without a second’s hesitation.Leo’s eyes widened. “Really?” he asked, surprised (no shocked) by that immediate, no-hesitation, confident response; and he starting to feel bad that his plan was to get rid of the snapper so he could deal with this on his own and get the gauntlet to the warrior alchemist his brothers hated, with his fam being none the wiser (via his portals, of course, he wasn’t showing his face around his boss just yet!)In the background they heard Ox calling out: “Oh Mr. Security guard, I am a lost little boy who got trapped in the store, I am scared and all alone. Can you help me find my sensei…I mean my mommy-san?”Leo shook his head with a rapid: “Okokok we don’t have time for this,” and then went ahead with his ‘keep my brothers safe from Draxum and keep everyone safe from the two dummies with a mystic time bomb in their hands’ plan by instructing his big brother: “Go back for the others and I’ll stay here to keep them distracted, so they don’t get away.”Leo’s plan was to get Raph to safety while he tried to use his portals to snatch the gauntlet away, send it to Draxum (who no doubt already knew what to do with it), and then portal back to his family in the food court and get them out of here before they were spotted.He could come up with a ‘plan B’ after Raph left, if his portals didn’t want to work for him.“There’s no way I’m leaving you here alone with a bunch of crooks!” Raph firmly objected in a tone that told Leo there was no talking him out of it.“Why am I not surprised?” Leo grumbled under his breath, mentally kicking himself for not taking Raph’s ‘overprotective big brother’ attitude into consideration (especially after he literally threw himself off a building to save his life after Leo was dropped off the roof by Baron Draxum)“C’mon, we’re going back to get the others. To-ge-ther,” Raph sternly ‘ordered’ in just as firm of a 'leader' voice as before, that Leo had heard him use on their other brothers.Leo’s immediate instinct was to fight back against anyone who dared try to boss him around but wasn’t ‘Draxum’ or ‘Draxum sanctioned’; but now wasn’t the time for that. So he bit his tongue (literally) and followed Raph back to tell the others what was going on so they could get involved (once again) in foiling Draxum’s plans. And all along the way he was trying unsuccessfully to open a portal in front of the gauntlet while he was behind the snapper’s back (who kept checking to make sure they were ‘together’), so he could discreetly reach a hand through and grab it before it was too late. But when that didn’t work, he conceded defeat, thinking all along the way:‘That’s it, we’re dead. We’re allll dead. He’s dead, he’s dead, you’re dead, I’m dead, we’re dead. Deaddeaddeaddeaddead.'But figuring Yolinda would at least be in the clear (providing her involvement was a one time thing), since neither the Foot Commanders nor Draxum knew who she was…And considering Draxum would no doubt be preoccupied for the next couple of weeks putting a slow and painful end to four ‘failed experiments’.* * *In the food court, Leo put a hand on his hip and tapped his foot anxiously, while Raph tried to convince his two ‘extreme skateboarding’ ‘Sydney Allen’ ‘14-40’ obsessed brothers to join them in stopping the bad guys.He didn’t have time for this!Only the observant ‘clever fox’ noticed when the caped ninja turtle flipped down his cheshire fox mask and stealthily slipped away.And she stealthily followed behind when Raph’s back was turned, as he was trying to get Donnie of his tablet and into the fight.Along the way to get the gauntlet ‘Scraps’ joined Leo, running by his side, and, quite honestly, he was glad to have her.“Those idiot flame head leaders of the Foot got their hands on a mystic gauntlet oozing dark energy, but it’s not parasitic,” Leo quickly informed her along the way. “My mystic mojo goes haywire around that thing, I can’t get it to work, and Draxum’s working with them for some reason…” “Draxum!?” Yolinda blurted out. Without looking at her, Leo kept his masked face firmly fixed ahead and replied: “Yeah. Draxum,” before continuing where he left off. “So we can’t let them know who we are. Here’s the plan: I’ll get their attention. When their focus is on me, you sneak up behind, knock it out of his hand to me, and get out of there before they see you. I’ll grab it and then we’ll get away before those ‘hero’ brothers of mine get in the way. Think you can handle that?”Yolinda smiled at the ninja turtle in disguise, and confidently replied: “There’s more than one reason why they call me ‘Scraps’!” as her way of saying a resounding ‘yes’. Then they separated with Leo whispering an excited: “I knew it,” under his breath and looking forward to seeing what kind of moves she had in a real fight.Just before coming in sight of the two knuckleheads with the gauntlet, Leo pulled his hood up over his masked head, unsheathed his odachi, and whispered to himself: “I hope they never watch Nexus fights.”As soon as the masked, cloaked ninja conspicuously came within sight of the two Foot commanders, sword drawn and facing them in his low, wide fighting stance, the first thing Hawk said was:“Say, aren’t you that mysterious unnamed ninja fighter in the Battle Nexus?”“Can I get an autograph?” Ox immediately asked next."You can't get an autograph from an unnamed ninja, idiot! What's he gonna sign if he don't have a name!?" Hawk sternly said to ox.Ox scratched his head and replied: "Oh, right I never thought of that.""That's why I'm the leader," Hawk immediately quipped back while pointing to himself with his thumb.Leo didn’t say a word in reply during their banter; but he was thinking: ‘Ok, not everyone knows who the mysterious masked ninja champ is.’That was when the shorter of the two turn to Leo with an angry scowl, and questioned: “Wouldn’t that make you Baron Draxum’s stooge?”‘Uuughhh my life is oooveeer!’“Why are you here, slave!?” Hawk demanded.It was on the tip of Leo’s tongue to claim he was sent by Draxum to make sure they got the job done right and because he was ordered to bring the gauntlet directly to him. But he knew better than to lie in his owner's name, and hoped when Draxum found out about this he would at least give him a chance to explain instead of killing him first and asking questions later.And that was the moment the swift, stealthy (hot) fox yokai, Scraps, jumped at them from behind; with an outstretched foot kicked the gauntlet out of Hawk’s hand; flipped off Ox’s shoulders; and was gone out of sight before they even have a chance to turn around, as Leo caught the mystic item in his hand, with the intent of disappearing ninja style and joining her.But first he couldn't help but whisper under his breath: "Oh, that was so hot."And that was when his whole plan went south because something went terribly wrong.Something felt terribly wrong.Leo looked down at his hand to see the dark energy in the gauntlet was parasitic. To him at least. And he didn’t need his ninpo vision to show him that his skin had turned black at the contact point, with the blackness steadily traveling up his hand.“Bwahhh!"Leo abruptly threw the gauntlet far away from him (accidentally tossing it across the floor toward the two Foot Commanders in his panic) and stared at his hand, to see the black something was retreating. “Odd,” he heard the lieutenant comment over the strange, unexpected thing that happened to him.Yolinda abandoned stealth to join Leo by his side as he gazed at the mystic item with his ninpo vision; but when it looked exactly the same as it did before, he then looked at his green turtle hand to confirm there was no residual mystic energy stuck to him (thankfully there wasn’t).Leo had no idea what just happened to him. He had never seen or heard of something like this ever happening to anyone in all of yokai history - and he was really quite certain an immensely powerful mystic item that did something like that would have at least received a passing mention in one of his lessons, if it was recorded in the yokai history books.And judging by Hawk’s comment, he didn’t knew what happened any more than Leo did.“What was that? Are you ok?" Yolinda asked in concern. They were both gazing at Leo’s green turtle hand - that he was moving around, inspecting all over - until Hawk cried out: “Enough! Do not interfere in our retrieval of the dark gauntlet or you will regret it, kappa!”“Cowabuuunga!”That was Raph’s loud voice as he charged at the big Ox flame head……with his cellphone gripped tightly in one hand......and Donnie trailing behind, with his eyes glued to his screen; and no doubt Mikey wasn't far away, doing the exact same thing.Leo’s eyes shot up into his head with a long groan - not only over the fact that his inept ‘ninja hero’ brothers were here to get in the way, but also over the fact that Draxum was no doubt going to get wind of his interference in working with his brothers to fight against the Foot who he was aligned with.(Aka, those ‘failed experiments’ who kept getting between Draxum and his plans)“Welp, I can’t dig my grave any deeper. Cowabunga it is,” the ninja slave thought out loud, before taking out a throwing star to join his family in keeping the exceptionally dangerous gauntlet away from those idiots who likely didn’t know how to properly handle dark energy of that calibre without causing a massive mystical explosion.But who also very definitely did know how to rat him out to his cruel - and currently angry - owner.
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Leo threw his ninja star at Hawk's hand that was tightly gripping the gauntlet, but that was when Mikey showed up out of nowhere, casually walking between Leo and his target - with his eyes down on his phone!Spurred by a reflex instinct to protect his own, Leo abruptly teleported in front of Mikey; appearing just in the nick of time to stop the shuriken so it didn't strike his oblivious little brother.But not enough time to block. Meaning the instant he appeared, he immediately groaned through gritted teeth with one of the three curved blades embedded in his upper left thigh above his prosthetic knee.Leo yanked the star out and whipped around to glare at Mikey, who didn't seem to register he was even there.So he did the only natural thing by yanking the phone right out of his brother's turtle hands, tossing it behind his back, and chucking the same shuriken right through the center of the phone's screen while it was still in the air, all without taking his angry eyes off his little brother.After the broken phone landed on the floor, a tiny drop of blood from one of the blades dripped off the sharp curved tip onto the busted screen, as Mikey fell to his knees and cried out in a way they could only be described as anguish of heart."Nooooo! My Sydney box!!!"Leo flipped his mask up so Mikey could see his exceptionally angry scowling face when he grabbed the box turtle by the upper lip of his carapace to roughly pull him ahead while leaning in close to his face, and then he growled out an angry: "If you're not gonna fight get out of my way!"He let go to stand up straight, aggressively gestured to his bleeding left leg, and exclaimed: "I just took a hit for you!" (not bothering to elaborate that he hit himself with his own ninja star that he threw).Mikey gasped when he saw the blood trickling down Leo's leg, and Leo snapped his head up look at Yolinda when she cried out: "Leo, he's getting away!"Raph was supposed to be helping Scraps fight Ox, but he was on his back amongst the mannequins he knocked over when Ox punched him into them after he put his eyes on his phone......and he was still looking at it!!!Which meant Yolinda was battling the big, muscular flame head on her own.Which also meant Leo couldn't take chase right away because he had to make sure Yolinda was ok fighting someone twice her size all by herself!What a night! And it was only getting started! He still faced the very real prospect of having to deal with his already angry owner after he undoubtedly got ratted out by those two foot face flame heads.But there was no time to think about that now.Leo confirmed Yolinda was holding up her own against the heavier but slower Ox, who couldn't get a single hit or grab in on the swift fox; before pointing his face in the opposite direction, to see Hawk was getting away with the gauntlet - running directly toward Donnie, who had his eyes on the tablet held directly in front of his face by that tech claw of his."Donnie, heads up! He's coming right at you!" Leo cried out.Hawk ran past Donnie, so close to him he felt the breeze against his turtle skin."Huh? What?"Donnie lifted his head for a second, but then the sound of cheering prompted him to put his eyes back on his tablet."Grraaugh!" Leo growled out loud, with his ninpo feeling like it was crackling and popping and weaving around inside of him, from a combination of his many intense emotions and still being in close enough proximity to the dark gauntlet to feel it's mystic energy signals.He looked behind his back to check that Yoinda was still okay, to see the commercials must have started because Raph was back in the fight with her.No.It must have been the stats, because Donnie's eyes were still glued to his tablet.To try and cut off the idiot getting away with what amounted to the mystic equivalent of a massively destructive bomb, Leo attempted to open a portal in front of the crook. But instead his odachi fizzled, popped, and crackled with blue ninpo electricity.In his anger, he shook the sword in his tight grip while yelling: "Why do you only work SOMETIMES!?"Behind his back, Leo heard a smash, followed by Raph's desperate cry: "Nooo! Sydney!" "What's a 'Sydney'?" Ox asked in confusion."What's a Sydney!?" Raph repeated in anger, before Leo heard him yelling out a loud growl, followed by the *thump* of his big turtle fist hitting Ox so hard it sent his huge body flying over Leo's head, to land with a crash on the lower level at the bottom of a set of stairs.Leo correctly reasoned Raph reacted that way because Ox smashed his phone, then he ran after the lieutenant; but on his way past Donnie he stopped long enough to do one little thing.All of a sudden, right in the middle of Sydney's 'extreme' warm-up practice, the tip of an odachi blade came straight through the screen at Donnie's face. Not making contact with him, of course, but the cracked screen abruptly blacked out because the sharp blade thoroughly destroyed his tablet."Wha!? Nooo!" Donny cried out; and Leo ripped the tablet out of the tech claw and threw it behind his back like it was nothing more than trash (which it was).Both the phone-less Raph and Mikey were listening along with Yolinda when Leo aggressively thrust a finger at Donnie's chest and yelled with an angry scowl: "You're not heroes! You're nothing but a bunch of kids!" Then he pointed his sword in the direction the Foot Lieutenant ran out of sight, currently getting away with his prize, and angrily exclaimed: "That idiot who doesn't have enough sense not to pick up a smoke bomb chucked at him is getting away with a mystic gauntlet so full of dark energy it's oozing out all around it!""Darkwhatnow?" Raph asked in confusion. Leo groaned out loud and then said in an angry, condescending tone - like he was talking to a bunch of simpletons who didn't know their right hand from their left - as he clearly enunciated each syllable:"Those dummies are getting away with a ticking time bomb that's gonna go 'kaboom' in the wrong idiot hands and has enough power to take out half of New York.""By 'take out' you mean destroy, right?" Raph asked for clarification."YEEESS!" Leo yelled in exasperation."Ohmigosh the ring is a bomb!?" Mikey blurted out, still thinking the crooks were after the ruby ring attacked to the finger on the 'mannequin hand'."What exactly is the Hidden City equivalent to half of New York?" Donnie calmly asked next, with his arm raised, ready to input new data into his Hidden City app.Leo groaned and rolled his eyes up into his head over his frustration.For the third time that night.That was when Raph proclaimed in his firm 'leader's' voice: "Leo's right guys. We're heroes, and heroes don't wait for commercial breaks.""A percentage works, too," came Donnie's flat voice.The real ninja of the group groaned out loud before looking at the foxy, skilled fighter, Yolinda (who - despite his anger - Leo was even more attracted to, after seeing her fighting prowess), and telling her: "C'mon, we gottta stop them if it's not already too late.""I'll take a rough estimate if that works for you," Donnie told him, still with his hand raised, ready to type in whatever his Hidden City raised brother said on the subject.Then Raph told his ninja brother with conviction: "We're in this with you too, Leo," before addressing his other two brothers in the same determined tone of voice: "C'mon on guys, are we kids, or heroes?""Kids...I mean heroooes!" Mikey yelled excitedly, at the same time Donnie clenched his fist and firmly proclaimed: "We're heroes," looking like he was finally ready to join the fight.Raph walked up to his skilled ninja turtle brother with just as much firm determination written all over his face as what sounded in his voice when he said: "Leo, I'm sorry we left the hero work up to you." "Me too," Mikey piped up, feeling terrible that Leo took a hit for him, all because his eyes were on his phone instead of where they should have been.Next, Raph put his big turtle hand on Leo's shoulder, looked him right in the eyes, and told him: "But we're here now, bro, and will prove to you we got what it takes to be real heroes by getting that mystic thingy back. Together!"Leo couldn't help but let a genuine grin spread across his face as he gazed up at his determined big brother.Fighting alongside his brothers? Together? As heroes!?This was what Leo had dreamed of ever since he was a little turtle tot, when 'Little Donnie' told him in the telepathic dream realm they were training to be heroes and extended the invitation for him to join them (an invitation he readily accepted at the time, but had to later refuse on that fateful day that forever changed his life).The thought was thrilling to him, and even his ninpo seemed to agree, because it instantly settled down and began flowing freely through his body, while gently thrumming in his chest in harmony with his beating heart."Let's do this," he agreed, this time with his face radiating just as much determination as what was on his big brother's. "But first, you're gonna need some weapons."* * *Ox had joined up with his brother, Hawk, and they were running straight toward one of the mall's exits.Until a glowing blue portal opened in the air that a ninja hero box turtle fell out of, holding security chains that were used to rope off a section of the mall under renovation, and smirking at them while saying in a deviously threatening tone of voice: "Come a little closer, foot faces, Mikey wants to play.""This way," Hawk ordered, pointing to the left, down another corridor leading to a different exit. They bolted just in the nick of time to miss a swing of the chains that snapped at Hawk's heels.Before they reached the door, another glowing blue portal opened with a big fist grasping a mannequin leg coming through, right in front of Ox. The oversized yokai was slammed in the side of his face before Raph yelled: "Knuckle sandwich!" and knocked him down by punching him in the gut with his big turtle fist.Immediately after that, there was a flash of blue light behind Hawk's back, followed by the loud 'battle cry' "Fibonacci!" as the business end of a push broom grasped firmly in the grip of the hero 'tech turtle', Donnie, slammed into Hawks body; sending him crashing into the metal bars covering the opening to a closed store just before Ox landed a hard punch on Raph, that knocked the snapper into his techy younger brother.Both turtle brothers tumbled together in a heap across the floor, with Mikey running to their side and Ox running to his brother's side. He pulled him out of the indent left behind where Hawk's body smashed into the bars, and then the smaller of the two exclaimed: "Let's get out of here," while pointing to the mall exit.Both of them took off with Hawk yelling behind his back at the three turtles who were on their feet, but not giving chase for some reason: "Ha ha, catch you later, losers!"But just before they reached the door, a lightning bolt shaped zigzag of blue ninpo light streaked across the floor between the two them, shooting past in a flash.At the end, directly in front of the doors, the 'mysterious' caped ninja, Leo, appeared in front of them in a flash of blue light; with a menacing smirk on his smug face, his marking glowing brightly, his odachi in his right hand, fox mask in his left one, and dozens of tiny blue bolts of ninpo energy fanning out from his feet on both sides, going up the walls to the ceiling; where the lights popped and blew out on contact; sending sparkles of blue ninpo mixed in among thousands of tiny pieces of shattered glass raining down all around him in a very dramatic display."Cowabunga," Leo firmly said."Wooow," Mikey exclaimed, impressed with Leo's mystical light show.The next instant, the final flash of a blue portal sent Yolanda out behind the two Foot; who were so intently focused on the threatening ninja turtle in front of them they didn't notice the flash of light behind their backs.Not until the gauntlet was kicked out of Hawk's hand and sent flying through the air, straight toward Leo; who raised his left hand to catch it in his mask, so it wouldn't infect him.Leo continued staring at the Foot commanders while the sound of police sirens signaled a group of squad cars were heading in their direction.With an outstretched arm, Hawk pointed straight at the Ninja Turtle slave, uttering the very real threat when he cried out: "You haven't heard the last of this, kappa!" just before throwing something at his feet, with both him and Ox disappearing in a puff of dark pink smoke."Oh sure, nooow they know how smoke bombs work!" Leo complained out loud.The sound of sirens was getting louder, indicating the cops had just entered the big mall parking lot.Before leaving, the skilled (foxy) fighter, 'Scraps', sauntered up to Leo with a cute, smug grin on her face.But he was staring straight at his brothers, with the red and blue flashing lights of squad cars shining through the glass doors behind his back.With her back to the three turtles, Yolinda slipped her arm around Leo's tense left one in a sort of hug, and whispered in his ear in a flirty/sexy tone: "Don't tell me you're not going to ask me out now."But Leo's mind was a million miles away from Yolinda's soft touch and tender voice. Instead of looking at her, he was staring straight ahead at his brothers thinking:'What's going to happen to them after I'm gone?'With a tense abruptness that both surprised and incensed the fiery Yolinda, Leo pulled away from her grip and walked ahead, kept his eyes locked on his brothers, and firmly told them: "We gotta get out of here before the humans see us."She stared at him from behind his back in surprise, as two blue portals open up - one alongside his three brothers and one alongside the both of them.And just before stepping through, the sly fox's surprise expression at Leo's unexpected behavior turned to a cute little grin for the big, strong, muscular snapper; who blushed with a big grin on his face before he stepped through Leo's portal, behind Mikey and Donnie.A blushing grin Leo didn't notice because, even though his eyes were on his brothers, his mind took him miles underground, to the outskirts of the Hidden City, where a certain currently enraged warrior alchemist happened to live.
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Leo’s portals took them to the food court of a different closed mall not too far away. The first thing he did when they arrived was warn them not to touch the gauntlet that was sitting in his fox mask on the floor so it didn't infect them like it had him, before retrieving his brother’s outerwear for them via his portals.At the moment, the slider’s chest belt was hanging loose from where it was attached to his waist belt, because he agreed to a careful (thorough) inspection from Donnie after informing him of his shell rot; who was wearing his custom three-fingered medical gloves while closely examining every inch of his carapace for any signs that the infection in the center had spread to other places.Which involved a whole lot of unwanted touching, poking, and prodding; as well as pressing in on some already sore areas to check for soft spots.He also acquiesced to Mikey’s persistent begging to be the one to clean up his leg and bandage the cut left behind from the hit Leo took for him (even though it was something he could have easily done for himself).At first the hardened fighter gave his little brother a firm ‘no’, but when those pleading puppy dog eyes came out along with a well-timed: “Pleeease?” he huffed out an annoyed: “I gotta learn how to say no to you,” and Mikey gave him a great big ‘thank you’ smile before promptly getting to work until everything was done from start to finish.At the moment, Yolinda was beside Raph - very heavy on the flirting - while Mikey was sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of Leo; holding a pen and pad of paper and looking up at his brother with his tongue stuck out, curled up over his lip, and occasionally nodding his head and looking down to take notes as Leo was giving them all some important ninja survival pointers.(He had to do it now, he might never get another chance once Draxum was informed of what he had done)After going over the importance of meditation to help focus their minds and control their ninpo, he moved on to their weapons and told them:“A ninja should go everywhere with his weapons, and take good care of them, they’re your lifeline. All ninjas - including heroes - make enemies and you never know where they could show up. Like, let’s say, oh I don’t know, during a brotherly bonding night at a closed mall.”Leo smirked when Donnie replied factually with a hint of annoyance: “Yes, we get it, we left our weapons home, our weapons are our lifeline…” but his smile fell at Donnie’s next sarcastic words: “Just like allowing a professional to inspect your shell regularly to - oh I don’t know - detect early warning signs of shell rot so you can get proper medical care befooore it gets to this point.”“How bad is it?” Leo asked in a tone of voice that was tense from worry.“It’s hard to tell. When I’m done my visual inspection I’ll have to do an analysis with my goggles to find out exactly how deep it goes before I can conclusively answer that question.”Leo squirmed a little uncomfortably when he felt both of Donnie’s hands grazing across the left edge of his carapace, and his finger twitched instinctively from the reflex reaction to haul out a weapon and protect himself.He tried his best to shake off the feeling as Donnie meticulously inspected every section as he made his way around the entire edge of his shell, and the slider resumed his ‘ninja crash course’.“Train regularly and spend fifteen minutes at the end of your session learning how to handle a secondary weapon, in case the need arises. The more weapons you have at least a basic understanding of, the better - but not at the cost of perfecting your main weapon of choice. Treat your weapon as an extension of your body. That, regular practice, and meditation will speed along your progress.”‘So would having an expert ninjitsu master like, oh I don’t know, the great Lou Jitsu training you. But I already know that’s not gonna happen,’ Leo grumbled to himself in his mind, while feeling a sense of bitter resentment directed toward the so-called 'dad' who he had always been taught willingly and purposefully abandoned him in the midst of a raging inferno.Suddenly, the slider jumped and spun around to glare at Donnie - who had just finished his inspection of the edges of Leo’s carapace by slipping his fingers up under the bottom lip, where his tail was.“Was that necessary?” he snapped in anger.Donnie calmly maintained eye contact and firmly replied: “Yes.”Leo rolled his shoulders in lieu of squirming uncomfortably from the residual intrusive feeling of that particular part of his shell inspection, and with a sour look on his face complained: “You could have warned me.”“Would you have let me?” came the instantaneous reply.“No!” Leo snapped, before turning back around and rolling his shoulders once more - still tense from anger.That was the end of that conversation, and Leo’s face softened when he looked down at the starry-eyed gaze of his little brother - who was sitting at his feet, still taking notes - while the ninja slider was spinning a short, double-sided throwing blade in his left hand he didn’t realize until now he had instinctively hauled out the moment he spun around to glare at Donnie.Next, Donnie lowered his goggles down over his eyes to analyze the worst injury - where the shell rot was.While he was doing that, Leo glanced up briefly when Yolinda giggled from something or other Raph said or did; feeling strongly that she was getting dangerously close to crossing that line between ‘harmless flirting’ and ‘disrespecting his family by toying with his big brother’s emotions’ with the way she kept touching his big, muscular arms, and ‘oohing’ and ‘ahhing’ over the way he threw the equally big Ox right over Leo’s head with one powerful punch every time she asked him to repeat the story.Leo abruptly stopped spinning the throwing knife in his hand and narrowed his eyes in anger at Yolinda when she ‘innocently’ glanced up at him in between swooning over Raph - trying to get the message across ‘you’re starting to take this too far’. But either the message wasn’t received or she simply didn’t care with the way she continued on with her overtly heavy flirting.Leo was holding back so much anger and frustration with a mixture of fear and dread - over how he knew how this night was going to end for him - that he had to put the blade away so he didn’t give vent to his frustrations by pricking the tip of his own finger right in front of Mikey, as a physical distraction for his emotional turmoil.“You should always have at least four tools on you in addition to your main and secondary weapons,” Leo went on, to help distract from his troubled mind. He tore his eyes off Yolinda to put them on Mikey again, and the tension in his face softened a little when he did so.“Throwing stars for distance attacks, distractions, and to trigger small buttons and levers. Smoke bombs to either throw at your enemies to confuse them, or at your own feet for a quick, stealthy getaway. A sturdy lighter of some kind, it comes in handy to burn ropes if you're in a bind with your hands tied behind your back - pun intended," he added with a cheeky grin."Wouldn't that burn your skin, too?" Donnie asked factually.Leo abruptly stuck his left arm out to show Donnie the burn scar left behind on his wrist from when that very thing once happened to him, and replied. "It's better than the alternative.""Point taken," Donnie replied in return, before continuing on with his inspection.Leo continued his discourse by saying: "And last but not least, these…”He reached into his pouch on his waist belt to pull out the last three of his portal chips that he saved specifically for his brothers. He handed one back to Donnie and gave the other two to Mikey, so his little brother could hold onto Raph’s while he was preoccupied with flexing his big biceps for the sly fox yokai (who was really getting under Leo’s skin).Mikey admired the purple mystic sheen on the two smooth, oval pebbles in his hands as Leo told them:“They’re one-time-use mystic portal chips. Hold it in your hand and think of a direction. The mystic energy in the chip connects to your energy..." "Our mystic energy?" Mikey asked. "No. Your lifeforce energy. All living creatures have lifeforce energy, and your mystic energy draws power from your lifeforce.""Got it," Mikey said while writing that note down, before giving his attention back to the portal chips.Leo gestured to the chips in Mikey's hand, and told them. "They’ll portal you a short distance away in an instant. Not far though, so stay alert after your portal and keep on the move to get out of danger with your head on your shell before you’re spotted. They’re great in a pinch when your life is on the line, but remember, they only take one person, they only work once, and those are the last three I got…” he snapped his eyes down to glare at his little brother and sternly ordered: “So don’t waste it!”Mikey gave Leo a big, nervous grin and pocketed his portal chip (instead of trying it out like he was about to do), before handing Raph’s up to him. The snapper gave it a good look over before looking up at Leo and asking in concern: “If these are your last three, what about you?”Yolinda paused her flirting when the snapper looked up at Leo, but stayed way too close to Raph for the slider’s comfort. He did his best to ignore it and instead gave Raph his signature faceman crooked grin and casually replied: “That’s what I got this for, bro.”He grasped the hilt of his odachi and his markings glowed brightly as a blue portal opened up beside him.From behind his back, in a flat, sarcastic tone of voice, Donnie piped up: “Ah yes, your portal sword that only works ‘sometimes’.”The portal shut, and although Leo couldn’t see it, based on the tone in Donnie’s voice he just knew the softshell was using air quotes with a smug grin on his face.“You heard that but not when I yelled out ‘heads up’ ‘cause the foot face was running right past you?” Leo griped, while Raph got distracted from this conversation to smile down on Yolinda, because she hugged into his left arm.Donnie calmly walked around from behind Leo's back to stand beside him, lifted his goggles up over his eyes to rest them on his head, and told him in a matter-of-fact way: “That ice tray commercial was on. Here.”Leo put his hand out to let Donnie put a small contain in it with something pale green inside, and an even smaller flat, round disc of some kind.(A blue disc. His favorite color)Donnie pointed to the container in Leo’s hand and told him: “This is a speciality cream I invented that works with our mutant bodies to eliminate shell rot, and this…” Leo paid close attention as Donnie pointed to the disc next. “Is a tech applicator to help you reach the middle of your shell, because I know how much you hate asking for help," he said in a sour tone before continuing on in his factual voice. "Simply press this button and it will extend with a built-in applicator pad. Put a dollop of the cream on the pad, stick it to the center of the infected spot, and change it out once a day. I put one on your shell already so you’re good until tomorrow.”Leo gazed down at the two items in his hand with a mixture of fondness for his techy brother who made it, and sadness over the thought he might never get a chance to use the applicator even once, considering Draxum was no doubt going to find out about his faux pas this very night. That was why there was no bite to his words that came out sounding more confused than anything when he asked:“You had this in your tech shell but not any backup weapons?”With a casual calmness as though it was nothing at all, Donnie replied: “I put that in all my tech shells to be prepared in case your shell got worse. Which it has. You are welcome.”Leo looked up at Donnie with a crooked grin and said a very genuine: “Thanks, Don.” Then he laid his new things down on top of his cloak that was laying on the floor, and asked the very serious question: “How bad is it?”That got everyone’s attention - including the flirty Yolinda - and they all stopped what they were doing to look at the slider as Donnie made eye contact with Leo.And based on the look in his eyes, Leo knew what he was going to say before he opened his mouth.“It’s bad, Leo.”“But it’s only one tiny spot! Mine looked worse when I got it as a kid,” Mikey objected in a whiny voice.“That may be, Miguel, but yours was on the surface, Leo’s is deep. It appears to have started somewhere within the crack in that center wound and worked its way out. And in.”Donnie shifted his gaze from their little brother back to Leo when he continued.“You have a soft spot where the infection took root, and based on the analytical data I collected with my tech goggles, it goes through every layer of scute to within one eighteenth of an inch of the bone compromising the innermost layer of your shell. It’s a good thing this spot showed up when it did, because, based on my analysis, without treatment it would have reached the bone layer by tomorrow. And once it’s gone that deep it can spread unseen much faster then if it was only on the surface, popping up as infected soft spots and white splotches all over your carapace, infecting the bulk of the outer layer of scutes within days, and - in the wrong conditions - take your life in under five.Leo subconsciously scratched an itchy part of the back of his shell when Donnie told him how serious it was, and the only thing he could process through his numbed mind was to say: “Oh.”“What’s the wrong conditions, Don?” Raph asked in all seriousness; seeming to have taken a break from Yolinda’s flirting by switching over into 'overprotective big brother' mode.“Prolonged exposure to a damp, dingy environment, especially if there is a lack of daily cleansing with soap and water, daily applications of my speciality cream, and proper nutrition and hydration. But since we caught it before it reached the inner bone layer, as long as Leo keeps up his end he should be in the clear within a week and a half.” Then he addressed Leo when he said: “I have an extra shell brush with soft bristles if you need it. Can you reach all your shell when you shower, Nardo?”Leo’s mind felt so numb at the news of all of this on top of everything else he was dealing with that he didn’t even notice the endearing nickname Donnie called him; and it was evident in his eyes when he looked at Don and blandly replied: “Uhhh . . . yeah.”But suddenly, that blank look washed away when Leo blurted out a curt: “Mikey!”The box turtle looked up at Leo in confusion, with the mystic dark energy gauntlet held prominently in both his bare hands, so he could get a better look at the ring on one finger that he mistakenly still thought was the ‘mystic time bomb’ they weren’t supposed to touch.“I told you not to touch that! It’ll . . . not . . . infect you.”Leo couldn’t help but notice the absolute lack of black in Mikey’s completely green turtle hands that were holding the gauntlet as though it was nothing more than an ordinary glove.The gauntlet that gave Leo the creeps and sent his ninpo into a spiral every time he was near it, but clearly did not affect his brother in the same way.For safe measure, he looked at it with his mystic vision, but all he saw was the same creepy, disgusting dark energy; only this time it wasn't oozing off it in plumes of black mystic smoke.“If we can touch it, that means we can get the ring off and put it back in the jewelry store before it opens,” the big hero snapper immediately concluded. Without a moment’s hesitation, Raph snatched the gauntlet out of Mikey’s hands to take off the ring, with Leo crying out: “No wait!”But nothing happened.Donnie lowered his goggles to look at the gauntlet in Raph’s hands while using the mystic gem he took from Draxum to see its invisible mystic energy. He leaned his face in close while rubbing his chin, with Leo quietly mumbling: “I don’t understand. Nothing like this ever came up in my mystic energy history lessons.”“It looks like an ordinary mystic item to me,” Donnie commented.“So you don't see mystic smoke wafting off it?” Leo asked for confirmation.“No,” was the blunt, factual, one-word reply Donnie gave him, immediately before taking it out of Raph’s hands to look it over in his bare turtle hands.“Hmm. Maybe it was a one-time thing,” Leo reasoned. And despite the way his already haywire ninpo retreated up his arm and tightened in his chest, he put his left hand out, palm side up for Donnie to pass it over.But the instant the gauntlet was laid in his waiting grasp, Leo’s pupils constricted into tiny dots from the immediate creepy, invasive sensation of the dark energy spreading up his hand to his wrist, much faster than the first time he touched it.
“BWAAAH! AAAH!”
Leo released his grip while shaking his outstretched arm to try and rid himself of the parasitic mystic energy. But he couldn't, because this time the gauntlet itself was melting into the pool of black mystic energy attached to his hand, traveling up to his elbow, turning his skin black all along the way.The sight and the sensation reminded him waaay to much of the giant terrorworm that came up out of the sand to chomp down on his leg with its rows upon rows of razor sharp fangs; sending him into a panicked frenzy, so blinded by terror he didn't even realize what he was doing when he screamed: "GET IT OFF!!! CUT IT OOOFF!!!"Suddenly, a big, heavy body slammed into him, pinning his right arm in place by means of a firm grip around his wrist. That only served to panic the slider even more because of how utterly helpless he felt, unable to move, get away, fight back, or in any way defend himself. So he slammed his eyes shut to block out the sight of his arm being consumed by blackness, as visions of laying on the metal grating in the Nexus ring, shocked and helpless and bleeding out filled his mind.There were quite a few more petrified screams before Leo was capable of comprehending the incoherent jumble of seemingly random noises thrown in the mix, which were really the voices of his family.When he took in an involuntary deep breath between terrified screams, he heard a firm yet soft voice tell him: "Leo, you're ok now."The screaming stopped, Leo took quick breaths through his mouth because of how hard and fast his heart was pounding in his chest, and his face was burried into something he didn't know was Raph's armpit.Everyone waited in silence to give the panic-stricken slider time to calm down. And when he was ready, he turned his head to look down at his hand; to see the too-big five-fingered gauntlet was covering his three-fingered hand like it was nothing more than an oversized metal glove."T..take it off," he requested between puffs of air. Someone - he didn't know who - reached their green turtle hands out to slip the gauntlet off his likewise green turtle hand; and once it was finally off, that was when he realized why someone has hastily slammed into him and grabbed his right wrist.Because he had unsheathed his odachi in his blind panic, to do what any seasoned fighter would do when attacked and their life was on the line:They would slash the enemy before the enemy could slash them.Only in this case, the enemy was attached to him. Meaning in his hysteria he would have sliced his arm clean off, if not for Raph slamming into him and grabbing his wrist before it was too late.“Leo, what happened?” came a concerned-sounding voice.From who, Leo didn’t know. Mikey maybe? His mind was too blank to register anything right now and his ninpo felt numb in his chest - like it was there, but it wasn’t at the same time.If he could think clearly enough in the moment to come up with the right words to describe it, he would say it felt more like a heavy, cold rock in his chest than the light, warm campfire he normally enjoyed.And it most definitely had something to do with that dark energy gauntlet.It wasn’t until Raph put a supportive hand on his shoulder that Leo finally snapped out of the stupor he was in. And he looked up at the concerned face of his caring big brother gazing down on him, to say:“I don’t know what just happened but whatever it was, I did not like it.”Raph smiled down on him reassuringly and released his firm grip on Leo's wrist. The slider took a few more breaths through his mouth, with sweat on his head and his throat sore and raw from all the screaming. His hand trembled a little as he sheathed his odachi, and although he normally didn't like to be touched, he was glad his protective big brother was keeping his hand on his shoulder because it felt grounding.After his odachi was safely back its hip sheath, Leo figured he should have known by now what would happen next, but it still caught him off guard when Raph wrapped his big arms around him - practically enveloping his smaller turtle frame in the process - as he gave his brother a warm, brotherly hug.Leo leaned into the comforting warmth of his big brother’s embrace instead of pulling out of it; and he even closed his eyes and did his very best to put his arms as far around Raph’s big shell as he could reach, to hug him back.Raph responded by tightening his grip to hug Leo a little more snugly; and before he knew it, the slider was surrounded by all his siblings in a comforting, warm family group hug.One that brought a little warmth back to the numbed ninpo in his chest.That was when the hardened ninja warrior slave of the great Baron Draxum felt such an overwhelming swell of one particular emotion over all the others swirling around in his head, he felt compelled to utter a phrase that had never before come out of his mouth:“I love you guys.”After he said that, each and every one of Leo's turtle brothers ensured him of their love for their long-lost brother they thought had been dead for far too long.Then, in a soft tone of voice that reflected the deep brotherly love he felt for each and every one of them, Leo suggested: “Let’s do something fun together. To forget all of . . . this whole situation.”“I know just the place!” Mikey exclaimed with excitement.In response, Leo snuggled a little bit closer to Raph’s plastron, and with his eyes still closed, happily suggested: “Let’s invite April. As . . . as soon as we're done this."And he was happy his family seemed to agreed as they stayed locked in a warm, comforting embrace for a little while. longer.
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Since Leo already knew where April lived, he took them all to her place via his portals. While they were there, Leo occupied himself by playfully pestering that dog yokai named Mayhem who was trying to sleep snugly in his bed, but at the moment kept growling and snapping at the turtle finger that was repeatedly being shoved in his face and swiftly pulled back before his sharp canine teeth could make contact.And since they were at April's, Mikey mentioned that their home wasn't far away so he could pick up some snacks, Raph suggested they get their weapons, and Donnie gave Leo the solemn promise he would keep the harmless-to-them mystic gauntlet safely tucked away inside his impenetrable tech safe.Leo decided to go with them, but only for the reason that he wanted to know where they lived in case Draxum ordered him to get the gauntlet back. Since it didn't technically belong to his brothers, it wouldn't really be considered stealing if he discreetly ninjaed in and swiped it (once he figured out how he could get his hands on the mystic item that infected him with its dark energy, and somehow left his ninpo feeling cold and heavy inside his chest - but at least his portals were still working fine).At the moment, Leo was waiting in an abandoned underground subway station outside his brother’s lair home while the three of them were getting the things they needed (with Yolinda tagging along by Raph's side); and April hung back with him.While he waited, Leo was practicing his kenjutsu moves along with his mystic powers, to ensure everything was working right, considering how his ninpo was feeling inside his chest. And it was a good thing he did, because he soon discovered the only two mystic powers working for him were his portals and mystic vision. Meaning he couldn't access his powerful teleporting abilities at all."You got some good moves there, Stripes. Perhaps you could teach me a thing or two."The portal Leo had just opened closed and he straightened up, rested the blade of his odachi over his shoulder, and looked at her with a grin, to ask: "Yeah? You really wanna learn a few things?"April took out her bat, rested it on her shoulder and enthusiastically replied: "You know it!"Leo instantly got in his low, wide ninja stance, and said: "Alright, let's see what you got." She immediately took her bat off her shoulder and followed Leo's lead in circling around one another."Your eyes are too high, keep them on your opponent's chest, not their face. That'll put you in a better position to know what their arms and legs are doing at all times," Leo instructed.April lowered her gaze to stare at his chest, and then Leo thrust ahead with a high swing at April's right. She blocked, taking her eyes off Leo to look up at the blade by her head while their weapons pressed together, and the slider instantly took advantage of her blind spot by stabbing his dagger at her left hip, stopping less than an inch from puncturing through her jacket.April looked down in surprise at the dagger she didn't realize Leo had even unsheathed, and the ninja slider took advantage of her second distraction by knocking her off her feet onto her back with a low, sweeping kick.She looked up at the smiling turtle gazing down on her from her position on the cold, hard cement floor. Then Leo expertly spun his dagger in his left hand before sheathing it in his chest belt to extend a friendly hand to help her up.April reached out and readily accept his help with her own smile, commented: "I think there's more than a thing or two you can teach me," and after helping pull her to her feet, the ninja turtle patted his chest with both hands while reminding her: "Eyes. On. Me." "Eyes on you, got it," she repeated.Next, the ninja slider rested his odachi over his shoulder, on the lip of his shell, and told her with a smile: "You've got good reflexes and decent strength, but your size is your biggest weakness. Most of your opponents are gonna be bigger and heavier than you, that means you need to put those good reflexes to use by leaning more on dodging attacks than blocking. That'll leave you open for a swift counterattack, and swinging and missing takes more energy than a swing and a hit, so constantly dodging will tire out your opponents. And don't underestimate the importance of distance attacks. You could do a lot of damage with a good, stiff swing of that bat if you learn how to hit a moving target with projectiles. For distance attacks, keep your eyes focused on the exact spot you want to hit, and start off training with bigger targets but if you reduce the size and add moving targets, I don't doubt you'll be able to hit a buzzing oozsquito right out of the air. So basically, get in, dodge, attack, get out and keep at them with projectiles until you see an opening to get in close again, or they come at you. But for the bigger slower enemies of the dumb-dumb variety, you could probably get away with keeping yourself behind their back for multiple close range attacks.""Dodge, attack, projectiles, eyes on the target, close attacks for big dumb-dumbs. Got it," April repeated out loud, to help her remember."Here." Leo held out a handful of what looked like metal marbles. "They're smoke bombs, to start off your projectile collection. They'll give you a great advantage to get in close for a surprise attack, and get back out again before those crooks you 'heroes' fight know what hit 'em, and these ones have the bonus of causing minor damage when they go off."April looked down with a smile at Leo's outstretched hand and said a simple: "Thanks," before gratefully taking the smoke bombs from him. He smiled at her while she put them away, and that was when his brothers and Yolinda came out (with their weapons, thankfully).Leo turned around to smile up at his big brother when he heard him say his name, but then his smile fell with the way Raph was nervously rubbing the back of his head.He just knew what was coming next."Uh, we were thinking, since you're here and all, that maybe..." Raph lowered his hand to nervously tap the tips of his index fingers together, and gave his brother Leo a super big grin when he said: "...now would be a good time to introduce you to Pops.""You didn't tell him I'm here, did you!?" Leo harshly demanded."No, Papá does not know you are here," Donnie immediately answered.Raph rubbed the back of his head again and nervously said: "We haven't exactly told him we've been hanging out with you.""Yeah, Pops still thinks your dead, Leo," Mikey blurted out.Leo glared at his brothers and curtly replied: "Good. Lets keep it that way," before lowering his sword off his shoulder and turning around to walk away. "Where to, Mikey?" he asked with a hit of anger."Come ooon, Leo, we can't keep Pops in the dark forever," Mikey whined. "And he spoke of you with fondness when he told us about the night of the fire," Donnie offered."Did he tell you everything about that night?" Leo curtly inquired, wondering if his brothers knew what he thought he knew - that their beloved 'Pops' willingly chose to leave him behind, presumably to meet his demise in the flames, or if he simply lied to them about what happened."No, but he did tell us he thinks about you and goes over that night in his head a lot. He wishes things turned out differently, Leo," Raph told him. Then, a pair of turtle hands rested on Leo's arm, and he looked down to see Mikey gazing up at him, trying to use his 'baby brother privileges' by giving him the biggest, saddest pair of puppy dog eyes the slider had ever seen, combined with a pleading: "Pleeease Leo.""We can't keep this from him forever," Donnie said."We can make it quick, in and out," Raph offered."Yeah Stripes, Splints isn't a bad guy, just give him a chance," April softly told him.Then Mikey's sad little voice finished with: "He'll be thrilled to see you Leo, I know it! Just go in and say hi, ok? For me?"This time Leo didn't give in to his baby brother. Instead, he yanked his arm away from Mikey's grip, sternly snapped: "If I ever want a Lou Jitsu autograph I'll let you know. Now where to?" and held his sword out in both hands with his back to his family, waiting for someone to tell him where he could open his next portal so they could get out of here.That was when the orphaned Yolinda - who was being raised by her 'Tio' Hueso - walked up to him. He kept his eyes on his sword when she looked at him and softly said: "If he's your dad, Leo, don't you think it would be nice to get to know him, even a little? Why not at least try to give him a chance? I'd give anything for an opportunity like this.""Where to now?" was Leo's only stern, blunt reply."Don't worry Mikes, we'll keep trying," Raph quietly whispered to the sad-faced Mikey. Then it was April who picked up the low mood in the air by saying with enthusiasm: "Alright gang, we're all together tonight, so are we gonna stand around here moaping, or are we gonna have some family fun!?"Mikey fist bumped the air with a big smile and excitedly exclaimed: "Let's have some fun!"It wasn’t more than fifteen minutes later then (thanks to Leo’s portals) the six of them were inside a big indoor skatepark that was closed for the night.And at this moment, Leo was trying out a human skateboard for the very first time.Mikey was already on the ramps, pulling off some sweet tricks, along with April, who was skateboarding too (but not as spectacularly because she wasn’t in to skateboarding as much as the guys); with Raph and Yolinda on Leo’s right, Donnie to his left, and the slider standing atop a ramp with one foot on a skateboard (a blue skateboard), testing it out before he went down the ramp for the first time.“It’s a lot slipperier than I thought it’d be, for something with wheels,” Leo commented. He looked at the skateboard beneath his flesh-and-bone right foot, that he was using to push it forward and backwards so he could feel it out.“Where’s the foot strap?” the Hidden City raised slider enquired - not having noticed before now that human skateboards didn’t have one. He kept his eyes on the board and added: “You know, for when you loop upside-down? So you don’t fall off.”“Upside-down?” Donnie asked, with one eyebrow raised.“Yeah. Like hoverboards,” Leo casually replied without taking his eyes off his board.Donnie raised his hands to use air quotes when he asked: “And where would one procure these ‘hoverboards’?”Leo looked up at his ‘twin’ brother with a cheeky grin, and replied: “In the Hidden City, of course,” before showing him he wasn’t answering any more questions on the subject by giving him a playful wink and pushing off to go down the ramp.And up the other side.Where the skateboard went up, up, up - waaay up . . .But Leo went up, up, down - waaay down.The disgruntled slider landed safely on the ramp he had just skateboarded up, slipping over halfway down on his bum like a child going down a playground slide; with his arms crossed, his legs splayed out in front of him, and a pout on his blue masked turtle face. Then the skateboard landed beside him and rolled all the way down to the bottom of the pit.Raph let out a playful laugh over the humorous look on Leo’s face, and without uncrossing his arms or losing that pout (that Yolinda found adorable), Leo said in a slightly grumpy tone:“I’m starting to understand why skateboarding is called extreme. It’s nothing at all like hoverboarding.”That was when April walked up to him with her board tucked under her arm and a smile on her face, as she encouragingly told him: “Don’t worry about it, Stripes, you’ll get the hang of it.”When April stretched out her hand, offering it to Leo to help him up like he had done to her outside his brother’s home, he looked at it with that ‘cute’ pout still on his face, his arms still crossed with his hands tucked into his armpits, and his legs still splayed out in front of him, while he sat there on his turtle bum.Normally, Leo would never accept assistance to get back on his feet - he was a ninja warrior, after all, he could do it himself! But the twinkle in her eyes and the kindness in her genuine smile won out in the end. So Leo smiled up at her, reached his ninja turtle hand out to let her grasp it and help pull him to his feet……and that was the moment he decided she really was his family, too.The slider (who figured he was being ratted out by those two ‘foot faces’ at this very moment) knew the night was short and believed he would never have another one like this again. But there was still one thing he had done with his brothers that he had never done with April, and wanted to do at least once before they separated for the night for what he figured would be the very last time.So Leo surprised each and every one of them - most of all April - when he pulled her in for a hug; wrapping his arms all the way around her body and whispering in her ear:“Love ya, sis.”April was so taken aback by Leo’s unexpected words and actions that her board dropped to the floor when she hovered her arms out behind his back, as all of them stopped to stare at the two.Then, April got her head back on her shoulders, wrapped her arms around Leo, and whispered in reply: “Love you too. Bro.”“Aw, that’s so sweet!”“I need to take pictures for my archives.”“I think I’m gonna cry.”Came Mikey, Donnie, and Raph’s voices respectively, before Mikey announced: "Group hug!" and took the lead in running down the ramp toward his two siblings, where each of them once again gave Leo a family group hug.And he had to admit, he was starting to like the fact that his brothers were a huggy bunch.The only one who didn’t join in the hug was Yolinda, who watched with that fiery anger of hers burning in her heart over the way Leo was squeezing April tight.(The fiery anger that often made her lose her temper and blurt out hurtful things that she didn't really mean)April, who she personally had nothing against, but who was one of those humans Leo had once told her were ‘disgusting’ and ‘not deserving’ of a better life Draxum was going to provide (whatever that meant).Which meant the one and only possible explanation she could think of for the reason why Leo hugged a human was that he was trying to beat her at her own game.“So you are playing this game,” she quietly thought out loud. She focused her gaze on Raph, put a hand on her hip, and whispered: “Watch out Scrubs, If you wanna play with fire, you’re gonna get burned.”Which was reminiscent of a warning Bully once gave to Leo:
“She’s a real firebat, that one. All cute and cuddly if you scratch her behind the ear just right, but watch out! She’ll burst into flames if you rub her the wrong way.”
At the time, 'Scrubs' didn't take the warning seriously, and he replied that he liked playing with fire. But he was soon to find out how very wrong he was.* * *~Just under Twenty Minutes Later~With some encouragement and help from his brothers, Leo was really starting to get the hang of this ‘extreme skateboarding’ thing, and he had a huge smile on his face as he popped over a ramp to land on the top, facing where Raph and Yolinda were sitting at a table outside a closed fast food pizza joint in the indoor park.He started walking toward them and pointed his thumb back to the pit with a big grin for his big brother as he offered: “Hey Raph, come join us! Mikey’s gonna..” “I was hoping you were going to ask me out tonight,” came the sweet-sounding voice of the sly fox.Leo’s smile abruptly fell.His whole countenance dropped.She continued.“I think Donnie had a good idea when he said he thought this was our first date.”Raph’s face turned as red as his mask and he opened his smiling mouth to reply…“I thought you were better than this.”Both sets of eyes snapped on Leo - one in surprise and the other with a mischievous, sly grin - when he spoke those firm, clear words, that carried a measure of hurt in the tone.In fact, he spoke them so firmly and clearly his voice carried through the large room to the skate pit; grabbing the attention of Mikey and Donnie, who skateboarded up to join April on top of a ramp, on the exact opposite side of the pit from where Leo was standing in front of Yolinda and Raph.And all eyes were on him.Leo stretched out his left arm to gesture vividly and firmly to the confused snapper when he sternly said in an incensed tone: “Raph is my brother!”But the hurt in his eyes was evident above it all.Leo let his board fall out of his grip. It dropped to the floor and slowly rolled over to the ramp behind him as he crossed his tense arms, and said in a spiteful, bitter tone of voice: "I told you they're good guys Yolinda, and they're my brothers. But none of that matters to you, does it? You’re willing to hurt him just to get to me.”For a few seconds, the only sound that could be heard was his skateboard rolling down the ramp to the bottom, as Leo’s eyes narrowed in anger. But even then the hurt he felt right to his core over Yolinda’s despicable actions showed through in them. Although it did not come through in his voice when he said in a cold, hateful tone:“I was wrong about you. You really are no different than those chickies in the Dark Alley.”“And this Dark Alley would be in the…” “Donnie, not helping,” April sternly interrupted as Mikey likewise sternly shook his head at the techy softshell - who used data collecting to calm down. So Don closed his mouth and his Hidden City app in his wrist tech, and lowered his arm.Leo motioned as though he was about to walk away, but stopped himself to glare at Yolinda when she jumped up and replied in anger: “You’re playing the same game, kappa!” She crossed her arms and this time she narrowed her eyes in anger when she coldly said: “You’re just mad you got burned in the fire because I turned the heat up too hot for you to handle.”Leo clenched his fists, and sternly and angrily countered with: “I don’t play these games, little fox.”“No? And I suppose you weren’t hugging one of those ‘disgusting humans’ right in front of me, either? Hmmmm?”“Disgusting!?” April exclaimed in surprise. Leo ignored his honorary sister and the ‘disgusting human’ comment (now wasn’t the time to explain that April was different in his eyes). Instead, with an outstretched arm, he firmly gestured to April and told ‘Scraps’ in anger: “April’s my sister! There’s nothing more between me and her than between me and . . . DONNIE!”“Disclaimer, I was checking under the lip of Leo’s shell for signs of-oof!”Donnie was cut off when Mikey roughly elbowed him - and with the way he crossed his arms and glared up at his face, Donnie knew if he dared speak up a third time his little brother would go all ‘Dr. Delicate Touch’ on him.Yolinda kept her arms crossed and she countered with: “What about that rabbit I saw you holding hands with in the restaurant?”“His hand was on mine. My hand…” Leo forcefully pointed to his chest with both hands, “was on the glass!”In the background, an Extend-a-Claw popped out of Donnie’s tech shell holding a red and white striped bag full of popcorn, and he stuffed a handful in his mouth with his eyes glued to the arguing ‘couple’; while April whispered: “Ohhh, this is getting juuuicccy. You’re recording this, right, Tech?” “You know it, sister,” Donnie quietly replied. He put his hand out low, she gave him a low five/three, and then grabbed some popcorn while Mikey gestured to Leo with an outstretched hand and quietly scolded them: “Guys, he’s our brother!” as the conversation on the other side of the skatepark continued.Still with her arms crossed, Yolinda leaned ahead a little and said in a condescending ‘I know better than you’ tone of voice: “Mm hmm, sure. And I suppose you were only discussing the weather, too.” To which Leo bluntly responded (still in anger): “He invited me to spend the night at his place and I said NO!"“WHY!!!?” Yolinda yelled in a high-pitched tone with a little squeak.Leo threw his arms out in frustration, yelled even louder: “I don’t KNOW!!!” and turned his back to her.Mikey put his hand out and said: “Alright I’m in, don’t be stingy with that popcorn, Dee.” Another Extend-a-Claw came out to put a bag of popcorn in his hands, and he joined his two siblings in munching away, with all three sets of eye firmly fixed on the 'live entertainment'……while poor Raph was sitting there behind Yolinda, feeling a little dazed and confused.After that, Yolinda’s words lost their bite, but there was still an angry undertone when she softly asked: “Leo, it’s clear you like me. And I like you, too. I don’t understand why you won’t just ask me out.”Leo turned around to face her and repeated something his told her once before - but this time in reference to himself when he sternly (but not loudly) replied: “I already told you, and the same is just as true for me as it is for you. Disrespect my family…” he vividly gestured to Raph once more, “disrespect me,” and finished by gesturing to himself; before crossing his arms and telling her in a tone that carried anger, hurt, resentment, and maybe a tiny bit of disgust:“I have too much respect for Seňor Hueso, Bully, and you to disrespect any of you by going against their wishes.” He lowered his eyes to gaze blankly at nothing in particular, briskly tapped his right foot on the floor, and mumbled under his breath (loud enough for her to hear): “At least I used to respect you.” Then he raised his eyes to see the hurt in hers, and sternly told her: “Your family wants a better life for you than the ones they had to live-the one I have to live. That’s something worth respecting.”The room fell silent as Leo turned to his right, so he was facing the front skatepark entryway instead of looking at her on his left, or his family, on his far right. His body was tense with anger and so many more emotions swirling around in his head because of how he thought this night was going to turn out for him in the end, on top of everything else he was dealing with right now- and she looked down at his left hand as he clenched and relaxed his fist over and over.Something she knew was a nervous habit and reminded her of the day Leo looked very much like he did right now, after she let her fiery temper get the best of her and pushed things too far by telling him Draxum gave him ‘what he deserved’ with his unjust, torturous burn punishment that no one should ever have to endure. The memory prompted her to gaze at his injured shell with sadness and pity in her eyes, combined with the remorse she felt over her behaviour.All the anger, resentment, and jealousy in Yolinda’s heart melted away into sadness, regret, and shame; and she very softly called out to him:“Leo…” “My name. Is Scrubs,” Leo sternly interrupted. He clenched and unclenched his fist twice more before saying: “At least for you it is. . . . I need to clear my head.”He reached down with his right hand to grab the hilt of his sword while putting his left one out palm-side up. His markings glowed as a portal opened above his hand, dropping his cloak and mask into it. Then, as a source of comfort, he put on his cloak and stormed away toward the entrance, where a bigger portal opened a few feet in front of him.Instead of stepping through it, Leo stood facing it and away from everyone else. He clipped his cheshire fox mask on his waist belt, and addressed his family by saying in a tense but loving voice:“Thanks for the great night, fam."After that, all the tension he had been holding in melted away into sadness, and he hung his head ever-so-slightly as the realization sunk in that this might very well be the last time he would ever get to be with them. But he wouldn’t turn around to face them with the next words he had to say, so they wouldn’t see he was holding back tears.“This was…”He gasped in three sharp, rapid breaths through his mouth, having to stop himself because of how obvious it was that he was crying.The popcorn went away back in Donnie’s tech shell, and a somber stillness hung in the air, while each and every one of them awaited Leo’s next words with bated breath.As the tears fell down his cheeks, Leo realized he couldn’t say this without making it evident he was crying; and this time the tension in his voice was from trying his best not to outright bawl his eyes out right here and now, in front of everybody; with the little warmth he could feel in his still cold, heavy, numb ninpo tugging on his heart, as though it wanted him to turn around and rejoin his family.But this time, he wasn't going to give in to its pull; he wasn't going to betray Draxum by refusing to return to him for their sakes because he loved them and didn't want to see any one of them harmed by the powerful warrior alchemist who had ways of getting what he wanted.Even at great cost to himself.“This was the best night…” he paused to take in a breath through his mouth, to try and get control of himself, and Mikey teared up at the tender, wobbly, somewhat pitiable tone in his voice. “I’ve had in all…” his voice cracked, so he paused again. “…in all my life.” Next, he cleared his throat and quietly and sadly added: “Most of it.”Without turning around, Leo picked up his right foot to step through his portal…“You’re right, I’m sorry."He put his foot back down with the other one. Willing to at least listen to Yolinda after that humble apology; but only really doing so because of how Seňor Hueso was willing to listen to him his first time at Run of the Mill, when he didn’t have human money to pay for his pizza.Leo kept his face to the portal, and Yolinda kept her eyes on the back of Leo’s head when she addressed Raph sitting behind her, by saying: “Raph, I’m sorry. I was using you to make Leo jealous so he’d ask me out. It always worked with those other guys I dated…” she addressed Leo with her next words, “but you’re not like those other guys, are you Le…uh Scrubs? You’re not like them and I treated you like were just another one of those street thugs, while you treated my whole family with respect. Something none of them ever did.”She hung her head in shame, looking down at her claws that she painted red, like Raph's mask, for the one and only reason she was trying to make ‘Scrubs’ jealous so he would ask her out; and humbly said in a quiet, sad voice:“You’re right about me. I really am just another one of those chickies.”Leo’s shoulder’s dropped.The slider was feeling a twinge of guilt for the way he had treated some of the yokai often dubbed ‘chickies’ in the Hidden City - with the good influence of his ‘hero’ family having already rubbed off on him (at least to some degree), making him want to do good with his life. So he mumbled out: “You’re right about me. I am like those other guys. Just not with you. But that’s only cuz you’re different. You never put up with my crap. You’re the only one who ever stood up to me - the only one who wasn’t afraid of me, who's not afraid to bite back. That’s why I respect you.” He huffed out a sad-sounding laugh, and quietly added:“I guess if you’re just another one of those chickies, that makes me just another one of those street thugs.”The silence that followed hung thick in the air as everyone’s eyes bounced back and forth between Leo and Yolinda, watching them with keen interest as they wondered what would happen next.Even Raph got caught up in the moment and discreetly left his spot sitting at a table to walk around the skate ramp and join his family on the other side, behind Donnie and Mikes; with his brotherly protectiveness and love for Leo overriding any sadness, hurt, or embarrassment he felt over Yolinda’s deceptive behaviour toward him.And as the seconds ticked by with no one - not even the impulsive, headstrong, fierce Yolinda saying a word, eventually what everyone had been waiting for in anxious suspense happened.Leo’s wiped away the rest of his tears with the back of his ninja wrapped hand while his shoulders bounced - because he was silently laughing over the memory of what he said to ‘Scraps’ during their very first argument - right after he called her a ‘chickie’, and she became so angry she was speechless for a moment; and just before she chucked a glass of lemonade at his face in anger.So with a crooked grin on his face, Leo turned around, looked up at her with a twinkle to his eyes, and, in a soft, kind tone of voice told her the same thing he said on that day:“If I knew that’s all it took to shut you up I would have said it long ago.”“Oh no he did not just say that,” Mikey whispered nervously. April leaned ahead so she could see Mikey from around Donnie - who was standing in between them - and whispered back with a smile: “No no, this is good, they’re reminiscing.” “Remi-what?” “Sh,” Dee shushed Mikey, while clicking at his wrist tech.“Hey Don, hand over some of that popcorn, would ya?” Raph requested as a whisper. A tech claw came out of his shell to put a bag of popcorn in the big snapper’s hand; and he shoved a handful into his mouth while enjoying the ‘live entertainment’ unfolding before his eyes while April leaned her face closer to Donnie and whispered: “The lighting's all wrong, Dee.”“I’m waaay ahead of you, sis,” Don replied, still clicking away.On the other side of the skate pit, Yolinda raised her head to smile back at Leo, took a deep breath, and tentatively stepped ahead to softly ask: “What if I told you I talked to Tío Hueso and Bully, and they gave you their blessing? Would you ask me out then?”That question was strictly rhetorical because no such thing happened, and that was the moment all the lights went out - so that the only illumination in the large, dark room, was the soft, romantic blue glow coming from Leo’s portal behind his back.Leo walked up very close to Yolinda - so close he did something he had been wanting to do every since he first met her by wrapping his left arm around her to rest his hand on the small of her back. Then he pulled her even closer so that their bodies were pressed together; and he gazed down on the twinkling blue light reflecting from her eyes, with his ‘faceman’ crooked grin and his fully dilated pupils showing the fondness he truly felt for her, which was also evident all over his face.She likewise gazed up at him with fondness in her twinkling eyes, with his turtle figure cutting through the glow of his portal, giving him a pleasantly soft blue aura around his ninja turtle frame.From everyone else’s perspective, the two figures held close together, lovingly gazing into each others eyes, with the soft blue glow illuminating on their bodies as the only source of light, looked very much like the romantic climax they had been waiting for between two characters in one of their rented movies they occasionally watched together.The other bag of popcorn came back out of Donnie’s shell and preemptively went in Mikey’s hands before he had a chance to ask for one, while Donnie kept clicking at his wrist tech.On the other side of the dimly lit room, Leo felt as much longing for the beautiful fox whose eyes he was gazing into as she felt for him. And she honestly believed that this time - this time for sure - he was about to lean his face ahead those extra five inches to share in their first ever tender kiss.Meanwhile, Mikes joined Raph in munching on popcorn as April leaned closer to Donnie again to ask: “Got any romantic music you can play?” “I’m searching for it now, but the only thing they have at this place is pop, dance… ooh! Eighties jams!”April slapped her hand over Dee’s wrist tech when he raised a finger to click ‘play,’ and glared at him. “So help me Donnie if you turn on a single…” “Shh, he’s about to say something,” Mikey shushed before stuffing another handful of popcorn into his mouth.But instead of leaning ahead to share a tender kiss, or asking her to go out on their first date, when Leo opened his mouth - still with that smile on his face and the fondness for her radiating from his eyes - he softly uttered the words:“What kind of life could you have with me?”Next, Leo leaned his face in so close to Yolinda her soft fur was brushing against his cheek; and he threw her own words back at her when he gently and very quietly (so his brothers and sister couldn't hear him) whispered in her pointed, black fox ear:“After all. I’m just a slave.”“Leo, no, I didn’t mean…” “Welp, I got places to be!”Leo abruptly pulled out of their embrace.“Called it,” Donnie proudly announced, while Mikey griped: “Aw man, I thought for sure they were gonna kiss.” He stuck his bottom lip out in a pout and held up a twenty for losing a bet with his brother, that Dee snatched out of his hand with a smug grin before the lights switched back on with a click of his wrist tech.After all of that, Leo wanted some alone time to give himself a chance to ponder over the wonderful night he had with his ‘fam’, while likewise needing time to mentally prepare himself for Draxum’s inevitable (most-likely deadly) punishment. So he gave his disappointed family a big smile along with a playful two-fingered salute, and cheerfully said: “Thanks for the awesome nig…” *ding-ding*Leo stopped mid sentence, frozen in place. And with the way his smile fell and his face paled ever so slightly, everybody knew something was seriously wrong.And something was seriously wrong.Because that was Draxum’s notification chime.‘I’m not ready,’ he thought pitifully, truly believing with all his heart that Draxum messaged him now because his owner was finished preparing whatever was needed to put an agonizing end to his short, mutant turtle life.The portal that led to his hospital bedroom - where he was going to snuggle warm and comfy under his downy comforter, thinking, reminiscing, and waiting - snapped shut behind him as he swallowed down a nervous lump.Without even realizing he was holding his breath, Leo cast his eyes down on his glowing blue wrist com, raised an imperceivably trembling hand (imperceivable to everyone but him and Yolinda, who looked on with worry), and clicked at the screen to reveal the two simple words Draxum had sent him.‘Home. Now.’And the one and only thought he could process in that frazzled mind of his was:
‘Eugh boi.’
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Leo, what’s wrong?”That was Mikey’s tentative, worried voice.Leo hadn’t realized that he had been frozen in place for . . . how long?His arm was still raised from when he looked down at Draxum’s message, but he wasn’t looking at it anymore, even though his eyes were still on it. It was more like he was looking through it.Something soft touched his arm and he didn’t realize what it was until he cast his eyes up to see Yolinda looking down at Draxum’s message still illuminating on his touchscreen, with one of her petite paw-like hands resting on his green, turtle arm.She lifted her head to meet his eyes, and with fear in her own and a sense of urgency in her soft voice, she requested: “Leo, don’t go.”The sound of her pleading voice was what helped Leo to get his head on right. So he straightened his proud warrior frame, clipped the hidden black section of his cloak across his plastron for the comfort it provided, and unclipped his fox mask from his belt while turning his head to gaze at the worried-looking faces of his family gazing back at him, on the other side of the big skatepit.“You know I don’t have a choice,” he told her factually, calmly, and quietly so his siblings wouldn't hear him; as he comfortably affixed his mask to the top of his head - once again for the comfort he gained from it.Next, without tearing his eyes away from his siblings, a new blue portal opened directly behind his back. But this one wasn’t going to take him to his hospital bedroom where he could go and think.This time, when the exit portal opened, he would step out of it into Draxum’s lab.Raph’s big brother sense was tingling, but this time he was worried about Leo’s safety and not that their long lost brother was going to hurt their other two brothers - unlike when they first met. He nervously crossed his arms in front of his tense body, listening carefully with the others, and then Leo turned his head to look into Yolinda’s eyes when she gestured to the four of them while requesting: “Let them help you.”“Help you with what, Leo?”Raph’s voice sounded stern from the anxious tension he was holding in, but there was a clear tenderness to his tone.Leo’s head whipped to his left to stare at Raph, and he had every intention of flashing his big brother that signature crooked grin of his and lying through his teeth - for their benefit - but this time he couldn’t even force a fake smile. And when he motioned to try and talk, his mouth went dry and his tongue felt pasty and didn’t want to unstick itself from the roof of his mouth.So he didn’t bother saying anything.Instead, he closed his dry mouth, turned around to face his portal, and stepped in with one foot without hesitation. But he let himself get stopped by a pair of soft, furry hands grasping his right wrist.Leo turned his head to smile fondly at the fox tugging on his arm and looking at him with a pair of fearful eyes. But he didn’t take his foot out of the portal.“Don’t go,” she begged.Raph uncrossed his arms to clench his fists down by his sides as he began walking around the skatepit while sternly telling his brother: “Alright Leo, that’s it! Raph’s coming over there and you’re not leaving…” “Alright, I’m stepping out, see? Just hold back, I need a minute with Lindy.”Leo took his foot out of the portal but left it open behind him. Raph stopped his brisk pace, with Donnie, Mikey, and April catching up to him, ready to join him in keeping Leo here until they found out what was going on (until Raph found out why his overprotective big brother sense was off the chart), and the worried big snapper slowly demanded in a very firm voice: “Close the portal.”With a light *bzzt* that only the slider could hear, the portal snapped shut, and Yolinda let go of his wrist when Leo put both hands up (so she would let go, because he had a plan).While looking at Raph, he said: “It’s closed, see?” Then he put his hands down, hidden in the folds of his cape, and told his family: “Give me a minute to tell Yolinda something, then we’ll talk, ok big guy?”“Ok. And then we’ll talk. Deal?” Raph firmly asked. “Deal,” his slider brother agreed with his crooked ‘faceman’ grin.Raphael crossed his arms again and everyone watched Leo closely as he reached his left hand out to gently put it behind Yolinda’s head, and brought his head a little closer to hers - but she couldn’t bring herself to look up at his face, so was looking down, instead.Softly, tenderly, and - once again quietly so his family couldn't hear him - Leo whispered to Yolinda: “We already talked about this, remember? I’m not running and hiding like a coward. And I'm not putting everyone else in danger. I’m sure even you heard enough about Draxum to know that if I tried to leave him, he’ll hunt me down by taking out everyone I care about until I show myself, or you're all dead.”Yolinda nodded her head with tears in her eyes, but she kept her face and eyes pointed down when she softly whispered in reply: “I know, you’re right. But I can’t bear to see you hurt again, Leo.”Leo gave her a loving smile and requested: “Do me a favor.” She raised her head to look him in the eyes with tears in the corners of hers, and he kept that gentle, crooked grin on his face as he requested: “Stay away from those no good street thugs so you don’t wind up putting yourself into a life most people wanna get out of. Find a good guy, someone who will treat you right, like Ralph over there.”He gestured with his head to his big brother without taking his eyes off her, and they both shared a quiet laugh over the reminder of when she purposely mispronounced Raph’s name, to try to get under Leo’s skin. Then, she put her head down again, settling her eyes on her red, painted claws while - unbeknownst to all of them - Leo discreetly grasped the hilt of his odachi underneath his cloak, with his right hand.“And try to keep those hero brothers of mine and that spunky sister away from Draxum and out of the Hidden City. They got a real good shot of really making something with their lives if they keep their heads on their shoulders long enough."Yolinda’s face snapped up to look Leo in his eyes and she gasped out as a whisper: “Why are you telling me this? You’ll be back soon, after Draxum’s punishment, right? What’s he gonna do to you this time?”“I don’t know what he’s going to do to me but I’m a ninja warrior, I can take it, okay?” Leo softly reassured her. A tear dripped down Yolinda’s cheek as she quietly requested: “You’ll let me mend your wounds this time?” Leo laughed to himself over her persistent, somewhat innocent kindness, and whispered: “Sure.” Then, this time when he leaned his face ahead those extra five inches, it was to give her a friendly peck ‘good bye’ on her cheek.Yolinda raised her hand up to gently rest it on her cheek where he kissed her as Leo turned his body away from hers to face his family with a big, cheerful grin, and his entire body concealed beneath his long cloak.But despite the smiling face, each and every one of them could see that the joy never reached his anguished eyes.Raph motioned to continue walking to close the gap between him and Leo, but stopped when the slider unexpectedly told them in a clear, determined, almost happy voice (despite the way it carried an air of sadness and longing):“I belong with you.”He knew that was true with every fiber of his being and meant every word from the deepest part of his heart. He could even feel the truth of it in the little bit of ninpo warmth in his chest that was brought out by his brotherly family hug and warmed his heart through the heavy mystic numbness the dark energy of the gauntlet no doubt put there.In fact, he was quite certain that the pull of his ninpo tugging at him to go join his brothers instead of returning to ‘the great and powerful Baron Draxum’ was so strong it would have knocked him off balance, if it was at full strength.“But sometimes our lives takes us in different directions,” Leo continued, pulling against the tug in his ninpo (and his heart), for his family's sake, so Draxum wouldn't have reason to hunt them down because his slave didn't return.“I don’t know what my life would’ve been like if we were raised together; but I know now...” He smiled up at all of them while saying, “I would’ve been happy.”“But we’re together now, Leo,” Mikey objected. He nervously fiddled with his fingers and added a softer: “Right?”Leo’s body relaxed slightly, he gave his little brother a genuine smile, and softly agreed: “Yeah. We’re together now,” but using that term much more literally than what Mikey meant - as in 'we're together now for the next few minutes until I leave you all behind me, perhaps forever'.Next, Raph added in a stern tone Leo recognized was his 'I'm worried about you' voice: “That’s right, brother. You got us now. You can tell us if there's a problem.”“Yeah, Stripes, you got us!” April enthusiastically agreed.Donnie nodded his head with a smile as his 'Donnie' way of saying he agreed with their statements.Leo let out one single, very small, quite laugh at the thought of the happy memories he had managed to build with his family who were here and his misfit ruffian family at Run of the Mill, before softly agreeing in a sad tone: “Yeah. I got you now,” but more referring to the inner strength he could draw from his memories with them to help him face whatever was waiting for him at Draxum’s home, with his head held high. Knowing if he died this very night he would go out the hero he always dreamed of being, by willingly sacrificing his own life in exchange for the protection of his family.And that was the moment Raph realized his red-eared slider brother was grasping his mystic odachi under his cloak, because Leo’s face stripes lit up and a portal opened beside him.In a cheery tone of voice and with a big, toothy smile, Leo told them: “Welp, like I said, I got places to be.”“Leo, you said we would talk first!” Raph crossly demanded.With a cheeky grin and a playful wink, Leo replied: “We just did big guy,” which was immediately followed by a big wave goodbye as he cut off whatever was the next thing his big brother was about to say with a happy-sounding: “Catch ya later bros. And sis.”"Leo wait!"Raph hurried to stop his brother before it was too late, but to no avail, because - still with his huge grin for the family he loved - that was the moment Leo dramatically (somewhat comically) stuck his blue prosthetic leg straight out to the side, to take a big step into his portal.“Leo, if there’s something wrong you can tell us!” Mikey cried out.But the slider was already gone before he even finished his sentence.Yolinda turned around to face the portal, and they all watched as the blue light casting a glow on her body abruptly went out when it snapped shut.That was when the overprotective big brother of the family clenched his fists in frustration and sternly said: “Alright Yolinda, something’s up with Leo and you know what it is, so spill the beans.”The maroon fox with a cute little white tip on the end of her tail slowly turned around to face them with concern written all over her face and body; and she outright told them:“Leo’s Draxum’s slave.”“Slave!?” Raph, Donnie, and April cried out in shock, at the same time Mikey very dramatically slapped his hands on the sides of his face and exclaimed: “I forgot to turn the oven off!” Then he lowered his hands and rubbed his chin while asking: “Wait, did you just say Leo’s giving Draxum a shave?”Donnie immediately began clicking at his wrist tech, summoning a new something with his homing app, while Raph tightened his crossed arms, looked down at his confused little brother, and sternly told him:“No, Mikey. Leo’s Draxum’s slave.” “Oooooh, slaaave! Too bad because that guy could really use a sha…waitaminute! Leo’s Draxum’s slave!!?”“There it is,” Donnie calmly commented, without taking his eyes off his touchscreen; before Mikey grabbed Raph’s muscular arms to try and shake his big brother back and forth (with his big frame not budging an inch) while yelling in his face: “Why did you let him go if you knew that!!?”Raph slapped his hand over his face in frustration and groaned, then April answered for him when she softly told Mikey: "We didn't know until after he was gone, Mikes."Then Raph lowered his hand and joined everyone in looking over at the maroon fox - who was clearly very close to their brother - when she informed them: “Leo told me Draxum’s working with the Foot Clan, and tonight…” “He fought with us to stop them from stealing that gauntlet,” April finished for her, still looking shocked, but also aghast at the realization.“And now,” Yolinda gestured back to where the portal had been, “Leo’s gone back home, to take his punishment like a ninja warrior.”“Why would he just leave instead of asking us for help?” Donnie asked Yolinda very factually.“Because, Draxum has ways of getting what he wants, and Leo refuses to put any of us in danger by running and hiding. And he insists doing that would make him a coward.”“Leo’s no coward,” Raph said sternly, just before Mikey exclaimed: “Why would he help us fight the Foot if he knew it’ll make Draxum mad at him!?” His big brother looked down at him and said: “He already told us, Mikey. That mystic . . . thing…” “Dark energy gauntlet,” Donnie offered. “Yeah, that dark energy . . . gauntlet is too dangerous to be in the hands of those idiot foot faces,” Raph finished. Then he gazed at the spot where Leo just left through his portal and firmly added with conviction: “He was doing it because it's the right thing. Because he’s a hero, like us.”Next, everyone gave Donnie their attention when he raised one of his big, black eyebrows and asked the very serious question: “What’s Draxum going to do to him?”Yolinda nervously twiddled with her fingers and softly replied: “I don’t know, but his punishments are bad. He’s the one who burned Leo’s shell…” “I knew it,” Donnie interrupted with a clenched fist and his jaw clenched in anger, at the same time April gasped in horror. Then Mikey cried out: "Ohmigosh! Draxum did that to him!?”Raph didn’t respond in kind because he kept his intense feelings locked away inside for now, so he could stay focused. And with his brows furrowed in anger and his arms still tensely crossed in front of his chest, he stared straight at Yolinda to ask in a tone that sounded more like a demand: “And those gashes on his face?”“Leo told me Draxum gave him those because he was ordered to kill you three, but he refused.”“All four of us are products of Draxum’s lab mutation. If he’s willing to order our demise, do you think he’ll do the same to Leo?” Donnie asked, with those genius gears of his turning.“I don’t know, but Leo asked me to keep you away from Draxum and out of the Hidden City, to keep you safe. I don’t see why he would have said that if he thought he was ever coming back.”Raph was the first one to jump into action, immediately bolting to the door with his family close behind, while ordering: “We need to get to Draxum’s before he does anything to Leo!"Everyone ran across the skatepark and out the front doors while Mikey exclaimed: “We’re on the other side of town Raph! How’r we gonna get there in time to save Leo before Draxum does something bad to him!?” And then April added: “Yeah, big guy, and how can we even get to Draxum’s? Didn’t the thingie you took from Splinter to open the portal break?”Yolinda opened her mouth to tell them she could get them all through the portal they needed, but she was interrupted when Donnie announced in a determined tone with a hint of pride: "I can easily solve one of our problems, now that my new invention is out of beta!”“Ooh, is it that big drill!?” Mikey asked with excitement, just before Raph grabbed his tonfas and raised both fists with his glowing red mystic powers enveloping them, while saying: “Great idea Don! We can use that to drill down to Draxum’s house and bust through his lab to smash him in his ugly goat face mystic ninja style!”“Nooo, my drill is still in beta. But behold…”Donnie very dramatically spread his hands out when the sound of screeching tires reached their ears. And the very next moment an impressive looking, armored vehicle whipped around the corner and skidded to a halt right in front of them.“The turtle tank!”Donnie proudly stood in front of his 'baby', basking in the “oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ of his impressed family, followed by April’s smooth: “Ooooh, sweet ride, Tech,” Mikey’s impressed: “You turned Jupiter Jim’s moon buggy into a tank! Oh yeah baby, we’re gonna be ridin’ in style on our way to kick some yokai butt!” and Raph patted his shoulder and praised: “Good job bro, now let's go save our brother!” before being the first one to jump in.Mikey ran in right behind with a huge smile on his face, followed by April, who gazed around, admiring the interior on her way in, and Donnie graciously let Yolinda go in next, with him following close behind.When everyone was in and the door shut, in a very determined voice Raph told Donnie: “Alright Dee, lets fire this thing up and go save Leo!”Donnie clicked at his wrist tech and replied: “Why don’t you fire it up, Raph? By taking your seat, it's the giant red one with your name and your exact lumbar settings." He gestured to a large, red seat that descended from the top and Raph eagerly jumped in to take command as the driver.In fact, everyone took a seat just as Raph tore down the road in their tank - except for Donnie, who was clicking at his wrist tech while walking to the very back of the tank, where a small cot folded out of the wall.“What are you doing, Donnie?” Mikey inquisitively asked. A tech claw came out of Dee’s shell holding a purple eye mask for sleeping, and he took it in his hands while saying: "I am going to take a nap,” before laying down.“Really Don? You’re picking now to laze around and sleep?” Raph asked in an unamused tone of voice. Donnie laid down on the cot, replied (still sounding very smug and proud of himself, naturally): “Yes, my brethren, for in that way I will be able to contact our brother via our telepathic connection, to ensure his safety and inform him of our plan so he's prepared for our arrival.”A smile came on Raph’s face and he replied: “Ahhh, good idea, Don. But how are we gonna get to Draxum’s underground home when we reach the portal?” “I can get us in,” Yolinda informed him, as Donnie was fluffing his pillow before laying on his back and putting the purple mask over his eyes to block out the light.“Then we have a plan, team,” Raph replied, once again with determination. “Get to the portal, bust down Draxum’s front door, demand he release Leo, and then we can kick some bad guy butt!"“Aw yeah! Kicking butt is my speciality!” Mikey exclaimed. “You got that right!” April eagerly agreed. They shared a fist bump, before Mikey happily announced: “I can’t wait to see the look on Leo’s face when we show up to bust him out! He’s gonna be so happy to see us!”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A blue portal opened in Draxum’s lab and his diligent ninja slave stepped through, to stand at attention, awaiting his owner's word.For a period of time, the sound of glass clinking on glass was the only thing to be heard in the otherwise silent room; as Draxum stood back-on to his creation, stirring the contents of a beaker.And laying on the same worktable was Draxum’s oversized medical syringe that he used to inject a mystic truth serum into the spines of any spies he caught who were not cooperating with other means of . . . encouragement.Eventually, after a few minutes of silence, without turning around the goat alchemist calmly said:"Leo. An abbreviated form of the name Leonardo."Leo groaned internally. Not only had those 'foot faces' ratted him out, they also referred to him by his name. A name they must have heard Yolinda call him after the mystic gauntlet infected him and he chucked it right at them in his fright (he reeeally hoped they didn't share that little tidbit of information with his harsh owner).Draxum continued."A human name meaning 'lionhearted' or 'brave as a lion', popularized by a Renaissance era painter who was renowned among the human world for his many fine achievements, ingenuity, and empirical thinking."Draxum turned around to face Leo, raised an eyebrow at the blue face mask he was wearing, and blandly asked: "A most unfitting name, don't you agree?""Yes, Draxum," Leo mumble. He liked the name 'Leo', and he thought of himself as brave. In fact, even at this very moment he was not afraid. Rather, the fear he had felt over the thought of dying a slow, painful, possibly gruesome death at Draxum’s hands was replaced with a stalwart, calm determination.If he was going to go out, he was going to do it in true ninja hero warrior style.With honor.However the other things Draxum said about that name..."What was that?" Draxum calmly asked with one eyebrow raised. Leo proudly straightened his stance, looked the person he figured was his soon-to-be executioner dead in the eyes (pun intended), puffed out his chest a little, and answered: "Yes, Draxum, you're right."Draxum merely hummed in acknowledgment and slowly began pacing around the room in a big circle, with Leonardo in the middle."I have treated you as a son, have I not?""You used to," Leo replied in all honesty and without a moments hesitation.Things couldn't possibly get any worse for him than they already were. He had no reason to fear adding a bluntness to the honest responses that were expected of him; as long as it was done with the proper degree of respect. After all displaying disrespect to a ninja's 'Master' or 'Sensei' was highly dishonorable. And Draxum was the one to train him in the art of ninjitsu, making him both his sensei and his master (in more ways than one for the lowly, mistreated slave).Leo didn't see because Draxum was behind his left side and he was expected to keep his eyes straight ahead, but the warrior alchemist nodded once in approval of his slave's blunt, honest reply that lacked any hint of fear whatsoever."I will treat you as such again one day, once you prove yourself to me. Did I not promise you; on that day I will also bestow upon you a name that is fitting? A name you will have rightfully earned for your years of loyal, dedicated service?""Yes Draxum, you did," Leo replied in a clear firm tone that reflected his brave heart."And yet, you have chosen a name for yourself. A name that you have yet to live up to."By now, Draxum had circled almost all the way around and was coming up on Leo's right side, into his peripheral."I didn't choose it, Draxum, it was chosen for me." "By whom?"Leo knew the answer and with the quick way Draxum asked that question - almost speaking over his words when he did so - he had no doubt Draxum did, too.Leo knew the answer because when they met for the very first time in the dream realm, Donnie had told him all of their names; including his...Raph.Mikey.Donnie.. . .Leo.Names Leo’s 'twin' brother told him in their mystic dream realm as turtle tots were given to them by their dad. The dad that escaped Draxum’s confinement with his baby mutant turtles.His three baby mutant turtles.A dad who willingly and cruelly chose to leave one baby mutant red-eared slider turtle behind, alone, crying on the floor in the middle of a fire. Because he was 'too much of a handful'.(At least that was what Leo had always been taught)Their 'genetic donor' (as Draxum called him) who was named..."Lou Jitsu," Leo obediently replied with a slight scowl. The disgust he felt at saying that name aloud was not missed by the observant warrior alchemist, who was now standing directly in front of the cape ninja, sizing him up and down disapprovingly. Leo got the hint and removed his fox mask and his cloak, to gently lay them on the floor beside his right foot......completely forgetting about the sticker on the bottom right of his plastron.All of a sudden, Leo flinched - not so much from fear, but rather at the abrupt, unexpected way Draxum curtly raised his voice when he snapped: "Your shell is your armor, not a canvas for art! I expect you to treat it with the respect it deserves!"(Okay. Maybe Leo was a teensy bit afraid)Without a word, Leo hastily tore off the blue lightning bolt sticker affixed over one of the marks left behind as a reminder of Big Mama's devious treatment of him. Then he balled it up with his fingers and opened his hand to drop it to the floor, on his cloak.As though it was nothing more than trash.His heart sank in his chest, his ninpo felt numb, and Draxum eyed him for a moment as though he was deciding whether or not to strike him for his insolence, before turning around to walk back to his worktable, where he resumed his work.Leo couldn't see what Draxum was working on, because there were so many beakers of different colored solutions he had no way to know which ones his boss was using.Or why.*Clink, clink, clink, clink.*"I visited the Mystic Crystal Caverns a few days ago to replenish my supplies."*Clink, clink, clink.*Leo resisted the urge to make a sound by nervously clearing his throat.He knew what was coming next.Draxum raised a beaker with a clear neon yellow solution and twisted a little to the side, so Leo . . . uh, X could see what he was doing as he poured the yellow liquid into a bright green solution that was glowing, as the alchemist gauged him from the corner of his eye.All mystic truth serums (that the turtle creation of the great Baron Draxum was designed to be immune to, in the event he was captured and interrogated by an enemy) were various shades of off-white.Only mutagen glowed a bright green.Now Leo figured he knew what his owner was working on......something especially for him.He swallowed nervously at the sight. Then, when Draxum set the beaker down out of sight directly in front of his big yokai body, the mutant turtle's eyes fell on the giant spinal syringe.*Clink, clink, clink, clink.*"I couldn't help but notice the new cluster of bright blue crystals among the others."*Clink, clink, clink, clink.*"What is the color of your mystic powers again?"This time Leo did clear his throat, but only in preparation of his turn to speak."I went there after..." He raised a hand to graze it along the bottom edge of one of the gashes Draxum gave him just before going to the mystic crystal pool.'You gashed my face.'"Our mystic practice match," he finished.*Clink, clink, clink.*"Ah, yes. That explains the unusual radiant sparkle in the gold on your mask stripes. It was no doubt a direct result of the mystical refreshment the pool provides."Draxum continued stirring his solution. But this time there was no uncomfortable pause before he asked:"Did I not order you to go above ground?"Leo swallowed nervously and he resisted the urge to stutter when he respectfully replied: "Yes Draxum, you did.""Did I not also forbid you from entering that pool?" came the immediate calm reply that carried a hit of a threat with it.Leo's eyes widened and his heart began pounding. Through the mystical numbness he felt his ninpo reactively tighten in his chest; and he couldn't help a shot of fear from surging up as he thought:'Eugh boi, I'm really in trouble now!'while thinking maybe things really could get worse, and wondering how many weeks, months, or years Draxum would keep him alive in the dungeon for no other reason than to have the perfect victim to routinely vent his anger and frustrations out on."I-I thought that was because we didn't know I have mystic powers, so I wouldn't sink to the b-bottom and die," Leo stumbled out, doing his very best to keep the stuttering to a minimum."You-you thought?" Draxum repeated, making clear his feelings about X's nervous stutter."I..."Leo slammed his mouth shut and bit his tongue, hard, almost having let the words 'I'm sorry' slip out, that he heard his brothers use often enough; but he was 'taught better'.Draxum seemed to ignore his little faux pas by apparently stuttering again, and asked:"What exactly were my words on that day, when I ordered you not to enter the water?"*Clink, clink.*"You..." Leo cleared his throat as a replacement for stuttering out the 'uh' in between his words he almost let slip."...said 'Do not enter the water. Don't let as much as the tip of your finger graze the surface'."Leo realized now something he should have realized then: the comment Draxum made on that day about his useful turtle creation sinking to the bottom to his death preceded the command not to touch the water; meaning it was not part of the command.Meaning he was never to enter the waters without first checking that the rules were different, now that they knew about his mystical attributes.Leo groaned internally over his own stupidity in letting that small but significant detail slip his mind, and considered countering with the rebuttal 'you said you don't care what I do as long as I stay away from you,' on the day his enraged owner spotted him in the Mystic Market and banned him from the Hidden City all together.But Leo knew better. He also knew it was a weak argument, considering that angry remark was made in direct reference to lifting the 'no eating human poison they call food' rule, and didn't broaden in scope to include direct commands that were in no way connected to his harsh 'get out of my sight' order.Besides, Draxum still had the 'you were specifically ordered to go above ground' command that he could throw back in his face.*Clink, clink.*Draxum lifted the glass stir stick out of the mutagen, and there was the gentle *tinkle* of him tapping it on the edge of the beaker.Then he reached for the giant syringe.Leo's heart filled with dread and his eyes followed the yokai's hand as his owner picked it up; with him swallowing nervously at the same time.But instead of doing anything with it, the goat alchemist laid it on the table in front of him, paused his work, and stood unmoving . . . waiting.Leo knew that meant Draxum was expecting him to say something else, so he told his harsh owner what he was waiting to hear:"It won't happen again, Draxum."Draxum turned his head and gave him a dismissive passing glance before putting his eyes back on his work, to do something out of sight with the syringe."What won't happen again? Entering the pool, or disobeying my commands?"Before Leo spoke, Draxum turned around to face him, holding the syringe that was now full of whatever mutagenic formula he just finished creating, appearing to be a silent threat that he would use it if Leo didn't give the 'right' answer.(Who was he kidding!? Draxum was going to use it whether he gave the right answer or not!)Although Leo was intimidated and a little bit scared, he was determined to go out with honor; and to honor his family, by going out a hero like them.So he straightened his stance, held his head high, looked Draxum straight in his eyes, and firmly proclaimed:"I'm not killing anyone Draxum. I gave my word,"like the proud ninja warrior he was."Hmm," Draxum merely hummed in acknowledgment. He held the syringe pointed straight up in one hand, with the other behind his back, while straightening his proud warrior frame."I am aware that on the Hidden City streets there is a code of honor even respected among slaves. That being: a yokai's word is his life."Leo counteracted the fear he felt inside by puffing his chest out a little more, and firmly replying with conviction: "Yes, it is," all while maintaining unbroken eye contact.Draxum averted his gaze by resting his eyes on the syringe in his hand.He squirt a tiny bit out of the sharp tip of the needle to get rid of an air bubble - meaning he was planning to use it soon - and calmly commented:"But you are not a yokai, are you?"His eyes snapped on Leo without moving his head or body in any other way.Leo's conviction fled.He chest sunk in slightly as he instinctively curled in on himself a little, swallowed down a nervous lump, and he couldn't help but stutter when he obediently replied: "N-no Draxum, I'm not a yokai."Unexpectedly, Leo's owner dropped the threatening undertone in his voice when he calmly told him: "It is a code of honor I live by as well," while laying the syringe down on the table.Then he looked at Leo again and reminded him: "I have already agreed to honor your decision to refrain from killing. Therefore repeating your firm resolve was unnecessary, pointless, and in no way answered my question.""I won't disobey your commands again, Draxum," Leo instantly and firmly replied, with the same conviction in his voice as when he reaffirmed his 'no killing' stance.Draxum walked up to him with a slight upward curve in one corner of his mouth, and replied: "Good. I expect nothing less from you."Then he unexpectedly reached a hand down to pick up the blue mask tails draped over X's right shoulder, and silently gazed down on them.Leo swallowed down a lump in his throat - having completely forgotten he was wearing Mikey’s gift to him.Next, Draxum surprised the anxious slider by letting go to put that hand behind his back with the other one; and commenting:"A mask of such fine material will do an excellent job of keeping the sweat out of your eyes during combat, so you won't have to rely on wiping the sweat off your brow with your ninja arm wrappings as you so frequently do. I'm surprised it took you this long to figure that out."He looked the ninja warrior standing in front of him up and down, before adding: "And the color complements your red stripes perfectly."Leo didn't smile at the color combination compliment because of how fearful he still was; but he did say: "Thank you," to the indirect agreement that he could keep his blue eye mask Mikey made for him.But for how long he didn't know.Not that Draxum was one to go back on his word; but the looming threat of an agonizing punishment for his interference with the Foot still hung thickly in the air.Along with the very real possibility that the slave of Baron Draxum wouldn't live to see another day (or would live to see many, many more excruciatingly painful days).But even that was a small price to pay in exchange for his siblings safety.One life for four. If Yolinda could help keep them out of Baron Draxum’s affairs, they had a real good shot of staying alive long enough to at least reach adulthood.But if Leo hadn't voluntarily returned, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Draxum would have hunted him down by systematically taking out everyone he was on friendly terms with; until either they were all dead, or his slave showed himself to die a dishonorable death for giving in to fear like a gutless coward.But the brave ninja warrior was in no way cowardly, thus sparing the lives of many when he willingly returned to his punisher's (and possible executioner's) side.'Lionhearted,' Leo thought.
'Brave as a lion.'
If only he could live long enough to find out what a lion was.Next, Leo made eye contact with his tall yokai owner when Draxum ordered him: "Explain yourself."Meaning he was going to be given a chance to explain why he interfered in the Foot's retrieval of the mystic dark energy gauntlet.Leo's tense body relaxed a little at the indirect confirmation that his goat warrior owner wasn't angry anymore, and in a very factual 'I did the right thing by caring for your best interests' kind of tone, Leo bluntly told Draxum: "There's more mystic energy in that gauntlet than in your whole bo...than in my whole body," he corrected himself with the glare he got. Then he cleared his throat before continuing."They're so much dark energy packed inside that gauntlet it's oozing out in a three foot radius around it, seeping onto the floor."He looked down while gesturing out to the floor for emphasis, and then resumed eye contact when Draxum raised one eyebrow and inquired: "You can see mystic energy signatures?""Yes, Draxum," Leo promptly replied.Draxum graciously stretched out a hand, which basically meant: 'you may continue with your explanation', and Leo did just that."That thing's a ticking time bomb in the wrong hands, it has enough power to take out a third of the Hidden City, and, no offense boss, but those two heads of the Foot Clan are idiots."The 'no offense' was in reference to Draxum choosing to align himself with two 'idiots'; and when it was clear his owner did not take offense to that statement or in any way correct him - meaning he agreed with the 'idiots' comment - Leo continued."My plan was to portal it straight to you, but my ninpo doesn't always want to work for me, and you told me not to show my face. So I let the others take it back to their home, cuz it'll be easy to swipe it off them later."As much as the thought of breaking into his brother's home for the purpose of thievery grieved his heart, Leo knew it would be easy to swipe the gauntlet back from them, unseen and unknown, for the 'greater good'.Now he only had to figure out how he could get his hands on the mystic gauntlet that infected him with its dark energy.Draxum silently looked down on Leo as though he was deciding whether his turtle slave's explanation was acceptable or not.Leo respectfully gazed back up at him with more and more sweat beating on his bald turtle head every second that silently ticked by.(With none of it getting into his eyes, of course - all thanks to Mikey)Then his boss indirectly informed him that his explanation was acceptable, and he approved of his slave's decision to get the gauntlet out of the hand of those 'two idiots' (to put it in the hand of three dummies - but they both knew the risk was minimal since they lived above ground and had no connection to mystic items or the Hidden City beyond their harmless-to-the-dark-energy ninpo).Instead of chastising him or ordering him to do something in preparation for a harsh punishment, Draxum next words were to issue new commands to his mutant slave. So he did his usual slow pacing in front of X, while ordering:"Your employment at Bone's establishment is hereby terminated, and you will stay away from those so-called brothers of yours..."Leo's heart sank but he knew he would be obedient to that command.(It was certainly a better option than the 'kill on sight' order he had been issued once before)"You will be working with the Foot Clan, under the direct command of Lieutenant Hawk. To ensure those..." Draxum stopped to look at Leo and say with emphasis: "idiots," before pacing again, "successfully retrieve all the parts that are required to assemble the dark armor I need to complete my life's work."Although the fear of an imminent death had passed with that new command, Leo's entire body still filled with dread at the thought that there were many, many more of those immensely powerful, dark energy oozing pieces lying around somewhere, ripe for the picking.And then he heard a voice in his head."Leo!"Donnie.'Uuugh, not now!' He didn't need this distraction now!Leo opened his mouth to speak, but it ended up coming out as an "Uhh..." because at the same time his already frayed mind was once again distracted by Donnie's voice in his head."Leo, we're worried about you.""Uhh?"Leo looked up to see Draxum had stopped his pacing and was looking right at him, with one eyebrow raised - seeming more inquisitive than angry."Yeah, one thing about that...ugh..." "Leo! Answer me!"Leo squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed the side of his forehead, trying to calm his frayed nerves so he could focus his already frazzled mind to tell Draxum that helping to collect the dark energy pieces would be difficult for him, considering he couldn't touch them."Explain," Draxum curtly ordered."I'm not giving up until I know you're ok!"Leo flopped his hand down at his side and looked up at Draxum to tell him in a slightly annoyed tone of voice"It's Donnie...""We're on our way to Draxum’s to bust you out, you've got two minutes to answer me before I go tell the others Draxum did something to you!""He's annoyingly persistent, and he says if I don't answer, and soon, he's gonna tell the others you did something to me. And they're on their way here to 'bust me out'."Draxum raised an eyebrow and looked at Leo's hands when his turtle used air quotes for the first time in front of him. Leo gave him a big, nervous grin in response and put his hands down, mentally reminding himself never to do it again."We know Draxum keeps you as his slave, Leo, we know what he's done to you! You've got 1.376 minutes left to answer me before I tell the others you didn't respond, and we come up with a plan, bust his door down ninja hero style and kick some...""By all means, answer him," Draxum calmly directed. "Ensure them everything is fine so they do not come here to 'bust you out' and destroy my lab a second time."Leo let out a nervous laugh with the way Draxum leaned in closer while very conspicuously using air quotes - no doubt as a mocking imitation of him as his way of giving the one and only: 'you look like a fool don't do it again' warning X would ever receive.But with the way Draxum glanced at one of his raised hands after he spoke, Leo couldn't help but smile internally when he thought that his boss realized using air quotes was actually a little bit fun once he did it himself - just like he came to that realization the first time he mockingly used air quotes in imitation of Donnie.But unless otherwise stated, whether or not Draxum continued using air quotes, Leo knew he was strictly forbidden from doing so."I gotta lay down and close my eyes for it to work.""You are permitted to respond in your room. Take however long you need to ensure they stay away from my lab..." Draxum leaned in closer to Leo's face and sternly added: "For their own well-being."The second Draxum stood up straight and closed his mouth, Leo bolted to his room with the ingenious softshell counting down."Time's ticking Leo. You got .367 minutes left to answer..342.311.289. . ."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“I’m here, I’m here!” Leo gasped out when he entered the telepathic dream realm, leaning over with his hands on his legs, above the knees, out of breath from his panicked mad dash to get to his room. Donnie looked him over to make sure there were no obvious signs of harm on his body, while the ninja slider blurted out in frustration:“You got lousy timing, bro! Draxum was in the middle of giving me my new orders, I had to rush to my room to get a spot to lay down! Do you have any idea how big his house is!?”There was no point in hiding it now. Yolinda had clearly revealed exactly what he was to the goat yokai; no doubt because she was worried about him, but in doing so both ignoring his request to keep them away from Draxum and potentially putting them all in very real danger.(Especially if they came here 'ninja hero style' to 'bust Draxum's door down' like Donnie said they would)Leo took a few deep breaths from his pounding heart and gazed at his brother - who looked to be carefully inspecting him - awaiting his response; all while noticing he couldn't feel the mystic numbness from the dark energy that infected his ninpo in here.His ninpo that was feeling warm and bright and freely flowing through every part of his body right now; begging him to leave Draxum and live a new life with his brothers.Something he knew deep down could never come to pass.Leo pushed that thought to the back recesses of his mind, where it belonged. Then, after catching his breath and with a relaxed-looking grin and a single laugh, he straightened up and humorously told Donnie the same thing he said to him the very first time they reunited in the telepathic dream world:“Bro, you’re looking at me like I’m a cadaver you can’t wait to cut into. It’s creeping me out, would you quit it?”“Did Draxum hurt you?” was Donnie’s first blunt question.“No,” Leo replied just as bluntly.“Why didn’t you tell us?” was his next inquiry.“Do you really need an answer to that?” Leo asked, as his way of saying ‘isn’t it obvious?’“Yes,” Donnie immediately replied.Leo straightened up some more, crossed his arms, and looked his brother in the eyes to reply: “It’s not exactly something I’m proud of.”“And yet you told Yolinda.”Leo let out a single laugh, and he replied with a light-hearted: “She has ways of getting what she wants.”“As does Draxum, so I’ve heard, which is why you returned to him.”In response, the slider's eyes narrowed in anger and he sternly replied: “I’m not running and hiding like a coward.”“Will he kill you?”“No!” Leo abruptly snapped in anger. “He has a new job for me, and he was in the middle of telling me what it is when you interrupted.”Donnie ignored Leo’s incensed tone to ask: "Will he hurt you for helping us fight the Foot, whom he is aligned with for reasons we do not know?”Leo crossed his arms again, and - although his insides were squirming around over this whole conversation with his flesh-and-blood brother that was centered around his slavery - he seemed cool and collected on the outside when he relaxed his body, rested a hand on his hip, and replied with his crooked grin:“Bro, I’m a slave. That’s a part of discipline here in the Hidden City.”Donnie’s voice oozed almost as much sarcasm as the gauntlet oozed dark energy when he crossed his arms and sarcastically replied: “Ah yes, discipline. You mean like burning through six layers of scutes and slashing the entire length of your face in three places?”“Five layers, it’s not usually like that, and it was better than the alternative,” Leo bluntly retorted.Donnie used air quotes when he immediately asked: “What do you mean ‘not usually like that’?” picking one question at random from the many swirling around inside that fast-processing, genius mind of his.In anger, Leo snapped: “He was furious at you guys for his lab burning down! Something that wouldn’t ‘ve happened if you didn’t stick your ‘action hero movie star’ noses into his business where it doesn’t belong, and I didn’t have to bail you out, like tonight!”Leo firmly and vividly gestured to the bandaged cut on his leg that he got blocking his ninja star when Mikey carelessly walked right in front of it.Donnie opened his mouth to take a deep breath - likely in preparation for a lengthy rebuttal - but Leo cut him off when he abruptly gestured to his face and said in anger: “And this happened because I refused the order to kill you three! I told him I wouldn’t kill anyone anymore to keep my word to Raph! Do you know he could have killed me on the spot for rebelling against him!? But he didn’t! Instead he told me he would honor my request, and let me off with this…” he firmly gestured to his face again, “as a reminder of what I am to him so I don't cross the line a second time and have something worse happen to me!”Leo was practically fuming - although he didn’t know exactly who his anger was directed toward - as he continued in his incensed tone of voice.“Listen Dee, Draxum may be harsh and his punishments might be a little over the top sometimes, but life with him's not all that bad. I always know when it's coming and why, and everything he does teaches me a lesson that'll help me keep my head on my shell out there in the real world. The world you three have been sheltered from with your 'Sydney Allen extreme sports' and 'pizza week'." "Leo..." "I'm not done bro," Leo firmly interrupted. Donnie respectfully closed his mouth and his brother continued:"I have all the food I can eat, he gave me an education and trained me in ninjitsu himself, he’s always taken a personal interest in my physical growth and my growth as a warrior, everything I get from him is the best quality, I get time to myself where I can do practically anything I want without having to hide it from him ‘cause he’s ok with it, he makes sure I have the skills, training, knowledge, weapons, tools, whatever I need to stay safe when I’m out doing my ninja job, I work by his side a whole lot and when we’re working together, he lets me talk for hours about whatever I want and he even listens to most of it.”Leo crossed his arms again, but this time he held them loosely, his body language was relaxed, and he was the one who radiated pity in his eyes when he added the hard-hitting words:“How many of those things can you say your dad does for you?” He raised one eyebrow with a: “Hmm?” indicating he was expecting an answer regarding their clearly absent dad, prompting Dee to break eye contact by gazing down at the floor.“Donnie…” “Our Papá may not be perfect, but he never harms us and we all know he loves us,” Donnie interrupted with firm conviction. He raised his eyes to meet his brother’s wide-eyed gaze, and asked in all seriousness: “Can you say those things about Draxum?”Leo’s surprised expression turned to a smug, yet somehow angry grin, and he sourly replied: “Must be nice having a dad who loves you.”"He loved you too, Leo, and he'd love you again if you'd just give him a chance," Donnie replied in an almost pleading tone of voice.Leo threw his arm out in frustration and yelled in anger: "Love me!? He abandoned me!" He vividly gestured to the floor with both hands and continued: "He left me on the floor in the middle of a fire to die! No worse than that..."Leo's whole countenance fell, he loosely crossed his arms and hung his head when he quietly added in a soft whisper of a voice: "He left me behind to live this life. A life so horrible he had to run away from it.""Dad didn't leave you behind, Leo, he..." "YES HE DID!!!" Leo adamantly (and very aggressively) insisted.This time it was Donnie's turn to cross his arms, and he asked: "How do you know that?" Then he raised one eyebrow and enquired: "Because Draxum told you?"Leo kept his eyes down on the floor, his body relaxed, and simply replied with: "Yeah." He rubbed his left upper arm with his right hand as though he was giving himself a half hug, and added in such a quiet mumble Donnie almost couldn't make out the words when he said:"And I remember some of it." "Some but not all?" Donnie immediately inquired. "Yeah," was Leo's one-word quiet reply.Donnie raised one of his big eyebrows again and asked: "And you believe this . . . yokai who treats you like a slave?" holding back from using the word he wanted to use in reference to the harsh goat slave-driver whom Leo seemed to respect for some reason.This time before replying, Leo raised his head to look at Donnie and softly said: "He never lies to me.""Are you sure about that?"Leo immediately opened his mouth with the intent of firmly replying 'yes,' but shut it again, absently rubbed at the bottom of the stitched gash that went through his lips, and when he opened his mouth a second time, he honestly told his brother:"There's a lot of things I used to be sure about that I'm not anymore."Donnie was going to say something but decided against it when Leo curled in on himself and self-consciously turned his body to the side so he wasn't directly facing him. So instead he waited to see if there was more to be said by the brother who he knew now lived, not only a hard life, but a hard life as a mistreated slave.And he was glad he didn't speak up when Leo openly shared what was on his mind when he honestly admitted: "I'm afraid, Donnie.""What are you afraid of?"Leo opened his mouth to reply, but tears filled his eyes and he ended up shutting it again.Donnie got the hint that Leo would feel more comfortable if he wasn't being directly looked at and got the idea to suggest they do something they used to do lots in this telepathic dream world when they were kids. So he kindly told Leo: "Come on, Nardo," before sitting cross legged on the floor, back-on to him.A small smile crept across Leo's face and he let out single laugh before repeating: "Nardo," unintentionally sounding a little bit bitter when he did so - not because he disliked the nickname but because he was thinking over what his life might have been like if he wasn't left behind to rot as a nameless slave and had been raised as their brother Leonardo, instead.Donnie didn't know where the bitterness was coming from and commented: "I take it you disapprove.""No, it's a great nickname. I, uh . . . I like the name Leonardo now that I *ahem* . . . now that I know what it means," Leo tentatively stumbled out, referring to his full name that he didn't like the first time he heard what 'Leo' was short for. He was feeling really unsure of himself over the idea of pouring out his heart to his brother, so hesitated a moment before taking one step closer, pausing again and rubbing his arm nervously; and then following through by sitting on the floor back-on to his unofficial 'twin' brother, with the back of his injured shell resting against the protective tech shell Donnie was wearing.They sat like that for a moment, silently leaning against each other with Donnie wanting to give Leo however much time he needed, and Leo taking his time before he was ready to open up - not feeling anxious about getting back to Draxum in a hurry because he was given permission to take as long as he needed (while also feeling nervous about getting back to Draxum and finding out what his cruel owner intended to do with that spinal syringe full of mutagen). And when the slider finally spoke, he surprised Donnie by starting off with the unusual question: "What's a lion?"Although he was a little taken back by the question, as was common for him Donatello calmly replied with the facts."A lion is a large cat of the genus Panthera, native to Africa and..." "Booor-ring," Leo blurted out. "Bro, if I wanna hear an encyclopedia drone on forever I'll rent an audio tape from the Mystic Library.""You're our brother alright," Donnie said in a bland tone, not for the first time (and he hoped not for the last). Then he significantly toned down and shortened the speech he had in his head to tell Leo: "They're ferocious giant-sized cats that hunt on large prey like elephants, water buffalo, and rhinos. The males have thick manes and they're not afraid of anything, not even humans, unlike most animals.""Huh," Leo said in reply, thinking about the meaning of his name, Leonardo. Until another thought popped in his head and he asked: "Wait, rhinos? You mean like rhino yokai?""I do not know what a rhino yokai is," Donnie factually replied."They're big brutes, more than twice my size, usually gray with one huge horn sticking out of their nose.""That vague description sounds appropriately accurate," Donnie factually replied.Leo thought for a moment."What about goats? Do you have those in your above-ground world?""If you're going to ask questions we need rules," Donnie told him in a joking manner, referencing the day Leo agreed to a little q&a, provided there were rules put in place.Leo's shoulders bounced from laughter and then he asked: "Do you want me to leave you alone for the next twenty-four hours?" in reference to their first q&a when that was his request."Hard pass, but I do have some questions for you. About this Hidden City I know almost nothing about, for example. I answer one and you answer one?""Alright," Leo immediately agreed.Donnie turned around to look at him and inquired: "That's it? No 'I can pass any question and leave whatever I want' or anything like that?" Leo turned his head to look at him with a smile and raised his hand to push Donnie's head back around while jokingly saying: "Turn around, that's not how this works!" Then when they were sitting back-to-back again and looking away from each other he told him: "Nah bro, I'll answer all your questions this time.""Deal," Donnie immediately agreed, not wanting to give Leo an opportunity to add any last second rules or stipulations.And then the line of blunt questions and straightforward answers began, starting with Leo."Are goats animals?""Yes, goats are animals. What's the Hidden City?""It's a city that's hidden. What about foxes?""Yes. How big is it?""Bigger than New York."Donnie turned around in surprise and blurted out: "Bigger than..." "Foxes?" Leo interrupted, because it was his turn.Donnie calmed down, turned around again, and rested his back against Leo's."Yes. What's the population?""I dunno, more than New York. Are brutes animals?" Leo asked, thinking about Bully, who was a brute yokai."No, brutes are not animals.""Huh.""And this city is made up of a society of yokai, with a government and laws and everything?""Yeah, but there's a scatter human here and there. You don't happen to have any skeleton animals running around up there, do you?" Leo asked next, thinking of Hueso this time."No, although most animals have skeletons, like you and I. It's quite fascinating really, there is a whole phylum of arthropods, which are creatures with what is called an exoskeleton..." "Bro, I already told you I'm not looking for a walking encyclopedia," Leo joked. "Why don't you want us to see the Hidden City?" was Donnie's very next question.In a very factual, almost casual tone, Leo replied: "Because Draxum wants you dead, Big Mama wants you for rodeo clowns, and they both have eyes and ears everywhere down here. You wouldn't last five minutes before you were bagged, tagged, and sold as slaves. What's your dad like?""Sold as slaves!?"Donnie completely missed the question Leo casually snuck in about their dad, and the slider almost fell back on the floor but caught himself with his elbow when Dee jumped up in surprise and exclaimed: "You mean there's more slaves in the Hidden City!?"Leo looked up at him in surprise and stood up while rubbing his sore elbow. Abandoning the 'you answer a question I answer one' deal they made, he sounded a little confused when he replied: "Yeeeah." But then a thought dawned on him and he said: "Oh riiight, you don't have slavery above ground. At least not around here.""You sound surprised," Donnie commented.With a dismissive shrug, Leo casually replied: "Yeah, it's just a part of life here in the Hidden City. Practically anybody with enough money owns at least one slave. Some of those crazy rich land owners have dozens.""So slavery is legal in yokai society?""It is here in the Hidden City - on the entire east coast really - but not...""What do you mean the entire east coast!? There are more underground hidden yokai cities!? How many are there!!?"Leo smiled and replied with a pleasant-sounding: "Yeah, bro. Cities, towns, rural mystic farms. Yokai live all over the world, and there's these huge mystic lush caverns everywhere with all kinds of wildlife so far down humans will never reach it! Oh, and the food!"Leo practically drooled when he thought of the wide array of fruits, berries, and nuts he regularly picked in the lush caverns that he found absolutely delicious (although pizza trumped everything in his opinion, especially Mikey's pizza puffs). Donnie grinned a little at Leo's happy face, but then his smile fell when he focused his gaze on the three long gashes running down the length of it and thought about how he got them."Aren't there any laws in the Hidden City to protect the . . . uh . . . the slaves? Like, ahem, you?" He tentatively inquired, saying the word 'ahem' instead of clearing his throat.Leo's smile instantly fell and Donnie cast his eyes downward and nervously cleared his throat for real this time, feeling a little ashamed for throwing that reality in Leo's face but really, reeeally wanting an answer.Now it was Leo's turn to put his eyes on the dream world floor and he sounded a little sad when he replied: "Yeah, there's plenty of slavery laws. But none of them protect us slaves."Donnie kept his eyes down, too nervous to look his slave brother in the face, and timidly asked: "Whaaat do you mean, none of them protect . . . uh, slaves?"Leo let out a deep sigh and his entire countenance fell, before he replied in a factual yet sad tone of voice:"Donnie, us slaves . . . we don't have any rights. We're nothing more than property."Leo curled in on himself a little and kept his eyes glued to the floor as he continued."Our owners can do anything - and I mean anything - they want to us and the law's on their side. And you don't want to know what happens when the cops get their hands on one of us."Donnie nodded his head in understanding and waited a moment to let the words sink in. Then he remembered something Leo said just before their q&a started, and he asked:"What are you afraid of?"Leo looked up at him and Donnie raised his head just a little to make eye contact, but only briefly before they both looked away once more. Then the slider cleared his throat and quietly replied with: "A lot of things.""Like?""Like . . . losing all of you...."After clearing his throat a second time, Leo continued on without any prompting."Like being tied down and forced to stand by helplessly and watch Draxum kill you and not being able to do anything at all to stop it."That reminded Donnie of something else and he commented: "You said uhhh, that Big Mama chained you to the wall, but you were also chained to the floor. Did Draxum, uh, did he...""Yes. Draxum chained me to the floor."Donnie raised his eyes to see Leo was looking right at him now, standing proud and tall and a little tense; looking very much like the ninja warrior he had been trained to be from infancy."He did it when he burned my shell," he pointedly told him without as much as an ounce of shame or nervousness showing through.'Lionhearted. Brave as a lion,' he thought to himself, with those words taking on more meaning now that he had a better understand of what a lion was.Next, Donnie blurted out in desperation: "Leo, you can't stay with him! What if he does something worse to you!?" He slapped his hands on his head and loudly blurted out in fear: "What if he kills you!?""I can't leave him," was Leo's only flat, calm, confident reply, while in no way disputing the fact that Draxum could, indeed, kill him whenever he wanted."WHY NOT!!!?" Donnie yelled loudly in his panic.Leo simply flashed him a crooked smile as though he was completely fine with this life he was forced to live and calmly replied: "Like I said, the law's on his side.""WHY DOES THAT EVEN MATTER!!?" Donnie yelled in frustration, before breathing heavily through his scowling mouth to compensate for his rapidly pounding heart.Leo surprised him when he stepped closer to reach out to put a hand on his shoulder (as if Donnie was the one in need of comforting) and locked eyes with him. Donnie's heart calmed down, he lost the scowl and relaxed his tense muscles from the gesture. Then, the confident reply that came next told him that his brother who had been tragically separated from them from infancy had already long ago accepted his lot in life when he informed him:"We have a saying here in the Hidden City, bro. Born a slave, die a slave. No one - and I mean no one - ever escapes this life."Leo's eyes glossed over with tears as he looked at his brother with love and fondness while telling him the horrible reality that was his life:"I'm not running and hiding like a coward and Draxum’s one of the most powerful yokai anywhere. If I ever try to leave he'll hunt me down by taking out everyone I care about until either everyone I love is dead or I show myself." He took his hand off Donnie's shoulder and sounded much more serious with his next words when he continued."The only hope I have to leave him would be to run to Big Mama 'cause she's just as powerful as Draxum and she practically owns the cops. But I showed you what she did to my shell, she's more ruthless than he is. Not only that, the cops have ways of tracking down runaway slaves, and the rest of the slaves help them so they don't become the next victims for the cops who'r crooked." He shivered from a cold chill that went up his spine and added: "That's a fate worse than death."Donnie stared at Leo, shocked into silence and wracking his scientific genius mind trying to come up a fix, a solution, a way out, something, anything to help his beloved brother who was born into a life of cruel slavery. But his mind stopped reeling and went totally blank when Leo factually told him: "There's nothing we can do about it, Dee. This is the life I was born into and I'll be a slave to the day I die.""What if we fake your death?" Donnie abruptly asked in desperation as the only way out he could think of in the moment.Leo simply smiled fondly at him and informed him: "Without a body, dead slaves are labelled runaways and are hunted down and dragged back to their owners, if the cops don't get to them first. No one gets out of this life, Dee." He put his hand back on Donnie's shoulder again and looked at him with a pair of teary eyes when he repeated kindly but firmly: "No. One." Then he broke Donnie's heart when he swallowed down a lump in his throat and averted his eyes to gaze at the floor, just before speaking the cold, hard truth with the next words he had to say."I'm staying here with Draxum and if you show up to bust me out I'm not gonna go with you..." he swallowed down another lump in his tense throat, "Not 'cause I don't wanna, but because I can't bro." He cleared his throat to try and relieve the tension in it before continuing."Listen, I won't hurt you but I will help Draxum get you out of his house, and I can't be everywhere at once so I can't guarantee he won't kill one of you when my back's turned. And look at me."Leo gestured to himself with both hands, highlighting his many injuries, and told him: "Draxum never uses torture in his punishments. He's never done anything like this before," he raised his eyes to look straight at his brother when he moved his hand in a circle over his face, highlighting the gashes that were going to leave three big, nasty scars, before continuing in a tone that gave away how sad and downright broken-hearted he felt: "Not until after you four showed up and his lab burned down. He was so furious he took his anger out on me for the first time ever."Tears filled Donnie's eyes now as Leo looked away, took in a shaky breath through his mouth, and fought against his own weepy eyes, knowing that if the dam burst it would unleash a floodgate of tears that would threaten to continue flowing for hours."He even sent me away because he couldn't control his anger and he never loses control. I've been living in that hospital all this time, waiting for a day like today when he finally calmed down and called me back."Donnie hit the side of his fist into his open palm and blurted out: "That's why you needed the blanket."Leo shot his head up and blurted out: "What!?" in surprise."Uhhh, don't worry about it," was Donnie's nervous reply.Leo let it go because they were dealing with a more important issue right now and continued with his thought by uttering the words: "Don't come here Dee. Draxums not mad anymore, don't make him mad again..."His countenance fell, his entire body softened, and he stuck his eyes on the floor just before requesting in a pitiful tone: "If you do, I can't go with you and after you go back to your sheltered lives with that dad you love..." He forced back the tears before continuing, "The dad who loves you back, Draxum will be furious you showed your faces again and I'll be left here to suffer the consequences." Then he outright begged in a pleading tone: "Don't do that do me, don't make me have to go through that again. Please."Donnie looked at him, shocked into silence over the terrible realities he learned over the course of this one conversation, and although it pained him to do so, for his brother's own safety he sadly and reluctantly agreed: "We won't make you have to go through that. We'll stay away. I promise."Leo's immediate response was to surprise Donnie by abruptly grabbing him in a tight hug - one he eagerly and greedily returned. And this time Donnie couldn't hold back the tears anymore even if he tried, so they flowed freely down his cheeks, noticing Leo sounded choked up and was probably crying too, when he said:"I love you bro.""I . . . we love you too, bro."Without pulling out from the hug, and still sounding a little choked up, Leo shocked his brother when he told him: "Draxum's sending me out to work with the Foot and..." he swallowed a lump in his throat. "And he ordered me to stay away from you three."As surprised as Donnie was to hear those two new orders from Leo's boss owner, he didn't interrupt and tears continued falling down his face as his flesh-and-blood brother continued."Don't reach out to me, k? I could be with them any time, day or night, and if I get distracted around that idiot Foot commander there's no telling what he'll do to me..." "Because you're a slave," Donnie softly interrupted in a sad tone; only uttering those dreadful words because he felt like he was really quite literally in an unreal dream right now, and needed to hear his own voice saying it out loud to ground himself in reality."Because I'm a slave," Leo repeated softly, sounding just a choked up as Donnie was."We're going to get you out of this," Don abruptly said, meaning every word. "We'll find a way together. I promise."Leo laughed at the absurdity of that statement and hugged Donnie a little tighter before saying in a dismissive but kind tone of voice: "Sure, bro. I'll be waiting." Then he cleared his throat and said: "I'll reach out to you as soon as I can.""Won't Draxum punish you for that?""Nah bro, he'll never know. He can't spy on me in here," Leo immediately replied in a soft, almost upbeat tone of voice that still carried a hint of sadness. Then he requested: "Do me a favor?""Anything," Donnie immediately replied without hesitation."Take your eyes off those tiny screens and train hard. I don't wanna find out you guys got yourselves killed out there 'cause you don't take this hero business seriously. And take care of each other. And Yolinda. Make sure that fiery temper of hers doesn't get her in big trouble one day. Okay?"This time it was Donnie who was so choked up he had to swallow down a lump in his throat. And his voice cracked a little when he asked: "Anything else?""Yeah."Leo squeezed his brother with all his might and Donnie reciprocated by squeezing Leo as tightly as he could - wishing they didn't have to let go and depart their separate ways."I'll see you in here soon..." He sniffled and fought back the tears that just kept coming anyway."...but I don't know how long I'll have to stay away from you three out there in the real world."His crying intensified and carried through in his voice, and he shocked his brother yet again with the pleading words he uttered:"Don't forget this isn't a dream. And don't let those other two brothers and that sister of ours forget about me, either."Next, he broke down and wept openly and let out the pitiful sounding words that broke Donnie's heart to hear: "I don't wanna be all alone again, bro. Okay? Can you do that for me?"Donnie cried openly now as he loudly insisted: "Leo we would never forget you!""Thanks," was the only soft word of reply, just before Leo disappeared......with both of them not knowing that this was their very last telepathic connection ever and they would never again be able to enter the dream realm that so closely connected them both, even though they were worlds apart.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
When Draxum's turtle slave returned, he turned around from his work to gaze at him with one eyebrow raised, awaiting his report.“Donnie promised they won't come here.”“Good.”The alchemist yokai turned around, picked up the spinal syringe containing whatever mutagen formula he made, and calmly ordered: “Come here.”Leo swallowed nervously and his heart filled with dread all over again, but he obediently complied.(What other choice did he have?)When he reached Draxum on the other side of the lab, his owner stepped aside gesturing to the table, indicating he wanted Leo to stand directly in front of the section he had cleared off.Once again, Leo complied, stood back-on to the alchemist while facing the table, with his body stiff, while repeatedly clenching and relaxing his left hand.Just before commencing what he was about to do, Draxum glanced down at his turtle creation’s damaged carapace, noting the applicator pad in the dead center covering the worst wound from his torturous attack. But it looked to him to be nothing more than a bandage affixed to his shell sensibly covering the injury that likely bled, and not something to arise concern.And there was currently so much going on for the poor turtle slave of Baron Draxum - whose entire body felt numb, along with his mind - that any thoughts of shell rot had temporarily fallen to the wayside.Leo closed his eyes, steadied his breathing, and relaxed his body, trying to calm himself as much as reasonably possible because he knew this would hurt that much more if his muscles were tight and tense.At Draxum’s word, Leo leaned over the table as far he he could considering it came up to his chest (being built for someone of Draxum’s stature) and he obediently stretched his hands out on the table with the palms of his hands laying flat on the surface when he was told to do so.He thought he was as ready as he could be. That was, until Draxum thrust out his left hand to force Leo’s head down, squishing his face against the cold surface - both to hold it steady and to clearly reveal the back of his neck from over the lip of his carapace.That was when he heart began pounding, his breath became quickened and panicked, and his eyes squeezed shut in anticipation. Any attempt at relaxing his muscles flew out the window at that abrupt, sudden act, and his body involuntarily tensed even more at Draxum’s curt word:”Do not move or this may cause serious injury.”Leo nervously swallowed as all sorts of horrible thoughts went racing through his mind - wondering exactly what Draxum was about to inject into him, and what would it do to him.The sharp tip of the needle pierced through Leo’s skin at the scruff of his neck, and he groaned a little from the pain of it sinking deeply inside his spinal cord.The actual action of injecting the mutagen was not painful, but the slider could feel a sickening warmth and pressure traveling down the length of his back, overriding all his other senses that were already dulled from the intense amount of anxiety he was under.When Draxum finished he pulled out the long needle, removed his hand from the back of Leo’s head, laid the empty oversized syringe on the table beside his turtle creation, and ordered: “You may recover in your room. Report to me when you awaken, after you clean and disinfect your garbage."Leo pressed the palms of his hands down on the edge of the table to push himself up. Then he respectfully replied: “Yes, Draxum,” and briskly left the lab without once looking up at his cruel owner who did something to him that required recovery time and the use of his bedroom garbage bin, for some reason.That reason became apparent momentarily as Leo was making his way down the long, wide hall to his bedroom. Along the way, the warmth of the mutagen spreading up into his head, leaving him with a strange sensation that was making him feel weak and shaky, flush, dizzy……and very, very nauseous.Leo picked up the pace as best he could, but when he turned into his bedroom, instead of leaning over his garbage to hurl - like he really wanted to do - he stretched his arms out to grasp the edge of his desk, leaned his weight on it for support to stay on his feet, and with his eyes closed and his head hung low he summoned every ounce of effort he could muster to hold down his food and fight against the overwhelming urge to vomit.He was a ninja warrior, after all. Poise and self-control came with that title.But, of course, Draxum knew more about his mutant creation's physiology than even Leo did, and he also knew exactly what that mutagen-based formula would do to his turtle’s body and how it would affect his slave. So warrior or not, it wasn’t more than half a minute later before Leo collapsed to his knees and leaned over his garbage, hurling his guts up.The intense nausea came in waves with the sickening warmth and dizziness filling in the seconds between up chucking the entire contents of his stomach.He didn’t know how long he had been hanging over the garbage, trembling and sweating and heaving with each new wave of nausea, he only knew that the nausea continued long after everything in his stomach had been completely expelled, so that there were quite a few times he urged and brought up nothing at all - or nothing but acid and bile - before it finally passed.Leaving him trembling and feeling weaker and dizzier than ever before, with the real possibility that he was on the verge of passing out right here on his bedroom floor.Leo raised his head to look up at his bed with his eyelids so heavy they didn't want to open more than halfway; knowing that as soon as he exerted the last scraps of energy he had left to move, he would almost instantaneously pass out.But if he timed this just right, he would hit his bed first and lose consciousness laying on top of the blanket covering his mattress, instead of disgracefully slumped on the floor.Without taking his eyes off the bed, the shaky, dizzy, light-headed slider tightly grasped the edge of his garbage, picked up his sturdier left prosthetic leg to plant his foot firmly on the floor, took three quick breaths through his mouth to psych himself up, and pushed off his left foot to throw himself on his bed - landing safely on his stomach.Once there, everything became a blur as he slowly blinked his heavy eyelids twice, with Draxum’s command: ‘report to me when you awaken’ reassuring his mind that he would wake up……but the very last (disturbing) thought in his head before his vision blacked out and he lost consciousness was wondering if Draxum hadn’t decided to pull some sort of sick, twisted trick on him by demutating his cells, so he would wake up as the simple pet turtle he started out as….…one that could perhaps be sold to Bully as the main ingredient in a delicious turtle soup.* * *Once the four three despondent turtle brothers had dropped off Yolinda and April and arrived home very late at night, they dispersed without a word.Mikey promptly fell asleep in his bedroom hammock from the mental and emotional toll weighing heavily on his mind (and his eyelids).Donnie, although equally tired, retired to his lab to distract from his troubling thoughts with mundane data entry.And Raph. . .Well, he was currently laying on his back in bed, where he had been all night and into the next day, staring at the ceiling ever since they got home. Lost in his own troubled mind - with his overprotective big brother sense still tingling throughout his body.. . .Raph didn’t like this.He didn’t like this one bit.Leo had begged them not to show up at Draxum’s - literally pleaded with Donnie during their telepathic communication, fearful that their arrival would spark Draxum’s furry and he would unjustly take his rage against them out on him, yet again.On him, their brother.Their brother who had been separated from them as baby mutants and had been raised by a tyrannical, wicked slave-driver.Their brother who feared the consequences of leaving his cruel, harsh owner; who felt so strongly that there was no way out for him that he adamantly refused to join them and even insisted he would help Draxum fight them off if they showed up to 'bust him out'. Even though he wanted to be with them.Their brother who erroneously thought their very own dad who loved him left him behind on purpose.Their brother. Leo. Who had been mistreated as a literal slave for all these years, living in an underground hidden world, while they took him for dead, but if they knew he was alive could have been putting forth earnest effort to figure out a way to get him out of that life and bring him home, with them, where he belonged.Their brother who at this very moment was probably enduring another torturous punishment for his involvement in helping them fight against the evil Foot, who Draxum was aligned with.For those reasons and more, shortly before it was one o’clock in the afternoon - the time Leo’s shift started at Run of the Mill - no matter how illogical Donnie insisted it was the entire drive home, Raph held on to some whisper of a hope that Leo would show up for his shift even though Draxum had a new job for him (working for the wicked Foot, nonetheless).Or if he wasn’t there, perhaps a certain crafty fox could help him get to the Hidden City, where he would try to discreetly confront Leo in his own home with Draxum being none the wiser, and do his very best to to convince him they should leave together.But if that didn’t work…Well, perhaps it was time to bring their dad into the picture.The lair was eerily quiet when Raph snuck out of his room - off the rec room where his other brothers bedrooms were also located.Mikey was still asleep in his room behind his closed orange curtain ‘door’. The flickering light coming from the quiet living room indicated their dad likely fell asleep watching his shows. Their dad who was completely oblivious to the goings-ons of his three (four) turtle sons, as usual.On his way through the rec room, Raph stopped outside the closed curtain entrance of an unoccupied room next to his. He pushed the dark blue curtain aside and flicked on the light……to Leo’s bedroom.Or at least what the three turtle brothers hoped would one day become Leo’s bedroom, once they convinced him to reunite with the dad he never knew and get away from Draxum to move in with them; once again, where he belonged.
"I belong with you."
Even Leo knew he belonged with them, he said it himself at the skatepark before leaving through his portal to return to that monster who mistreated him with heartless, torturous punishments, forcing him to live a sad, cruel life all alone, separated from the only family he had who loved him.
“I don’t know exactly what my life would’ve been like if we were raised together; but I know now. . . I would’ve been happy.”
There, in the room, straight across from Raph on the back wall was a white shelf where Leo could store his human knick-knacks that he told Mikey about the night they painted graffiti in the hospital.A dresser to the snapper’s left was half full of warm fall and winter clothes they picked out for him (that Mikey modified, so they would fit over Leo’s shell) because their underground, Hidden-City-raised brother didn’t seem to have any warm apparel.And to the snapper’s right was a single (unoccupied) twin bed adorned with a blue comforter - Leo’s favorite color.On top of that blanket, resting against a pillow, was an item Raph has requested April specifically purchase for their long-lost brother.The white stuffed unicorn with a gold horn and a rainbow mane and tail.The same unicorn Raph saw Leo cuddling into and weeping on the day he followed him to the closed store, where the slider had picked up essential supplies that he paid for instead of stealing (like Raph initially assumed), with no money left over for the one item he wanted for the measure of comfort it brought his dreary life.“Raph?” came a somewhat hoarse voice from behind the snapper.Raphael pushed aside that memory, flicked off the light, and the curtain door closed behind him when he turned around and stepped out, to face his little brother with a gentle smile.Mikey was rubbing the sleep out of his eyes; wearing his fluffy orange slippers along with his orange fleece pyjamas; yawning and clearly having just woken up after their very exhausting late night out.“Where are you going?” the sleepy box turtle inquired.“Raph’s going out to pick up some supplies,” the snapper softly responded.“By yourself?” Mikey asked in confusion. Then, through a yawn, he commented: “You never go alone.”“Raph needs some time to clear his head,” his big brother again replied in the third person, hinting at how stressed he was.Mikey didn’t question it and instead offered (through another yawn): “I can come with you.”“No, you go back to bed buddy, get some more sleep. Raph’ll be back before you wake up again, ok?”“Ok,” Mikey sleepily agreed. He turned around to shuffle back to his room, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes along the way, and requested: “Pick up some pizza on your way home, we’re all out.”“Yeah, that’s one of the stops on Raph’s list,” Raph replied. He watched as Mikey pushed his curtain aside to go back in his room - letting out one more big yawn before going out of sight, with Raph smiling fondly at him, glad he was here with them and safe, instead of being raised by the cruel Draxum - like their other brother Leo.That was when Raph was startled by his dad's unexpected loud laughter coming from the living room.If Splinter just woke up from a nap, a trip to the kitchen to put on his kettle Skully for a cup of tea was no doubt coming next. That thought prompted Raph to pick up his feet and hurry out of the lair’s back entrance, just off the rec room, so he wasn't caught sneaking out.Once he left the lair and ventured above ground through a nearby abandoned subway station (because his snapping turtle frame was too big to leave through the cramped manhole covers anymore), just as he suspected it was a cold, dreary, drizzly fall day.On days like this, the snapper could always feel the damp coldness in his joints, even when his was below the bustling streets in his warm bedroom under his heat lamp. He knew Donnie had warned them about this thing called broom-ah-nation……brumaficatioin?Broo . . .…something to do with their turtle minds and bodies slowing down in preparation for winter. He always wondered if his achy joints had anything to do with this . . . ‘bran-nation’ thing, but despite the chill, Raph’s warm clothes combined with his brisk pace helped to keep his body reasonably warm.But the bone piercing chill in the damp air made Raph think of Leo wearing nothing over his bare feet the previous cold night, and likewise nothing but a cloak over his turtle body; while he also wondered why the Hidden-City-raised turtle didn't come to them for help when Draxum forced him above ground, instead of camping out in that cold, abandoned hospital.And why did he tell Yolinda he was Draxum's slave but he didn't breathe a word of it to them?Was he trying to protect them by hiding the truth?Didn't he know yet that he needed protecting, too?Raph pushed those questions aside and wished he had thought of grabbing some of Leo’s warm clothes to bring to him, in case his brother was there when he arrived.The distasteful thought of Leo possibly being out and about above ground during this particularly miserable weather prompted the worried snapper to pick up the pace, and quietly utter the only few words he spoke aloud along the way:"I sure hope he's there."While also hoping he would be able to convince Leo to abandon that horrendous life he had to live and start a new one with them.His family.Who loved him.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Unsurprisingly, when Raph walked in through the front portal entrance at Run of the Mill, the restaurant was quiet. Not many people - human or yokai - ventured far from home on cold, dreary days like today, beyond strictly necessary business like heading out for work.In the back corner near the stairs going up, behind the counter where the cash register was located, a skeleton yokai abruptly stood up from his seat when he saw one of Scrubs brother's come in through the portal entrance.Instead of tending to work in his office, when the diligent hardworking slave of Baron Draxum didn't show up for his scheduled shift without as much as an explanation or a phone call from the baron - who apparently had a new job for him, according to everything his adoptive daughter told him the night before when she got home late and woke him up - he took his station watching the front entrance, with Bully keeping an eye on the back kitchen door from his workstation. Which wasn't necessary because Yolinda had been anxiously pacing the back alley, waiting for Leo to show since ten am, having hoped he would come by to let her tend to his new wounds, like he said he would.Raph watched quietly from the front of the restaurant as the bone yokai owner briskly walked up to him with a worried look on his face, prompting him to nervously rub the back of his head. And when he opened his mouth he figured he already knew the answer before asking."Did, uh, did Leo show up for his shift today?""No, we were hoping he was perhaps with you," Hueso answered in a concerned, yet somewhat soft tone. Raph nervously tapped his index fingers together and asked: "Is Yolanda here? I have to ask her something."Hueso looked the nervous snapper up and down with that worried look never leaving his eyes, and he bluntly said: "There is no need for Yolinda to get involved more than she already is. I will take you to Draxum’s."With his big, toothy nervous grin that showed off his snaggletooth, Raph asked: "What makes you think I'm going to Draxum’s?""Are you?" Hueso asked pointedly, already knowing the answer.Raph hung his head and dropped his shoulders. "Yeah, Raph's going to Draxum’s to talk to Leo," he bluntly admitted.And no more than five minutes later, he and Hueso were heading to the New York-to-Hidden City portal that would take them outside Draxum’s house, with the skeleton yokai sternly warning him (repeatedly) to stay away from the cruel and powerful Baron while they were there.* * *~Some Time Later~Leo didn't know how long he had been out of it, but there were a few important things he did know practically from the moment he began waking up. Those things being:1. He was in his room but he was not alone;2. The other person was not Draxum; and3. The sensation of his numbed ninpo warming ever so slightly in his chest was almost definitely what woke him up, as opposed to the stranger who came all the way into the ninja warrior's bedroom, unnoticed and undetected, to sit in a chair by his head.Ignoring the flame of ninpo warmth in his chest, Leo naturally did what any warrior would do in his position laying vulnerable, apparently asleep on his stomach. Very discreetly, he reached for a ninja star with his right hand that was out of sight of the intruder.Then, with the speed and accuracy of a skilled ninja assassin, the shuriken whipped across the room, about an inch away from the intruder's nose, setting off a chain reaction when it lodged into a wooden kaleidoscope, knocking it down on a glass sand timer, which fell over, rolled out of his human knickknack shelf, smashing on the desk below it......prompting the intruder to turn his head away in alarm to stare at whatever loudly smashed behind his back, only to realize before he even had time to turn his head back around the cutting edge of a sharp dagger was laying flush against his throat, held horizontally by a ninja turtle who was looking him dead in his eyes with a cold, emotionless gaze.It took a few seconds but eventually the slider blinked three or four times, pushing away the foggy, groggy numbness, and then his pupils dilated as he gazed at his brother with recognition.The blade went away and the snapper was greeted with a hushed, angry: "What are you doing here!?" He promptly shut his bedroom door that Raph foolishly left wide open for some reason and then demanded - still in a quiet, hushed voice: "Don't you know Draxum will try to kill you if he sees you!? The others aren't here too, are they?""No, Raph came alone," Leo's big brother told him in the third person.The slider pinched the skin between his eyes in frustration while tapping his foot on the floor, and in an annoyed tone of voice, asked: "Why'd you have to come here, bro? Draxum's finally in a better mood now that his lab's fixed. If he ever finds out you came here..."Leo let his hand drop down to his side, he gazed at his big brother with a mixture of fondness and love, but mostly sadness, and finished: "...don't you know what that'll do to me?""Leo, you don't have to let Draxum keep treating you this way. Come home with me, you belong with us!" Raph urged.Leo huffed out a bitter laugh, walked over to his desk where his broken sand timer lay in pieces; putting his back to his brother and gazing down regretfully at the sparkly blue sand amidst shards of broken glass that had been the cherished first item he ever collected from the human world, which was now destroyed.Next, he reached out with his right hand to absently run his fingers through the exposed soft sand, and in a sour-sounding, sad tone repeated:"Home.. . .You mean with that ex-tv star Lou Jitsu who left me here to rot? Thanks but I think I'll pass.""Leo, there's no way Pops... "You need to leave!" Leo snapped in anger.Raph stood tense and tall, crossed his arms, and sternly replied: "Not without you."Leo huffed out another laugh - but not a bitter one this time - and softly said with love in his voice: "You really are a dummy, you know."Leo stopped playing with the blue sand to rest his hand on his chest, over where the ninpo warmth was beckoning him through the heavy numbness to go with Raph and live a new life - a better life - hidden away in the sewers of New York.A warmth somehow reassuring him that if he left with Raph here and now, everything would work out. Almost as though there was a soft voice whispering to him that he had nothing to fear; that with the strength of his family by his side they could stop Draxum from hunting him down by harming everyone he knew and cared about.That, together, they could stop the dangerous mystic pieces from being assembled into the dreaded dark armor to unleash whatever hidden secrets it held upon the world.Secrets Leo felt deep inside his Hamato heart that once unleashed, would bring with it something horrible in his grandeur.Leo put his right hand down on the edge of his desk with the other one, and hung his head.Raph thought this would be a good time to speak up."Leo, Draxum’s up to no good, I can feel it in my shell, and he's working with those Foot who tried to steal that dangerous mystic energy thingy, that can't be good. You need to get away from him and we gotta stop him from doing whatever evil mad scientist thing he's doing before innocent people get hurt! We can do it bro, together. You belong with us, not with that creep who treats you like a slave!"Leo knew deep down inside Raph's words were true and right. But for some reason as he heard them being spoken, the mystic heavy numbness in his chest completely enveloped the little bit of ninpo warmth he could feel, filling his heart with rage.Leo's hands clenched into fists and his body tensed."You need to leave, now," he said in a stern quiet voice, more as a warning than a demand."Raph's not leaving without..." "I'll NEVER betray Draxum!!!" Leo practically screamed.And without really knowing how it happened, Raph was gazing down into the cold, hard eyes of his younger brother - who in an instant had whipped around to face him with his odachi gripped tightly in his right hand, and the tip of his dagger pressing into the skin above the upper edge of Raph's spiky plastron.In fact, the blade of the dagger was pressed so hard into his green turtle skin that there was a speck of red at the tip from where it punctured the surface.Raph didn't know what it was, but a combination of his overactive big brother sense tingling with the unusual coldness in Leo's constricted pupils warned that something was very wrong with his brother.And he suspected it had something to do with the mystic energy gauntlet that infected him when he touched it.With a few very small nods of his head, Raph told Leo: "Okay, Raph's going." He backed away from the dagger cutting into his skin and a blue portal opened in the room.The tense slider gestured to it with his head and said in a quieter but still angry tone:"Go through there so Draxum doesn't see you." But this time his anger was directed toward himself because of what he just did to his big brother; and he wanted to get Raph out of there before he uncharacteristically lost control again and did something else in the heat of anger.Perhaps something worse.The snapper swallowed down a lump in his throat, said a tense: "Raph can find his own way out," and left through the bedroom door to head to the kitchen, where there was a back entrance he could safely leave through.As soon as he was out of sight, Leo released the tension in his body and furrowed his brows, worried he made the wrong decision to stay behind with the way a small bit of mystic warmth returned, that was pulling on him to follow his big brother."Wait," he said in a tiny voice that didn't make it past his open doorway.He stood there for a moment, fumbling around with his grip on the hilt of his odachi as a nervous habit, waiting for his big brother to return to take him away with him.But when it became apparent no such thing would happen, he swallowed down a nervous lump, sheathed his two weapons, and turned around to deal with his garbage; the one he was supposed to clean and disinfect from having expelled the entire contents of his guts, before obeying Draxum’s other command to present himself to him.And the mystic numbness in his chest once again enveloped the warmth of his Hamato ninpo, so that it felt like nothing more than a tiny, dying flame.* * *Outside Draxum’s house Raph met up with Hueso, who had been discreetly waiting for him out of sight behind some boulders up on the path leading to the Hidden City beside the portal out of here, because he knew there would be a greater chance of them getting caught by the Baron if the two of them ventured inside his house instead of just one of them.He gazed up at the sad snapper with just as much sadness in his eyes, and not a word had to be spoken for the big turtle to share with him the disappointing news that Leo had refused to go with him.Which was good because Raph didn't have any words left he could speak at the moment, from the foggy daze left in his head over the dreadful thought that they were going to lose their newly rediscovered brother all over again.Hueso handed Raph his warm New York outer clothes, the snapper accepted them with a thank you nod, and the portal opened. But just before stepping through, they both sensed something and turned around simultaneously to see the great and powerful Baron Draxum calmly standing on his front step, with his hands class behind his back; watching them.With nothing more than his presence warning them: 'I knew you were here all along. I allowed it this time but if you ever return there will be consequences.'When Raph lingered a little too long, Hueso patted his shoulder a couple of times and softly instructed: "Turn around and do not look back."Raph fought against his big brother hero ninja instincts to haul out his tonfas and smash this wicked Draxum into the dirt mystic ninja style, and instead turned around to go through the portal with Hueso.Mostly because he knew there was more going on with Leo than his loyalty to Draxum, and whatever it was, it was bigger than him.* * *~A Short While Later~Raph, Donnie, and Mikey walked somberly into the living room where Splinter was watching one of his favorite game shows.At the moment he was laughing out loud from some absurd game where a human adult was wearing nothing but an oversized diaper, while running on a treadmill. There was an untouched slice of chocolate cake and a full glass of milk resting on Splinter's plump, rat belly indicating the show had just begun and he was planning on watching to the end with his snack, before enjoying a long pleasant nap."Pops," came a soft voice behind him."Not now Red, they are just about to take out the scorpions!" Splinter said in a jovial tone before laughing again."Papá, we have something you need to see," came 'Purple's' voice.Splinter laughed again at his show, and then let out a hearty sigh before turning his head toward his sons while saying: "What is it my so... where did you find that!?"Suddenly, Splinter's show seemed to fade into the background and his cake and milk fell to the floor when he sat up in alarm at the sight of a piece of the dark armor resting in the palm of Raph's outstretched hands.A gauntlet to be precise."It's a long story, Pops," Raph told him in a serious voice, carrying a hint of sadness and worry."Yeah, we got a lot of explaining to do," 'Orange' piped up from behind him.The screen went black just as the scorpions were being dumped onto the treadmill when Splinter flipped the switch on his projector to turn it off. And without once taking his eyes off the dark energy gauntlet, he told his sons in a very serious tone of voice:"I also have a lot of explaining to do, my sons."Then he slowly dragged himself out of his soft warm chair, cracked his back when he stretched it, and ignored the mess of cake and milk spilled on the floor to leave the room, while instructing:"Come with me to the dojo, I will show you some ancient family scrolls I should have read to you a long time ago."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Draxum was in his parlor, doing research on something or other when his turtle slave presented himself.Without looking up from the thick, old book he was taking out of one of his bookshelves, the warrior scientist calmly informed Leo:"Arrangements have been made for you to work under the direct supervision of the Foot commander, Lieutenant Hawk, beginning exactly one week from today. You will obey his instructions implicitly, to the letter. However, he has been informed of where your primary loyalties lie." he glanced up briefly to make eye contact and added: "You understand what I mean when I say that, correct?"'Where my loyalties lie,' the slave of Baron Draxum thought, as the face of his protective hero big brother flashed through his mind.Something he felt through the mystic numbness was telling him he was fighting on the wrong side of the battle. But despite that, he immediately and respectfully replied: "Yes, Draxum," while resisting the urge to scratch the back of his shell in front of his owner (which was mildly uncomfortable for reasons he had long since forgotten, considering whole body and mind numbness he felt over this new bundle of stress that had been hurled at him like a heavy metal fundo to the head).And the understanding was clear, Leo was to obey the Foot commander's every word to the letter, secondary to his obedience to Draxum. Meaning his slave was to use his better judgement when ordered by that 'idiot' to - or not to - do something that worked against what was in Draxum's best interest.Draxum let out quiet hum of acknowledgment with a very slight nod of his head, before putting his eyes on the parchment and calmly saying: "I have no doubt that you will, considering the force with which you announced your loyalty, before rightfully evicting Experiment Alpha Zero Zero One from my house."'Experiment Alpha Zero Zero One,' Leo sadly thought - not surprised in the least that Draxum heard his very loud pledge of allegiance to his owner and the only father he ever knew. The one who viewed his brothers as nothing more than experiments.'What does that make me?' he wondered, not for the first time and definitely not for the last.Draxum quietly read something of interest in the book that was now open on the desk before him, before speaking up again."No doubt working under the direction of an idiot will be will be a valuable lesson in humility for you. An important quality for all ninja warriors to develop sooner or later."'Yeah, cuz the life of a slave isn't already humbling enough,' Leo sourly thought but didn't dare say out loud.Draxum straightened up, took his eyes off the scroll, and firmly asked: "Do you have any objections?"Which, when translated, meant: 'treat that idiot with the same respect you would show to me, obey his every word that doesn't go against your primary loyalty to me, and accept any discipline with true warrior dignity, no matter how preposterous the command or humiliating the punishment, understood?'That was why Draxum was surprised when his turtle replied: "Yes, Draxum, I do."He raised one eyebrow curiously and gave his slave an opportunity to redeem himself by instructing: "Explain," without a hint of anger showing through in his calm demeanor.Leo softened his tense composure a little at what he thought was further verification that Draxum was in a better mood and things had finally gone back to the way they were before his lab burned down, considering his 'insubordinate' objection didn't prompt an immediate and aggressively painful response - or even as much as a hint of anger - before being given the chance to explain.The last residual specks of fear that he would be tortured to death fled his heart and mind, and Leo looked up at his owner to tell him: "I can't touch the dark armor pieces, they infect me. At least the gauntlet did.""In what way?""It..." Leo got a chill from the memory that prompted the other memory to resurface of the giant terrorworm coming up out of the sand below his foot to chomp his leg off. But he resisted the urge to shiver, held out his left hand, and continued."It melted onto my hand and travelled up my arm like black tar." He clenched his hand into a fist, put it back down by his side, and clenched and relaxed it a few times. Draxum recognized this as (an acceptable) sign of anxiety or nervousness in his turtle slave, but didn't call any attention to it, as Leo continued."Then it transformed back into the gauntlet on my hand, and I think it did something to my ninpo.""In what way?" Draxum asked curiously."My portals still work fine, but I can't teleport, and my ninpo feels different.""How did it feel before?""Like a warm flame.""And now?""It feels numb. Like there's a heavy, cold rock in my chest.""Most unusual," was Draxum's reply, indicating even he had never heard of such a thing happening before.The warrior alchemist - who knew his way around mystical items and energy - began slowly pacing the room, deep in thought for a moment, before stopping and commenting: "I will conduct the appropriate research, but for now..." he turned his proud body to face Leo with his hands clasped behind his back, and calmly said: "We still have the matter of your disobedience in connection with visiting the Mystic Crystal Caverns when you were strictly ordered to remain above ground, and making use of the crystal pool that you were expressly forbidden from entering, that must be dealt with."'Eugh boi,' Leo thought, as the fear of receiving a torturous punishment came flooding back to his heart and mind, further dulling his already numbed senses.* * *~A Short While Later~"This isn't so bad," Leo thought out loud, while gazing around in the small, cramped, dimly lit solitary confinement cell Draxum led him to, and subsequently locked him in. He had been expecting a far worse punishment (torture), and even had a smile on his face (while absent-mindedly scratching the back of his shell for reasons he had long since forgotten) over the fact Draxum must have really been in a better mood because he even left his slave, who could technically survive for up to fourteen days without food and water, a meager supply of both to sustain himself; and even let him keep his dagger to 'make himself useful' with light training; while instructing him to leave all his gear in his bedroom with the exception of his belt, that contained a sheath for his dagger.(And as an added bonus, Draxum didn’t object when he pushed his luck by keeping his blue face mask on)Meaning Donnie's shell rot cream was sitting in one of the pockets of the cloak that was currently hanging on the coat tree in his bedroom."Six days in solitary, that gives me plenty of time to practice some light training and meditation before I gotta go work for that idiot 'foot face'," he said to himself, figuring he should use the time wisely before he had to treat Lt. Hawk with due respect - to get it out of his system.The mutant, Experiment Alpha 002-2 marvel of creation knew his body was designed to last around two weeks without food or water, depending on how hard he exerted himself. Sure he would feel plenty dehydrated by the end of day four with the very small supply of water Draxum left for him, but he figured this was far better than the alternate punishment he was expecting.If only there wasn't one important detail that up untill now his overly stressed, frazzled, numbed mind had forgotten to tell his owner."Yeah, sure it's a little damp and dingy, but nothing I can't..." Leo's pupils shrank in a tiny dots when he was struck with sudden realization, after using the very same words Donnie had spoken to him recently in connection with his shell rot, and he whipped the hand scratching his shell around to stare down on it."...handle. Eugh boi, I'm in trouble."The icky soreness of the infection on his back was so dull from his mystical, mental, and physical numbness that it felt like nothing more than a mild discomfort as Leo thought about Donnie's words; that these exact conditions he found himself in were the same ones his genius twin brother said will finish him off in under five days.And Draxum - who was none the wiser - would have no reason to check on him until he returned on day six, for his scheduled release.Leo flopped his hand down and muttered in a sour tone: "Who's the idiot now? Dummy."* * *Donnie wasn't kidding when he said the infection would spread, and fast.Before the end of day two Leo could very distinctly feel that it had reached the underlying porous bone layer.It hurt like hell.From there, it spread through the bone like water in a dry sponge, so that early the next morning on day three he could feel at least three new spots on his carapace were infected all the way through, from the bone to the surface, and he barely had the strength to stand; so he remained sitting for the bulk of that day, frequently repositioning himself from the pain and discomfort.That was also the day his body broke out in cold sweats, with an obvious fever. And he felt weak and sick and so, so thirsty that he didn't keep close enough tabs on his water consumption, and accidentally drank two days worth in under twelve hours.By the middle of that night, he could feel his entire carapace had broken out in spots all over with the infectious rot.By the next morning on day four it spread to his side shell, on both sides, threatening to infect his thinner plastron......and by that afternoon he no longer have the strength to even sit.So he was laying on his stomach on only surface available, which was the cold, hard floor.Down for the count.Which was fine, he figured because a downed fighter who was alive better be as good as dead, and that was exactly what he was.Death was imminent.Without proper sustenance, access to clean soapy water, and medical care he felt that he wouldn't survive the night.Meaning any hope he held onto up until now that he could hold out long enough for Draxum to find him before he expired had completely vanished.But that also meant he wouldn't have to work for the villainous Foot, who he and his family fought against as heroes - together.He wouldn't have to help steal and be in close proximity to the dark armor pieces, that gave him the creeps.He wouldn't have to have a share in unleashing something so full of dark energy just the one gauntlet possessed enough power to take out half of New York.. . .He wouldn't have to fight against (but not harm, of course) his own brothers when they inevitably stuck their noses in where they didn't belong and showed up to stop the Foot - who Draxum was aligned with.(Then again, perhaps that was exactly where a hero's nose belonged. Something he was coming to see he was clearly still not)He wouldn't have to spend the rest of his life living below ground under a harsh dictator, alone, separated from his siblings who were so close but yet so far - who he loved more than life itself - in obedience to Draxum's command to stay away from the only family he had in this world.Yeah. Death was a better option to all of that and more.If only he hadn't been raised as a ninja.If only he hadn't been trained from infancy that a warrior never gives up the fight.Even if this was a fight he didn't want to win.. . .Sometime after Leo and Draxum's mystic match and before his owner slashed his face, Draxum asked him if he could summon his mystic powers without the use of the mystic-energy-channeling odachi.At the time he couldn't, but Draxum had said that with training that would change.He had been training.And there was never a better time to put that training to use than right now.'A warrior never gives up the fight,' Leo reminded himself.Giving up when there was still a chance - still a glimmer of hope - was just of a dishonorable way to die as being struck down by one's own weapon.Even though he was laying there on his stomach, on the damp, cold, dingy dungeon floor - half dead, dehydrated, wanting to give up on life - his ninpo seem to agree with the decision to keep up the fight.Whether it was because the heavy numbness retreated or the warmth expanded, he didn't know, but his ninpo in his chest felt stronger than it had ever felt since the day the gauntlet infected him with its dark energy.As if there was a soft voice in his head, telling him he had a reason to live - a purpose in his life to fulfill."Anata wa hitori ja nai."He didn't know what that meant or why or how he heard it softly spoken to him, but it felt as though someone was right here, with him, reassuring him that he wasn't alone; that he could fight this fight and he had a reason to do so.And that was the moment the red markings on his face, yellow ones on his arms and legs, and the blue ones on his badly infected shell lit up.In an instant, he was teleported away.From his point of view, he was laying on a dark, dingy dungeon floor, there was a flash of blue light, and now he was laying on the warm, wooden floor inside a little hut he knew well.Usagi's home.Leo gathered what little strength he had left to raise his head and look around.He was alone, Usagi was out, and it was really quite possible that by the time he came back he would open his door to see the body of his dead mutant turtle friend laying on the floor.But there was something useful Leo saw that his eyes rested on: a ceramic pitcher and a wooden mug laying on a small table beside the single bed in the one-room hut.Water.The thought of refreshing his parched, dehydrated body gave the ninja warrior the strength to drag himself across the floor on his stomach the two feet he needed to reach the little side table that was almost within reach.With considerable effort, quite a bit of winded panting, and a few groans of pain, Leo managed to grasp the legs of the table, pull himself up to sit leaning against the bed; and as soon as he knew he could do so he greedily stretched both hands out to reach for the plain brown pitcher, and tipped it up over the mug.Not much came out. Just over half a mug full.But that might just have been exactly what was needed to keep him alive long enough so that Usagi didn't come home to find a dead turtle on his floor."Anata wa hitori ja nai. You are never alone, Leonardo."At that moment, some kind of hidden strength within him - no, surrounding him - felt as though it was bearing the weight of his body for him; so that when he reached up to pull his weak, feverish, badly infected body into the bed beside him, it felt like he was lighter than air.Until he lay on his stomach on the firm mattress, spent and exhausted.That was when all the heavy weight of gravity bearing down on his near dead turtle self pushed back down on him with such intensity just taking in each breath of air was a laborious task.But he did it. He was off the floor.He closed his eyes. The physical heaviness he felt pushing down on every inch of his body invaded his mind as well, causing him to drift off into a deep, deep sleep, while feeling a sense of calmness and peace radiating from the warmth of his ninpo, telling him that in the end, everything was going to be okay.And that no matter what happened......he was never alone.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
"I'm not a coward."Those were the first words Leo uttered once he felt he had the strength to do so, after Usagi found him deep in sleep and near death, laying on his stomach in the rabbit's bed.Usagi had immediately gotten to work at the very unexpected sight of his fellow slave and friend laying in his bed with a very badly infected shell. He fetched water from a well on his owner's property, prepared what he had left of his rations for the day, roused the sleeping turtle, and got him to eat and drink.Leo had to be woken up three times to hydrate and nourish his weak feverish body; because each time after drinking and eating, he immediately fell back into such a deep sleep he had no memory of ever waking in the first place.At one point, Usagi left to dig up more food for him from among their close associates who owed him a favor - and who knew better than to ask any questions. Leo woke, ate and drank, and promptly fell asleep again, during which time Usagi got to work gently cleaning his badly infected shell with soapy water, that he warmed up on the stovetop of the little coal-fueled oven he had.That was around when Leo woke up and uttered those words to him."That thought never entered my mind," Usagi told him softly yet factually.Leo glanced up at him and then closed his eyes, before saying: "Draxum has a job for me. He didn't know about the shell rot when he locked me in solitary."Although his entire carapace was sore and tender, the sensation of the warm, soft sponge rubbing gently in circles along his back was almost enough to make him drift off again."Conserve your energy," was the only response he got in return.The gentle sounds of water sloshing around in the bucket when Usagi dipped the sponge in, followed by the dripping and sloshing of it pouring off the sponge when he rang it out was almost just as relaxing and hypnotic as the pleasantness of his badly injured and infected shell being gently washed for the first time in days.Leo turned his head so he was face-down in the pillow now, but instead of letting himself fall asleep again he mumbled into the pillow: "If he wanted me dead I would've taken it. I would've stayed."The sponge went back in the water, and Usagi replied: "Like the true ninja warrior I know you are.""Mmm," Leo hummed in agreement into the pillow his face will still stuffed into. His rabbit friend rose from the wooden stool he had been sitting on, laid the bucket beside the door to empty later, and told him: "I've done everything I can, I don't know anything about shell care."He stood back-on to Leo, straight across from him, stirring the contents of a little pot on his coal-fueled stove, having to live a humble life in a hut with no running water or electricity.But as the true ninja warrior he was, he got along just fine without complaint.Leo listen to the sound of Usagi scooping whatever food he was heating into a wooden bowl, and then coming closer to sit beside him. But he didn't move his face from out of the pillow until he heard the word:"Eat."Then he turned his head to to the side to smile at his rabbit friend, who was holding out a wooden spoon to him with some brown mush on it, knowing Usagi almost definitely hadn't eaten a bite himself ever since finding a half-dead mutant turtle asleep in his bed (however long ago that was), and he kindly said: "You need to eat, too.""I'm not the one on the verge of death," Usagi replied in a firm voice that meant he wasn't taking 'no' for an answer; but without losing the softness in his tone.Leo huffed out a weak laugh at Usagi's kindness, and replied: "I won't need it when I'm dead, but you still gotta eat." However he still did as he was told by raising his arm to grasp the spoon with a trembling hand - refusing to allow himself to be spoon-fed anymore now that he had enough strength to at least do that by himself.But that was the only thing he had the strength for, and he watched as Usagi took the spoon out of his hand, to dip it in the bowl and give it back to him.In this way he ate every bite - the last bit of food Usagi had been able to scrounge up - doing so in silence on the part of both of them.When Leo was done and after two more mug-fulls of water, Usagi walked over to tend to the dirty pot, and Leo quietly told him: "If you can get me back on my feet, I can get in touch with Donnie. He has stuff that'll cure the infection."Without turning around, and continuing with his work, Usagi softly but pointedly told him: "You won't survive the night. I don't know how you're alive now, it must have something to do with that mutant body of yours.""Oh."Sagi let out a deep sigh and sadly added in a quieter voice: "If you were a yokai, you'd be dead already."Silence filled the room once more as Leo weighed his options; not wanting to appear weak and vulnerable in front of his family; but on the other hand, what was the point of coming all this way, only to eat Usagi's food, drink his water, put him to work caring for him, and then die in his bed a few short hours after arriving?As if he could hear his thoughts, when the silence stretched on, Usagi spoke up and said: "Family's about the only one we can be vulnerable around.""I guess that makes you family," Leo softly replied.Usagi let out a sigh and sadly agreed: "I guess it does," worried about the very real possibility that he would helplessly watch his friend die here, right before his eyes, and not be able to do a single thing to stop it from happening.So he did what he knew Leo liked to do in difficult situations, by using humor to help both of them cope.He turned around to give Leo a fond smile, and added with a humorous tone to ease the sorrowful atmosphere: "What was the point of coming all this way? Unless you wanted to make my life more difficult by eating my rations, drinking my water, and making me wash your back, only to die in my bed and leave me with the added work of dealing with that new problem in the morning." Tears were in the corners of his eyes, threatening to spill over, as he tried to continue covering over this terrible situation with humor, by gesturing to his morbidly ill friend with two outstretch hands and a sad little grin on his face, while adding as a joke: "That shell looks heavy, X."Leo let out a weak laugh over that morbid joke, and then replied with a smile: "It is, it's my armor after all. And the name's Leo, remember?"Next, Leo was the one to let out a sigh - not from sadness, but from the frustration of the thought of having to lay here helplessly in bed, while his brothers came over to tend to his wounds, and informed Usagi: "Draxum did something to me and Donnie before we hatched. I can reach out to him in my sleep.""And you haven't done that already!? That's all you've done since you got here!" Usagi instantly scolded.Exhaustion from exerting the needed energy to speak weighed heavily on his mind, which was why Leo mumbled when he informed Usagi why he hadn't reached out to Donnie before now, when he said: "No, it was too deep, I didn't know if I was alive or dead. I'll try now."Leo closed his eyes to try to get close enough to the dream realm to reach out to Donnie without actually entering it - so he didn't, have to show himself pitiably laying on the telepathic dream world floor; and.... . .Nothing.There was absolutely nothing.No telepathic connection, no dream realm, no......anything. It was just gone.The realization sank heavy all the way down into the pit of his stomach, that the mutagen Draxum injected into his spine was to sever his connection with his 'twin' brother."Draxum took it away," he inaudibly mumbled into his pillow, far too quietly for Usagi to be able to make out his words."What was that?"Leo pushed through the heavy weariness that was creeping over him again to raise a shaky hand and tap on the rash on the back of his neck where the injection wound was, and then he very slowly turned his head to look at the concerned pair of eyes gazing back at him.The slider's heavy eyelids were almost completely closed with the weight of sleep threatening to pull him under like an anchor cast into the sea, dragging the close-to-death, weary slider down with it, so that his words were mumbled, slow, and in a hushed whisper when he spoke next.In fact, he was so tired with the heaviness of the world weighing down on his mind and body that his lips didn't want to form the syllables, and his tongue didn't want to move inside his mouth.He just wanted to let it take him under.But he mustered his energy and tried again to slowly say: "Draxum took it away."Or at least that was what he thought he said."Stay with me Leo!"The urgency of Sagi's voice prompted the slider to open his eyes partway......before closing them again without even realizing he had done that."Don't go to sleep now! Your words aren't coming out right, I can't understand you! Try. Again," his friend firmly told him. "Slowly.""Drax . . . toooo-ook it . . . ah-waaay."Any pretense of maintaining a calm composure was thrown out the window with the way Leo heavily slurred his words."Tell me where to go!". . ."Leo!! Don't fall asleep on me! Give me a name, an address, anything!"Leo didn't have the strength or mental capacity to tell Usagi exactly where his brothers lived in the maze-like expanse of New York's vast sewer system, but there was someone else who knew."The restau . . . rant," Leo slowly told him. Then he mustered his last ounce of strength to very slowly but clearly speak the words:"Ask for a . . . scrappy . . . firebat chickie."Even in his current state, just before the anchor of deep sleep pulled him under, Leo couldn't resist getting out one (possibly last) dig in on the fiery fox yokai who was so much fun to pester, but yet so frustrating to argue with (especially when he lost).And the thought that he might have scored the winning goal in their frequent argumentative debates by getting in the very last word of all was enough to put a smile on Leo’s face; just before his mind drifted away into the hidden dark depths that could only be brought on by a sleep so very deep he and Usagi both didn't know if he would awaken from it ever again.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Yolinda was in the back alley, taking out the trash, when a white rabbit yokai appeared around the corner, whom she had seen once before. She stopped what she was doing to look up at him and sadly say: "If you're looking for Leo, he's not here anymore."She was about to go back to her work, but abruptly stopped and snapped her head up again from the urgency in the rabbit's voice when he said: "No, I was sent here to ask for a scrappy firebat chickie.""Leo!" Yolinda gasped.* * *~A Short Time Later~Leo dreamed he was chained to the floor in Draxum’s dungeon and the cruel yokai was punishing him by raking something sharp down his shell.Although there was no pain. Just the pressure and sensation of something being scraped down the back of his shell over and over again.Until there was pain.*scraape*He woke up on his stomach with a gasp to discover the pain was real, and Donnie was sitting on Usagi's little stool by his side, dragging some kind of very sharp scraper down the full length of his shell.*scraape*He clenched two fistfuls of the pillow in his grasp, dug his face in it, and said in a muffled voice loud enough for Donnie to hear: "It feels like you're scraping off a layer of scutes, Dee."*scraape*"I am. The entire outer layer is soft from the infection, it all has to go for the shell rot cream to properly absorb into the layers underneath," Donnie told him in a bland, factual tone.*scraape*"Can you lay off and give me some breathing space?" Leo asked, his voice still muffled because his face was deep in the pillow he was clenching tightly.The painful scraping continued without letup.*scraape*"No I cannot 'lay off'. The entire layer needs to go, your shell must be washed, and a thick layer of cream has to be applied to the entire surface within the hour if there's any hope of it absorbing deep enough to reach the infected bone beneath in time to save your life.""Good morning to you, too," came the muffled, sarcastic reply.*scraape*"It's evening," Donnie factually told him, while continuing on with his work.Leo groaned from pain, very weakly punched the pillow with the side of his fist, and told Donnie (another muffled): "This hurts almost as bad as Draxum's burn punishment, Dee.""I know," was Donnie's flat reply, as he continued on with his urgent, life-saving work.*scraape*And that was when Leo - weak and sore, in pain and near death - cried. He wept into his pillow from the pain and the mental and emotional exhaustion taking a toll on his body and mind; and with his face still buried in the pillow, he cried out in his anguish: "Just let me die, Donnie. I've done nothing good with my life. Please. Go away and let me die.""Leo! We're not giving up the fight for you and we're not letting you give up, either!"Donnie removed the scraper to wash it off in the bucket at his feet, and Leo's weeping tapered off at the sound of his big brother's determined voice.As though just having his strong, dependable older brother here gave him some sort of inner strength he didn't know existed, he sniffed and exerted the meager energy he had to pitifully mumble into the pillow: "Ok."Raph tenderly smiled, walked up to his morbidly ill brother to put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, and squeezed it while kindly telling him: "And you've done a lot of good with your life, Leo. You're a hero now, like us. Don't ever forget that."Leo sniffled again and nodded his head, before tensing his body and crying a little more when the agonizing shell scraping resumed.That was when the door opened, and Donnie commented: "Your back sooner than expected, did you get all the supplies I need?""We got everything and more, but it's gonna take two trips," Mikey replied in a quiet, timid voice. With a frown he watched Leo laying on his stomach tensing his body with his face stuffed in the pillow, completely exhausted, sweating all over from a high fever, and sobbing and groaning from the pain; and as Donnie continued on with his work, their little brother tentatively asked: "How is he?"*scraaape*"He'll survive."*scraaape*"But his shell will be compromised for a number of months after he heals from this."*scraaape*"Uuugghhh," came a muffled cry of pain from the pillow.*scraaape*"I'll make a batch of my patented Shell Defense Goop when he's better."*scraaape*Donnie lowered the scraper to swish it around in the bucket of warm, soapy water sitting at his feet, and Mikey whimpered with tears in the corners of his eyes when he watched Leo relax his tense muscled to lay limp on the bed, and weakly cry some more into the pillow.Then the scraping resumed and he instantly tensed from the pain all over again.*scraaap*"It'll be ok Leo, you'll get better before you know it," Mikey tried to reassure.*scraaap*"Go away," came the muffled reply of the slider who didn't want his little brother of all people to stand by and watch him with the pitiable state he was currently in.Especially considering he simply could not stop the waterworks from spilling out all over the pillow his face was stuffed into.The tears in Mikey's eyes spilled over to fall down his cheeks, and Raph took his hand off Leo's shoulder to put a compassionate one on Mikey's and gentle led him away while softly urging: "C'mon Mikster, Usagi's waiting for us at the portal, we'll still gotta get the rest of that stuff Donnie needs."Mikey sniffled, gave Leo one more sad look, and quietly agreed: "Ok," before leaving with his supportive big brother.Donnie stopped and announced he was done with the most painful part of his recovery, and when he got up to dump the bucket so he could refill it with clean soapy water, he asked Leo why he didn't reach out to him through their telepathic connection all this time."I didn't want Draxum to kill you," Leo told him into his pillow, referring to the days he was locked in solitary and didn't know he couldn't reach out to him any longer because he hadn't once tried."Ah yes, but you're fine with him killing you," Donnie immediately quipped back.In a very quiet, muffled voice, Donnie heard Leo tell him the pitiful truth of how he felt about himself when he said: "I'm just a slave, my life doesn't matter.""That's not true!" Donnie instantly yelled in anger. He stared at Leo's head, but when all the morbidly ill slider did was try his very best to hide the fact he was clearly still sobbing into the pillow from the constant agony he was in, combined with the overwhelming exhaustion, Don's voice softened significantly when he switched back over to 'data-collecting mode' to ease his own intense emotions over this whole situation, and he calmly objected:"That doesn't explain why you sent Usagi to Yolinda instead of reaching out to me once you arrived here, where we can safely tend to you shell while his . . . uh, boss is away."He threw the dirty water out of Usagi's hut, and when he walked over to the stove to refill the bucket with water warming on the stove, Leo turned his head, and with his very heavy eyelids closed, he quietly replied in an almost whisper: "Drax took it away."There was the *thump* of Donnie dropping the soap he was about to add to the bucket from the shock he felt at that statement, and in a very tense tone he asked: "How exactly did he do that?" more worried than ever about the rash surrounding an injection mark on the back of Leo's neck, realizing now it might have been a very deep injection and hoping his brother's weakened body didn't wind up with an added spinal infection on top of the life-threatening shell rot he was currently afflicted with."He..." Leo opened his eyes halfway and stopped what he was saying to smile at Yolinda, who was coming in through the open door of the little hut."Hey, it's the firebat chickie," he joked, instead of finishing what he was telling Donnie.Donnie glanced up at Yolinda and when he saw the smile on his morbidity ill brother’s face, he decided to ask that question another time and got back to the more urgent work at hand. Meanwhile the 'spicy' fox tipped her hip to the side, rested her hand on it, and looked Leo's weak, feverish body up and down, before telling him: "Your shell looks like a chunk of moldy cheese."Leo laughed at her joke, and cheekily replied: "It's no worse than that tail of yours. Don't tell me you didn't brush it yet today." He groaned a little and looked up at her with his weak smile to say: "And I think I remember someone telling me they hoped I'd get that infection. Sound familiar? Perhaps it was the same person who said she'll laugh at me when my shell rots off."He groaned again, repositioned his head on the pillow, and grimaced a little from the general pain of having a bad infection and high fever, in addition to the sore, raw sensation that came from having an entire outer layer of scutes literally scraped off, before finishing with: "I don't hear any laughing.""Oh Leo," Yolinda said in a loving, compassionate tone. She closed the door and Leo let out a sigh of relief that his misfit family of ruffians didn't join her, but instead Hueso and Bully respected that one of their own wouldn't want to be seen in such a deplorable state if their presence wasn't absolutely necessary.But Yolinda wasn't a ruffian, she had been spared the cruelties that came with the life 'Bones' and Bully left behind - the life he had to live. And, quite frankly, he was glad to see her.Leo quietly watched with a little smile as Yolinda walked up to him to put her soft paw-like hand on the back of his head, give him a peck on his sweaty forehead, and then sat on the stool beside him.That was when the hypnotic sound of water sloshing around in the bucket Donnie brought over added to the the heavy fog of exhaustion weighing down the ill slider's mind, so that his eyelids felt far to heavy to hold open any longer and he closed them, to almost immediately fall into another one of his deep, deep sleeps.* * *~A Short Time Later~
A crying baby mutant turtle laying on the floor amongst a raging inferno.
" Leonardo!"
Leo woke up with a gasp and took short panicked breaths through his mouth."Leonardo, you are safe, breathe my son."The slider's panicked breathing slowed with his heart rate, and he had to blink his bleary eyes three or four times before his vision came into focus.Standing there alongside him, washing his back with a soft, warm soapy sponge, was a short plump gray rat.A mutant rat.Leo didn't need to be told who it was, he already knew. He could sense it with his ninpo even without having been called 'son'.The ninja slave of Baron Draxum let out a single, condescending laugh, before saying in a bitter, angry tone: "The great Lou Jitsu, mutated into a rat. How fitting."He turned his head away to face the wall, while his so-called dad continued gently and quietly washing his back.He didn't want that rat anywhere near him. He certainly didn't want him touching him. It felt intrusive.It felt wrong.Lou Jitsu - aka Splinter - softly said something to him, but he didn't hear a word of it. He was lost in his own mind.
The sound of his shell sizzling.
The scorching heat of hot metal burning through five layers of scutes.
A blood curdling scream.
"You're only making this harder on yourself."
Memories of a life he was forced to live because the dad who was supposed to have loved him instead abandoned him in the middle of a fire to live this horrendous life all by himself, while he and his three other sons - the sons he apparently loved if what Donnie told him was true - lived their happy, safe, sheltered lives among the humans all these years.Water poured off the sponge Splinter rang out and into the bucket.The unwanted sensation of that deadbeat gently rubbing the sponge over his badly injured shell made him cringe involuntarily from disgust.The sponge went back in the bucket.The mutant red-eared slider felt helpless."Leo, Pops is trying to help."That was Raph's concerned voice that reached the sliders ears.He didn't move. He simply stared at the wall. Consenting to the unwanted violation of that person washing - touching - his shell for the one and only reason he was too weak and ill to do anything at all about it. Even objecting felt like far too much work for his weak, feverish body to handle in the moment. So he didn't have a choice in the matter and silently let his 'dad' continue washing away the tiny bits and pieces of infected scutes that were leftover from Donnie's painful scraping session.The sound of water sloshing in a bucket.A wet sponge rubbing against the surface of his shell."Leo, did you hear Raph?"Mikey's voice this time."Shh Orange, he is sleeping. Leonardo must rest if he is to recover."Lou Jitsu's soft voice was just as intrusive to Leo's ears as the sponge in those rat hands was to his senses.
"Leo. An abbreviated form of the name Leonardo."
"A human name meaning lionhearted or brave as a lion."
"You have chosen a name for yourself. A name you have yet to live up to."
"I didn't choose it, Draxum. It was chosen for me."
"By whom?"
. . .
"Lou Jitsu."
A blood curdling scream.
A baby mutant turtle crying on the floor amidst a raging inferno.
'Lionhearted.'The sound of sloshing water.The feeling of a wet sponge grazing across his raw, sore scutes.Leonardo absolutely detested the helplessness and vulnerability this whole situation brought with it.But he didn't have to endure this very unwanted intrusion much longer before the heavy weight of sleep pulled him under once more, with the sounds of his screams of pain from his harsh life as a slave, the terrified, pained screeches of his hapless victims when he landed the killing slash, and his cries of fear as a baby who was abandoned and left behind to live the bitter life of a cruely-treated slave entering his dreams.* * *~A Number of Hours Later~Leonardo woke up to the scent of freshly baked pizza.Bully's freshly baked pizza, to be precise.Along with the soft, gentle humming of a tune he didn't recognize, coming from a feminine voice he did.The scent of peppermint oil mingled in with the welcoming smell of pizza as Yolinda was sitting beside him and humming a tune while she applied the soothing cream to his sore, tender, raw scutes on his shell.His shell that felt much better than before, all the way down to the bone even though it appeared to him as though Donnie's peppermint-infused shell rot cream was only being applied now.But what he didn't know was that he had been asleep for well over ten hours, during which time the first dose of topical peppermind-infused mutant medication had been applied, had time to sink in so it was absorbed by the porus bone layer underneath the scutes, and was subsequently washed off with warm, soapy water so a second dose could be applied.Leo turned his head to face the fox yokai who was humming gently and applying soothing cream to his sore shell; and when he did so he saw that there was only the two of them inside Usagi's little hut at the moment.She looked so beautiful - just as beautiful as the first time he saw her. The memory of that day came up in his mind, so he gave her his crooked grin and when he spoke, the very first word he ever said to her was what came out of his mouth."Hi."Yolinda smiled and stopped what she was doing for just a moment to pick up a mug of water from the little side table and tip it up to Leo's mouth.The parched slider let her and drank his fill without objecting or trying to take the mug out of her hand to do it himself, even when she silently refilled it and tipped it up to his mouth a second time.Not that he couldn't, he just didn't want to.Then Yolinda laid the mug back down and resumed humming while gently rubbing the soothing cream into an infected splotch in his shell.Leo watched as she dipped her petite fox fingers in the tub of shell rot cream, and she stopped humming to softly say:"You said I can mend your wounds this time, so I thought you wouldn't mind if I started while you were asleep.""Yeah, I did say, didn't I," Leo replied with a smile."Mm hmm."Yolinda resumed humming her melodious tune.Leo closed his eyes and listened to the sound of her gentle voice, which was just as soothing as the cream, with the scent of peppermint oil and the 'world's greatest pizza' lingering in the air adding to the overall relaxing aura in the room.Leo knew that after today he would always associate the smell of peppermint with the 'firebat chickie', who was easing his pain with her soft, lotiony touch.The resting slider let a few minutes pass so he could just enjoy this moment; with his eyes closed, listening the tune of Yolinda's soft humming, and basking in the soothing touch of her gentle, soft paw-like hands......feeling like this moment was as close to paradise as he would ever get."What song is that?" the weary slider eventually ventured to ask."It's a song my mother used to sing to me at night, to help me sleep," came the gentle reply."Mmm," Leo hummed in acknowledgement, feeling like he was on the verge of drifting off again, and noticing that his fever seemed to be slightly better than it was the last time he woke up.Then, he gladly listened to the tender sound of Yolinda's voice as she sang the words to him, garnering just as much comfort from her words right now as she did when she was a fox kit living in the Hidden City with her parents.And for once in his life, everything seemed right with the world."🎵Come stop your crying,it will be alright.Just take my hand,hold it tight."She put her hand in his (the one not covered in lotion) and squeezed it.He left it there instead of pulling away, and a small, contented smile came on his face.She laid the tub of cream in her lap and dipped her fingers into it, so she could continue massaging Leo's achy shell as she rubbed in the life-saving lotion, while continuing with her song."🎵I will protect you from all around you.I will be here,don't you cry."And Leo fell asleep once more to the pleasant sound and welcomed shell massage of the fox he loved sweetly and softly singing the chorus to him."🎶cuz you' ll be in my heart.Yes you'll be in my heart.From this day on,now and forever.Always."And then, just before the heavy weight of sleep pulled him under yet again, the deep feelings inside Leo's heart that he felt for the beautiful fox who was caring for him in his time of need - feelings he knew he could never utter aloud because of the lowly position forced upon him from infancy - came through with his words when he tenderly thought:'I love you.'
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~About Two Weeks Later~Leo sat on the edge of Usagi's bed beside the rabbit yokai who help care for him and fetched his family, who all nursed him back to health together.Now he was all better, with a clear, tough protective layer of some sort of thick, goopy stuff Donnie made that he smeared all over his carapace and solidified, adding an extra layer of strength to his natural armor until all his scraped off scutes eventually grew back.Splinter did what he could to help as well, but every time he came in the little hut, Leo became so angry and anxious having the 'dad' who abandoned him in such close proximity that he made his already weak, feverish body sick and developed a cough by day three.So Splinter kindly backed away, awaiting the day Leonardo was well enough for them to try and work together to mend the bonds that had been broken between them. And although his brothers and human sister spoke highly of Splinter over the past two weeks, they avoided saying too much on the subject just yet, so as not to stress out their already ill brother."So you're really going to do this? You're not returning to Draxum?" Sagi asked."Yeah, I'm really doing this. I belong with them," Leo replied with a gentle smile for his close friend, and referring to moving in with his three turtle brothers, who were eagerly awaiting his arrival as they spoke."No one's ever escaped slavery before. What makes you think you'll be any different?""I can feel it in here."Leo gently placed a hand on his chest.Usagi looked down on it and asked: "Your heart?""Not just my heart, deeper than that. I feel it in my ninpo." He put his arms behind his back to lean back on his hands and gazed off into space with a smile on his face at the thought of finally being with the brothers (and sister) he loved.Finally being part of the family he always wanted and longed to have.Finally being somewhere where he really, truly belonged."It's like there's a voice speaking to me from my ninpo, telling me everything will be alright. That I have a purpose in life. One I share with them."Usagi gazed back at him and said: "The night before they died, my parents told me our mystic powers - our ninpo - is something that connects us with our ancestors." He smiled at Leo and added: "I think you're doing the right thing by listening to yours." Then his smile fell and he asked in concern: "What about that dad of yours, the one who abandoned you?"Leo shrugged one shoulder dismissively and replied: "I'll figure something out," not wanting to mention that through the hurt, anger, and resentment he felt against the father who he had been taught abandoned him, there was something akin to a ninpo connection - like what he shared with his brothers.Something he wanted to learn more about."And Yolinda? What of her?""Like you said, no slave's ever escaped this life. I'll have a good run with my bros while it lasts, we'll do whatever it is we're meant to do together, but eventually my past is gonna catch up with me. I can't hide from Draxum forever."Leo's eyes dilated a little more than they already were in the dimly lit room when he thought about Yolinda's sweet smile and gentle, soft touch; and then he let out a sigh and continued: "I don't wanna drag her down with me. And her family wants a better life for her." He gazed down at his hand that Yolinda held the day she was humming a sweet tune and was rubbing Donnie's soothing peppermint lotion into his sore shell, and added in a quieter voice: "That's something worth respecting.""But you love her," the astute rabbit commented.Leo kept gazing at his hand that was resting on his green turtle lap, and replied in an even softer tone than before: "Yeah. That's why I want a better life for her, too."Usagi didn't object any further, and then Leo patted his friend's knee, and rose while saying: "I better go, they're probably waiting for me at the portal," referring to his three brothers who were above ground, eagerly awaiting their fourth brother to arrive at one of the Hidden City portals, so they could all go home together.One big, happy family.But, as the cruley-treated slave of Baron Draxum already knew, this thing called life doesn't always take us in the direction we choose for ourselves.At that moment, Usagi and Leo jumped to their feet when the entire atmosphere in the room abruptly shifted because a panicking shinehorn yokai named Dimmer - injured with a number of bloody gashes on his body that needed to be tended to - burst through Usagi's front door.And in his hand was a long, narrow strip of blue cloth, with three black dots inside a white circle in the middle.A family crest.One matching the crest on Usagi's blue kimo.The dimly glowing green horns of the goat-like yokai shone a little light on the headband Usagi had taken off his own head and given to his little brother, Bunny, on the day he was sold to a new owner after their parents died; as a symbol of the family connection they would always share, no matter where their lives took them.Usagi couldn't take his eyes off the red blood splattered across the blue headband as he accepted it from Dimmer's hand, and his fellow slave and friend told them both:"I managed to save his life, but only just barely." Then he looked at Leo and said: "It was the Tiger Claws. Draxum put out word that he's looking for you, and they're trying to flush you out."Incidentally, the type of slaves labelled as 'fighters' - like the three in the room - steered clear of roughing up non-fighter slaves who couldn't properly defend themselves, as a sort of unspoken rule on the streets among the slave community that fighter slaves never, under any circumstance, made the lives of non-fighter slaves more difficult by attacking them. Which was why Leo clenched his fists in anger and muttered in a hateful tone: "Bunny isn't a fighter, he's an errand slave," as Usagi hastened to equip himself with whatever weapons he could fit on his person."Where is he?" the vengeful rabbit asked while doing that."He's safe with Vienna and Patrick," Dimmer told him."If those two don't stop helping us slaves they'll wind up slaves themselves," Leo lamented, but carrying an air of fondness for the two yokai who regularly found ways to discreetly help those in the slave community, and who were (illegally) caring for Usagi's brother as they spoke, as opposed to just letting him die, or sending him home to his heartless owner, who would most definitely just let him die rather than tend to his wounds.Usagi's calm voice very clearly carried an air of cold anger when he asked the important question: "Who did it?""It was Vinnie," Dimmer replied."I should've known. The one street thug who doesn't obey the slave's code of honor," Usagi said in a spiteful, angry tone. "He makes his own rules," Leo firmly agreed with an air of disgust, as Usagi held out his one and only weapon to him - his dark gray, matte dagger.But as he was to find out before the end of this very night:one weapon was one too many.Leo looked down on his dagger, accepted it from Usagi's hands, and the injured shinehorn said: "He got away through the east side portal by the hoverboard park. Said he's going after Chunky's kid next if X doesn't surrender himself first.""Chunky's kid!" Leo exclaimed in surprise, just before Usagi added in shock: "She's not even two years old!" Leo tightened his grip on the handle of his dagger and finished their one thought by exclaiming: "And Chunky and his wife aren't fighter slaves, they work in the market, they can't defend themselves!"During the past two weeks the warmth of Leo's ninpo opened up due to his close proximity to his family, but now he could feel the heavy numbness encroaching on the edges, trying to snuff it out.Usagi put a hand on Dimmer's shoulder and told him: "Thank you, my friend, you've done well. I have food, water, and bandages. Stay here, rest and refresh yourself before you return to your owner." He switched his gaze to look at Leo and firmly added: "We'll take care of the rest from here."Leo gave him one firm nod to indicate he was in, and the second Usagi ran out his door his mutant turtle friend followed close behind, heading to the system of caves on the border of his owner's property that contained various 'back-door' portals leading topside.With both of them unaware of the pair of angry eyes watching them from the dark window in the home of Usagi's owner, who they thought was still away on a long distance business trip.Along the way, Leo informed his friend: "I gave my word to Raph not to kill anymore.""What did Draxum say about that!?" Usagi blurted out in surprise. "I'm still alive, aren't I," Leo solemnly replied."I only kill when I have to, remember," Usagi immediately reminded him, referring to a pact the mutant and yokai slaves secretly made with each other when they were younger."I thought you might make an exception for this," Leo pointedly told him.After that they ran in silence through the tunnels that led to the New York portal they needed while Usagi pondered over what needed to be done to this dispecable, dishonorable Vinnie. And just before going through, the white rabbit told his friend in a tone that clearly carried the vengeful anger he felt against this Vinnie who ruthlessly attacked his unarmed, helpless little brother: "I won't kill him, but he needs to be taught a lesson he won't forget, and taken out of commission. You got a problem with that?""No," Leo firmly replied, knowing that 'taken out of commission' meant blinding both of his eyes, so he could never ruthlessly harm another innocent slave ever again.The dark energy inside Leo's chest surged from apparent excitement at his reply, suffocating the ninpo warmth he had been feeling from his close proximity to his honorable hero family over the past two weeks, and sending a thrill of excitement throughout his body that went all the way down to the tip of his tail at the thought of violently slashing and blinding one of his long-time hated and dishonorable enemies.He tried to fight it, but it was so much harder without his family nearby.They went through the portal and in an effort to help combat the influence of the dark energy inside of him, he told Usagi: "I don't wanna be the one to do it."Usagi simply glanced at him briefly and sternly replied:"It isn't your brother he attacked."The portal they came out of in New York put them ahead of the portal the white tiger yokai, Vinnie, needed to reach that would take him close to Chunky's home, with the tiger having chosen an above-ground route in the hopes he wouldn't be tailed.It didn't take the the stealthy ninja and samurai long to hunt him down, and Leo and Usagi watched from a roof as he slunk through the shadows of an alley under the cover the darkness of night brought, watching his back but not spotting the two gazing down on him in the shadows, even when he scanned his eyes upwards toward the rooftops."I'll drop down in front of him, and you block his escape. And I'll need you to hold him down so I can get a clean slash across his eyes," Usagi instructed. Leo nodded and they separated to put their plan in motion.Then, without warning, the rabbit warrior dropped down at the T junction between two intersecting alleys, blocking off the despicable thug's path, just before Leo dropped down behind him.Instead of trying to flee, Vinnie went on the attack, but it was easy for the highly skilled and expertly trained mercenary rabbit to disarm him and pin him to the wall of a building that intersected the long alley Leo was standing in, with a sword across his throat to keep him in place.Upon realizing he had lost, Vinnie gave Leo a wicked grin and forcefully told him: "You think you're better than us, mutant!" Leo readjusted his grip on the dagger in his hand.His left hand.His non-dominant hand that had been infected by the gauntlet's dark energy.His shrinking ninpo pulsated in his chest, trying to fight back against the numbness that was swallowing it whole...Trying to warn Leo to fight against the evil influence infecting his heart and mind.Leo did the best he could, but couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from the despicable tiger yokai who never once took his unblinking eyes off him, and whose gaze sent a surge of murderous rage throughout his body."NO slave escapes this life!" Vinnie yelled at the top of his lungs, not caring who could hear him.Leo tightened his grip on the dagger.And then he felt the sensation that another piece of that hideous armor was somewhere nearby.The sensation disgusted him at the same time it thrilled his senses.He had to remind himself the latter was a very, very bad thing."You're no BETTER than the REST of us, MUTANT TRASH!""What are you waiting for!?" Usagi next snapped, turning his head to see why his warrior friend was delaying.Leo didn't budge.He tightened his grip on the handle of his dagger.The dark energy swirling inside of him threatened to swallow him whole.Vinnie aggressively spit on the ground.Leo narrowed his eyes in anger.His vengeful rage was mounting.He readjusted his grip on his dagger but otherwise remained unmoving, staring straight into Vinnie's eyes as the tiger loudly and forcefully yelled: "You were BORN a slave, you'll DIE a slave just like ME, just like the REST of us! There's NO escaping this life! You can NEVER get out! DID YOU HEAR ME!!? NEEEVER!!!" The dagger whipped through the air and embedded itself in the tiger's chest, piercing through to his heart and killing him in an instant.Leo kept his left arm outstretched, staring in shocked disbelief at what he just did.Usagi watched wide-eyed as Vinnie's dead body fell from his grip and slumped to the ground, leaning against the brick wall and a dumpster beside him.Then he stared at Leo in shocked disbelief.The swirling dark energy calmed down, as if it had been appeased by Leo's murderous action."What have you done!?" Usagi cried out.Leo slapped both hands on his head and cried out in a panic: "I don't know!""You gave your word!""I know!""Your word is your life!"Leo extended his left hand to stare at it and exclaimed: "I don't know what happened! It was like someone else was in control!""We gotta get rid of the body, now! If word gets out about this you're a dead man walking," Usagi exclaimed. Then he stared down on the dead tiger at his feet and added in a tense, worried voice: "And if the humans find a yokai body, the Council of Heads will investigate and send the cops after us!" He raised his head to put his wide, terrified eyes back on the slider and solemnly added: "That's a fate worse than death."Leo walked up to stand beside Usagi and joined him in staring down at the dead body of the yokai he killed.None of this felt real. It was like he was in a horrible dream.He wanted to wake up.Through the mystic numbness he could feel a power creeping down his arm into his left hand."I think I can sent him to the magma fields," he told Usagi."Whatever you do it better be soon. Everyone within a two block radius must've heard him," Usagi urged.Leo blankly nodded his head without once taking his eyes off the dead tiger slumped on the ground at his feet. Then he bent down and reached out with his left hand to yank his dagger out of the yokai's chest.Blood immediately squirt out and splattered across his face.He felt a tiny bit of warmth returning to the ninpo in his chest......immediately followed by a heartbroken voice behind him.Mikey's voice."Leo! You promised!"Leo spun around to stare, dumbfounded, at his three hero brothers, who had been waiting for him nearby and came to check out the commotion they heard.Raph stood to Mikey's left, staring at him in shock with his mouth open like he wanted to say something, and his hands down by his sides.Whether it was due to the bloody body laying on the ground or the actions of the one he called brother, Leo didn't know, but Donnie had a clear, unmistakable look of disgust written all over his face. And Mikey...The look on Mikey's face was the most heart-wrenching of all.The eyes that always seemed to radiate joy and hope and love and admiration and all sorts of other positive emotions the slider’s way now only reflected sorrow, sadness, and even a little bit of fear.Fear of his own brother, who he saw for himself, in the flesh, was still a murderer.Locking eyes with his distraught little brother suddenly reminded him of what he was wearing, and Leo hastily hauled off his blue mask that Mikey had made especially for him.The one that coordinated with his hero brothers masks, symbolizing the connection they all shared.The one that was splattered with the blood of his latest victim.Something snapped inside the red-eared slider.The tiny flame of ninpo warmth he felt because his brothers were in close proximity to him was snuffed out by the heavy numbness put there by the mysterious dark energy that had infected him, in combination with the dark energy piece he could still sense within himself was nearby, leaving it feeling like nothing more than a tiny, cold ember, fluttering and fighting as best it could not to go out entirely.Usagi silently watched the interaction, still in shock of what his fellow slave and friend - who never once before killed by choice and also gave his word to never murder again, even at risk of his own life - had just done.And in his 'using humor to cope' approach to life, a small, crooked smile formed on Leo's face while he gazed at the blood-stained mask in his hand; followed by a bitter laugh directed at himself over the absurdity of actually believing someone like him could ever become an honest-to-goodness hero like his brothers and leave the life of harsh slavery, as though it was as simple as getting up and walking away.Despite the smile on his face, when the numbed slider finally opened his mouth, he sounded so bitter and full of contempt Usagi wondered if a piece of him had died on the inside when he addressed his brother Donnie with the words:"I told you I can't be the hero like you and your brothers, Dee."Raph hugged Mikey close when tears began falling down his little brother's face, and they all watched silently as Leo walked away from them while tossing his beloved mask to the dirty ground behind him, just before saying to Usagi:"C'mon, we gotta get outta here."Seemingly without any effort at all, Leo made a glowing blue portal (trimmed in wisps of black, smoke-like mystic energy) open below the dead tiger, which fell through to be thoroughly incenerated and left without a trace in the underground magma fields.And then he opened another similiar-looking portal for him and Usagi to walk through.That was the moment Raph finally found his voice and as his long-lost brother walked out of sight behind Usagi, he called out: "Leo, wait!"He let go of Mikey to run after Leo, but the slider ignored his plea and the portal snapped shut right in front of Raphael's face.Raph stared at the dark, empty alley for a moment before turning around to sadly rejoin his family, telling them: "Remember, that wasn't Leo who did that." He put a reassuring hand on Mikey's shoulder and reminded them: "It was that dark armor piece that infected him. C'mon, we gotta go home and tell Pop's what happened."
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Leo's portal spit them out on a nearby rooftop, and as he rushed to the edge to gaze down on the street below them, Usagi looked around to get his bearings straight, and walked up to his friend, asking: "We're no more than a block away. Why'd you bring us here?"With an outstretched arm, Leo pointed down at somebody and firmly replied: "Because of that."The mutant slave of Baron Draxum had filled his close friend in on the dark armor, the Foot, and the piece that infected him while he was healing and they had some time alone; so when Usagi joined his friend in staring at two humans walking side-by-side, he knew what the slider was talking about when he said: "Those boots are pieces of the dark armor."The sight both disgusted Leo and thrilled his senses at the same time.But he was getting used to a menagerie of conflicting emotions bubbling and swirling around inside of him, so that wasn't what bothered him.Nor was he bothered by the fact that that the boots were on the feet of a human-looking yokai, who Leo could see via his ninpo vision was wearing a green mystic broach to conceal her real identity.What did bother him was that this particular yokai-not-human happened to be walking down the sidewalk toward a human pizza restaurant right alongside his very own human sister, April, who must have just returned from a three week long out-of-state school field trip.And although not being a Hamato by blood, her presence strengthened his Hamato ninpo inside his chest just enough that this combined with the mystic dark energy settling down after his cold-blooded murder, he didn't fear violently losing his self-control once more.At least not yet.The two oblivious girls were smiling and chatting up a storm while the disgruntled ninja turtle watching them groaned from his frustration before telling Usagi: "The one in the boots is a yokai, but the other one's not. We gotta get those dark armor pieces away from them before they wind up in the wrong idiot hands."Usagi gave one firm nod of his head, and then he looked at Leo when the slider surprised him with the next words: "Be extra careful not to hurt either one of them, and don't swipe anything but the boots we need. That human's my sister," before taking off without further explanation."Sister!" Usagi exclaimed, having never met April before, because she was on her out-of-state field trip the entire time Leo was ailing. He hastily followed Leo to the alley where the slider went (so he could discreetly open another portal without alerting his observant sister to his flash of ninpo light) and exclaimed: "Since when do you have a human sister! Draxum hates humans!"* * *~A Short While Later~April and her new fast friend, Sunita, were sitting at a table in a pizza restaurant, waiting for the pizza they ordered and sipping on their drinks while chatting with each other; when an ordinary-looking red-haired guy with curly locks walked past so close he bumped Sunita’s elbow when she was about to take a sip of her drink, making her spill pop all over her dress."Heeey!" she called out in anger. The guy simply turned around and walked backwards while raising his hands and shrugging his shoulders with a snarky grin on his face, before continuing on his way to the men's washroom."What a jerk," April complained, while Sunita tried dabbing off the sticky liquid with a napkin, but was getting nowhere. "I need to rinse this off or else it'll stain," she told her new human friend, and April smiled and replied by telling her: "I'll wait for you if the pizza comes out before you're back.""Thanks," Sunita said in a tone that expressed her annoyance at that jerk, while tossing her paper napkin on the table and getting up to rinse off in the women's restroom.When she got there, Sunita immediately stood in front of the sink and was about to run the water in the faucet, when a ninja turtle with three long scars going down the length of his blood-splattered face slammed open one of the bathroom stalls, and walked toward her with a crooked grin while offering an innocent (sounding) greeting when he said: "Hello, friend."Which prompted her to open her mouth wide to scream out for help. But Leo moved so swiftly that he had her pushed up against the back wall straight across from the door, with a hand over her mouth before she realized what even happened to her."Sh, I'm not here to hurt you, I just need two little thing from you and then I'll be outta your hair," the slider hissed out, before calmly saying: "Now, I'm gonna take my hand away. Don't. Scream. Okay?"Sunita rapidly nodded her head in agreement, but the second Leo removed his hand she let out a loud scream, prompting him to immediately cover her mouth again, roll his eyes up into his head from frustration, and groan: "This is not my night."At that moment, a blue portal edged in wisps of black opened up in the room and the curly haired guy stepped out of it with a big grin on his face for the girl whose drink he spilled.When Sunita saw who it was she glared at him, and the human took off a ring from his finger to playfully show her he was really a white rabbit yokai, with both ears tied together at the top of his head and a pleasant: "Surpriiise," for the human-looking yokai.Meanwhile, Leo unsheathed his dagger from his breast belt and spun it in his left hand while muttering: "Let's try this again," before slamming the dagger straight into the wall, less than an inch away from the side of the human-not-human's face.Sunita’s eyes instantly widened from fear and her attacker repeated his previous phrase, but slower, firmer, and menacingly this time."Now, I'm going to take my hand away. Don't. Scream..." A tense smiled spread across his blood splattered, scarred face and through gritted teeth he said in an equally tense tone of voice: "Okay?"This time Sunita firmly nodded her head twice and when Leo took his hand away she didn't scream, but rather yelled: "Take this!" and tried to kick his shin. But the highly skilled ninja easily blocked her attack with his free right hand (being careful not to touch the boots, of course), looked at her with a very unimpressed expression that looked so done right now, and blandly asked: "Really?" just before April burst into the bathroom with her metal bat out, yelling: "Surprise attack jitsu!" and ready to defend her friend who she heard screaming a moment prior."Leo?" came the confused voice from behind him.Leo's shoulders dropped at the sound of his sister's voice and he quietly groaned as a whisper: "This is reeeally not my night," before turning his head just enough to see April out of the corner of his left eye, so he could keep her in his line of vision in a way that didn't allow her to see the tiger yokai's blood splattered across his face.That was when April lowered her bat and pinched the skin between her eyes in frustration while grumbling to herself: "Just one normal night, that's all I wanted. Was that too much to ask?"After grumbling to herself she looked at the newest addition to her weirdo mutant family - who was standing back-on to her directly in front of her new human-not-human friend, stiff and tense, looking at her from the corner of his left eye, with his left hand still grasping the dagger that was sunk into the wall.In a very annoyed tone of voice April said: "Leo, it's great to see you up and about, but would you please explain why you're interrupting my night out with my new friend..." she gestured to Sunita with an outstretched arm: "...who you currently have pinned up against the wall with a knife up by her face?""It's a dagger," Usagi playfully offered with a big grin on his furry white face."Thanks," April flatly replied in a sour tone of voice. Then Sunita looked over Leo's right shoulder at her new human friend and pointed to the slider while enquiring: "You know this guy?""Yeah, he's my brother.""You're brother!?" Sunita gasped out; and Usagi casually leaned against the wall and looked at her to pleasantly say: "I don't see the family resemblance, either.""Ughhh," April groaned, and complained: "Leo, I'm trying to have one normal night out with my new totally-not-weirdo, normal human friend." Then she crossed her arms and sternly asked: "Did Donnie put you up to this?"Leo never moved or spoke a word through all of this. He just stood still, looking at her from the corner of his left eye with his hand on the dagger, and his grip tightening by the second as the infection taking root in his ninpo was strengthened more than he had previously anticipated by being in such close proximity to the dark armor boots; making rage surge up inside his heart.Meanwhile, Usagi didn't notice Leo's tense posture because he kept his eyes on April, and got her attention by barking out a laugh and exclaiming: "Ha! Human friend!?"He reached out for the mystic broach on Sunita’s purple dress and she cried out: "Hey!" when he said: "Yoink!" and plucked it off to reveal - in a flash of mystic light - a bright green slime yokai."You're a yokai!" April exclaimed."You've got a kappa yokai for a brother!?" Sunita likewise exclaimed.April grinned at her new definitely-not-a-human weirdo friend and told her: "Four, actually. And they're not kappa yokai, they're mutant turtles," before staring at Leo and complaining: "I was gonna come see you later tonight Leo, after you got settled in! All I wanted right now was one normal night out!""Me too!" Sunita cheerfully agreed, as though there wasn't a blood-splattered ninja turtle standing right in front of her with his very sharp dagger sticking into the wall up by her head.Both girls laughed, and April blurted out: "I guess I need to accept it, I really am a weirdness magnet." But Usagi tensed and his smile fell when he finally looked at his turtle friend and noticed for the first time how tense he was."Uhh, Leo, I think it's time to go," Sagi urged, afraid of there being a repeat of whatever it was that happened to him in the alley when he unexpectedly and very uncharacteristically killed the tiger, Vinnie, in cold blood.Leo tore his gaze away from April to nod his head once at Usagi, but as soon as he yanked his blade out of the wall April reached out for him and angrily said: "Leo, you're not going anywhere until after you...woah!"In a flash, the slider spun around and slashed his blade at April's arm, leaving a long cut behind in the sleeve of her jacket."Stay back!" he yelled as a warning, feeling like he was losing control of himself; and Usagi's fear mounted with the way Leo stared intently at the human in his low, wide ninja fighting stance, with his left arm protectively crossed in front of his chest, the dagger gripped tightly in his left hand in front of his right arm, and his eyes laser-focused on the 'threat' in front of him.The 'threat' who was really not a threat at all but the person he called 'sister'.The person who, despite not being related by blood, carried a Hamato essence that the parasitic dark energy did not like."Leo?" April said softly from surprise as the only word she could get out, with a look on her face that was somewhere between shock and confusion. Then she noticed something else and asked: "Is that blood on your face!?"April didn't take her eyes off her brother's maskless face, but he took his eyes off hers when he saw a red drop of blood seeping out of the rip in her sleeve; because he had accidentally nicked her with the tip of his blade when he slashed at her arm.The realization that he lost control and hurt his very own sister - who he loved just as dearly as he did his brothers - made Leo snap out of whatever kind of stupor he was in and abruptly drop his dagger like it suddenly seared his hand, before straightening up and gazing into April's eyes with his full of sorrow and regret.April didn't know what to say or do and stared on in confusion when Leo bluntly told his rabbit friend: "Grab the boots," without taking his eyes off her, just before a glowing blue portal edged in black smoke-like ninpo opened up in the room.Usagi nodded, picked up Leo's dagger so it wasn't left behind, and warned Sunita: "I suggest you hand them over nice and peaceful, miss. My friend here," he gestured to Leo with his head, "has been a little unpredictable tonight.""You're telling me," April agreed. She glanced down for a brief second at her bleeding cut and then her shocked expression melted away to one of concern as she locked eyes with the regretful slider, while Sunita huffed out from frustration before taking off her boots and handing them over.Usagi took them in his left hand, tossed Sunita’s broach straight up, caught it, and then handed it out to her with a big grin."Thanks," she said in a sour, sarcastic tone, and snatched the broach out of Usagi's white rabbit hand. Then he turned around and gestured to the portal, saying: "I think it's best if you go first," so his currently unpredictable ninja turtle friend wasn't left alone with two innocent people, who had no hope of being able to defend themselves against such a highly-skilled ninja assassin if he suddenly turned violent.Leo agreed with a firm nod of his head, and when he walked to the portal April stared at the him in disbelief and quietly asked: "You're really gonna show up outta nowhere with blood on your face, ruin my jacket, cut my arm, rob my friend, and then just leave without telling me what's going on?"Leo glanced at her from the corner of his eye and spoke so quietly the sound of his voice almost didn't carry all the way to April's ears when he mumbled: "'M sorry," before stepping through the portal.Usagi gave a big, playful smile to Sunita, held up the pair of boots he swiped from her, and in a pleasant tone of voice said: "It's just business, nothing personal." His smile spread across his face when he finished with a wink: "I'm sure you understand." Then he took one big step backwards through the portal and disappeared, with the black-edged portal likewise disappearing when it snapped shut.As soon as they were gone, April grumbled: "There's a whole lot I don't understand," and took out her phone to text Donnie 'what's up with Leo?' while Sunita got some paper towels to blot on her shallow cut for her, to stop the bleeding.After sending her one-handed text, April put her phone down and took over patting at her cut while saying: "Thanks." Since it was shallow the bleeding stopped right away, so when she was done she threw the bloody tissues into the trash and said: "I'm sorry about my brother taking your boots.""I'm sorry about your brother cutting your arm," Sunita immediately replied.April looked down at the cut in her sleeve and whined: "And ruining my new jacket." Then, when she looked over the tear to see if it was something that could be repaired or not, she was surprised to hear her ringtone, indicating Donnie was calling her back instead of just texting like he always did.She took her phone out of her pocket, said: "Ok, this night just keeps getting weirder and weirder," and as soon as she answered the video call she was surprised even more when Donnie yelled at her: "Stay away from Leo, he's dangerous! Where are you!? Are you hurt!? Is he still there!? WHY AREN'T YOU ANSWERING ME!!?" "Woah woah woah, slow down Dee. Yeah, I'm safe, Leo's not here anymore.""Oh thank Newton," Donnie replied in a very relieved tone of voice."I go away for three weeks and the whole world falls apart," April mumbled to herself, before telling her brother: "We're coming over and you're all explaining everything that happened while I was away. Capiche?" "We?" Donnie calmly inquired."Yeah, me and Sunita.""Oh you mean your totally not weirdo friend on your totally normal human night out," Donnie tensely commented. Then he nervously asked: "How's it going?""How do you think it's going?" April asked in anger, before tipping her phone to put her new bright green totally-not-human yokai friend, Sunita, in the frame; who politely waved at Donnie with a smile and April told him: "Meet my totally weirdo uhhh . . . blob friend?" She looked at Sunita who smiled and politely informed her: "I'm a slime yokai."Then, without bothering to say good bye, April abruptly hung up from her call with Donnie and asked: "Whatdoya say? Does my totally weirdo slime friend wanna meet my totally weirdo brothers? And find out why my other totally weirdo brother is acting weirder than usual?""You bet!" Sunita enthusiastically responded with a grin, before dropping her smile, looking down on her feet, and saying: "But first, I'm gonna need to go home and get a new pair of shoes."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The great and powerful Baron Draxum stood at one of his work tables inside his refurbished lab when a short, broad, grayish-purple brute yokai with two pairs of muscular arms came in, shoving a tied-up, beaten, bloody, and bruised shinehorn slave yokai in front of him all along the way.Draxum calmly turned around to witness the familiar sight of the owner of a very skilled and useful rabbit slave - who had been instrumental in advancing his turtle slave's fighting prowess - walking into his lab.Once inside the room, the brute yokai aptly named Brutus growled out to the poor hapless slave: "Get on your knees, you don't stand before the Baron, you worthless sack of trash!" just before very roughly pushing Dimmer down to the floor.The injured shinehorn fell to his knees with a *thud* and raised his eyes to see the cruel Baron walking toward him, staring down on him and telling Brutus: "I am not in the market for worthless slaves."With a snarl of contempt for the poor, mistreated slave kneeling in front of him, Brutus curtly informed Draxum of the reason for his unannounced visit when he said:"Imagine my surprise when I came home from my trip away not only to find out your slave is on the run, but also to discover this worthless piece of trash mending his wounds in MY little hut. And even worse, to find MY SLAVE fraternizing with that mutant freak you've been missing." He looked up at the calm goat alchemist to continue: "Naturally I came straight to you to sort out any misunderstandings seeing as how your rogue was on my property. I wouldn't want to sully our good relationship if any rumors were to reach your ear that I was helping that slave of yours.""So he is alive, as I suspected," Draxum quietly commented. He kept his eyes on the poor cowering shinehorn kneeling before him and then addressed Brutus with the words: "Your assistance will not go unrewarded."Next, Draxum hauled out a bag full of yen from one of his pockets and handed it out to the cruel brute yokai, who simply raised one of his four hands to indicate he wouldn't take it, with the words: "I couldn't possibly take your money, Baron. Keep him and I'll cover whatever cost his owner demands. Consider it a gift, from one friend to another."In reply, Draxum very sternly said: "The great Baron Draxum has no friends," before chucking the bag of yen at Brutus' feet for him to accept."If you insist," the greedy, dishonest yokai replied with a wicked smirk on his face.Brutus bent down to pick it up, and as he opened to bag to see how much the wealthy Baron had paid him for his assistance, he commented: "You won't get much out of him, Baron," referring to the way he had roughed up the slave for information before bringing him here to be 'properly' dealt with.Draxum's eyes narrowed in anger as he stared down in disgust on the slave kneeling before him, who was no doubt privy to pertinent information regarding the disappearance of his useful slave, and in a cold voice he replied with the very real threat: "I have ways of making him talk. And if all else fails, a new batch of my mystic truth serum is nearly complete."Dimmer gulped nervously and Draxum stepped so close to the trembling shinehorn he found himself under the warrior's shadow. Then the cold-hearted alchemist calmly stared down on him while saying the words: "It's such a shame the truth serum leaves one a useless, mindless zombie without a thought of their very own. Otherwise I would have saved myself much trouble by injecting it into my four experiments at their mutation."Dimmer once again swallowed nervously at that very clear threat while staring up with two petrified eyes at the yokai who was soon to become his torturer and executioner.Brutus, for his part, paid no mind to the interaction between Draxum and the 'worthless' slave, closed the bag containing his riches, and before leaving the Baron to his work he dismissively commented: "Don't worry about that traitorous slave of mine. I'm heading to the cops right now to have him properly dealt with."Brutus turned around to walk away, so he didn't see the look of fiery anger in the Baron's eyes when Draxum snapped his head up to glare at him.He also didn't notice the very slight angry undertone to his otherwise calm voice when the warrior alchemist sternly said: "Handing over your own slave to the police instead of dealing with him yourself is a most dishonorable course of action."The wicked Brutus - who viewed Draxum as a fellow crook and had no idea he lived by his own warped code of honor - simply laughed and told him: "Yokai like us don't get where we are today by holding onto useless drivel like honor, am I right?"Of course that question was purely rhetorical because Brutus wholeheartedly assumed the powerful Baron agreed with him.Draxum, for his part, in no way replied and Brutus wrongly took his silence to mean he was right in his assumption. So with a wave of one of his big hands and without looking up at the angry face staring at him, he said: "It was a pleasure doing business with you, as always Baron," and left through the way he came in; leaving Baron Draxum alone with the yokai who he was soon to . . . let's say 'interrogate'.. . .And just after literally dragging his poor victim out of the room, a blue portal edged in black mystic smoke opened up in the lab, to drop a pair of dangerous dark armor boots onto an empty table for him to find and properly deal with when he returned.* * *~A Short While Later~Leo was alone inside Usagi's little hut, cleaning up at a wash basin to get all the blood from his victim off his face, while Usagi had stepped outside his door when a messenger arrived who was sent from Patrick and Vienna - the ones who were tending to Bunny's injuries.Just when the slider was finished and put the basin of dirty water aside, Usagi came back in, sullen and bags under his eyes from how tired he was.Leo watched silently as his saddened rabbit friend slowly closed the door, walked over to his bed, sat on the edge, and picked up his brother's bloodied blue cloth headband to gaze down on it.After a moment of silence and without looking up, Usagi softly told him: "Word got to Bunny's owner that he was attacked and brought to Vienna's, so he showed up to see for himself if he's alive or dead."He let out a bitter, scornful laugh and continued."One good thing out of all of this is that Patrick told him to lay still and when Bennai came in he thought Bunny was dead. So he told Patrick to dump the body in the terrorworm pit, threw some yen on the floor to pay for his trouble, and walked away."Leo silently watched as Sagi sat back on his bed with his back against the wall, his knees bent, and his two big bunny feet on the mattress as he continued gazing sadly down on the headpiece in his hand. Then, when his rabbit friend was comfortable, Leo shuffled across the bed to sit beside him in like manner, and joined him in sadly gazing down on Bunny's headband."Patrick's going to buy a one way ticket to the west coast. We have relatives out west, my dad's sister and her family. They've already sent word to her and our uncle in California. As soon as he's strong enough to travel they'll put him on the Mystic Express and get him out of this place for good."Leo pondered over Usagi's words and in reference to 'born a slave, die a slave', he quietly said: "Huh, he'll be the first slave ever. I guess it's not impossible," before hanging his head, thinking over the disappointing turn his life took this very night, and mumbling as a whisper: "For some.""He's not out of the city, yet. They have to get him past the slave checkpoints before the train leaves the east side," Usagi sadly reminded him.Leo hummed and nodded his head, and then Usagi handed out his dagger to him, but the ninja turtle indicated he didn't want it back by merely looked down on it. So Sagi silently laid it aside with the intent of holding onto it for him in case he had a change of heart later."What are you going to do now?" was the next thing to come out of the rabbit's mouth.Leo gazed at the closed door, mentally preparing himself for what he had to do next, and slowly replied in a sad-sounding voice: "Go back to Draxum. I don't have any other choice now.""Don't you think he'll kill you for leaving?" his lifelong friend asked in concern.Without taking his eyes off the plain wooden door, Leo quietly replied: "Maybe, or maybe not if he gives me a chance to explain." He focused his mind on the numbness in his chest, that had completely engulfed the bit of Hamato ninpo warmth until he could barely feel it anymore, and - in reference to his family - said: "I don't have a purpose with them now, not after what I just did." He swallowed a lump in his throat and added: "Murderers don't belong with heroes, so I've got no reason not to go back; unless I wanna run and hide like a coward just to try and save my own skin. But I'd rather die a warrior than live a coward."Usagi quietly hummed in acknowledgement, hoping that this very night wouldn't be the last for the friend he knew since childhood and recently helped to nurse back from the brink of death.That was when Leo decided he had waited long enough and rose to leave his friend's little hut to face whatever fate awaited him at the hands of his cruel, cold-hearted owner.The words 'born a slave, die a slave' hung thick in his mind like some sort of disgustingly putrid tar that just wouldn't come unstuck and couldn't be cleaned away.Or perhaps that was the sensation of the disgusting infectious dark energy deposited inside of him.Leo let out one small, quiet little sigh when his portal opened in front of his face and he saw it was edged in a thicker layer of mystic black smoke than before. Then he decided he had waited around long enough and without once glancing Usagi's direction he offered a simple, sad: "Thanks. I owe you big time."But just as he raised his foot to step through, he stopped from the soft:
"Leo?"
Leo turned his head to look at Sagi, and the rabbit yokai who was in need of comfort and companionship solemnly asked him:"Why reason do you have for going back to him tonight?"In reply, his mutant turtle friend and confidant cleared his throat, turned his head to face his grotesquely discolored portal, and softly replied: "I gotta get back so he can put out the word I returned before someone else gets hurt cuz of me. But I'll ah..."He swallowed a lump in his tense throat."I'll be around."Then, without another word, he abruptly stepped through his portal and was gone just like that.* * *~A Short Time Later~A blue portal edged thickly with wisps of black smoke opened in Draxum’s lab and his dutiful slave stepped out to stand at attention, awaiting his orders; and having absolutely no idea who was in Draxum's dungeon at this very moment and what horrors were about to befall his close companion and life-long sparring partner, Usagi.Leo stood in the middle of the room, looking up at the harsh warrior alchemist standing back-on to him, and noticing the tube of Donnie's shell rot cream was prominently displayed on a work table, along with some of his belongings: his cloak and mask, black ninja wrappings, belt, weapons, and a dark red triangular piece of fabric he hadn't seen before - indicating Draxum was expecting him and likely had a new job for him. And that he had gone through Leo's his slave's room in an effort to find out what happened when he arrived to release him from his solitary confinement, only to find nothing but an empty cell.Draxum most definitely already knew Leonardo was still alive, considering the boots he portalled here not only weren't in the lab anymore, but also weren't in the direct vicinity considering the red-eared slider couldn't sense them from where he was.. . .And as the silence stretched on, Leo wondered if his owner-not-father - who didn't give him as much as a passing glance - even cared that he was gone.Draxum stayed back-on to him and continued on with his work for quite some time; with mystic crystals of differing colors and sizes littering the table where he was, along with the plethora of other ingredients required for him to create a new supply of the mystic truth serum he was adding the final touches to.When he was finally finished with his work, Draxum clicked at his wrist tech and then turned around to face Leo. He calmly looked his slave up and down for any signs of obvious illness or injury, before ordering him: "Turn around."Leo did as he was told and turned around to show the back of his healed, reinforced (thanks to Donnie) shell to the alchemist who wanted to visually inspect the integrity of his previously infected carapace; knowing he must have contracted shell rot at some point after conducting a thorough analysis of the cream Experiment Alpha 002-1 Donatello created.After he was satisfied with what he saw, Leo turned back around to face him when he calmly ordered: "Explain yourself."The disgruntled slave of the great and powerful Baron Draxum immediately and respectfully replied: "I almost died from shell rot but managed to teleport out to Usagi's, and he got me back on my feet so I could come back here to you.""Did your brothers help you?" was the immediate question to follow."Yes, Draxum," Leo obediently replied."Did I not order you to stay away from them?""If Donnie hadn't showed up I wouldn't have lived through the first night, and you have a job for me so I knew you didn't want me dead," Leo factually and honestly told him.Draxum once again calmly hummed in acknowledgement, and then pondered over Leo's X's words before asking for confirmation: "I'm left to assume you accessed your mystic powers without the use of my odachi?"(My odachi, not the odachi, a subtle hint that he had taken the sword away and Leo was never to have it again)"Yes Draxum."To Leo's surprise, the line of questions abruptly ended there, with no harsh words to scold him for his incompetence in letting the issue of shell rot slip his mind and no word of a punishment either for that or for disappearing sight unseen for two solid weeks. Instead Draxum instructed his slave to join him as he walked over to a spot where something that looked like a fish tank was sitting on the floor. One containing some sort of multi-colored liquid that looked like he had gently stirred up a rainbow he somehow found a way to liquify.(It made Leo think about the rainbow unicorn stuffy he had to leave behind that had given him a measure of comfort)While gesturing out with one hand, Draxum ordered: "Dip your arms in there up to the elbows and then slowly remove them. If I did this correctly your skin will come out black in appearance.""Will it hurt?""Not if I did it right."Leo grimaced, bit back the many questions he had on the tip of his tongue, and obediently did as he was told.Like the good little slave that he was.The thick, viscous liquid felt cold to the touch, and after he finished dipping them in he slowly pulled his arms and hands out to reveal a deep, dark black something infused into his skin that he couldn't in any way feel.Leo raised his hands up close to his face and poked at his solid black fingers while asking: "How do I get it off?" He moved on to inspecting his arms as Draxum replied: "You do not get it off, only I am capable of doing so. It will remain until your services are no longer required by the Foot."Leo looked up at him and sincerely asked: "How long am I contracted out this time?" this having been only one of numerous times his owner sent him out to work for what was legally known as a 'secondary owner'; who was afforded all the same rights and privileges as the 'primary owner' (aka Draxum) with the few exceptions that anything classified as 'torture' was forbidden. As was killing the primary owner's slave, in addition to whatever stipulations were put in the contract."Until the dark armor known as the Kuroi Yōroi is completed.""Of course," Leo grumbled under his breath."This will prevent the transfer of mystic energy, thus enabling you to safely interact with the dark armor pieces.""Wait, it stops the transfer of mystic energy?" Leo looked up from inspecting his hands to gaze at Draxum, and asked: "So I can't use my ninpo anymore?"Draxum walked away toward the work table where his mystic truth serum was ready to transfer into small, individual vials, and told him: "Correct. But it only blocks mystic energy that transfers through the hands and arms, meaning your mystic vision will remain unaffected to aid in your job working under Lieutenant Hawk collecting the remaining pieces."He drew up some of the cream-colored mystic truth serum in a syringe to squirt it into one of the many waiting glass vials sitting on his table, and calmly told his slave as a direct command: "I informed him you would report for duty immediately upon your return. The address is laid among your things, as is the mask they provided for you to wear."Leo stopped examining his black hands and arms to walk over to the table where his stuff was. He began getting ready by picking up the first of three ninja wrappings, cursing in his head over this new employment for the idiot who he recently fought against and who would no doubt be eager to humiliate him in front of the entire Foot Clan for what he did with his brothers.Not another word was spoken as Leo wrapped his already black arms with his likewise black, protective ninja wrappings before moving on to doing the same with his right leg, followed by picking up the deep crimson red 'Foot Clan' eye mask that was in the same bandana style as Raph's and Donnie's, and tying it to his head.When he was done with that, Leo equipped his weapons and tools - smoke bombs, throwing stars and the like - before finishing off with the two katanas Draxum had laid out for him at some point while he was away - clearly expecting his slave to recover and return to this terrible life that was forced upon him while he was gone, like the 'good little slave' that he was.If he ever found out what Leo was really going to do until his life took a very grim and unexpected turn this very night...Leo resisted the urge to shiver from a chill that went up his spine at the thought of Draxum finding out he had planned on betraying him by deflecting to his honorable hero family, and he opted to put his katanas in the belt sheaths that went down over his back instead of on his hips. Then he covered his body with his cloak Draxum permitted - figuring it was because it was cold outside above ground and he didn't have any other warm clothes to wear. But he choose to leave his cheshire fox mask behind.(He had a feeling that idiot 'foot face' wouldn't allow him to wear it anyway, considering he provided a Foot Clan face mask for him)Just before taking his leave Leo looked down at the address written on a piece of paper for him, memorized the address for the secret hidden lair like he knew was expected of him, and without turning around from his work Draxum dryly informed him: "I included a clause in the contract to ensure they comply with my order for you to refrain from taking the life of another, to respect your wishes."That thought hadn't crossed the frustrated, distracted slider's mind until now, and he glanced back at his owner to say a simple: "Thanks." (unintentionally sounding a little bit bitter)Then he slapped the paper down on the table alongside his fox mask and walked away.But before leaving the lab, Draxum addressed him with the name label: "X."Leo turned around to look up at the back of his goat owner's head, holding his breath in anticipation and hoping Draxum was about to say 'It's good to have you back'; 'I'm glad you didn't die,' or some such thing.But nothing of the sort happened, and instead Draxum continued filling his little vials while blandly informing him: "I put out the word that you returned.""Thanks," Leo mumbled in reply, once again unintentionally sounding just as bitter and angry as he felt on the inside.Draxum didn't seem to care in the least about his attitude and continued on with his work while Leo stayed where he was, motionless and staring at owner-not-father's head.But when it became increasing obvious no further word was to follow, he silently turned around, leaving the place he grudgingly called 'home' again and headed toward the portal leading above ground so he could begin his first shift slaving for that 'idiot foot face' in collecting pieces of the exceptionally dangerous dark armor that always gave him the creeps anytime he was near it (while likewise thrilling his senses).And was it wrong the mutant slave of Baron Draxum felt a deep sadness that his owner-not-father seemed completely apathetic over the fact he was away for two weeks because he had almost died? Leo didn't think so.* * *
The unassuming entrance to the Foot Clan lair was located on an old dock off the water, inside a run-down warehouse.When he got there, Leo's shoulders dropped and he looked very unimpressed as he gazed up at the 'Foot Shack' sign over the door.The very same Foot Shack that took over the abandoned shoe store where he crashed after Draxum banished him from the warm Hidden City and ordered him above ground, forcing him to find a new (cold) place to sleep because they were setting up shop."Alright Nardo, get your head on straight and remember who you are," the slave of Baron Draxum reminded himself - using the endearing nickname Donnie called him, and really, really wishing he could just turn around, walk away, and reunite with the brothers he loved and sorely missed.As if leaving the life of harsh slavery was that simple.But that ship had sailed for him the moment they witnessed what he had done to the tiger yokai, Vinnie. So he pushed through his anxiety and tensely reminded himself of what Draxum had said to him when he was first told about this job two weeks ago, by saying aloud: "It'll be a lesson in humility for you, dummy."Then he swallowed back the dread welling up in the pit of his stomach and opened the door to reveal a small, dimly lit lobby with a door straight across from him, another to his right, and a security desk to his left, which was manned by a human dressed head-to-toe in black ninja apparel with a crimson red footprint stamped across his masked face that was the same color as the mandatory 'Foot soldier' mask Leo was wearing.The Foot soldier looked him up and down and then pointed to the coat room and curtly offering the warning: "The boss has been waiting for you and he ain't happy you're two weeks late.""Of course he's not," Leo grumbled under his breath, before banging the door open to go hang his cloak up in the coat room. Then, when he was done that he tightly grasped the metal doorknob leading inside and took in a deep breath to prepare his mind and heart for whatever awaited him on the other side of the heavy door - and to calm the numbed ninpo that was going haywire inside his chest, as though it was in a state of panic.Leo knew exactly why his weak ninpo was in a panic and what to expect before he yanked open the door. So as soon as he did so he was unsurprised to be greeted by the sight of the partly completed Kuroi Yōroi prominently displayed on an armor stand atop a platform straight across from him on the other side of the large room.And attached to the dark armor on the very bottom were the two boots he and Sagi swiped.The room also happened to contain dozens upon dozens of Foot soldiers who were all standing back-on to him, facing the two Foot Lieutenants who were standing on the same raised platform as the Kuroi Yōroi that sent a chill up Leo's turtle spine at the sight.
The second the ninja turtle decked in a dark red Foot Clan mask and ninja gear stepped into the room, he heard the commanding call of his new secondary owner when he harshly yelled: "You are late!"All heads turned around and all eyes settled on him as the turtle rattled off numerous curse words he learned on the Hidden City streets, and quietly walked ahead with the Foot ninjas parting before him to give him a clear path to his new owner.Leo groaned internally and he respectfully bit back the venomous, spiteful words on the tip of his tongue like a 'good little slave', walked up to stand in front of the platform where Hawk and Ox were, and did what was customarily expected of slaves when they meet their new master for the first time by bowing his head respectfully and saying the prepared phrase: "Your new slave reporting for duty, sir."A new owner was supposed to reply with the words: 'Your new master, ready to command', followed by a list of job duties, restrictions, and the like; but Lt. Hawk seemed to be completely unfamiliar with Hidden City master/slave customs.Leo respectfully kept his head down, awaiting his new boss's list of rules and restrictions that always followed such a statement, but instead, the west-coast born and raised 'flame head' yokai deviously smirked at him and coldly ordered: "Yes, you obey me now, slave, and I have a few rules for you to follow.""Yes, sir," Leo replied, before raising his head to (once again respectfully) make eye contact with the human-like yokai who was glaring down on him from his higher position atop the platform."Rule number one, you never stand before your master. When I face you, you are to bow down on one knee with your head hung low so everyone can see your disgraceful position."Leo's heart sank, assuming this would be the first of many humbling orders, but he obediently bowed on one knee with his head down in front of the entire Foot clan (who were all watching this interaction closely, with some of them snickering), awaiting his next word.'He's more arrogant than that slimebag lightning bug yokai who used those shock clamps on me," Leo griped in his mind, in reference to one of the very first secondary owners Draxum ever contracted him out to.(The one who mysteriously disappeared shortly after 'the great and powerful Baron Draxum' found out he was causing possible permanent damage to his useful slave warrior's central nervous system)Ox let out a scornful, condescending laugh when Hawk paced in front of Leo and once again went against protocol by skipping past the expected job duties and going straight into the restrictions."You will not speak unless spoken to, you are to address me as 'master', you are never to make direct eye contact with your master, you are to walk six feet behind me when we are together, you are to obey my every command to the letter, and you are to respond to the name Useless."Leo didn't know what slave-owner relationships were like outside the Hidden City, but here in the slave trade epicenter it was viewed as highly disrespectful for a slave to not make eye contact when being addressed by their master. So he groaned internally, wondering what other Hidden City slave laws Hawk didn't know about, and hoping the strict set of laws forbidding a secondary owner from engaging in anything legally labelled as 'torture' had at least been discussed with him when the contract was signed.Hawk stopped his pacing, glared at his 'Useless' slave, and curtly ordered: "Do you have a problem with this, slave?"Leo swallowed down his pride, and from his position bowing on one knee in front of everybody, he humbly replied: "No, master.""Good."Some more recruits snickered again.The turtle slave was glad his head was down so no one could see that a flush of embarrassment turned his cheeks red.Then Hawk silently stared down on him before coldly ordering: "I expect you to retrieve the gauntlet you stole from us before the end of this week. Have I made myself clear, Useless!?"Without raising his head, Leo respectfully told his (*cringe*) new secondary owner: "You have to take that up with Baron Draxum, master. I was ordered to stay away from the ones who have the gauntlet," being careful not to use word 'brothers' around this particularly arrogant slimebag of the idiot level dumb-dumb variety as his subtle was to protect the only family he had.Hawk's eyes narrowed in anger and he sternly replied: "Yes I will do that. Now stay where you are while I decide on your punishment for your meddling.""Yes, master," Leo immediately replied, just before nervously wondering: 'Uuughhh, what's he gonna do to me?' thinking that perhaps slaving for this particular 'master' would be far more humiliating than he first imagined, and really, really hoping torture was off the table.(Then again, he was used to a little pain, and the thought of what Draxum would do to him if he crossed the line put a tiny smile on the mystically afflicted slider's face. One no one could see because his head was down)After a moment's contemplation and with an outstretched arm, Hawk sternly ordered: "Approach the table of justice, slave!"Leo raised his head to cast his eyes upon a corner in the room to his left where there was a table full of chains, shackles, and torture devices he was unfortunately all too familiar with.'Uhh nooo, he has a torture corner too!' Leo lamented, while standing up and obediently walking over to the table.The only saving grace to this whole situation was that, with or without a contract, torturing the slave of another was considered a direct attack on the primary owner, and came with a hefty punishment attached to it.Then again, Hawk didn't seem to know as much as the simple greeting when meeting with a new slave, sooo...'I changed my mind, I don't care what Draxum'll do to him, I hope he doesn't plan on using any of that stuff on me!'When Leo reached the table, he turned around to face Hawk with his eyes on the floor (so he didn't break the absurd 'no eye contact' rule) awaiting his next command.And as soon as it became evident the cruel yokai was walking straight toward him, there was some more hushed laughter among the ranks when Leo did what was expected of him by getting down on one knee to bow before his new master in front of everyone.The embarrassment Leo felt at his already humiliating treatment gave way to a murderous rage from the dark mystic infection; one he had to fight hard to keep under control so he wouldn't jump up and kill half the soldiers in the room - starting with Hawk, of course.Instead of stopping in front of Leo at the 'torture table' however, Hawk walked past it to stand directly in front of him, and angrily ordered:"Rise, slave and take your punishment like a warrior."Leo did as he was told, rose from his humiliating position, and didn't in any way try to defend himself when Hawk slapped him across the face.'Was that all?' the slider thought."What do you say, you useless, worthless, pathetic slave!?"Leo resisted the urge to grit his teeth from anger and obediently replied with the phrase he didn't doubt for a second was expected of him, when he humbly said: "Thank you, master."However he was not able to hold back the angry scowl that came on his face when he uttered those distasteful words. Or the way his eye involuntary twitched from the vengeful anger he was holding inside.Luckily the Foot Commander was looking at his recruits when his new slave disrespectfully did that so he didn't seem to notice. Then he indicated this particular punishment was not over when he loudly announced to his recruits in his always raspy voice: "This is what happens to any who defy the Foot by daring to work against our glorious plans to reunite our powerful master with the armor that is rightfully his!"There was the loud cheering of dozens of soldiers feeding into Hawk's prideful ego by boisterously agreeing with him, and when the crowd settled down again Hawk gestured with his head to Ox while ordering his recruits: "Follow his lead, soldiers!"'Eugh boi, this is gonna be fun,' Leo sarcastically griped in his mind.Ox knew what to do next and a malicious grin spread across his face as he punched his oversized fist into his hand while walking toward the 'useless' slave awaiting his 'just' punishment.And when he was almost within striking distance Leo tensed his body to brace himself in anticipation of a painfully humiliating punishment.* * *~Some Time Later~Leo was hard at work, slaving over a stove in a hot kitchen, cooking the next meal for the entire Foot Clan all by himself, as he was ordered to do after his humiliating punishment where each and every one of the Foot recruits followed suit after Ox slammed the first of many fists into his shell.With one particularly energetic (to put it lightly) female recruit (whose hair was shaved short and who wore a dark red mask over her mouth on her otherwise unmasked face) over-zealously hitting him surprisingly hard for a human.And he had to admit he kind of liked her intensely crazy behavior that seemed to be the norm for her, and he hoped one day they would be assigned on a mission together (while perhaps getting into a little mischief along the way).Now, the sore turtle checked the recipe for the chocolate dessert topping he was in the process of making, before hearing the harsh cry from his idiot owner in the next room:
"Useless!"
"Aw man! I hope I get back in time to take the cake outta the oven!" Leo lamented, before obediently leaving the kitchen to face the new owner he was quickly coming to loathe more than any other secondary owner he ever had.Right behind Big Mama, who was number one on his list of temporary owners he despised, considering what she did to his shell and how she wickedly deceived him into believing she was his 'doting auntie' for so many years.But, of course, she got off scott free for her torture, because the powerful spider yokai in high place practically owned the Hidden City police (and she outright owned the one and only slave auction house in the entire city).Leo didn't doubt for a second that the only reason Big Mama didn't trump up false charges against Draxum to get his useful slave arrested and sent to her auction house was because he was just as cunningly powerful as she was.When Leo exited the kitchen that was directly off the large meeting room (where the dark armor was located), the very first thing he noticed was that one of the Foot recruits was directly in front of the platform where Hawk and Ox were; with his hands tied behind his back, a blindfold over his face, and standing sandwiched between two other soldiers, while the room was half full of Foot recruits - with many of them (including the overzealous human) out searching for more pieces of the dark armor.Dread filled up the infected slider's heart at the same time the dark energy inside him thrilled his senses at the prospect of witnessing the murder of someone who was likely either a spy or a deflector who tried to leave the Foot Clan.He fought against it with all his might, but it was very hard to do considering how close he was to the Kuroi Yōroi and how far away he was from his honorable Hamato family.(His family he sorrowfully missed)Hawk watched with an angry glare for the turtle he temporarily owned to walk up the stairs and bow down low on one knee in front of him."I await your commands, master," Leonardo respectfully told the lieutenant.But his head snapped up to angrily glare at Hawk when he was issued the direct command: "Prove your loyalty to the Foot Clan by killing this betrayer!""I don't kill anymore!" Leo aggressively snapped with an angry scowl.In reply, the oversized, muscular Ox abruptly slammed into him, knocking his turtle body down on the platform, and slamming his oversized hand down around his throat, pinning him to the floor on his back.Leo grasped the hand pushing down on his windpipe with both of his black turtle ones, pushing back on it to try and ease the pressure on his throat. Then he continued glaring in anger at the first in command of the entire Foot Clan, as Hawk walked up to him and spit flew out of his mouth when he aggressively yelled:"You dare disobey a direct command, slave!?"Ox squeezed Leo's neck a little tighter.The slider didn't take his angry eyes off the owner who was overstepping his bounds and choked out the words:"Drax . . . um put it in . . . your contract," before a fit of coughing overtook him from the sensation of talking with his windpipe slowly being crushed.Hawk once again indicated he knew very little about Hidden City slavery laws when he spat out: "What is in our contract is of no concern to you! You're nothing but a worthless slave, and when you slave for the Foot you obey my commands above ALL OTHERS!""I won't . . . betray . . . Draxum!" Leo spat right back out at him, alluding to one of the Hidden City laws governing owner/slave relationships.Laws (as Leo suspected) Hawk didn't know about, because he had been raised in a west coast yokai city where slavery was illegal, and now spent almost all his time above ground, directing the work of the evil Foot Clan.The grip tightened around his throat.Leo sputtered, gagged, and coughed on the floor from the sensation.Foot recruits laughed at his 'amusing' misery.His cheeks turned hot with anger.Hawk leaned his scowling face in so close to his new slave that the spit flying out of his mouth hit Leo in the face when he screamed out the words:"ARE YOU WILLING TO DIE RATHER THAN OBEY MY ORDERS!!?"With an evil grin on his face, Ox tightened his grip once more, completely cutting off the slider's airway this time as a warning that the treat of suffocation was very real.Leo continued scowling at Hawk, refusing to break eye for as long as he was conscious, and trying to block out the dozens of yokai and humans in the room whose eyes were all on him, with a few snickers of laughter thrown into the mix, potentially watching the turtle slave die a very humiliating death before their eyes.A death that Hawk didn't seem to understand would most definitely be avenged.They stayed locked in the silent standoff for a considerable amount of time; long enough for the amphibious slider who could hold his breath for over ten minutes to begin losing consciousness. His vision blacked out, his body went limp, and his arms fell down at his sides.That was when Ox eased off on his attack just enough for the slider to gasp in a deep breath of much needed oxygen through his mouth, followed by a fit of hacking and coughing in between more deep breaths.Despite the reprieve, Ox still kept Leo pinned to the floor with the threat of his airway being cut off once more, and as soon as his coughing eased off enough that he could speak, the mutant ninja warrior scowled back up at Lieutenant Hawk and sternly told him:"Don't you know the law!? *cough cough* If you order him to kill me *cough cough* Draxum can make you his slave *hack cough cough* in my place!"Leo wasn't afraid to die (in fact, a part of him longed for death) and despite the embarrassing circumstances he found himself in he was determined to go out with at least a shred of honor by keeping his scowling face and angry eyes firmly fixed on the owner who had the power - but not the legal right - to end his short life right here and now.After all, as a lowly slave he was expected to accept his fate and die without a fight......because the alternative was so much worse.The alternative being that a slave who fought back against anyone in control of him was immediately arrested and treated insolently by the crooked cops in the Hidden City, before being put to death in a most dishonorable way.Hawk glared down on Leo once more, and then reached down to unsheathe one of his katanas, all without tearing his eyes away from the 'disrespectful' slave who kept glaring at him in return.But instead of ending his short life here and now, Hawk threw Leo's sword down to the floor below the platform and kept his eyes on the slider as he thrust his hand out to point at one of his Foot soldiers and curtly ordered: "Use his weapon, recruit."The masked soldier immediately scooped up the sword, sternly yelled: "For the glory of the Foot!" and Leo turned his gaze away from the idiot in charge to look at the betrayer who was about to meet his demise.But the second before his blade made contact with human flesh, he slammed his eyes shut.There was the sound of a scream of pain, the *thump* of a dead body landing on the floor, the clatter of a used sword being tossed aside, and then it was all over.Leo opened his eyes to stare at the dead human laying on the floor in a puddle of his own blood; and didn't take his eyes off the sight as he heard Lieutenant Hawk issue the command to some random recruits: "Three of you, report to the kitchen for chef duty, now!""Sir yes sir!" the Foot ninjas replied, before sprinting out of the room into the kitchen to take over where Leo left off."The rest of you, report to the training hall," Commander Hawk ordered.Next, Leo glared at Ox when the smug Foot commander pushed down on his throat before releasing his grip, and the slider immediately rolled over onto his side where he leaned on his elbow for support, coughing and hacking and rubbing his sore neck before he felt a set of cold eyes on him and he glanced up to see Lieutenant Hawk staring straight down at him.The lowly slave of Baron Draxum humbly pushed his trembling body up so he could kneel down on one knee with his head bowed before his despicable master, like what was expected of him; and he stifled the urge to continue 'disrespectfully' coughing through his secondary owner's next command when he curtly ordered: "Dispose of the body in the incinerator and clean up this mess, Useless."The slider's voice sounded hoarse from what he just went through when he choked out: "Yes, master," before holding back another fit of coughing.He stayed that way, kneeling on the floor until Hawk stopped glaring at him and turned to leave, at which point Leo pushed his shaky body up onto his feet.As soon as his boss was gone through the door where the rest of the Foot went, Leo glanced at the body he had to take care of and quickly got to work by going to the storage room that had been previously pointed out to him, so he could get the supplies he needed to carry out this most unpleasant task.* * *~A While Later~The very first thing Leo did was properly dispose of the body so he didn't have to look at it, and at the moment he was at the storage room sink, running water in a bucket so he could begin the laborious task of scrubbing away any trace of blood left behind on the concrete floor.While he was occupied with that task, a war raged inside his heart and mind as the dark energy infection tried to strengthen its hold over him because of his close proximity to the dark armor pieces; and he tried desperately to fight back. Not only against the evil influence infecting his ninpo, but also against the overwhelming urge to break down and weep pitifully over the death of someone he - as a highly skilled ninja warrior - likely could have saved, if he had tried.His hero brothers had really rubbed off on him."I'm not weak," Leo quietly reminded himself, saying what he had been thinking so he could hear the words coming from his own voice.
"Shedding tears is a sign of weakness,"
came Draxum's voice from when he was younger.
"I have no room for weak, ruined experiments in my life."
"I'm not weak," Leo tried to reaffirm to himself; but despite his firm conviction, one tear escaped his eye to roll down his cheek.He tensed his entire body, turned off the hot water, and picked up the heavy bucket to take it out of the sink and lay it on the floor at his feet, so he could get the supplies he needed for the task ahead.The memory of when Draxum slashed his face came to mind, and he heard his own voice from that night when he pitifully asked:
"Is that all I am to you Draxum? Another one of your experiments?"
"I'm NOT weak!" Leo repeated a little louder and more firmly.
"No."
"I'm not, I'm not..."Another tear.
"I have no room for weak, ruined experiments in my life."
"It's WEAK to cry!" Leo yelled to the empty room.
"They're nothing more than FAILED EXPERIMENTS!!!"
"I'm not just another experiment!!!"This time two tears rolled down his face, one from each eye.Leo stopped what he was doing, tensed his body considerably more, and clenched his fists so tightly he didn't doubt if it wasn't for his ninja arm wrappings going partway over the palms of his hands he would have dug his fingernails so hard into the black skin he'd be drawing blood right now.He tried to calm the mental/emotional turmoil he was in - one that was exacerbated by the intrusive dark energy swirling around inside of him - by taking deep, meditative breaths through his mouth.It didn't work.Finally, in a rage, Leo screamed out the words as loudly as he could:"I'M NOT WEEEAK!"The tears abated.His mind numbed along with his heart.The threat of more tears overflowing from his warrior's eyes fled with that powerful statement.There was no room for such things in the life of a cruely-treated slave."And I'm not standing by and doing nothing when someone else's life is in danger," the hero turtle firmly resolved in a quieter but just as determined tone of voice.Then he roughly grabbed the bucket to get to work cleaning up the blood of the victim who was killed right in front of him.The one he didn't even try to save.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leo came out of the storage room and water sloshed around in the bucket as he approached the spot where the traitor took his final breath.Everyone else was in the mess hall, eating a meal he wasn't permitted to participate in, with even the guards foolishly leaving their posts to go enjoy their delicious food.The idiot, overconfident head of the entire Foot clan was fully aware that all his guards on duty had left their posts to eat, but he didn't seem to care in the least!And Leo knew better than to point out his idiocy to the arrogant slimebag, so he kept his mouth shut about the whole thing.The turtle slave walked up to the spot he had to clean, and there, laying on the floor between him and the large puddle of blood was his very own katana, with the blade just as red as the blood on the floor before him.Leo put down the mop and bucket in his hands, bent down to pick up his sword, and stared at the blade in disgust.Disgust directed inwardly at himself for what he allowed to happen without even trying to stop it.
He didn't spend any more time dwelling over his own failures and shortcomings. Instead he wiped off the blade with a damp cloth he brought out, and then sheathed it.That was when he felt his ninpo warmth returning to his chest just a little and he shot his head up in a panic, knowing exactly who was about to walk into the empty room, to catch him standing over a puddle of someone else's blood before she even opened the door.The very first thing the panicking slider did when he saw April come into the room from the currently un-guarded lobby was to defensively blurt out the statement:"I didn't do it!""Leo, I knew it was you! I was on my way to my new security job when I sensed you nearby!" April told him, with relief washing over her every word, and looking so intently at her long lost brother she missed terribly that she didn't yet notice the puddle of blood on the floor."What are you doing here!?" Leo next snapped in anger, getting his head on straight and aware of how much danger she was in if she was caught infiltrating the Foot Clan base.April walked up to him and opened her mouth to reply, only to stop at the horrific sight of a puddle of blood at her feet."What happened in here!?" she exclaimed.Leo roughly grabbed her and pushed her toward the exit while hissing out in anger: "The same thing that's gonna happen to you if you don't get out of here and now!""Leo, you gotta come with me!" April urged, while the slider continued pushing her toward the door."If you talked to Donnie then you know I can't do that," was the firm response, alluding to his position in yokai society as a lowly slave, before saying in a softer, regretful tone: "Besides, murderers don't belong with heroes.""You're not a murderer anymore Leo! you're a hero too, and what happened to that tiger yokai wasn't your fault!" April very forcefully and confidently replied.Leo ignored her and as soon as they reached the door leading to the porch where the exit was, she wormed her way out of his grip, faced him, and thrust a finger in his face when she sternly told him: "You need to get away from that and pronto!"Leo glanced behind his back at the Kuroi Yōroi April gestured to with an outstretched arm, and she said: "Splints told us..." "Waitwaitwait, Splints? As in Splinter?" Leo firmly interrupted with an angry scowl.The dark energy in his ninpo thrummed in unison with his heartbeat, and he was really quite certain if his ninpo warmth wasn't accompanying every beat of his heart he would have already lost control of himself and pinned his very own sister to the floor.April watched with concern when Leo - under the influence of the dark armor - tensed his muscles, straightened his proud warrior frame, clenched his fists, and narrowed his eyes in anger before saying in a cold, angry tone of voice:"You mean that deadbeat, Lou Jitsu who left me behind to rot?""It's not like that Leo, listen to me, please!" April begged.The trim of the dark armor on the stand glowed a dim purple as the mystical infection in Leo's ninpo strengthened its hold on him.So he turned his back to the only sister he had in the world, in the hopes that getting her out of his line of vision would help with his necessary self control.Then he warned her in no uncertain terms: "You're not safe here," not referring to the Foot Clan this time, but to the deadly rage swelling up inside his heart."Leo you need to get away from that dark armor and back with our fam..." The ninja assassin Her brother whipped around so fast April didn't realized what had happened until after she was knocked down to the floor on her back with the blade of Leo's katana sunk into the floor up by her head, cutting off a clump of her dark curly locks in the process.But his eyes were the scariest thing of all, with the way his pupils had constricted into tiny dots radiating nothing but murderous hatred and anger and malice.The trim of the Kuroi Yōroi pieces glowed a little brighter behind his back as he let go of his sword handle that he was gripping in his left hand, to firmly plant both hands on the floor on either side of her head, so he could shove his angry face in so close to hers her vision doubled when she tried to look at him.Then he loudly and aggressively yelled the words:"You don't get to TELL me WHAT I NEED TO DO!". . ."Ok Leo, I'm going," came the timid, quiet reply.At the wobbly tone to her voice that clearly conveyed the fear he sparked in his very own sister, Leo pulled back, closed his eyes, and shook his head, trying harder to fight back against the terrible influence of the dark armor and regain full control of himself."You should've known better than to come here, especially alone. I already attacked you once," he grumbled in anger that was directed at himself.Then he grabbed the hilt of his katana with his left hand without realizing it.Leo didn't know it, but on the platform the armor pieces pulsated in unison with his heartbeat as he stayed in place, leaning over his sister, grasping the hilt of his sword so tightly his knuckles would have turned white if not for the black mystic energy-blocking substance infused into his skin.April noticed he was putting up a hard fight and firmly told him: "We're never giving up on you, Leo! You can fight this! I believe in you!" clearly strongly believing every word she spoke."You're a fool," the enraged slider spat out at her in reply. He groaned, gritted his teeth, tightly squeezed his already shut eyes, and tensed every muscle in his body, waging an internal battle to break free of the dark energy that was urging him to kill her now.Then he suddenly gasped in a deep breath when April unexpectedly and fearlessly grasped his right knee with both of hers and he felt her Hamato ninpo travelling up his leg into his chest, combining with his own, helping him to win the fight for his own mind and heart."I know you feel it, Leo, I feel it too! You belong with us! Don't give up now!" his sister very enthusiastically told him.She tightened her grip.Leo tightened his grip on his katana while simultaneously fighting with all his might.The armor glowed brightest of all one final time before the light faded away completely, and when he relaxed his body and opened his eyes again, April was relieved to see they were dilated back to normal and she was gazing at her brother and not whatever that was that took control of him.She let go when the slider abruptly stood up, yanked his sword out of the floor, and picked up April's strands that he cut off to get rid of as much evidence as possible that she had been here, all without saying a word."Leo, that armor infected your ninpo..." "You don't think I know that!?" he aggressively snapped at her. Then, as soon as he finished picking up the last strand of curly hair, he stood up straight, turned around to put his back to her, and indicated the dark energy was trying to take over again when he sadly said: "I don't want to hurt you, sis. Please, get out of here now."Leo commenced walking back to the bucket where the puddle of blood was that he had to clean up, listening but not in any way acknowledging April's words when she told him in concern: "You need to get out of here with me, Leo!"She watched as the slider picked up the mop to dip it in the bucket so he could begin cleaning up the blood spilled on the floor, keeping his back to her the entire time.She tried again to reason with him by saying: "You gotta come back with me! We're your family, we can help you! I know you felt it! Tell me you felt it, too!"Instead of telling her the truth of what she wanted to hear, with an undertone of disgust directed at himself, Leo sourly spit out the words: "No one can help me now.""Yes we can! You have to believe me!" April cried out in desperation to her stubborn brother who just wouldn't listen!When he was done with the mop Leo laid it aside, knelt on the floor in front of the red stain that remained, and took out the stiff scrub brush to scrub at the stubborn residue left behind; firmly convinced in his own mind that not only did a murderer like him not belong in the company of heroes, but there was no way his three brothers would ever forgive him for what they (unlike April) saw he did with their own turtle eyes.Then there was the sound of recruits coming close from the open doorway to the side of the platform, where a hallway led to the rest of the lair."Leo please we're your family, we can help you together if you just let us!" April tried pleading once more.Without looking back at her or stopping with his work, her slave brother told his human sister his final answer with the bitter words: "If they find you here they'll try to kill you and it'll be my neck when Draxum finds out I stopped them."April gazed sadly at the back of her brother's turtle shell while he diligently continued on with his work, then she put her focus on the Kuroi Yōroi when it glowed a dim purple once more."If I can," he added in a quieter voice.April reluctantly conceded defeat (this time) let out a sad sign, and turned around to leave without another word before she was spotted......deciding to try a different approach by letting their family know where they could find Leo now because she went to the Foot Clan lair after sensing his ninpo nearby, to try and reason with their estranged brother who would not in any way listen to her.Their beloved brother who was forced to live the life of a cruely-treated slave; a life he felt he was trapped in with no way out, no hope for rescue.But his family of heroes wasn't about to give up on him so easily.* * *~Late That Night~"Sagi, you there?"Leo stopped at Usagi's little hut on his way home from slaving for that idiot Foot commander, because he was in need of a friend and confident just as much as the rabbit warrior was after the events surrounding his younger brother's attack.The tip of a piece of the mystic dark armor he stole from the New York botanical gardens on his way here was sticking out of his belt pouch, and felt like it was burning a hole through his shell and feeding energy to the dark powers inside of him.He ignored it as best he could, and when there was no answer he let himself in like usual; but it was so dark - both on the property and inside the hut - he wasn't sure if Usagi was asleep in bed or out on a mission, so he quietly crept in to see.Once he gave his eyes time to adjust to the darkness, he saw that there was no Usagi-shaped lump on the bed, so he let out a sad sigh, having really hoped that his life-long friend would be home for someone to confide in (and hoping he could find out how Bunny was fairing). Then he turned around to scan the small counter on the other side of the room for his dagger.When he saw its form in the dim light laying on the counter right where he expected it to be, Leo walked over to where it was, picked it up with his right hand, and rested the blade in the palm of his left hand to gaze down on it.As much as it grieved him to do so after using it to kill the tiger yokai in cold blood, Leo knew having this secondary weapon he was skilled with in combat might prove useful if he had to defend another deadly attack against a whole room full of Foot soldiers.The slider resisted the urge to slit his own finger to distract from the intensity of the conflicting emotions inside his mind and heart, and sheathed it over his chest in the belt where it belonged. Then, instead of heading home right away he went over to Usagi's little bed, took off his Foot Clan mask to lazily toss it on the little side table, and laid back on top of the blanket, waiting for his friend to return.It wasn't long before Leo let his heavy eyelids close, and the weight of the world that he had been carrying on his shoulders temporarily drifted away with his mind as he fell into a satisfyingly deep sleep.* * *~The Next Day~The light from the mystical artificial sun in the Hidden City gently shone on Leo's face through the door he left open, waking him up.When he awoke, he gazed around the little one room hut for any sign his stealthy friend had returned while he was asleep, but the room was empty save for him, and the door was still open a crack just like how he left it before he fell asleep.Leo lazily yawned and clicked on the touchscreen of his wrist tech to find out what time it was.10:07am illuminated on the screen. It had been less than five hours since he arrived here after leaving his late night slaving for the Foot commander, but he felt well rested and ready to start another day, come what may.Leo wasn't concerned about getting home to Draxum in a rush because he was always free to come and go as he pleased, with rare exceptions like when a curfew was put in place for the few weeks he had to rise early and help repair the lab; and his goat alchemist boss (who clearly didn't seem to care whether he was dead or alive) wasn't expecting him until twelve, for an afternoon training session. So he stretched his turtle body, raised a hand to cover another big yawn, and got up to begin his morning with his usual routine of stretching, after first taking off his belt that he inadvertently fell asleep in, to get it off his shell.He immediately scratched an itchy spot on his chest that had been under the belt, then rubbed his sore neck where the oversized Ox had choked him the previous night, before a round of stretches that helped to wake him up a little more.Next, Leo made a mental note to make a few portal chips as a thank you to Usagi for opening up his home to his fellow slaves and unknowingly giving him a place to sleep for the night. Then he put on his belt, picked up his dark red mask, and walked away, making sure to close the wooden door behind him; and not concerned in the least that his friend didn't return home all night because it was common among the fighter slaves to keep strange hours.And not knowing first or last that he should have been very concerned.* * *After arriving home, Leo dropped the mask off in his bedroom before going straight to the kitchen; and a small, crooked smile came on his face when he opened the fridge to see all the yokai delicacies he thoroughly enjoyed and missed during his stint above ground.The fridge was full of delicious yokai treats like frost nuts and puffleroots, but what put the biggest smile of all on his face was the big bowl of snapple berries he had been craving, that were in season this time of year, and Draxum must have purchased at the market since his diligent slave who usually (quite happily)picked them himself in the lush caverns during his free time was away.Still with a big smile on his face, Leo reached in to grab the bowl and ate out of it while getting everything else he wanted for breakfast - which amounted to a heaping helping of some of his favorite seasonal yokai foods that tasted absolutely delicious to his palate and left him feeling just a little bit better after the grueling night he had.When he was done his meal and after cleaning up after himself it was about time to meet up with Draxum, so since his goat yokai owner was nowhere in sight Leo assumed he must be researching something in his parlor on the second floor, and went upstairs to present himself for the training session Draxum told him would commence at noon.So, naturally, as always the slider was twenty minutes early when he arrived at Draxum's parlor to see the alchemist standing on the other side of an exquisite desk, looking down at an old parchment he was reading.Leo did what he knew was expected of him and stood at attention, awaiting his owner's word.Draxum did what he normally did and ignored his diligent slave until he was good and ready to address him. Which he did with the words:"Have you heard of a human clan known as the Hamato's?"The cruel warrior alchemist looked up from the parchment to make eye contact with his slave, and Leo respectfully answered: "No, boss."The lie came out of his mouth as smooth as butter. Normally he couldn't lie to Draxum if his life depended on it, but his brothers had told him a thing or two about them being Hamato descendants when he was ill with shell rot. Although he himself didn't know much beyond that, he did know that if his owner was interested in the Hamato descendants it potentially put his family's lives in danger; and even now through the mystical numbness and the infection that influenced his thinking and actions, protecting them was the foremost thing on his heart and mind.Draxum simply hummed in acknowledgement and then he watched as his slave took out the piece of dark armor he stole and laid it on the table in front of him."What is this?" he calmly asked; not that he didn't know what it was, but meaning: 'why did you bring this here instead of leaving it at the Foot Clan lair?'"Lieutenant Hawk found out about another piece in the human botanical gardens but instead of going right away he decided to wait until tomorrow tonight," Leo replied. He watched as Draxum picked up the long, narrow piece that was shaped somewhat like an arrow, and his ninja slave took from the clock in the rainforest room, and said: "Some of those Foot soldier recruits are just as dumb as the-uh, are a bunch of bozos," Leo nervously corrected when Draxum snapped his head up to glare at him for his slip-up in almost speaking disrespectfully of his 'Draxum sanctioned' second owner.Because everyone in the Hidden City knew that disrespecting a contracted secondary owner was the same thing as disrespecting the primary owner.He cleared his throat and continued."One of them was on the phone with his mom, bragging about how he was going on his first heist and giving away confidential details of their plans. So I went there on my way home and grabbed it before someone else had a chance to swipe it or try and stop us."Draxum shifted his gaze from his obedient slave to the piece in his hand and indirectly informed him he did the right thing by calmly commenting: "I will unite this piece with the remainder of the armor this evening during my meeting with Lieutenant Hawk." Then he laid the piece down on his desk and ordered: "Come with me."Instead of taking him to the gym to train, Draxum led Leo down the second floor hallway toward a room he had never set foot in before.In fact, after they passed the stairs leading to the main floor, Leo was led into a section of the house he had never ventured to before:The hallway leading to Draxum's bedroom.Not that he was forbidden from walking down this particular hallway, but he was forbidden from entering Draxum's room, and the only thing to the left of the stairwell was his boss's bedroom, personal washroom, and a few locked storage rooms, so he never had reason to go here before.And, another reason he never walked down this hall was the eerie vibe it gave off. Even though the lights here were the same as everywhere else in Draxum's place, there was a darkness to this particular area thanks to the mystic rotwood making up the frames of the many large paintings adorning this hall.Paintings that gave Leo the creeps just as much as the dark, black rotwood because, even though when he looked directly at one or two on his way past they appeared to be nothing more than ordinary paintings, as soon as he tore his gaze away from them they seemed to have eyes that followed him everywhere he went.Leo shivered from a chill that went up his spine and resisted the urge to curl in on himself and wrap his arms around his shell in a hug as Draxum stopped to unlock his black, intricately carved mystic rotwood door.The one full of dark energy that gave off a similar creepy aura as the dark energy pieces he was ordered to help collect - only not as strong.Once Draxum unlocked his heavy wooden door, he pushed it open and the unnerving way it loudly creaked on its hinges - almost sounding like some sort of huge beast crying out in agonized death throes - gave the slider another bone-piercing chill. But despite how he was feeling about this whole situation, Leo did what he knew was expected of him by following Draxum into his dark room.Dark, despite the fact the lights were on.The aura in this room was thick and heavy with the natural dark energy exuding out of every piece of black furniture - from the bed to the bedside tables, and even the full-length framed mirror on the wall across from the bed - that was made out of the rotwood, which mystically dulled any light nearby.At least for the slider.He felt just as creeped out being in here as he was when he was sent to gather special red rocks for Draxum's experiments, from the edge of the barren land that bordered the ominously dark mystic rotwood forest, located in the western-most edge of the Mystic Lush Caverns.Leo shivered from another chill and this time he did curl in on himself a little while gazing around the dark room, before his eyes settled on the intricately carved and designed rotwood bed, with four corner posts that reached high above his head - almost all the way up to the vaulted ceiling.Draxum stood back-on to him, unlocking another black door with a large skeleton key.Leo wondered who would ever want to harvest and work with the trees that only grew in the Forbidden Forest. A forest that was said to suck the life out of any who entered by feeding on one's fears.Fears it enticed out of its victims through mystically creating one horrifying hallucination after another, until whatever yokai or animal that ventured into its tight tangle of roots and branches lost their way in a senseless panic and finally perished, giving life to a new black mystic rotwood tree that grew around and encompassed the petrified corpse.The loud *clunk* of the heavy door unlocking prompted Leo to tear his eyes away from the inanimate carvings in one of the bed posts - that were beginning to look like anguished faces crying out in pain and staring at him through hollow, black eyes. He shivered once again from yet another chill as this door loudly groaned when it creaked open and Draxum went in to the darkness beyond.Once again, Leo obediently followed behind, but this time the room lined floor to ceiling with rotwood walls was so dark he couldn't see his hand in front of his face."How can you see in here?" he ventured to say, daring to break the eerie silence with the sound of his voice.It felt almost as though his voice was muffled and didn't make it past his own ears, but when his keen ninja senses picked up on a big yokai body stopping directly in front of him, he likewise stopped and looked up at where he knew Draxum's face was."You cannot see?" came the confused reply.Leo gazed around and then looked behind his back, but despite only having walked a few feet in past the door that was left wide open behind them, he couldn't see the way out to the bedroom.Everything was black."No," he replied in a calm voice that didn't give away the shot of panic he felt inside.'Why can't I see but he can!? Is that wood doing something to me like the dark armor did!?' he wondered to himself in his panic.But his fears were put aside when Draxum blandly informed him: "The dark energy in the rotwood must have activated your mystic vision. Try regaining control of it, that should fix the problem.""Oh," was the only reply Leo gave. He wasn't aware that mystic vision could be activated or controlled by outside forces before now (if it was something he had learned in his natural mystic energy lessons, he had long since forgotten it). When he concentrated on his vision, he discovered Draxum was right, his mystic vision was actively seeing the deep, dark mystic energy in the air that was naturally exuded from the rotwood, and once he regained control, his vision went back to normal and the darkness subsided.Only the eerily creepy feeling remained.When Draxum saw that his turtle's eyes were settling on the various shelving units filled with odds and ends he had collected over the years, he nodded his head once and turned around again to continue walking toward a large chest that came up past his waste at the back of the small room. One that looked very much like what Leo imagined a pirate's chest would look like with its gold trim and many pictures etched into it, all of which no doubt told a story.Leo followed him all the way in, and a smile came across his face while he admired the numerous trinkets and various different items lining the shelves around him."You collect knickknacks, too!" he happily exclaimed, thinking of his own human knickknacks shelf. Then his eyes were drawn to a simple, unassuming wooden table.Or, more specifically, they were drawn to an open box half full of random stuff that was sitting on the light gray, definitely-not-rotwood table.As if something inside was drawing him close."These are memorabilia I've collected over the years, I suppose you could call them knickknacks," Draxum dryly informed him, just before blowing a thick layer of dust off the chest and then taking out his heavy key ring to search for the right key.In fact, everything in this room was coated with a thick layer of dust, this having been a room he hadn't entered in a number of years.Without really knowing why he was doing it, Leo reached his hands out to search through the small box sitting on the table.Draxum didn't seem to mind when he heard his slave rummaging through his very old things, and he held up the large, gray key he needed to unlock the chest.One by one Leo picked up the items in the box to have a look at them.A silver cigar case with the letter 'J' etched into it.A thick, gold, moonstone studded nose ring that was frequently worn by boar yokai.He wondered if boars were a type of above ground animals, and his heart filled with sadness for a moment when he thought about the fact he might never be able to ask Donnie that question and he would definitely never be able to have one of their cherished heart-to-hearts in their very own private telepathic dream realm (that Draxum cold-heartedly took away).He pushed the thought and connected heartache (and anger against Draxum) away and continued picking up items to put aside.A delicate, bright red and orange figurine of a phoenix with its fiery wings spread out.A large, opal mystic broach that allowed the wearer to take on human appearances.(He gave a passing thought to wondering what he would look like as a human if he wore it. He always wanted to see himself with shoulder length blonde 'surfer's' hair he sometimes saw on the yokai who vacationed here from the west coast)And when he took that out and put it aside, the item that seemed to be drawing him close was laying there in the box beneath where the opal broach had been.A plain heart-shaped silver locket on a silver chain.Leo heard Draxum rummaging through his things in the chest to his left, and while his owner was doing that he grasped the chain with his thumb and index finger and pulled it out, to hold it up with the locket dangling in front of his face, mesmerized by it as if his weakened, numbed ninpo was trying to tell him there was something very important about this particular unassuming item."Can I have one?" he heard his own voice ask, as though it was talking independently from his mind.He turned his head to gaze at Draxum, who was now holding a small black rotwood box in one hand and turned around to see what Leo was holding up."Take whatever you want from there, everything in it is useless, I meant to dispose of those items years ago. They've been here so long I barely remember where any of them came from," Draxum dryly replied."Thanks," Leo said, without taking his eyes off the locket. Then, as Draxum walked over toward him he stuffed it into his pouch, and at the last second decided to grab the opal broach for good measure.Draxum next laid the uncarved, smooth rotwood box on the table beside his slave and told him: "I knew this item was valuable when I first came across it, although I must admit I did not fully comprehend its true worth until recently."Leo winced from the sound that pierced his ears when Draxum opened the box with a scream-like creaking noise similar to the one he heard when the two doors opened, only very high-pitched. Then his heart filled with dread from the sensation of potent dark energy he could feel oozing out of the small sliver of blackish purplish metal inside.Another piece of the dark armor.Leo swallowed nervously when Draxum delicately picked up the narrow, slightly curved triangular piece with his bare hands and looked it over, before telling his slave: "This will be the final piece that I will join with the dark armor. It was separated from a section of the helmet we still must find."Draxum handed out the piece to the slider who he knew was affected by the dark energy of the armor pieces, now that he discovered through his research that X was a descendent of the Hamato clan, which branched off from the Foot when it - along with the armor - was first formed.A descendent with blood on his hands. Just the ingredient he needed to gain full control of the deadly dark armor, which - once reassembled - contained the power within that he could manipulate to annihilate all his enemies.But not until after the currently uncontrollable, volatile dark energy was stabilized with the right Hamato essence.Only then could he wear the armor and take control of the mystic energy for himself, to finally fulfill his destiny of freeing his fellow yokaikind from their underground bondage at the hands of those barbaric, war-crazed humans.Or at least that was the conclusion he came to after studying the ancient Foot Clan scrolls.Leo swallowed down another lump. The sense of dread and impending doom that was already inside his mind and heart like a chalice filled to the brim with swirling dark energy seemed to overflow and spill out onto the floor around him.A sense his slowly dying honorable Hamato essence was disgusted by.(He felt like a piece of him was dying along with it)Leo pushed through the conflicting hodge-podge swirling around inside his mind and heart and obediently reached out to take the dark armor piece with his bare, black hand.Although he flinched and tensed in expectation of feeling more of the intrusive dark energy spreading up his arm and adding to the mystical infection in his chest, like when he grabbed the piece from the botanical garden nothing happened, thanks to Draxum mystery 'goo' infused into his skin.Leo brought it up to his face to get a better look at it, and Draxum calmly ordered: "Keep this piece on you at all times, and when the time comes you will be given the honor to assist in joining it with the rest of the armor, to complete the Kuroi Yōroi and thus bring about an era of peace, where all yokai will be freed from their underground oppression.""Thank you, Draxum," Leo grudgingly said (because he knew that was expected of him), without taking his eyes off the piece that seemed to glow a dim purple in his hand."Come, it is time for your training."Draxum walked away, leading the way to the gym, and Leo hastily stuffed the piece in his pouch with the locket and broach while following behind, eager to get out of this area that was infected with the mystic energy from the rotwood, just as his ninpo was infected with the dark energy from the armor piece.But after leaving through the two doors and making his way downstairs behind his owner, the eerie feeling remained, caused this time from the piece of armor inside his pouch that he was ordered to carry around everywhere with him......the piece that - like the one he stole from the botanical gardens, seemed to be burning a hole through his shell where his belt pouch was located.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Draxum and Leo's weapons clanged together during their training match."You have new injuries on your neck," the warrior yokai commented while they fought.Their weapons - Draxum's sword and Leo's katanas - separated, and the slider jumped over a sweeping kick before blocking another attack."Lieutenant Hawk had his second in command choke me because I refused the order to kill a rebel," Leo factually informed him.There was the *ching* of blade against blade, and this time Leo went for a high attack on his right while stabbing low with the sword in his left hand.Draxum was ready, dodged the first sword and blocked the second one."You weren't kidding when you said working for him will be humbling," the winded slider added.Next he went on the attack, and as their swords clanged together over and over and sweat was dripping off Draxum's fur and Leo's head, his owner sternly told him: "He will be reminded of the conditions of our contract."Leo ducked below a stabbing attack, swiftly rolled behind his opponent, and stabbed up at Draxum's back with his katana.The skilled warrior alchemist spun around in time to block and Leo pulled back to get distance between them in preparation for another attack."He'll just find more ways to make my life miserable if you do that," Leo said, while he and Draxum circled one another.Draxum merely gave a hum in acknowledgement without taking his eyes off his opponent, and then gave the direct command: "Come at me!"Leo obliged, ran at the much bigger yokai, but pulled a trick move he learned from Donnie when they were playfully sparring together one night. He appeared to stab his sword straight up, but instead surprised the yokai when he literally threw it over Draxum's head. Then he quickly skidded around his boss, slashed his second katana low, and caught the one he threw in his right hand......only to realize his surprise attack worked, the slash landed, and he actually cut the back of his owner's leg with the tip of his sharp blade."Draxum!" he cried out from surprise, never once having ever landed a hit on his highly skilled warrior owner, and most definitely not intending to literally slash his goat leg in their training match!But the seasoned fighter didn't miss a beat, and with a winded: "Oof!" Leo was knocked down to the floor by a swift pommel to his gut that landed so hard it sent a shot of pain through his stiff plastron. Then, the next thing he knew the goat warrior was standing over him, with a foot on his chest pinning him to the floor, and the tip of his blade less than an inch away from the dead center of his two turtle eyes."You let your guard down," the bleeding yokai told him, as a point of advice. He was clearly just as winded as the skilled ninja turtle laying beneath his feet, after Leo put up a very good run for his money during this first training session since his return from his temporary life above ground.But something else was on Leo's mind in the moment - namely, the human who was murdered with his blade, right in front of his face, while he did absolutely nothing to try and stop it. So he looked up at Draxum to firmly tell him:"I'm not standing by and doing nothing when they try to kill someone else in front of my face."Meaning:'Do I have permission to protect the life of another, or are you going to deny my request and kill me here and now when I inform you I will rebel against your word?'Draxum withdrew his sword and calmly told him: "I assumed as much and included it as a warning in the same clause of the contract as the instruction to respect my order for you to refrain from killing." Then he stepped aside to let Leo get up on his feet and gazed down on his honorable warrior creation while telling him: "It appears as though your association with the other three experiments of mine has not only benefited your skills in battle, but strengthened your valiant honor as well."Instead of rising, Leo rolled over on his side to lean up against his elbow and watched Draxum walk over to a table in the corner, where he used supplies there to tend to his wound.The words 'other experiments' reverberated in the mutant turtle's ears, leading him to blurt out the observation: "So I am just another one of your experiments."He stayed where he was, staring at his warrior owner, and Draxum laid a bloodied cloth on the table, before turning his head to look at Leo from behind his back and reassure him: "I assure you, you are much more than just another one of my experiments, Leonardo."Leo replied by standing up to look at his cruel owner with confusion, and asked: "You said I had to earn a name, one that's right for me."He sheathed his swords on his back without once taking his eyes off Draxum, and took out his dagger to nervously twirl it around in his left hand while waiting for a response.Draxum, for his part, silently finished mending the bleeding gash his warrior slave gave to him by affixing a bandage over it, and then turned all the way around to directly face Leo; with his hands clasped together behind his back as he was accustomed to doing.Leo wondered if he was yet again discreetly making use of his yokai armor so he could attack him - like on the day when he gashed his face - in retaliation for landing a hit on his leg."Your skills in battle and firm determination to bravely hold onto your honor, come what may, has proved beyond a doubt that you have rightfully earned the name Leonardo."A small, crooked grin came on Leo's face, and he expressed his appreciation with a genuine (sounding): "Thanks, boss."Draxum replied with a respectful nod of his head, and then informed him: "Your services will not be required today, do what you wish, I have important research to complete in the Mystic Library before I meet with that idiot Foot commander."Then, without another word, Draxum turned to leave, heading upstairs to shower in his personal washroom that was located in the creepy 'mystic rotwood' section of his long upstairs hallway.After he was gone, Leo walked up to the table in the corner where a pile of rolled up towels were kept. Once there he smiled down on the sharp blade of his dagger, proudly thinking about the moment he got the upper hand on his warrior alchemist boss for the first time ever, and skillfully spun it around in his hand before sheathing it. After that he picked up a white towel to wipe the sweat off his head, and while doing that he left the room to shower in the downstairs bathroom across from his bedroom.* * *~Some Time Time Later~Leo silently ninjaed across New York rooftops on his way to Run of the Mill, decked out in his ninja gear and donning the Foot mask he had to wear while he slaved for the idiot Commander Hawk, who would no doubt be very displeased with him after hearing about how Draxum got his hands on the dark armor piece during their meeting earlier that evening.It was less than two hours before his slave shift started at the hidden Foot Clan lair in an abandoned warehouse down by the docks, but he had something else on his mind ever since he opened the locket just after showering, and saw the picture that was inside.Saw who was in the picture that was inside.Despite the coldness in the air, Leo was sufficiently warm under his cloak because of his brisk pace, and it didn't take him long before he landed in a dark alley outside the portal door to Hueso's restaurant.Without hesitation, the hooded, cloaked ninja warrior - with the hilts of two deadly katanas sticking out between his big hood and left shoulder - walked in through the portal the moment it opened, and as it shut behind him he lowered his hood and scanned his eyes around the large restaurant, looking for Yolinda.She wasn't around but he knew she always had a shift this time of day, so suspected she was in the kitchen and made his way to the empty scoundrel booth to wait for her there.When he got there, Leo slumped back in his chair and took out the locket to gently rub his fingers against the smooth surface and gaze down on it.It wasn't long before the distraught slider heard a familiar, welcomed voice calling out: "Leo!" and after hastily dropping off the plates of food on a table for some customers, Lindy ran over with a little bounce to her step and smiled down on her turtle friend wearing a dark red mask covering the entire top half of his head......who concealed the item and stayed slouched in the booth while he kept his head down with his eyes on his hand that was holding the locket.Yolinda's smile fell when she realized something was most definitely wrong, and without a word (and without looking at her) Leo gestured to the other seat in the booth with his left hand, indicating he wanted her to sit down with him.Yolinda never took her eyes off him as she sat across from him and laid the tray she was holding on the seat beside her. Then, once she was comfortably seated and got a good look at her warrior friend, she gasped from the injuries to his neck and exclaimed: "Leo, you're hurt!"Without once raising his eyes to look at her, Leo rubbed his neck, cleared his throat, and quietly told her: "It's just a casualty of working for an idiot, I'm fine." Then he got right to the point of his visit by telling her: "I have something for you."But he fiddled with the locket in his hand without actually passing it over or in any way letting her see what it was.Yolinda didn't acknowledge what Leo said about having something for her, opting instead to comment in a concerned tone of voice: "You need to put some ointment on your injuries."Leo huffed out a single, quiet laugh over her persistent kindness for a slave like him, and still without taking his eyes off the locket, he countered with the clearly sarcastic reply: "Yeah, I'll get right on that.""Will you let me..." "I found out what happened to your parents."Although everything around them continued on as usual, it felt as though the room fell silent when those words were uttered aloud, and Leo still couldn't bear to raise his eyes to look upon the face of the fox he loved but could never be with.Her breath hitched at the sound of his voice, and the two of them sat in silence for a moment; with Leo's heart filling with dread and sadness and pity and all sorts of other emotions over the horrible news he had to reveal to her next, and Yolinda's heart likewise doing a similar thing.The seconds ticked by with neither one of them speaking a word, and she kept staring at him in expectation while he kept his head down and continued fiddling with what she didn't know yet was a silver locket in his hand.One that she had seen before, many years ago.Finally, when he figured this wasn't going to get any easier the longer he waited, Leo told her in no uncertain terms: "Draxum got his hands on them," and then laid the locket down on the table to push it toward her.Yolinda gasped at the sight of the locket she recognized that her mother used to wear daily, and her little paw-like hands trembled slightly as she slowly raised them to pick it up and open it......to reveal the smiling faces of three fox yokai on the picture inside.Her black and silvery fox mom, maroon and black fox dad, and her, as a little maroon and black fox kit, all innocently smiling and happy together, not knowing what kind of horrors were awaiting their family, that would befall them all no more than a few short months after that happy family picture was taken.At the sight, tears filled Yolinda's eyes and spilled over onto her silky smooth maroon fur. She curled in on herself, rested her left hand on the table while bringing the locket up close to her chest with her right one, and cried her heart out at the definite confirmation that not only were her parents deceased with no hope of them ever returning to reclaim her, but they also died a gruesome death at the hands of the cold-hearted Baron Draxum, for reasons neither she nor the turtle sitting across from her knew or would likely ever find out.Not that the powerful Baron needed a reason to kill someone. He was powerful enough to do whatever he pleased, even if it involved much bloodshed and spilling the blood of fellow yokai 'for the greater good'.(providing he was careful to cover his tracks so the Council of Heads didn't get wind of it)For the first time since getting here, Leo dared to glance up at the face of the one he loved, broken-hearted and wishing he could console her or do something to make this all better. But he knew he couldn't fix this for her.So he did the only thing he could do in this moment by reaching his hand out toward hers that was resting on the table.But instead of making contact with her hand, he hovered his in the air a few inches above it.Wanting to provide her with comfort but also not wanting to send her the wrong signals that there could ever be anything between her and someone like him - who was nothing more than a lowly slave, forced into a cruel life he hoped she would never taste - Leo curled his fingers into a fist and withdrew his hand.Then, without a word, he stealthily rose from the booth and walked away, with the weeping Yolinda not raising her eyes or pleading for him to stay, either because she didn't hear him leave, or because she was too grief-stricken to raise her face.
On his way to the stairs leading to Señor Hueso's office, Leo banged the kitchen 'in' door open, intentionally doing so loudly to get Bully's attention. The brute yokai shot his head up from his work to see the very serious masked face of his fellow ruffian and turtle friend looking right at him.With nothing more than a nod of his head in Yolinda's direction, Leo told Bully he was needed, then he disappeared to slowly make his way toward the stairs, so he could have a conversation with the restaurant owner/ex-pirate, who he felt comfortable confiding in.Before he reached the bottom step, Leo heard but didn't turn to see when Bully came out of the kitchen, and he felt a wave of relief wash over him at the tender tone to the brute yokai's voice when he asked Yolinda what was wrong; knowing that now she would receive the comfort she needed that he could not provide to her.Then he was gone upstairs, a caped ninja warrior decked out in all his gear heading toward one of the few people he deeply respected and knew he could trust with his life.When a shadowy figure quietly stood in his office doorway, waiting to be addressed, Huseo raised his eyes to give a fond smile to his fellow ruffian, friend, and previous diligent, hard-working dishwasher. He extended a hand toward the chair on the other side of his desk, while offering: "It's good to see you pepino, come in and sit," before gazing with a frown at the bruises on his neck - knowing full well from his life as a pirate that someone had recently choked his slave friend.Without a word, the trained and highly skilled ninja warrior walked so silently he fair glided into the room. Then he took a seat in the chair across from Hueso and reached into his pouch to reveal a dimly glowing, slightly curved sliver of metal that he tossed carelessly onto the desk.Hueso looked at him curiously and picked up the piece as Leo sat back crookedly in the chair and draped both legs over the armrest while picking at his fingernails as a nervous habit.After all, Señor Hueso wasn't his Draxum-sactioned boss anymore, so although he afforded the skeleton yokai all the respect he deserved, he no longer had to put up appearances around him."What is it, pepino?" Hueso asked. "A piece of dark armor," Leo offered without looking up, and without further explanation.The bone yokai opened a drawer to take out a mystic spy piece that resembled a tiny golden telescope, and looked at it through the lens."This item is packed full of more mystic energy than I have ever seen in a single piece," Hueso commented."I know, one of the pieces infected me with its dark energy."Hueso promptly dropped the metal on his desk and stared at Leo wide-eyed in surprise, but the slider merely sat ahead all casual-like and reached out to pick up the piece with his bare fingers.His bare fingers that Hueso noticed for the first time were just as black as his ninja wrappings that extended up to the elbows."Its not parasitic, it only infects me for some reason," Leo calmly informed him without taking his eyes off the glowing piece. "That's why I got this on my skin."Leo raised his left hand to wiggle the black fingers in the air while pocketing the piece with his right one. After doing that he once again calmly commented: "Draxum made me stick my arms up to the elbows in some kind of goop that I can't get off without his help. It blocks the transfer of mystic energy so I can handle them without getting infected again."Hueso suspiciously raised one eyebrow and asked: "Blocks the transfer of mystic energy? Does that mean you cannot access your mystic powers at all?""All 'cept for my mystic vision and that sense I got that lets me detect mystic dark energy. Draxum wants me to keep that to help find more of those disgusting pieces," Leo remarked. He casually looked up to gauge Señor Hueso's reaction when he told him: "I don't know if you heard, but he has me working for the Foot, until they collect all those pieces and put the armor together.""If I were you I would stay as far away from that powerful armor as I could, pepino, especially if it is infectious to you."Leo shrugged off what Hueso said, turned his gaze to look at the old-time tv on a shelf that was displaying the security video from the back alley, and quietly replied: "You know I don't have a choice." Then he sat ahead in the chair and looked Hueso in the eyes when he told him: "Draxum's scrounging around in my family's ancestry. I don't know why but it can't be good. Can you get word to my brothers to keep their guard up?""Of course, it will be easy because they are in here daily asking if I heard anything from you.""Really?" Leo asked in confusion. The last few times he saw them he attacked both Raph and April and even got caught red handed after brutally killing a guy.Hueso leaned ahead and Leo could see the love radiating from his eyes when he firmly but kindly told him: "They love you, pepino, and they want you back in their lives."In reply, the ninja warrior slave let out a sour, condescending laugh, leaned back in the chair again, and broke eye contact with Hueso when he let out a bitter: "They would.""We can help you get out of that life," Hueso next offered. "Jack and I have contacts all over the word and we can also offer a degree of protection for your family.""I'm not dragging you down with me," Leo instantly and bluntly replied, a little angrily.Then his composure tensed, his soft eyes glazed over as his pupils constricted ever so slightly, he stared blankly at Hueso's chest (as though he was preparing for a physical altercation), and his voice radiated a hint of hatred when he sternly said: "And, in case you forgot, no one gets out of this life, Señor. Born a slave, die a slave." He raised his eyes to cast his cold gaze upon Hueso's face and the sight sent a chill up his boney spine - not knowing but suspecting the dark energy that infected him was worming its way in to take control of his heart and mind, with the hateful, spiteful way Scrubs looked at him, in such a way as Hueso had never seen from him before."But you already know that, pirate captain," he spit out like venom, before abruptly standing.Leo's cape flowed behind his back when he spun around to take his leave, but just when he reached the open doorway he stopped, turned his head slightly but not enough to actually see the ex-pirate, and in a cold, hateful tone sternly asked: "How many slaves does a pirate captain own before he leaves that life behind to open an above ground restaurant, Bones?"Hueso straightened his back, tensed his proud posture, and very firmly replied: "I have never once in my life employed free labor, not in my restaurante, and not aboard my ship."Something softened in Leo's stance. Hueso didn't know it but he blinked his eyes a few times and they dilated back to normal when he regained control of himself. Then he swallowed back a lump in his throat, feeling thoroughly embarrassed by his disrespectful behavior, and quietly offered:"'M sorry, the dark energy..." "You do not have to explain, pepino, all is forgiven," came the soft, kind-hearted reply. "I have never before heard of dark energy that only infects one person, nor have I come across such an object in my wanderings, but I will put the word out for you. Keep in touch, if I learn anything I be sure to inform you right away."Although Leo deeply appreciated the offer, he didn't offer a word of thanks but instead cleared his throat, rubbed his sore neck, stared at nothing but the wall on the other side of the hallway he was facing, and volunteered the information when he told Hueso: "I killed a guy."He cleared his throat again."After I gave my word to Raph that I wouldn't. And I . . . *ahem* attacked Raph. And my sister, April, all thanks to that dark energy. And now I gotta carry one of the pieces around at Draxum’s order and work with the Foot at their base where they're assembling the rest of that disgusting armor.""I see."The softness never left Hueso's tone, and Leo knew it was one that carried absolutely no judgement along with it.The two of them stayed in silence for a little. Leo stopped rubbing his neck but kept his hand rested there - wondering what sort of punishment awaited him at the Foot Clan for disobeying the direct command to wait until the Foot retrieved the dark energy piece he prematurely swiped from the botanical gardens - and then he frankly told the bone yokai he deeply respected and viewed as a beloved uncle:"Draxum finally gave me a name. He called me Leonardo. Said I earned it or some nonsense like that."Hueso lowered his eyes onto Leo's left hand when the slider began clenching and unclenching it as part of one of his nervous habits. Then, when he was ready, he told him: "He knows something about my Hamato ancestry that I don't. He needs me for something to do with the dark armor, something bad, I can feel it in my shell.""What was your name before, pepino?" Hueso softly inquired.Leo yet again let out a scornful laugh, but this time his anger was directed toward his cruel yokai owner and not in any way connected to the dark energy infecting him.He stopped clenching his fist, turned his head far enough to see Hueso out of the corner of his left eye, and told him in no uncertain terms: "He called me X. It was nothing more than a label, short for Experiment Alpha zero zero two dash two." He clenched his fist twice more, and with a scowl blurted out the cold, angry words: "Cuz that's all I am to him, another one of his experiments. That's all I've ever been, a means to an end. A way to reach his life's goal. I see it now. Now that I know..." 'what real love is,' he held back from saying, but not really sure why.He stopped clenching his fist and his entire body softened at the same time he hung his head in sadness. The he told Hueso softly:"And when he's done with whatever he needs from me, he'll throw me out with the trash like all his other expired experiments,"with both of them knowing the slave of Baron Draxum was referring to his inevitable death at his owner's hands.Although he had long ago accepted his fate - that the life of a slave was not a long one - up until very recently he had held out hope that one day Draxum would hold true to his promise to treat him as a son once again; like he had in Leo's early, formative years, before snatching that away from him and dangling it out of reach in front of his face for all those years since.So that his slave would pour his sweat and blood into earning back that 'love' he once had by training until his hands were rubbed so raw from grasping his swords they bled and he was near to collapsing from exhaustion, and by obeying his every word to the letter for all of those miserable, lonely years since.Leo motioned to swiftly leave, but stopped when Hueso abruptly stood and loudly and firmly yelled: "Wait!"The mutant red-eared slider stood still where he was, respectfully obeying Hueso's word as if he really was his owner.Because of the deep respect he had for him."We can help you, pepino, you do not have to be stuck in this life," Hueso urgently offered for the second time.Leo stayed where he was for a moment, keeping his back to Hueso.'Born a slave, die a slave,' resounded in his head.Was there really no way out besides death?. . .Did someone like him even deserve to keep living?Instead of pondering over those questions, Leo turned his inner thoughts away from himself and onto the fox he loved so much, who was crying downstairs in the arms of her Uncle Jack - aka Bully - who had a hand in raising her. Then, in no way responding to Hueso’s generous offer, he cleared his throat before telling him in a soft tone of voice that radiated empathy, sadness, and a deep love for the fox he could never be with: "Yolinda found out what happened to her parents.""Oh," was the only surprised word in response.Even with all his contacts Hueso was never able to find out exactly what happened to them on that fateful night that forever changed all of their lives.Leo uncomfortably cleared his throat again and intended on telling Señor Hueso that Draxum got his hands on them, but the words got stuck in his throat. So instead he said: "She's going to need you for a while. I'd be here for her too, but I don't wanna..." "You understand it is this life that has been forced upon you and not who you are that we are trying to protect Yolinda from," Hueso immediately and kindly offered."Yeah, I know. I want a better life for her, too," Leo quietly agreed."You are our family too, pepino. We all love you as one of our own, and in any other circumstance I would be honored to call you my son in law."Leo smiled and his heart swelled with joy at those heartfelt words that rested in his ears. He knew what Hueso told him just now would forever stay with him, and he expressed his heartfelt family love for Hueso with the simple words:"Right back atcha, Tío."Then he was gone, just as swiftly and silently as the true ninja warrior he was, with Hueso looking on, feeling a mixture of pride and pity for the honorary member of his misfit ruffian family, who was a warrior who somehow retained his honor despite having been forced into a murderous life of harsh slavery and cruel punishments against his own will.But as much as his heart was grieving for the son he would never have, he knew Yolinda needed him more than ever right now, so left his office, turning off the light and shutting the door behind him, to go downstairs and join Bully in offering love and condolences to the adoptive daughter he did have.* * *After leaving Hueso's, Leo needed time to think and clear his head, so he headed to the old, abandoned hospital where his temporary (cold) bedroom was that contained the beautiful mural on the wall Mikey painted for him.Naturally sticking to the shadows and moving swiftly but without a sound, the caped figure carefully eyed his surroundings before jumping down off the hospital roof at the back entrance he came and went through daily when he lived here, only to find it was barricaded shut.But that didn't pose a challenge for the ninja warrior, and after checking around once more to ensure the coast was clear, Leo jumped at the door to kick it wide open, glad to have something to take his frustrations out on.Then he went inside, and once there casually straightened his stance and strolled down the corridor, admiring the graffiti art adorning practically every wall along the way, and secretly impressed that even humans respected the work of others when he passed by some of the murals he helped Mikey to paint, only to see they were still there and not graffitied over.And just when he was about to turn the next corner, that was when he felt it: his ninpo warmth in his chest, indicating someone from his family was nearby - behind him to be precise - and likely had come in through the busted door the ninja slider kicked wide open.Leo swiftly ducked into an empty, dark patient's room that had a window leading outside and hid around the corner, knowing exactly who was there before he head a sound.Splinter - the one he knew all his life as Lou Jitsu.The one he knew all his life as the father who willingly and purposefully abandoned him to his presumed death in the middle of a raging fire.At least that was what Draxum had taught him.But he was coming to see that the yokai he used to firmly believe never lied to him had been steeping him in a cesspool of lies and deceptions all his days.Leo listened carefully to the shuffling of feet walking down the same hallway as the one he came from.Then he held his breath when the sound came closer.The footsteps stopped for a moment, and then Leo heard the rat mumbling to himself: "Purple said it was around here somewhere."'What's around here? What's he looking for, my old room? WHY!? Why'd he have to come here now!?' Leo wondered (and griped) in his mind.But despite his annoyance, there was an undeniable pull on his ninpo urging him to show himself to his biological dad - the one he undeniably shared a mystical Hamato connection with.The connection he wanted to understand.But that ship had sailed when he sank his dagger into the tiger yokai's chest.There was no way a murderer like him belonged with a family of do-gooder heroes like them.
Right?
"...they are in here daily asking if I heard anything from you."
"They love you, pepino, and they want you back in their lives."
'No, they still want me,' Leo thought.He gave consideration to the tug on his ninpo (and his heart) by stepping out of the room and revealing himself to his so-called dad.But instead he stayed where he was.And that was when the dark energy infection began vying for control, sending a wave of murderous rage throughout his entire body with every beat of his pounding heart, as though the infection itself was coursing through his very veins.'This is so dumb, what was I thinking!? I gotta get outta here before I attack him, too!' Leo firmly resolved in his heart.But he needed to wait for the right opportunity.Hopefully Splinter would simply walk on past and as soon as he was out of sight the stealthy slider could rush back out the way he came, unseen and unheard.He continued holding his breath.(He was an aquatic turtle, after all, and the events with Hawk and Ox - when he was choked in front of everyone until he began losing consciousness - proved that to be true)Splinter seemed to be searching his direct vicinity for the door to a room that was skillfully concealed via Drauxm's tech, considering the sound of footsteps hadn't resumed.Although still holding his breath despite the pounding heart, Leo swallowed nervously and listened carefully for any tiny sound.He was glad he did, and reminded himself once again of how much of a dummy he was for forgetting that if he could sense Splinter, then the mutant rat could likely sense him as well.Which he did, and made known when he very quietly let out as a whisper: "Leonardo?" seeming to be unsure of himself.Leo didn't waste any time after that.There was the loud crashing sound of broken glass when he busted out the window for a quick get-away, and he was already gone sight-unseen before Splinter made it into the room where his long lost son had been.The slider ninjaed up to the roof and was already gone out of sight on a nearby building before he heard the loud sound of his anguished dad's voice calling out to him from the busted out window:"LEONARDO!!! COME BAAACK!!!"Leo stopped dead in his tracks from surprise at the desperation in that voice.He had head his name being called out in the same manner by the same person many, many years ago, as a baby."LEONARDO!!! PLEASE!!! COME BACK MY SON!!!"Leo shook off the memory of when he was laying helplessly as a baby in the middle of a fire, and turned around to keep on the move, so he could get far enough away that Splinter couldn't sense his Hamato ninpo anymore, and therefore couldn't track him down.The numbness of the mystical infection enveloped his ninpo all over again, and in the distance - as if carried on the wind - he heard his name being called out once more before he was finally out of hearing range - with his mind filled with regret.But he knew he didn't have any other choice but to keep his distance from his family - all his family - for fear he might lose control and do something worse to them than what he had already done.He only hoped they had enough sense to stay away from the lair of the deadly Foot Clan."LEEEEONAAAARRRRRDOOOOO!!!!"
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leo hung up his cloak in the guarded coat room where all the Foot soldiers left their outwear, and then audibly groaned when he stepped out of the lobby into the back of the large meeting room to see Commander Hawk was on the podium, loudly addressing his recruits......and prominently displayed on a table behind him for all to see was a rusty set of heavy metal shackles.So he clenched his jaw along with his fists and tensed his entire body while making his way straight through the crowd of masked ninjas, toward that idiot who no doubt had a very humiliating punishment in store for him.When he reached the front, as was expected of him he bowed down on one knee in front of the entire class, and stayed there, waiting for Lieutenant Hawk to complete his speech so he could address him as 'master' and await his command.It seemed as though the idiot in charge of the entire Foot clan was eager to get things started, because as soon as Leo bowed down he finished his sentence and walked ahead to stand on the podium in front of his contracted slave, who had no idea what was really in store for him.If he did he never would have allowed the idiot in charge to do what he did to him next.As soon as the room settled down and he sensed a pair of cold eyes resting on him, Leo announced: "I await your orders, master," cringing internally at distasteful words that left his own mouth.Lieutenant Hawk wasn't one to beat around the bush, and he thrust out an arm to point an accusing finger at his new slave while firmly announcing: "You disobeyed a direct command to wait for us to retrieve the dark armor piece tomorrow night, slave!""I am under Baron Draxum's direct command to put his interests ahead of all others, master," Leo pointedly told him in reply, without once raising his head.Usually at this point if he was under Draxum's command his goat alchemist boss would demand further explanation before deciding on an appropriate punishment, if any; but Hawk didn't seem interested in the least in hearing what a lowly slave had to say. So instead of inquiring exactly how prematurely stealing the dark armor piece was working in Draxum's best interests, he loudly announced something or other to the entire class that this is how anyone who defies his direct commands is treated, and then he ordered: "Come here, Useless, and take your punishment like a warrior.""Yes, master," Leo respectfully replied. He rose from his humble position bowing low in front of everyone, once again clenched his fists and his jaw, and walked around to the stairs that took him up to the podium. From there he was directed to stand beside the table where the over-energetic recruit Cassandra was picking up the heavy shackles.At the curt command: "Put your hands out, Useless!" Leo resisted the urge to roll his eyes and obediently stretched his arms straight out to allow Cassandra to attach the much-too-tight, rusty shackles to his wrists.While she was doing that, Leo discreetly whispered to her: "I guess we're not hanging out later," referring to the invitation he extended to her the night before to join him in the Hidden City hoverboard park before blowing off some steam sparring together."Oh no we will still hang," Cassandra told him. Then she glanced at the very angry ruthless commander who was glaring at Leo, and added:"Iiiif you are still able.""I'll have to get back to you on that," the turtle slave muttered in reply. Then she removed his two katanas and his dagger from their respective sheaths, stepped aside to let Hawk walk up to him, and he grabbed the chains and yanked on them, making the entire room burst out in boisterous laughter when Leo stumble forward a couple of steps.Then, without once releasing his grip on the chains, Hawk addressed the recruits with a lengthy speech about how anyone who defies the Foot Clan or rebels against his orders would receive swift justice.During that long (boring) speech, Hueso's words of promise that maybe there was a way out of this life resonated in Leo's mind, but didn't reach his numbed heart on account of being in such close proximity to the mystical dark armor; which was slowly but surely squeezing the life out of his Hamato ninpo.Finally, when he was done, everyone watched carefully as Hawk led Leo to the wall over in the 'torture corner' with Ox by his brother's side; and when they got there the first in command handed the chains linking Leo's two wrists together over to his taller brother. Then it was Ox's turn to prompt another round of laughter when he made the slider stumble ahead once more by forcefully yanking on them, before reaching up high to attach them to a hooked clasp protruding out of the wall for this very reason.Ox secured the lock on the hook so the chains couldn't come out, and Leo gulped nervously and turned his head enough to look at the table beside him full of torture devices, ready to firmly object if his secondary owner foolishly decided to unlawfully torture him here and now.But he was surprised when, instead, the two of then shared a devious grin before Hawk smirked at him and then walked away, back up to the podium where he continued where he left off when his 'disobedient' slave arrived for the night.Leo's heart began to settle down as the threat of a torturous punishment dwindled with each passing moment, and at one point he turned his head to glance at the Foot soldiers who were beginning warm-up exercises in preparation for some more training that was to shortly take place in the training room.But when one of the unmasked soldiers looked over at him with a devious grin, he snapped his head back around, and in frustration closed his eyes, let his head fall forward so that his forehead banged against the cold stone wall, and muttered to himself: "This is so humiliating."And he wondered exactly how long he would have to stay like this, with his arms stretched high up over his head, and if he would be kept here all night until he didn't have any feeling left in his hands or arms anymore.He knew Draxum wouldn't object to this particular humiliating punishment, regardless of how pointless it was, but all of that changed when he heard the sound of footsteps entering the large room followed by a commanding voice loudly asking:"You have a disobedient slave here for us to take care of?"Leo whipped his head around to stare, aghast, at the five Hidden City cops who had entered the room, and in a panic he thought: 'He's not dumb enough to go against Draxum!' hoping the cops were here for some other slave who Hawk rightfully owned that was somehow disobedient to him.A slave he had never seen or heard of before.The ninja slider's eyes widened with fear when Lieutenant Hawk paused his warm up session to point directly at him, and answered with the smug words: "He's right here, officers.""No!" Leo let out as a gasp at the unbelievable sight.Then he got his head on straight and pulled on the chains with all his might, hoping to bend the clasped hook that was firmly holding him in place far enough that he could free himself.But it didn't budge.The cops walked up to him.'That's a fate worse than death,' he heard Usagi's voice in his mind, from the memory of the night he killed Vinnie, the no-good tiger yokai and Sagi expressed fear the the Council of Heads would send the Hidden City cops after them.When Leo was getting nowhere with his desperate bid to free himself, he tried a different approach by turning his head to stare at Hawk and loudly demanding: "You can do this to me! Don't you know the law!!? You attack a slave you attack his owner!!!"At the griffin's command, two of the officers walked up to him, and he yelled even louder than before:"I'm contracted out to you, you have no RIGHT!!! Draxum'll have your HEAD when he finds out about this! NO one crosses Draxum and gets away with it!!!"Hawk seemed completely unconcerned and continued deviously smiling at him, while the crooked cops couldn't care less about the rantings of a lowly slave; so instead of listening to what he was saying and looking into the possibility that he really was the powerful and ruthless Baron's personal property, one of the officers sternly ordered: "You're coming with us, slave!"But - shackled or not - the skilled ninja warrior wasn't going down without a fight.The chains clattered when they twisted as he spun around and raised his foot high enough to land a firm kick against the first officer's chest, knocking away the one making a grab for him.But that was when he discovered there was a shock mechanism built into the rusty shackles, and with the press of a button on a remote in his hand, Hawk very unexpectedly electrocuted his 'useless' slave.Leo's entire body tensed from the electrical impulse coursing through every fiber of his being for far too long as Hawk stared at him with a wicked grin on his face, clearly deriving pleasure from his unwarranted attack.But Leo didn't know that, because his entire vision was obscured by a bright, white light. And when the attack was finally over, his body fell limp and his head hung low with the only thing keeping him upright being the tight shackles cutting into his wrists, as dark wisps of smoke ascended from his shell.The electrocuted slave of Baron Draxum didn't have enough strength to raise his head or even open his eyes, and the only thing he could hear through the loud ringing in his ears was the the sound of the heavy chains clattering together as the griffin chief of police reached up to unclasp him from the wall. At which point he would have disgracefully collapsed onto the floor if not for a big bear officer tightly grabbing him with his long claws that dug into both arms, so he could haul him out of the room, where he was to be dragged to a nearby Hidden City portal and from there shoved into a squad car and brought to the dreaded downtown police prescient.The prescient where very few slaves ever left alive.* * *~A Short Time Later~In the prescient, the weakened, electrocuted mutant turtle - who was still a little dazed from his horribly shocking punishment - was dragged into a slave interrogation room, with his arms having been chained behind his back at some point between being unceremoniously thrown half unconscious into the squad car and coming to; and he was literally thrown against a table.He let out a winded: "Oof," when his gut slammed into the hard surface, and then he was held down while the shackles chaining his arms behind his back were attached to thick metal clamps on the table.But after both ankles were likewise forced into fetters attached to the floor, one cop tried to remove his tech prosthetic at the chief's orders as an extra precaution.That was when Leo snapped his head around to smugly grin at the vulture knelt down by his left leg, who was grasping his prosthetic to remove it."What are you grinning at?" the vulture barked out.But that was when he was hit with an electrical shock for trying to tamper with Draxum's ingenious tech.Leo - who was insulated against that built in defense - was instantly punched in the face by the big bear who dragged him out of the Foot Clan lair for not speaking up about the trap he obviously knew about, and he gruffly ordered: "Tell us how to take it off, slave!"Leo spit out blood onto the table from the punch he took before deviously grinning, at the cop, narrowing his eyes in anger, and offering the 'helpful' advice: "Untie me and I'll be happy to help you.""ANSWER the question, SLAVE!"*thump!*Leo groaned through gritted teeth and squeezed his eyes shut from a shot of pain in his shell when a cop whacked him with a mystic energy wrapped baton. Then, when he opened them he angrily glared at the cop who ordered him to answer and told him in anger: "You can't, only me and Draxum can take it off."Next he switched his gaze to glare at the chief of police who was standing behind him, and curtly told him with a threatening undertone: "He's my owner, in case you didn't hear me the first fifty times I tried to tell you, and he doesn't take kindly to having his property tampered with."By 'property' everyone knew Leo wasn't referring to the tech leg but to himself - a slave who was viewed as nothing more than property both in yokai society and according to the law."Uh huh, yeah," one of the sarcastically replied, while confirming he was firmly confined in place with no possible way out.Leo was leaning over the table now with his plastron flush to the cold surface, being thoroughly confined in place with no way to defend himself and no means of escape - not even for a skilled ninja such as himself - and he continued on in anger with a heavily threatening undertone, as though the cop hadn't said anything."You all know who I'm talking about! he's as powerful as Big Mama! no one crosses him the wrong way! He doesn't care if you're cops, he'll still take care of you, and you know what I mean when I say that, so I suggest you let me go before you cause any problems for yourselves."When the griffin chief of police walked around the table to smirk at the confined slave, the ninja turtle raised his head to glare at him with an angry scowl, and reiterated through clenched teeth: "I'm telling you, I'm Draxum's personal slave. You're going to regret it if you do anything to me."The griffin tensely crossed his arms in front of his chest, barked out a laugh, and condescendingly said: "That's a new one. Most of your worthless lot claim to be owned by Big Mama to get out of their . . . just treatment.""There's nothing just about what happens in this room, and run my slave tags if you don't believe me!" Leo spit right back out at him, resisting the urge to literally spit in his face - but only because any hope he had of the police chief actually running his tags would greatly diminish if he did something as disrespectful as that.The griffin simply laughed and said: "If you insist," before gesturing with his head for one of his fellow crooked cops to come closer and write down his slave number.Leo tipped his head down so the cop could get a clear look at his slave identification number tattooed into the back of his neck, which was discreetly out of sight below the lip of his carapace. The officer looked down on it and wrote the list of numbers on a pad of paper before leaving to find out exactly who's slave he really was.But Leo knew it would take them a while to run his numbers in the paper system the cops down here relied on to identify 'worthless' runaway slaves.Hopefully not too long.After that the others left, only the chief and the bear officer who had a hand in dragging Leo here remained, and the slider looked up again when the griffin laughed scornfully at him and told him: "We had another one of you worthless lot in here not too long ago. His owner brought him in after he caught him red handed assisting a rogue slave." He leaned his deviously grinning face in close to Leo's and told him: "A rogue kappa slave.""Wha...""He was a white rabbit yokai, wasn't he?"The room began spinning around the stunned slider as the chief straightened up; and Leo listened in disbelief when the bear cop with a big, black nose laughed out loud and replied: "Yeah, that sounds about right.""No, not Sagi," the chained, distressed mutant turtle managed to mumble out through the static that overtook his brain at the sudden realization of exactly why his friend and fellow slave didn't return home the night Leo slept in his little hut.There was the *click* of a screen being turned on, and Leo raised his eyes to see the entire top half of the white wall in front of him was really a screen......one that began playing the video footage taken in this very room when his close friend, Usagi Yuichi, was unceremoniously thrown against the very same table he was chained to, and likewise chained down.The chains clinked and rattled together as Leo struggled to free himself while the footage of Usagi's attack assaulted his ears by playing in surround sound right before him.But struggling was futile, so he slammed his eyes shut at the first punch thrown to the rabbit's face, wishing he could likewise cover his ears to block out the noise of senseless brutality that was playing all around him.The video was paused and Leo didn't flinch or open his eyes that were tightly squeezed shut when the tip of the blade of his very own dagger was slammed into the table beside his head."Unless you want me to do the same thing to your eye that happened to your leg, I suggest you open them up nice and wide," the police chief menacingly ordered.Leo turned his head away from the blade but kept his eyes squeezed shut.The sounds of Usagi's torturous attack sounded in the room.And then he felt the chief pulling off the red Foot Clan mask he was still wearing, so he could poke the tip of his dagger into the side of his face, beside his left eye, piercing through the skin and making a drop of blood drizzle down his cheek."NOW!" the griffin aggressively barked out in order.Leo abruptly opened his eyes so he didn't lose one.And he helplessly did the only thing he could, by watching the entire grueling video from the very beginning, all the way to the bitter end almost two hours later, when his close friend and confident was blasted through the back by a hedgehog officer's mystic blaster, to lay still and very much dead on the table where Leo was currently chained.The slider turned his grief into anger so he wouldn't show any sign of weakness in front of these barbaric yokai who dared to call themself 'peace' officers; and the griffin laughed at him before ordering the other office: "Grab Chancy, he has first dibs on this one."The video was flicked off and both officers left the room, while Leo helplessly awaited the very same fate that befell his friend.Through the static in his head and numbness in his heart, Leo couldn't help but let a couple of tears drip down his face once he was alone. But he stifled the rest of them when, a moment later, he heard the door click open, and he turned his head to see a massive rhino yokai twice his size walk into the room behind his back.Leo let out a nervous laugh while looking the immense beast up and down and stuttering out: "Heh, y-you're a big guy." He gulped nervously while the rhino deviously grinned at him and slowly shut the door behind his back."I never saw you in Usagi's video.""Nah, he was too scrawny for my taste."Leo eyed the massive horn on the end of the rhino's face and nervously stuttered out: "I-I'm not much bigger than he was."Incidentally, it wasn't uncommon for fighter slaves to be contracted out to fight in the Battle Nexus, so it didn't arise any concern from the police force that Leo was recognized as one of those fighters, and the rhino officer barked out a laugh while walking toward him, and loudly replied: "Ha, are you kidding me!? I once saw you take on three night terrors at once in the Nexus ring!"The chains rattled when Leo jumped because the rhino unexpectedly slammed a fist down on the table, then he looked at the yokai's massive hand ('Is everything huge on this guy!?') when he raised it and clenched the air like he was grabbing something for a visual reference, while saying: "You ripped the hearts out of those beasts like they were nothing more than a few sugarcuddle sloths. If you can handle that I'm sure you can handle one little rhino."In reply, Leo flashed the yokai his (fake) winning smile and told him in as casual of a tone as he could muster through the immense nervousness:"Oh, you mean that masked ninja champ. Handsome guy, I get mixed up as him..." he paused in his speech and cast his gaze on the thick, sharp horn that the crooked officer was prominently waving around beside his face now.Sweat began beading on his forehead."All . . . the time."The anxious slider swallowed nervously and let out a very tense: "Thaaaaat's a sharp horn you got.""Heh, yeah. Like it much?""Nooot particularly."Leo kept his eyes glued to the tip of the oversized sharp horn as the rhino straightened up and told the chained-up turtle slave with a big grin and another wicked laugh: "Would you believe it can pierce right though bone?""I believe it," Leo nervously replied.As much as he hated looking at it, the anxious slider could not tear his gaze away from the incredibly sharp horn as the yokai calmly asked him: "Say, you wouldn't happen to know if turtle shell is tougher than bone, would you?""Uhhhhh....""Ha, nevermind, we'll find out soon enough!"Leo flinched with the rhino roughy slapped a huge hand on the back of his shell, and he finally managed to tear his gaze away from the rhino's impressive horn by snapping his face straight ahead and slamming his eyes shut.""Eugh boi this is gonna hurt."The mutant turtle flinched again when the rhino forcefully slammed both hands down on the table next, one on either side of him, and just when the beast of a yokai was musing out loud: "Now where to begin..." the door was flung wide open and the rhino snapped his head around with an angry snort out through his massive nostrils, to glare at the hawk yokai who burst into the room."Hey I earned first dibs fair and square Falco! Come back when I'm done with him!""Get him unchained and out to his owner now, boss's orders! Unless you want to be the one to explain to Baron Draxum why he's not getting his slave back! Or worse, you wanna get caught red-handed when he loses his patience and portals back here himself!" the one named Falco aggressively yelled.The tension melted away from Leo's body at the relief that washed over him, and he flopped the side of his face down on the cold table to let out as an exhale: "Oh boi that was a close one."The rhino officer let out another deep snort of anger through his nostrils and Leo heard the jingle of keys just before he was roughly unchained and set free.As soon as he straightened his stance and turned around, Leo glared up at the rhino who was likewise glaring right back at him, and he rubbed one of his sore wrists on the way out of the room.Once outside the door, the hawk handed him his bandana mask and weapons - which he sheathed - and then he accepted a damp cloth from him to wipe away the dried blood smeared on his face from when the chief pierced his skin up by his eye. Then he followed behind the hawk officer who was leading him to the front lobby, where Draxum himself was apparently waiting for him."Don't go lying and telling that Baron we did stuff we really didn't do to you," the hawk gruffly ordered."Do you really think I'd get away with lying to the Baron?" was Leo's curt reply, while he followed the officer down a long hallway.The hawk slowed down to turn his head around and look Leo up and down, correctly assuming he got those three long gashes across his face from his harsh owner while wrongfully believing Draxum was also responsible for the hairline marks in his shell - indicating it had been cracked at some point. And he turned his head back around to resume his brisk pace, letting out a tense sounding: "Good."When they got to the end of the hall, Leo cleared his tense throat and stopped rubbing his sore wrists as the Hawk unlocked the final door and stepped aside to let the turtle slave go out and reunite with his cruel, powerful owner.As soon as he stepped through the doorway, Draxum calmly looked him up and down for any signs of obvious injuries, and bluntly asked: "How did this happen?"(Meaning 'how did you allow this to happen to you', of course)"Lieutenant Hawk stuffed me in shock chains and lied to the cops. He told them he's my owner.""So you were shocked?" Draxum next questioned.Despite the calmness, Leo knew there was a dark anger lurking underneath directed at that idiot, Lieutenant Hawk who had run the risk of potentially causing permanent damage to his useful slave's central nervous system."Yeah, how else do you think the cops got their hands on me?" the skilled ninja replied with a hint of anger also directed toward the low-life Hawk.Draxum knew the cops very cleverly setup their slave interrogation rooms in such a way that even his useful ninja warrior could not escape, so he didn't question Leo any further. Instead he calmly replied: "I see," still with a very strong undertone of anger that Leo knew was not directed his way. But for good measure he threw in the words:"I never would've let him put me in them if I knew what he was planning, Draxum."The Baron indicated his explanation was acceptable with a simple hum in acknowledgement, and then he dryly commented: "You appear to be uninjured," to ensure his slave didn't have any hidden internal injuries from his unlawful time with the crooked Hidden City police; and referring to any serious injuries with Leo's minor cuts and bruises being irrelevant in his eyes.Leo tensed his body and commenced clenching and unclenching his left fist while replying: "Yeah, you got here before they did anything."Draxum kept his eyes on him for a moment while Leo humbly waited for his owner to lead the way out of this cursed place (hopefully never to step foot back in here for as long as he lived. However long that would be).But before turning to take his leave, the great and powerful Baron Draxum - who even the cops knew better than to get on the bad side of - glared at the chief of police and sternly said as a direct threat: "That is very fortunate. For some."Leo cast his angry gaze on the police chief while rubbing his sore left wrist when the griffin nervously cleared his throat and tried his best to sound professional through the fear of retaliation when he said: "Thank you sir, and I assure you, you and your kappa slave will have no further trouble with my police force."Draxum narrowed his eyes in anger, replied in a threatening tone: "Good," and Leo followed closely behind when he (finally) briskly left the prescient.After walking out through the doors, Leo forced back the tears again and allowed the numb static to overtake his mind when he informed Draxum: "They killed Usagi.""Your sparring partner?" Draxum asked, pretending he had no idea what had happened to the dishonorable Brutus' slave."Yeah. His owner had him arrested for helping me, cuz he thought I was a runaway."Leo hurried up to walk alongside Draxum and looked up when his tall owner said: "That is most unfortunate, he proved to be quite an asset with your warrior training and will be missed."They continued on their way, with Draxum walking so briskly Leo had a hard time keeping up without having to break into a light jog, and he wondered why his owner didn't just use one of his handy portals to get them home quicker."I want to honor his name," the mutant slave abruptly told Draxum.Then the reason why his owner with mystic powers didn't portal them home became apparent when they walked up to Draxum's favorite downtown bakery."You have my permission to do whatever is required for his ceremony," his owner dryly told him.A little bell over the door jingled when he opened it to step inside, and after he went in Leo followed behind and told him: "I'll need my portals, and I wanna get Usagi's ancestral sword."Draxum eyed some baked goods, deciding which ones to purchase, with a hum and nod of approval, knowing that Leo meant stealing it off the harsh owner who had Usagi arrested and subsequently tortured to death, and not concerned in the least if Brutus outed him for knowing what was to come of his sparring partner, because he and Leo both knew he was an arrogant narcissist who lied through his teeth."Here."Without taking his eyes off the baked goods he was going to buy, Draxum held out a small vial with a glowing blue liquid inside, and told him: "This will give you access to use your mystic powers for exactly one hour. Ensure you are inside the range of my portals before it wears off so time that could be better spent is not wasted in sending for you.""Yes Draxum," Leo obediently replied, while taking the vial out of the goat alchemist's hand.Then, on his way out of the bakery to head to Usagi's owner to swipe the sword off him, he stopped and turned around at the sound of Draxum's voice."Ensure that brute is well aware you have my approval to retrieve the sword you need, and now that I no longer require the services of his useful slave, be certain to send that gutless, dishonorable slimerat a greeting from me."A smile spread across Leo's face at their understanding that he was permitted to rough up the brute owner of Usagi who was responsible for his death, and he emphatically replied: "You got it boss!""And one more thing..." Leo caught a yokai version of a sausage stuffed inside a croissant when Draxum threw it at him and ordered: "Eat, you will need your energy.""Thanks boss!"The slider ran out of the bakery, chowing down on the delicacy his owner gave to him that he would pay for with his own purchase, and in between bites downed the (surprisingly delicious) formula that would give him access to his mystic powers for exactly one hour.The black coloration infused into his hands and arms disappeared to reveal his ninja-wrapped green turtle skin underneath, and after tossing the final piece of his meal into his mouth, Leo instantly opened a portal that led to Usagi's brute owner's house.The brute who was sitting back in his parlor at this very moment, smoking a human cigar that he purchased on his recent above-ground tip to Ecuador, being none the wiser that a certain skilled fighter slave was about to portal into his room to pay him a 'Baron Draxum sanctioned' visit.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
A short, broad, grayish purple brute yokai with two sets of muscular arms sat at his desk, admiring the shiny blade of an odachi that would fetch him a good price in the Dark Alley; enough to pay for a new, good quality slave with some money left over to burn.With a flash of light from a mystically infected portal, a menacing mutant ninja slave in a dark red mask - one who he was very familiar with - stepped into the dimly lit parlor, sword drawn and a devious grin on his face.Brutus abruptly stood up and exclaimed in anger: "What's this!?""Hello, friend. You have something that doesn't belong to you and I'm here to take it off your hands," the trained warrior said in a tone that equally matched his menacing appearance."Get outta my home and go back to your owner where you belong, you runaway mutant trash!" Brutus loudly exclaimed.In an instant, with the skill and precision gained through years of training, Leo pinned the yokai up against the back wall with the blade of his sword in his right hand held straight across the brute's throat, and the sharp tip of a dagger poking his stomach with his left, just enough to cut through his shirt and pierce the skin slightly so that a small amount of blood seeped out, staining the fabric.Brutus glared into the constricted pupils of the eyes of the warrior slave staring at him and aggressively roared: "I'll have your head for this you run-away mutant! You traitor! You worthless experiment! The Baron and I are close friends and when he finds out about this he'll send you to the cops where trash like you belongs!"Without a hint of fear, a devious, crooked grin came on Leo's face and he calmly and threateningly informed the brute owner who had the gall to send his very own slave to the cops: "I already returned to the Baron and he asked me to give you a little greeting."Next, Leo sheathed the dagger (before he used it, the mystic infection was vying for control) and drew back his fist to land a swift punch in the yokai's gut.Although the brute was a broad, muscular guy, Leo knew how to throw his weight around and he withdrew his sword and stepped back to watch with a grin as Brutus cupped his two lower arms around his stomach and fell to the floor on his knees.When he looked up at the 'worthless mutant trash', Leo was in the process of sheathing his katana, and opted to take out his dagger once more, with his left hand......at the same time the pupils of his eyes glowed a dim purple, matching the dull light Brutus could see in the dark room was coming from the cracks around the cover of a pouch on the ninja's hip belt.Leo skillfully spun the dagger around in his left hand while slowly pacing back and forth in front of the brute."It came to my attention that a close friend of mine was handed over to the cops. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"The dark tone to Leo's voice clearly conveyed the darkness lurking within, and when the brute yokai tried to get into a more defensible position on his feet, Leo thrust ahead, slammed the yokai's body back against the wall, drove his dagger into the wall beside his head, and shoved his scowling face in close to his to aggressively yell: "I didn't TELL you you could STAND!""Take whatever you want from me and get out of here!" Brutus yelled through his own angry scowl.Leo menacingly smiled at him and asked in a cool, quiet (yet still very threatening) whisper of a voice: "What if what I want from you..." he yanked the dagger out of the wall, dug the tip of it into the skin between his two black, beady eyes, and finished with the cool, calm words:"...is your life?"A drop of blood trickled down between the yokai's two black, beady eyes and without once taking his angry gaze off Leo's dimly glowing eyes he sternly replied: "If you came here to kill me get it over with!""Brave man!" Leo congratulated. He abruptly pulled away from the brute and walked over to the desk, where Usagi's odachi was laying beside a lit cigar that was in a glass ashtray.Before reaching out for Sagi's ancestral odachi, Leo looked down on the cigar and commented: "Smoking is such a disgusting human habit." He turned his head to look at the brute, and added: "It suits you.""If you're not going to kill me then what do you want?" Brutus demanded."Only this."Leo picked up Usagi's sword and seriously considered 'justly' piercing his friend's crooked owner through with it.But he fought against that instinctual urge, knowing where it was really coming from, and firmly held onto the little bit of him he had left in the moment.But the thrill of the kill excited his senses. He realized within himself that he had to leave, pronto, before the part of the infection taking control of his thoughts and desires became too strong for him to keep at bay.A blackish-blue portal edged with solid black smoke and purple lightning-like sparks of ninpo opened in the room and Brutus silently watched with an angry scowl as Leo turned around to grin at him, waved 'good bye' with the blade of Usagi's odachi, and said in a threatening tone: "Thanks for the prize, perhaps we'll cross paths again one day. Friend."Then, with that threatening farewell, Leo stepped through his portal and came out the other side in his bedroom for a quick pit stop before finishing what he intended on doing to honor Usagi's name.The act of physically distancing himself from the yokai he very much wanted to kill was sufficient to quell the murderous rage inside of him and the infectious dark energy calmed down.After the portal snapped shut, he laid his katana on the wall mount so he could sheathe Sagi's odachi on his back with his second katana, just before taking off his dark red 'Foot soldier' mask and picking up one of his many human trinkets to stuff in his belt pouch where the mystic opal broach and the disgusting dark energy piece already were.When he was done that, he carefully unwrapped the ninja wrappings around his arms to get them off his sore, tender skin from both the too-tight shackles and the intense electrical shock he received. But they were burned into his skin at the contact points from his shock punishment, and he hissed through his teeth while delicately removing them until they were both all the way off.Leo looked over the new injuries he sustained, knowing Draxum would not be happy this happened to him if he ever got around to actually seeing the extend of injury that dummy did to him, and he quietly commented to himself: "I think I will put mystic ointment on those," before opening another infected portal to a different location in the Hidden City, and stepping through, with it disappearing behind him in a plume of black smoke.* * *~Meanwhile in Vienna and Patrick's Home~A sunbear yokai named Vienna stirred a pot of soup she was heating for Bunny's dinner when her red panda husband, Patrick, slowly opened the front door to their modest little home and came in with his head hung in sadness.Vienna looked up at her husband and asked the important question: "Did you get the ticket?" concerned she already knew the answer."No," was the short, one-word reply she was dreading.She dished up two bowls of the soup as Patrick shuffled his way over to the couch in the middle of the room, where he sat down and examined a map of the Hidden City and surrounding areas.He put his hand up and shook his head as his way of saying 'no' when Vienna offered him a bowl of steaming hot soup, so she laid it on the coffee table beside the map and looked down at it with him."There's three slaves checks he'd have to get past before the train leaves the east side, and that doesn't count the big mystic one in Central Quartz Bluff," Patrick sadly informed his wife in regards to trying to get the presumed-deceased, injured slave, Bunny, out of the east side slave district to his relatives who lived among the humans on the west coast - where yokai slavery was illegal."And the teller informed me children under ten can't ride unless accompanied by an adult.""We can't afford more than one ticket," Vienna sadly commented."Even if we could, there's no way he'd get past all those checkpoints without being identified as a slave and sent back to his owner," Patrick sadly offered."So there's no hope then."Vienna's soft word seemed to echo in the room, and she sat quietly with her husband for a moment, before patting his knee and rising to give Bunny his soup, and quietly saying: "We'll find some way to keep him safe."Patrick merely hummed in acknowledgement, and the next thing they knew a blackish portal opened in the room, with a deep, dark blue center and sparkles of purple ninpo electricity snapping around the edges.Patrick swiftly rose and protectively shielded his wife from any harm, but they both breathed a sigh of relief when they recognized the ninja turtle slave who stepped through."X! You nearly gave me a heart attack!" Patrick expressed. "I didn't know you have mystic powers now!"Leo smiled fondly at the two freed yokai who always treated any slaves who came their way with loving compassion - sometimes at risk of their own freedom - and the tender-hearted Vienna gasped when she saw the bruises around 'X's' throat as well as the sore, raw skin on his wrists, and walked up to him to inspect them closely."Oh you were shackled again dear, and are those electrical burns?"Leo turned his head to the side, shot his eyes down to the floor from, embarrassment and gruffly replied: "Yeah.""I'll get the ointment. Were you hurt badly this time?" Vienna kindly inquired, before laying Bunny's bowl of soup down on the kitchen counter to pull open a drawer where she kept some basic medical supplies.Leo raised his head to smile at her kindness that reminded him of Yolinda, whom he deeply loved, and told her: "Nah, I'm fine. The cops got their hands on me..." "The cops!" Patrick exclaimed, at the same time Vienna dropped the ointment she was holding from the fright of hearing those words come out of his mouth - knowing exactly what sort of treatment slaves were given by the crooked cops in the Hidden City and wondering how he was even still alive."Yeah but don't worry, Draxum showed up before they did anything. But, uh, Usagi wasn't so lucky."Patrick and Vienna watched wide-eyed as Leo very slowly unsheathed Usagi's odachi and held it up for them to see.Patrick clenched his fists tightly and turned around so Leo couldn't see the tears in the corners of his eyes, but Vienna didn't try to hide her tears as she walked up to get a good look at the sword she knew had belonged to Bunny's only brother."I'm afraid Bunny isn't in any shape to take news like this," Vienna informed Leo in a sad tone of voice.Leo sheathed Usagi's sword on his back again, fought against his own tears the threatened to overflow like Vienna's were, and asked: "Do you think he'll live?"Vienna picked up the mystic ointment she dropped and unlike what he would normally do before he met Yolinda and spent time with his caring family, for the first time ever Leo didn't even hint at trying to stop her when she opened it up and rubbed some on his sore red wrist where his green turtle skin had been rubbed raw and sported lightning-like red marks from when he was electrocuted."Yes. He's a fighter, he'll live," Patrick informed him. Then, while still rubbing ointment on Leo's skin, Vienna sweetly offered: "But unfortunately there's no way to get him out of the Hidden City. Not with those slave tags underneath his fur on the back of his neck.""There's three slave checkpoints before the Mystic Express leaves the east side, and that doesn't count the big one at Central Quartz Bluff before the train gets out of the slave district," Patrick informed him.Vienna moved on to the sore, red, inflamed skin on Leo's left wrist, he uncharacteristically held his hand out to let her, and she finished with: "I'm afraid there's no hope, X. The best we can do is to try and find a new owner for him here on the east coast. Someone who lives far away from the heartless barbarian who mistreated him so, and who will give him a better life than the one he's had to live up until now."Next, with a smile Leo informed the both of them: "My name's Leo now and I can get him out of the slave district if someone can let me know where to take him."Vienna looked at his face in surprise and Patrick looked the slave over who had marks leftover from when his shell was apparently cracked at some point, and three long gashes going down the length of his unmasked face, all of which weren't there the last time he laid eyes on him."It seems a lot's happened since the last time we met up, Leo," he commented."You don't know the half of it," Leo replied with a smile, before Vienna asked: "However can you portal him out of the slave district? Everyone knows Baron Draxum's portals are the best around, but even his distance portalling abilities can only take him halfway across the city at most before he needs to recharge.With a playful wink Leo informed Vienna: "Draxum doesn't have the best portals around anymore. Now where's Bunny? We gotta get him out of here, the sooner the better."Vienna kindly cupped her hands around Leo's turtle one and told him: "He's in the spare room, dear." When she let go, he smiled down on the small tube of ointment she left behind for him to take."I guess I always did have people in my life who cared, I just didn't see it before now," Leo quietly mused in a whisper of a voice, while reminiscing over the happy memories he managed to build up over the years with his best friend and fallen comrade, Usagi. Then he did a very strange thing for a mistreated slave who never wanted to be touched before now, when he wrapped his arms around Vienna and pulled her close in a hug.She was so surprised by this very unexpected action that it didn't even occur to her to hug Leo back, and he softly told her - and by extension Patrick, who was looking on with a smile: "Thanks. For everything."All of them knew that was his way of not only thanking them for the kindness they showed toward him, but also for helping Usagi's little brother to mend from his grievous injuries.Then, after he pulled out of the hug, Leo wiped away a stray tear that fell down his cheek, sniffled a little, and muttered the surprising words: "I guess those hero brothers rubbed off on me more than I realized.""Brothers!?" Patrick blurted out. But instead of explaining that whole situation, Leo simply told him: "And a human sister. But that's a story for another time," and went to the spare room where Usagi's little brother was resting and recovering from his injuries, with Patrick and Vienna following close behind.When Leo opened the bedroom door, he gazed in to see a heavily bandaged little white rabbit yokai laying back against a pillow and looking over the pictures to a children's story he liked about animals on an above-ground human farm, that Vienna routinely read to him.Animals he had never seen before and didn't know existed before laying eyes on this very book.Leo smiled at the sight and Bunny didn't look up, assuming it was Vienna or Patrick coming to check in on him, while captivated by the pictures but not reading the words, because - unlike Usagi - he was too young to be taught how to read and write by his literate parents before they died."Hey there, squirt."Bunny looked up from his book with a huge grin on his face and a sparkle in his unbandaged right eye at the sound of the voice he recognized. They knew one another well because of Leo being a close friend to his brother, and a fellow slave who repeatedly went out of his way to do good things for him, like giving him some food when they crossed paths in the Hidden City Market."X! Did you bring me a human trinket this time!?" Bunny asked with excitement."You bet, Bun-Bun," Leo replied, using the affectionate nickname Usagi only ever let him use outside of his family.Because he was family, too.Leo reached into his belt pouch for not one, but two items - the human trinket he brought as a gift for him, and the mystic opal broach that would come in handy as a starter item, so he could change his appearance to look like a human, since he would be living above ground in the human world with his uncle and his aunt - his dad's sister - very soon.Bunny coughed a couple of times and dropped the book in his lap to hold his little white paw-like hands out and let Leo drop a gold pocket watch on the end of a likewise gold chain into his waiting grasp, along with the broach.Leo smiled down with fondness on Sagi's little brother as he looked over the curious human item with interest, before clicking on a button on the side to open up the front, revealing the analog watch face."What is it?" Bunny asked, never having seen the time teller humans used that was long ago based off the idea of telling time by judging the position of the sun in the blue sky - two things the Hidden City raised rabbit also hadn't seen before beyond the pictures in Vienna's book.Leo sat on the edge of the bed beside Usagi's brother, joined him in gazing down on the watch with a smile, and told him: "It's a pocket watch. It's supposed to tell the time."Bunny scrunched up his cute little pink nose and inquired: "How?""I dooon't know," Leo answered, tipping his head a little to give the black arms attached to the center a look over. Then he eagerly added with a big smile: "But I bet that aunt and uncle who live among the humans could tell you when I poral us there!"Bunny's whole face lit up (reminding Leo of his little brother Mikey - saddening his heart a little from the longing he felt for his hero family) and he looked up at Leo to exclaim in excitement: "Reeeally!?"Leo kept all his intense emotions locked deep inside, gently booped him on the nose with a smile, said: "Really really," and then told him: "But I need your help because I don't know where they live. Do you remember the picture they sent that Usagi showed you? The one of them on their farm?""Yeah, I remember!" Bunny happily replied."Good, put out your hands for me."Bunny complied and watched with a big smile when Leo cupped both of his significantly larger turtle hands around his little bunny ones. Then, with a smile on his own face, the seasoned fighter slave told the little previous errand slave: "Now close your eyes and think reeeal hard about that picture. Think about their faces and the garden, the house that's behind them and the blue sky with those white, fluffy things called clouds. Keep doing that and don't open your eyes until I tell you, you got that Bun-Bun?"Bunny squeezed his closed eyes a little tighter and replied: "I got it.""Good."Leo's ninpo seemed to agree that doing this good deed for Sagi's poor, beaten and injured little brother was a very good thing, because he felt the sense like someone else was there with them - the same sense he felt when he he teleported out of the dungeon cell to Sagi's little hut when he was close to dying from shell rot.With that extra hidden strength supporting him, he push through the mystic numbness to allow the warmth of his ninpo to travel down his arms into his hands (warming Bunny's hands in the process). And when he was done, a glowing blue symbol he saw once before hovered in front of his chest, and as it faded away a blue portal opened in the room behind his back.Blue.Not blue lined with wisps of black or purple or any other color.Just blue, like his ninpo before this whole situation with the mystic dark armor.Leo breathed a sigh of relief over the definite confirmation his Hamato ninpo hadn't succumbed to the mystic dark energy and died inside his chest, and the he smiled at Sagi's little brother and told Bunny: "Ok, open them now.""Woooow," Bunny let out in amazement when he opened his eyes to see a blue mystic portal glowing brightly in the middle of his room. "Look, it's blue, your favorite color!" he happily exclaimed."And it leads to your aunt and uncle's farm," Leo told him with confidence, just before standing so he could push the blankets aside and scoop the injured bunny into his arms.Bunny held onto the pocket watch and broach Leo gave to him, but he put Vienna's book down on the bed. But of course the kind sun bear picked it up again and gave it right back to him, saying: "I want you to keep it dear.""Thanks Vienna!" Bunny replied with a huge smile. He reached out to give her a big hug, then Leo turned around so he could do the same with Patrick, before the injured little rabbit gave them both a wave good bye while excitedly telling them: "I'll see you soon!" not realizing yet that this was to be his new forever home.With a wink and a smile for the kind-hearted pair of yokai who risked their own freedom to assist a poor, injured little slave most others would have stepped right over instead of helping in his time of need, Leo took one big step through the portal, and came out the other side somewhere on a farm in sunny California, standing in exactly the same location overlooking the farm and the quaint white house as where the picture was taken.And there were Bunny's rabbit aunt and uncle, with his patched brown and white uncle standing in the carrot patch he was tending ahead of them to their left, and his white rabbit aunt looking up from her weeding in the flower garden that was growing on the side of the house to their right."Uncle Robert, Aunt Mariko!" the injured rabbit exclaimed with a big smile."Bunny, is that you!?" Mariko exclaimed. She abruptly got up from her position kneeling in the flower garden while Robert dropped the hoe he was using, and they both rushed over to tend to their injured and bandaged little nephew.Mariko immediately took Bunny into her arms and hugged him close, and Robert stuck his hand out for a friendly handshake while addressing Leo with the words: "You must be X, the turtle Usagi wrote us about."After they shook hands, Robert put both hands on his hips, and as Mariko looked over Bunny's many bandaged injuries, he said with a smile: "He never mentioned anything about your mystic powers." But his smile fell at the weak little, sad-looking grin Leo gave to his wife; and when the grieving slider gestured to the barn with his head for Mariko to follow him, Robert accepted Bunny from her hands while she told the little rabbit: "I'll be right back, I want to show your friend here something in our barn.""Do you have any animals in there?" Bunny asked with excitement.Robert smiled down on Bunny to tell him: "Not in the barn, but we do have a chicken coop, and a few cats around here somewhere. I'll take you to see them.""Oh boy, real chickens and cats, like in the book Vienna gave me?!" He showed his Uncle Robert the cover of the farmyard picture book while Mariko and Leo walked together toward the barn, where they could talk in private.As soon as they got there and were out of sight, Leo wasted no time in informing the rabbit of her deceased nephew in the honorable way he and Usagi had been taught early on in their warrior training.Mariko's relaxed composure instantly tensed with anxiety when she saw Leo very seriously stare straight at her, stand stiff and tall, and pound his right fist against his chest three times in a custom she recognized, followed by unsheathing Usagi's odachi while respectfully bowing down on one knee with his head down, and the sword raised up on the palms of both hands."No," Mariko gasped out. She tentatively reached out to grasp the hilt of one of her family's ancestral swords that went to her brother and was handed down to his eldest son at his death, knowing exactly what this meant.After it was out of his hands, Leo rose and fought hard to keep the tears at bay that were likewise welling up in the corners of Mariko's eyes while she gazed at the shiny blade of the sword that had stayed in her family for generations.Leo looked away, knowing the tears would overflow if he cast his eyes upon that sword again, and they silently stayed like that for a few moments while the gravity of this situation sank into Mariko's mind and heart.When she finally broke the silence, the white rabbit cleared her throat, and without tearing her eyes off the sword, said: "So Bunny's the last one in my brother's line now."Leo wanted to say something in reply, but he was too choked up to be able to utter a single syllable, so instead he stayed silent, swallowed down a lump in his throat, and briskly nodded his head without once looking at her."Does Bunny know yet?" Mariko asked, still with his eyes on the sword."No."Leo's voice came out sounding hoarse from the tension he was holding in, so he cleared his throat before continuing."He's not strong enough to take something like that. At least not yet."Mariko nodded her head in understanding and looked up at Leo to tell him: "I promise you, I will honor Usagi's name by training him with our family's ancestral weapon as soon as he's strong enough. And we'll give him a good life here, he'll have a proper education, freedom, all the things Sagi..." she got choked up and had to stop for a moment, before continuing in a shaky voice: "...wasn't . . . able to have."Leo couldn't stop it from happening, he had been holding back the tears over his close friend's death for too long now, and at Mariko's kind words of promise that Bunny would have a better life than he or Sagi ever tasted, they freely flowed down his cheeks, so he turned his proud warrior frame away from her in embarrassment and tried wiping them away, but more quickly replaced them."Stay with us," came the unexpected offer. "You can enjoy freedom too, X. Usagi wrote us about your honor and your loyalty. You could help train Bunny. I know Sagi would be honored for him to have a teacher like you by his side. You don't need to go back to that life you've been forced into - the life Usagi had to live. It'll kill you, you know that. The life of a slave isn't a long one.""Yeah, I know," Leo choked out. He sniffled, wiped away more tears, and quietly told Mariko: "My name's Leo now," before more tears flowed down his face that he continually wiped away. "And, uh..."Bunny's aunt sensed how uncomfortable Leo felt with someone here, looking right at him while the proud ninja warrior silently wept from his pain of heart, so she quietly walked toward the barn door where she laid the sword down so Bunny wouldn't see it yet, and kept her back to the cruelly mistreated slave while Leo got his words together, wiped away some more fresh tears, and finished his thought by saying: "I've got a family now, and, uh..." he gasped in three sharp breaths of air, let out a long exhale through his mouth to try and calm himself down, and continued. "And they need me. They got on Draxum's bad side and if I'm not there to keep him off their backs, I know what he'll do to them."Leo didn't see it because he was looking away, but Mariko nodded her head in understanding, and then offered: "Come out when your ready. Take however long you need," before quietly leaving to give Leo the time he needed alone in the barn to regain his composure before coming out to say his good byes to Usagi's little brother.It wasn't long before Leo sufficiently regained composure of himself, wiped away the last of the tears and joined Robert over by the chicken coop; with Bunny in his arms, joyfully throwing out feed to the chickens who were pecking around his uncle's feet, and Mariko nowhere in sight, presumably inside their house, regaining composure of herself before she joined them outside.When he got there, Bunny looked up at him with a big smile and happily told him: "I'm feeding the chickens, X! Uncle Bob said this can be my job while I'm here," not understanding yet that he was meant to stay here permanently.And that he would never again lay eyes on his beloved brother.When Leo walked up to stand alongside Robert, he smiled lovingly at the grinning Bunny, and the injured rabbit yokai grasped a fistful of chicken feed from the bag in his lap and held his little hand out to Leo, with a cheerful: "You try.""Ok, but I never fed chickens before, what do I do, just throw it on the ground?" Leo asked, genuinely not knowing what a chicken was before today, beyond it being sold as a form of meat in the human grocery stores."Yeah, but you gotta spread it out like this."Bunny showed him how to throw the seeds on the ground so the chickens weren't pecking at and stepping on top of one another to get to it, and then Leo imitated what he did and looked down in amusement to watch the cute solid brown and solid white hens with little orange beaks rush over to peck at the ground around his feet."I think you're gonna like it here," he told Bunny while smiling at the chickens, wondering how anyone in their right mind could ever eat such cute little creatures.He wanted to reach out and pick one up, but he didn't know how it would respond to being handled like that, so held back and then raised his head to gaze at the pretty blue sky above their heads with the fluffy clouds that looked like they would be so soft and cozy to lay on.Bunny joined him and he wholeheartedly agreed: "I think I'm going to like it here, too, X," still not understanding that this was meant to be much more for him than a just short vacation.That was when Leo reluctantly opened a blue portal trimmed in purple and black behind his back, smiled down on the injured bunny, and with a wink cheerfully told him: "You can call me Leo now, and get better squirt, I'll pop by as soon as I can."Bunny cutely winked back at Leo, and happily said: "Ok Leo! And maybe you can bring Sagi next time, so he can feed the chickens, too!"Leo didn't reply with anything but a smile and a hug for the little brother of his fallen comrade, thinking to himself: 'I guess it's not impossible for all of us,' referring to the 'born a slave, die a slave' motto known among the entire yokai slave community. He happily squeezed his now free friend a little tighter before letting go and taking one big backwards step in through his portal with a huge smile on his face, to leave before Bunny had a chance to see that he was beginning to tear up again.And finally, after he stepped out the exit portal into his Hidden City bedroom, Leo was able to collapse onto his bed and let himself mournfully cry his eyes out over the despicable things those crooked cops did to his best friend, before unjustly killing him and then forcing him to watch the entire thing from start to finish.While wishing he had a stuffed unicorn to cuddle into.Or better yet, a sibling or four......with the mystical infection that took root in his ninpo urging him to extract vengeance against the officers who attacked and killed Usagi, and who were nothing more than a worthless waste of life.* * *When Leo finally came out of his room after a good, long cry followed by some much-needed sleep, he first went to the kitchen to make himself something to eat, and then after finishing and cleaning up after himself he made his way to Draxum's pool to relax his tense muscles by swimming a few laps, before he head out to see if Cassandra was still going to meet up with him at the Hidden City hoverboard park.But when he got there, the pool room was in use by Draxum, who was sitting back with a contented smile on his face, relaxing and enjoying the hot tub.Something he usually only ever did after spending his time cruelly torturing another one of those spies or a yokai who got in his way in some manner.Leo gave a respectful nod of his head to his owner, knowing the pool was off-limits as long as he was in here, and turned around with the intention of soaking in a hot bath instead. But he stopped when Draxum addressed him, and turned back around to face his wet goat owner, awaiting his word."Lieutenant Hawk has been dealt with in an appropriate manner," was the first thing he said, that Leo took to mean he had been captured and tortured to death over his direct attack against him by illegally attacking his slave when he had him shocked and arrested.He didn't know how he felt about that. Should he be happy if the life of an arrogant, no-good, back-stabbing crook was taken?But he was proved wrong when Draxum continued."However his assistance in heading the search for the remaining pieces of the mystic dark armor is instrumental to the fulfillment of my life's goal, so he will be permitted live. For now. You will report to him tonight as usual, and I assure you there will be no further lapses in our contract."Leo's heart sank to the bottom of his feet at that command. He thought for sure that even if Draxum did let the idiot Foot commander live he would be ordered never to return, like what happened after Big Mama's ruthless attack."Yes, Draxum," he quietly let out, before turning around to leave, with all thoughts of relaxing in a hot bath out of his mind.Instead he grabbed his katanas and hoverboard from his bedroom to head to the hoverboard park; and since the blackness had returned to his hands, indicating the mystic formula wore off like Draxum said it would, he didn't bother trying to use his portals to get there.Besides, he was not interested in seeing that black and purple mystic smoke again.* * *It didn't take Leo long to get to the hoverboard park, and he was surprised to see the human Foot recruit, Cassandra was already there, over an hour before they were supposed to meet up, and watching the other yokai using the park who were pulling off some impressive tricks with their hoverboards."You made it," Leo commented with a smile, as walked over to stand beside her."Yes, I wanted to learn more about this thing called 'hoverboarding', and perhaps try it out for myself before you arrived," Casey replied, unusually calmly. But Leo grinned from ear to ear when her wild side wasn't far behind and she abruptly rose to her feet to very dramatically shake a fist at the yokai in the park while enthusiastically yelling: "But those hoodlums would not permit me to use one of their boards of hovering, even though I asked in the POLITEST of manners!""You can try mine," Leo kindly offered, while holding out his blue, refurbished board to her. "It's not as new as some of the other ones around here, but it works just fine."Cassandra gazed down on Leo's hoverboard in surprise, and then accepted it from his hands with a respectful bow and telling him: "I am most grateful for your generosity, it will not go unrepaid."Leo smiled and loosely crossed his arms while gazing at the other kids in the park, telling her in reply: "You can pay me back by teaching those 'hoodlums' over there a thing or two and chasing them outta here so we can have the place to ourselves.""Your request will be fulfilled to the best of my ability, I will hover this board in a way that makes you proud!" Casey very loudly and emphatically replied.Leo kept his eyes on the other kids hoverboarding in the park and told her: "Alright, the first thing you gotta do is...""I will have my REVENGE!!!" Cassandra yelled, wildly kicking off and whipping down the ramp on Leo's hoverboard."Oooor you can just wing it," the slider commented, very amused at this human's reckless behavior.He watched with rapt attention while the others in the park were knocked aside as the wild and unpredictable human whizzed down one ramp......flew over the next one going at top speed......and then popped over the top where her board went up, up, up waaaay up......and she went up, up, down, waaaay down.Leo winced with a: "Oh, that's gotta hurt," with the way Casey landed hard on her backside, but her reflexes were good and when the board hovering high in the air above her head suddenly dropped out of the sky, she rolled over in the nick of time to avoid getting hit right in the noggin when it came crashing down over where her face had been......and then smashed against the concrete so hard it broke into two pieces."C'mon, let's get outta here, she's crazy!" one of the kids said. They all left together as a throng while Cassandra got on her knees and scooped up the broken pieces of Leo's hoverboard, sadly saying: "I have brought disgrace upon myself with my unskilled hover abilities, and by breaking your board of hovering," before loudly yelling in anger that was directed at herself: "I promise I will REPAY you FOR MY WRONG!""It's fiiine," Leo told her with a relaxed smile while running down the ramp to stand beside her at the bottom of the pit. "Don't worry about it, the same thing happened to me once. I don't use that old thing anymore, anyway, I prefer skateboarding. C'mon, let's have a go!"Cassandra looked up from the blue board she broke to see that Leo unsheathed a katana with his right hand and stepped out in a wide stance, indicating he wanted to spar with her.A big grin came across her face and she likewise unsheathed her weapon - something that looked like a human hockey stick, but with a bent sword blade at the end.Leo instantly got into his low, wide fighting stance and they began circling one another, each with big grins on their faces."C'mon, let's see what you got, human!" the mutant turtle playfully taunted."I will RIP you apart and sell your GUTS at the docks for FISH FOOD!!!" Cassandra very dramatically responded.That forceful reply wiped the smile off Leo's face and he commented: "You know we're just sparing, right?""Pardon me, I can get a little overexcited at times," Casssandra politely replied."Yeah, I know, it's something I like about you!" Leo happily told her.This was just the distraction he needed from all of . . . well, everything, and he ran ahead, starting off easy on the human by slashing down in a wide arch, giving her plenty of time to block.She predictably blocked the blow, commented: "You do!? Most of my comrades belittle my enthusiasm!" and then surprised Leo with her quick reflexes when she threw a punch at his gut.He dodged aside in the nick of time before it landed and came at her again, swiping the blade down low at her feet this time.Cassandra responded by making use of one of the tall streetlights lining the edge of the hoverboard park to try and blind her opponent by jumping right up in front of it. But Leo knew this trick well so he whipped around to try and kick her from behind before she landed, but she was ready for him, spun around mid-air, and pushed off his shoulders to land on top of one of the ramps behind him.Leo smiled just as wildly as she was at that unexpected move - from a human nonetheless! - and he was beginning to think there was something different about her compared with all the other 'dumb' humans - just like how there was something different about his human sister.The ninja skillfully jumped up at the same level where she was standing and their weapons clanged together over and over again while they fought against one another all over the park, jumping off ramps and swinging off trick rails, and pulling off some sic moves, until they ended in the pit where his broken board hovered a few inches off the ground in two pieces; both of them out of breath and sweating significantly, but neither one ready to end the fun just yet.That was the moment Leo rushed at her and she unexpectedly kicked a broken half of his hoverboard right at him, so that when he put his foot down next he accidentally stepped on it, lost his footing, and flipped around head over heels before landing in a low crouch on the ground and raising his sword to block an overhead attack."Good trick," he told her. Their weapons clanged together and while pushing against her blade, he said in between panting through his mouth: "You're . . . unpredictable, I never know . . . what to expect!""Thank you," she replied with a smile, before abruptly trying to slam her knee into his chin.Leo countered by pulling back and swiftly kicking her other leg out from under her, giving him the upper hand so that she fell hard on the ground and he ended up standing over her with a foot on the hand still grasping her weapon and the tip of his katana pointed down at the back of her neck."But I got a few tricks of my own," he told her with a big grin and a playful wink."Very good Useless, I will practice your technique and learn to be a better fighter!" Cassandra happily replied, genuinely thinking that was Leo's name because it was the one Lieutenant Hawk always called him.Leo's smile immediately fell, he stepped off her hand, sheathed his sword, and crossly told her: "That's not my name," before turning his back to her, his cheeks flush with red from a combination of their intense workout, embarrassment, and anger.Casey rolled over onto her stomach and pushed herself up to her feet, saying in reply: "My apologizes, I assumed Commander Hawk called you that because it is your name." She sheathed her long weapon on her back and told him: "I must admit, I am unfamiliar with yokai customs regarding slavery, it is not something I ever learned about in my training."Leo crossed his arms and kept his back to her, still sounding cross and a little angry (although he wasn't currently mad at her) when he said: "Good, I hope you never do, and my name's Leo.""My friends call me Casey," Cassandra replied; and with the pleasant tone to her voice and the way she indirectly referred to him as her friend, Leo turned around to smile at her and say: "Friends, hey? I guess I can have another human friend, seeing I have a human sister and all. C'mon, I know a place we can cool off."And with that the two friends - a human and a mutant slave who was raised to hate humans - walked away side-by-side to head to a portal leading to a cool underground spring of water where they could clean up, refresh themselves, and get to know one another a little better.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
"No!" came Splinter's loud, firm, commanding voice. He was in the rec room with his three sons and honorary daughter, discussing their plan of action to get Leo away from that infectious dark armor and home with them where he belonged; and (once again) his family suggested breaking into the Foot Clan lair to retrieve him mystic ninja style."It is too dangerous, you are not ready to face the entire Foot Clan," Splinter very sternly told his family, not for the first time. "We will stick with our original plan and continue staking out the portal leading to Draxum's.""But pops, Leo hasn't used that portal once since all this happened!" Raph strongly objected. "And we all know what Draxum will do to him if he sees us anywhere near his property and Leo refuses to come with us again," Donnie added as the reason why they hadn't yet tried to go to the Hidden City to get their brother/son."There's no other way Splints, we gotta get Leo away from that armor before they put more of it together," April next urged, just before Mikey finished their shared thought when he exclaimed: "Yeah pops, we..." "No! That is my final word!" Splinter firmly interrupted in a tone that clearly conveyed there was no changing his mind on this. Then he very sternly told them: "Training resumes in the morning. Decide among yourselves who will patrol the portal tonight," before stretching his back and saying in a softer tone: "I need to give these old rat bones of mine a rest." But jut before retiring to his living room chair, he sternly pointed his finger at each of them and crossly ordered them: "Do not go anywhere near that warehouse, have I made myself clear!?"Raph's shoulders slumped and he sadly replied: "Yeah dad, we got it."When no one else objected, Splinter gave his family one firm nod of his head before leaving the room to relax after their long training day by watching some of his favorite nighttime game shows, and all four of them sadly watched him leave the rec room.But as soon as he was gone, Raph grinned at his brothers and sister and said: "So we all agree we're going to the Foot Clan lair to get Leo back?"Donnie popped the 'p' when he replied: "Yelp," at the same time Mikey emphatically nodded his head while humming in agreement: "Mm hmm," and April replied with a grin and firm conviction as if the answer was obvious (it was): "Of course."That was when they heard boisterous laughter from the living room, so Raph took that as their cue to leave by firmly (but quietly) telling his family of heroes: "Let's go get our brother back Mad Dogs."They all filed out of the lair, leaving their oblivious dad alone in the living room, having no idea what they were up to, or how things would change for all of them before the end of this very night.* * *~Meanwhile at the Foot Clan Lair~As per the norm for him, Leo showed up early for his shift slaving for the Foot commander, and when he walked into the large meeting room, none of the Foot soldiers were there with the exception of Lieutenant Hawk and Ox.With the former looking a little worse for the wear; sporting a black eye, a stitched cut that went down through his lips, and his right arm in a cast.Clearly Draxum had more than a few words with the wicked secondary owner when he was 'appropriately dealt with' and Leo swallowed down a lump in his throat with the way Hawk glared at him in anger......knowing that he was fully within his rights as the secondary contracted owner to take his anger out on his temporary slave in whatever way he saw fit, providing it fell under the law's definition of 'punishment' and not 'torture'.And, quite frankly, there was a whole lot of painful punishments that came short of being labelled 'slave torture' under Hidden City law.Leo respectfully kept his eyes down as he quietly walked up to the angry Foot commander, who glared at him the entire time, along with the second in command, Ox, who was repetitively punching his fist into his hand.When he reached the floor in front of the podium Leo did what he knew he had to by bowing low on one knee with his head down and addressing the no-good crook with the respectful words: "I await your orders, master.""How did those cops find out you belong to Baron Draxum and not me, like I told them!?" was the first, harsh words to come out of Hawk's mouth - who thought Draxum wouldn't listen to the word of a 'worthless' slave any more than he did, and had no idea what the crooked cops really did to slaves they got their hands on, beyond knowing some owners sent their disobedient slaves to them for 'appropriate punishment'.Without raising his head or standing from his position prostrate on one knee, Leo obediently replied: "They ran my slave tags through the system, master.""Slave tags, you say? Nevermind that, make yourself useful and go in the kitchen to prepare the next meal for our hungry recruits.""Yes, master," Leo respectfully replied, before abruptly rising and quickly walking out of the room to the adjacent kitchen, breathing a sigh of relief as soon as he was out of sight of the piercing eyes of the lieutenant over the fact that he wasn't cruelly punished; and figuring Draxum must have harshly (to put it lightly) warned Hawk not to take his anger against him out on his personal slave.* * *~About an Hour Later~Sweat was pouring off Leo in buckets as he worked hard in the hot kitchen, cooking a meal for dozens of Foot soldiers who were trickling back in to their hideout after they were sent out in groups on various different scout missions, searching for the remaining pieces of the dark armor that were rumored to be hidden in various locations across the city.Then he felt it.The ninpo warmth in his chest that meant his family was nearby.Leo jolted his head up from his work and swiftly went to the door leading to the mess hall - opposite the one to the meeting room - gazing around in the dark, unoccupied room for any sign of his turtle brothers and human sister.All of which he knew were nearby somewhere.But where, he didn't know. So he stepped out of the kitchen where he was ordered to stay and walked into the room, scanning around at every door, window, and possible hiding spot for any sign of them.He shot his head to his right when a couple of Foot soldiers walked past in the hallway, gazing in at him along their way to the training room.But one of them got a wicked idea, playfully elbowed his comrade, and went into the large dining room, straight up to one of the fridges lining a wall to take out two pieces of chocolate cake they were supposed to stay away from until after their meal.Leo narrowed his eyes in anger and watched him all along the way as the recruit rejoined his buddy, they each took off their masks, and then sank their teeth into their delicious stolen treat, laughing all along the way, while they both walked out of sight."Something tells me I'll hear about this again," Leo mumbled to himself, knowing there was no way Lieutenant Hawk would believe a lowly slave if he tried to explain that two of his very own recruits were the ones who stole the cake.It would only make things worse for him if he tried to point the finger at them, even if it was the truth.After giving the room one final sweep with his eyes and feeling the ninpo warmth diminish, he went back to the kitchen to tend to the meal he was cooking.Then a few minutes later, as expected:"Useless!" came a harsh voice from the meeting room."Of course," Leo grumbled bitterly to himself, before complaining: "Ugh, my risotto's gonnna burn!"He turned down the burner where the rice was cooking, covered it with a lid, and Hawk called out: "USELESS!!! COME HERE NOW!" but louder and angrier this time.Leo sprinted out of the kitchen to bow down on one knee in front of his secondary owner, with the few members of the Foot clan who were now sparring in there - or just hanging out - watching him, his sweat dripping off his head onto the floor as a result of his very hot work in the kitchen......and with a couple of the masked recruits in the very front snickering at him.The two who saw him in the mess hall where the desserts were kept.The desserts they wrongfully took without permission."What is your order, master?" Leo asked with his head down.The ninpo warmth in his chest grew.He swallowed down a nervous lump, hoping his siblings weren't foolish enough to show their faces here and now, in a room half full of armed Foot soldiers."You were caught leaving your post in the kitchen to steal food from our dessert supply, come here immediately to receive your punishment!"Leo stayed where he was on one knee with his head bowed low, and through gritted teeth he firmly replied: "I did not steal your food, master."The recruit who did steal the dessert laughed at him, along with his buddy, and Leo tipped his head far enough to the side to glare at the two of them."Do not lie to me! You were caught red handed in the mess hall by two witnesses, stealing what does not belong to you, now come here for your punishment, SLAVE!"Leo clenched his jaw tighter and obediently walked up the stairs towards his unreasonable owner. But when he bowed down on one knee like was expected of him, instead of bowing his head he 'disrespectfully' looked him straight in the eyes while clenching and unclenching his left fist and very firmly telling him (once again through gritted teeth): "I did step into the mess hall but I did not steal anything. Master."The wicked recruit who put him in this position laughed again, along with his friend who both knew what really happened."Are you calling my recruits liars, slave!?" Lieutenant Hawk spit out."Yes," Leo firmly replied in as respectful of a tone as he could muster, considering the rageful mode he was currently in.A mood that wasn't helped with the way his ninpo warmth swirled around inside his chest, in combination with and in combat against the dark energy infection.And behind Hawk and Ox's backs they weren't aware that the trim on the dark armor was glowing a dim purple.But the two recruits who put Leo in this position noticed the unusual purple glow and were about to inform their commanding officer......until Leo turned his head to stare straight at them with a murderous hatred, displaying a pair of purple glowing irises that pulsated in unison with the glowing dark armor.That was enough to shut them up from fright, and Leo put his head down when he faced back toward Commander Hawk, while very strongly resisting the desire put in his heart by the dark energy to whip out his dagger and put an end to the lives of those two no-good recruits who lied about him and took pleasure in his humiliation.Hawk flew into a senseless rage and loudly spit out: "You punishment will be doubled for your insolence in lying directly to my face!""I'm. Not. Lying," Leo forced out through gritted teeth.He fought harder to regain control of himself before something bad happened.The dark armor glowed brighter.Hawk was oblivious to what was happening behind his back, as was his brother, Ox, who were both standing back on to it staring straight at Leo, as he finished breaking free from the armor's hold over him.The glowing abated, Leo was ordered to rise, and despite having a protective shell covering his body, a swift fist from the big, brutish Ox knocked the wind out of his lungs with the force it pounded into his gut."Oof," Leo involuntarily let out when he was knocked back. But he wasn't knocked down, and next he grimaced when Ox stomped on his bare, ninja wrapped foot, just before Hawk ordered him: "Hold out your hand, slave!"Leo straightened his proud warrior frame and did as he was told by obediently sticking his left hand straight out, with his jaw tensed tightly in anticipation when he saw Hawk reach up with his good hand to swipe it through the flame hovering over his head.The mystic flame that didn't harm the yokai, but Leo was quite sure it would harm him when Hawk opened his hand to reveal a smaller red flame was hovering above it.The flame that he thrust out, under Leo's left hand, to burn it.Leo groaned and winced his eye from the pain, but obediently kept his hand where it was as part of his definitely very unjust punishment for a crime he didn't commit.He was just a slave, after all. And burn punishments on the extremities did not fall under the category of 'torture' unless it permanently disabled a slave's ability to carry out his normal duties for his primary owner (who had the right to do whatever he wanted with his slave).Hawk pulled the fire back and snuffed it out before it could cause irreparable damage to Draxum's useful slave. Then he coddled his broken arm that was in a cast and demanded: "What do you say, SLAVE!?""Thank you, master," Leo forced out.His left eye twitched.Hawk didn't notice, straightened up, glared at 'his' slave, and sternly ordered: "Back to your post!"Leo gladly returned to his post in the kitchen, hoping the risotto didn't burn in his absence, but the closer he got to that room, the more his ninpo warmed up inside his chest.And he discovered exactly why when he arrived in the hot kitchen, to see the horrified faces of his three turtle brothers and human sister gazing at him.His family who witnessed his extremely embarrassing and thoroughly humiliating punishment right before their very eyes."Why did you come here!? You need to leave!" Leo hissed at them, being sure to firmly shut the door behind him so no one else found out they were here.The ninpo warmth overtook the mystic infection inside his heart because all four of his Hamato siblings were together with him at the same time, and he rushed over to check on his risotto, with his injured left hand cupped close to his stomach, the ninja wrappings around his hand singed from the fire, and his entire body tense from stress and anxious worry over what might happen if they were found out.Then Mikey blurted out: "Why did you just stand there and let them do that to you, Leo!?"Without looking up from his work Leo sprinkled some salt into the rice, and snapped at his little brother in a very sour tone: "I don't think you know what a slave is!"Raph walked up to him and Leo did his best to ignore his big brother when he strongly urged: "You can't stay here bro, that mystic energy's messin' with your head! You gotta leave with us!"The slider completely ignored his big brother, tasted the risotto, and Donnie curiously raised one of his big eyebrows when he watched his slave brother spitting out what he had put into his mouth into a nearby garbage (because he was directly forbidden from eating any of their food) before carrying on with his work by sprinkling some more salt into the rice."Yeah stripes, you gotta get away from that dark armor," April urged in just as pleading of a voice as what Raph had used.Leo likewise ignored her plea and opened the oven to check on the roast he was cooking, while telling them: "You need to get away from the Foot Clan lair before they find you here and try to kill you.""We're not leaving without you," Donnie firmly told him.Leo likewise tried his best to both ignore his twin brother and the ninpo warmth thrumming in his chest in unison with his beating heart - tugging on him to leave with them - to tend to a big pot of corn on the cob that started boiling over on the stove."Please, Leo," April begged. "Yeah bro, you're one of us, not one of them," Raph told him while gesturing with his head to the closed door leading to where the Foot soldiers were. "You belong with us!" Mikey next urged, with Donnie nodding his head in agreement."You saw me kill a guy and you still want me?" Leo curtly questioned, without looking away from the sauce he was stirring on the stove with his good right hand, while still cupping his burned left up close to his stomach."That wasn't you, that was the dark armor infecting your ninpo that made you do it," Raph firmly told them."Yeah, the same infection that made me attack you, and April. Twice," Leo firmly countered."You're not attacking us now," Donnie calmly commented."That's because..." the words 'you're all here together' didn't get out of his mouth because at that moment the dark armor tried to strengthen its grip on the infected turtle, and was vying for control against his Hamato essence.Leo squeezed his eyes shut and groaned, trying his very best to fight against it."You're not safe here, ugh!" he warned them, then clenched his jaw tightly and fought with all his might against the pull on his mind and heart urging him to attack his very own family.At the same time, Mikey opened the door a crack because he heard a commotion in the meeting room, from the two Foot commanders noticing that the dark armor was glowing. And when Mikey told them what was happening, Donnie unsheathed his tech bō, facing the threat in front of him - the threat who was really his brother - in case Leo lost control and went on the attack.Leo flinched but didn't pull away when Raph put a hand on his left shoulder."Fight it, bro! We're here to help!""Yeah Stripes, we got this, together!" April offered with confidence, grasping his other shoulder with both of her hands.He could feel the ninpo warmth from his family flowing through his shoulders and into his chest, giving him strength.So he put his right hand on Raph's to keep it there, and grasped it tightly.The armor glowed brighter.Mikey watched as one of the recruits was in the middle of telling the Foot commander about how the turtle slave's eyes had been likewise glowing purple.Leo regained control, the glowing ceased, and the slider relaxed his body and took deep breaths through his mouth to make up for his rapidly pounding hearth.Despite being in such close proximity to the dark armor, being around all four of his Hamato siblings at the same time drastically helped to override the hold the mystic dark energy had over him.But instead of thanking them, the groosly mistreated slave of the great Baron Draxum sternly told them: "You need to get out of here before they catch you!" Then he stormed his way over to the wall past the door leading directly to the large meeting room, where half a room full of wicked Foot soldiers were currently located.On the wall was what appeared to be a breaker, but when Leo opened it, he pushed two switches to the left and then pulled on them to reveal it was a hidden small door covering a numerical keypad. One that he began clicking at, knowing the passcode because he discreetly watched a Foot soldier use it once when he was in here working.With a hiss, a secret door slid open, revealing a stairwell leading down into the darkness.Leo kept his injured left hand cupped close to his stomach, thrust out his right hand to point down the stairs, and sternly told his family: "That will take you to the sewers! Get out of here and don't come back!" Then he motioned to walk back to his sauce that was currently bubbling over, but stopped and shot his eyes up into his head from frustration while groaning out loud when he heard the stern, angry sound of his owner yelling: "USELESS!""What does he want nooow?" Leo lamented.But then he put his eyes on Mikey, who was standing in front of him giving him his patented little brother puppy dog eyes, when he let out a heart-breaking: "Come with us Leo. Pleeease?""USELESS!!!" came the lieutenant's angry cry once more.Leo glanced nervously at the door, before putting his eyes on April next, when she gently rested a hand on his arm and looked him in the eyes to tenderly plead with him: "Yeah Stripes, come with us.""We're never giving up on you, bro!" Raph next confidently told him, with Donnie humming: "Mm hmm," as his way of saying he wasn't giving up on their brother, either.Leo glanced at the door once more when Hawk angrily cried out: "WHERE ARE YOU, YOU USELESS SLAVE!!?" and then he hastily pulled off his dark red bandana mask, tossed it in the garbage, and grabbed Mikey to push him toward the stairs where the others were, while going with him and spitting out the words in apparent annoyance:"I don't know why I keep letting you talk me into these things!"A huge grin came across his little brother's face and the five of them very happily disappeared down the stairwell, with the door closing behind them moments before the angry Lieutenant Hawk burst into the room yelling: "You come when I call you, slave!"But the only thing left behind to greet him was a discarded Foot soldier mask hanging halfway out of the garbage, and a pot of sauce boiling over onto the hot surface of the stove in the likewise very hot and very empty kitchen.Meanwhile Leo and his family practically flew down the stairs, and after taking a few twists and turns in the underground maze that was the human sewer system, Donnie abruptly stopped and started clicking at his wrist tech."What are you doing!? We need to get out of here before they search the sewers for me!" Leo complained."We will 'get out of here' as soon as I scan you over for hidden trackers," Donnie factually commented.Leo's angry expression melted away and he exclaimed: "That's actually a good idea," while getting another idea by taking off his wrist tech Draxum made and used to communicate with him, to chuck it in the sewer water.(And feeling an immense satisfaction when he did so)After doing that, he stood still as Donnie looked him over with his tech goggles, and it was a good thing he did because it wasn't long before he pointed down to Leo's prosthetic leg and told him: "There are two, one in the calf, and one in the heel. The heel tracker might take some time to reach, but the other one is just behind a utility cover."He raised his goggles and immediately got down on one knee to open the compartment in the calf Leo didn't have access to, with a handy-dandy tool of his own design.After examining the tiny tracker closely, Donnie commented: "This looks like a simple enough design, I should have it out in two shakes of a turtle's tail.""Simple?" Leo questioned. He furrowed his brows in confusion. Nothing Draxum ever made that he didn't want others to get their hands on was simple or easy to access, and then the sudden realization hit him like a lightning bolt that it was a trap, and he yelled out in a panic: "No wait!"But it was too late.Donnie looked up at him with the tracker held up between his thumb and index finger......a loud, ear-splitting siren blared in their ears......bright red and white flashing lights blinded their vision......and Leo fell back against the sewer wall with the flashing lights blinding everyone else to the fact his face was screwed up in pain and both his hands were grasping his left thigh."He's down here, commander!" they vaguely heard someone call out in the distance."Hurry up and take that thing off so we can ninja out of here!" Raph urged."I. Can't," Leo angrily countered through gritted teeth.That was when everyone looked down and noticed through the brightly flashing lights that he was tightly gripping his left thigh with both his right hand and his injured, burned left one.His thigh that had blood seeping out from where the prosthetic snugly fit onto his leg, from four spikes that protruded into his flesh, tightly clamping the blaring alarm signal with a built-in tracker to the turtle creation who wrongfully allowed the removal of a second decoy tracker his owner put on him.That was when Raph wrapped his hands around Leo's shell with the intent of scooping him up, and loudly instructed: "C'mon, we gotta get you outta..."
*Beeeeeeeeep*
"Get OFF!!!"Leo pushed Raph away with such force his big turtle frame stumbled back two steps, the instant before the slider was hit with a bolt of electricity.Electricity that he would have normally been protected from, if four sharp metal spikes were not piercing through his leg. Which was a last resort defense mechanism Draxum installed in the event his slave ever 'wrongfully' turned traitor and tried to flee.As soon as it was over, Leo yelled: "All the tech's below the KNEE!!! We gotta CUT IT OFF!""Step aside, I finally get to use my TECH CHAINSAW!" Donnie loudly proclaimed, while reving up a chainsaw that somehow popped out of his impossibly futuristic, high tech bō with an 'evil genius' look of wild passion in his eyes."Don't sound so excited," Leo spit out at him through clenched teeth.
*Beeee...*
The sound of the approaching Foot soldiers was drowned out by a combination of the warning beep, blaring alarm, and the loud chainsaw that hacked through Leo's prosthetic knee like butter, severing the section of his leg that was blaring out a loud warning alarm with flashing lights before it had a chance to shock him a second time.The bottom half of his prosthetic was thrown into the running sewage water where his com already was, and the voice of Lieutenant Hawk sounded from around a couple of corners when he yelled: "He's over here, he can't escape!""We gotta move!" Raph urged, but when he reached out to scoop his injured, one-legged brother up in his arms, the ninja slider batted his hand away and told him: "Ohhh no, you're not carrying me like a baby, I'm getting on your back!"The voices got louder, Raph told him to hurry up and crouched down with his back turned to Leo, the slider was careful to avoid any of the sharp spikes on his shell when he jumped up on it, and then he wrapped his arms around his big brother's neck, who promptly put one hand behind his back to help hold Leo steady and ran away from the noisy prosthetic, along with the rest of their hero ninja family.Their family who was once and for all finally complete.* * *~A Short Time Later~At the turtle's secret hidden lair, Leo's family brought him straight to Donnie's lab, where his genius brother pulled some sort of techy move to help him with the matter of his leg.The slider winced and sucked in a sharp breath of air when the four spikes abruptly retreated back into what was left of the prosthetic, which promptly detach from his leg, falling to the floor with a *thump*, thus revealing his bloody thigh that needed to be bandaged.Mikey tied a towel around Leo's stump to get him as far as the med bay without spilling blood along the way, and the slider winced again before saying: "Thanks, bros," to Mikey and Donnie for their help, before gazing with appreciation on all his siblings, ending with a smile for April while adding: "And sis," indicating he was thanking them all for not giving up on him and getting him out of there."Here!"Mikey eagerly shoved a long, narrow blue strip of fabric into Leo's right hand that he must have been carrying around with him, and the slider looked down in surprise at the blue mask he made."You cleaned my mask," Leo said, with the words seeming to come out all on their own.The memory of the tiger yokai's blood splattering across his face flashed up in his mind and heart.He didn't know how he felt about wearing this again, until Mikey proudly announced: "No, I made you a new one!"The turtle who had been a 'lowly' slave all his life gazed at the brand new mask, furrowed his brows in confusion, and asked: "Why?""Cuz I knew you'd come back."The slider raised his eyes off the mask in his hand to look at his little brother and, still with his brows furrowed, asked him: "How'd you know that?""I just did. You belong with us. Remember?"A smile came across Leo's face.He looked down with appreciation at the blue mask again."Yeah. I belong with you," he wholeheartedly agreed."C'mon Leo, I'll help you to the med bay," Raph kindly offered next. And instead of offering to pick him up this time, the big snapper put his big, muscular arm out to let the honorable ninja warrior lean on him to help him hobble to the med bay on his own foot.But first, Leo happily commented: "If I'm gonna be part of this family, I gotta look that part, right mi hermanos?" before raising the blue mask to his red-eared slider face, and firmly tying it to the back of his head.And the way his Hamato warmth was radiating from his chest and thrumming along with his gently beating heart put an even bigger smile on his face."You got that right, bro!" Mikey eagerly replied.* * *~A Short While Later~Leo's leg was bandaged, but when it was time to tend to his burn wound his three brothers and sister watched in confusion as he unwrapped his singed ninja wrappings to reveal, not only sore-looking electrical burn marks around his wrist (that made more than one of them gasp at the sight) but also that the blackness on his fingers extended all the way up to his elbow.Donnie examined the black skin closely with his tech goggles and April pointed to one of Leo’s black arms and asked: "Uh, is this part of the Foot Clan look or something?""They didn't make you tattoo half your arms black did they?" Raph asked next in a stern tone of voice, that was really his way of conveying the anxious tension he felt over the thought of Leo having to endure through both arms from the fingers to the elbows being repeatedly poked over and over with tiny tattoo needles, until they were permanently a solid black - all because he was viewed as a slave in yokai society, who had to do what he was told, or else.The thought sent a chill down his turtle spine and Leo opened his mouth to reply, but it was Donnie who told them: "No, it's not a tattoo," as he continued closely looking over Leo's hand and arm.That was when everyone gave their red-eared slider brother their attention as he looked at his arms along Donnie, and told them:"Draxum made me dip my arms up to the elbows in some sort of mystic goop so I can touch the dark energy pieces without getting infected." Then he raised his eyes to look at his siblings when he further informed them: "It stops the transfer of mystic energy, I can't use my portals with it on.""I thought you didn't portal us home because you don't have your odachi," Mikey commented."No, I can portal without the odachi now. Or, at least I could before this happened to me.""How are you gonna get it off?" Raph next inquired."Only Draxum knows how," Leo told him."Perhaps I could create some tech that would be of benefit," Donnie immediately offered."You can try but I doubt it, I'm pretty sure you need mutagen to get it off, and only Draxum knows how to make the stuff."Donnie hummed in acknowledgment with those genius gears in his mind going a mile a minute, and that was when Raph patted Leo's shoulder before gesturing to his black arms and saying: "We'll patch you up and get you settled in, and hopefully Don can figure something out about this whole situation.""Yeah, that sounds good," Leo absently agreed, gazing down at his hands and feeling very much like none of this was real, like he was in a dream of some sort and would soon wake up in Draxum’s house, to have to begin a new day slaving for those idiot Foot commanders.* * *~A Short While Later, Yet Again~Leo's injured hand was wrapped after having ointment applied to the burns, and at some point Mikey retrieved the med bay crutches for their brother to use temporarily until Donnie finished working on a prosthetic leg that he proactively started a while ago, and was currently in beta.The slider gazed down on his bandaged left leg, still in a state of disbelief, and asked: "Sooo, what now?"The Hidden-City-raised slider had been a slave all of his life, always under someone else's command. He really didn't know what to do from here."Now I finish that Genius Build Apparel tech prosthetic so I can take it out of beta, bro," Donnie informed him. "It should be fully operational in two days. You are welcome."Despite the fact he was looking right at what was left of his left leg, until Donnie spoke up the thought of needing a new prosthetic didn't occur to him because of the state of shock he was in over the very unexpected turn his life suddenly took this very night.But when his brother's words settled in, a big smile spread across the slider's face and he looked up at Donnie with his eyes twinkling with appreciation and exclaimed: "Thanks, bro!"Then he turned his head to look at his big brother, who was nervously rubbing the back of his neck, when he said in an equally nervous tone: "Uh, I guess now would be as good a time as any for you to meet pops."Leo's smile fell.His whole body filled up with dread.He looked at Donnie and inquired: "Are you sure he didn't leave me behind on purpose?" referring to the conversation they had on this subject during their very last telepathic dream world connection."Positive," was the affirmative reply."How do you know that?" Leo firmly questioned."Because, unlike you, Iiii remember everything."Leo's eyes widened from surprise and he tentatively asked: "Wh-what do you remember?""I remember the fire and papá running to the exit with the four of us in his arms."Leo gave Donnie his rapt attention and kept his eyes on him as the softshell hoisted himself up to sit on the edge of the metal exam table beside him."I remember Draxum ordering his gargoyles: 'collect those specimens' and one of then snatched you out of dad's arms. But when he was flying back to Draxum, there was an explosion. You landed on the floor and a fiery beam fell on top of you. Or, at least it appeared to have from where we were.". . .
An explosion.
"Leo? Are you ok?"
A baby mutant turtle landing on the floor, crying from fear.
"You're kinda spacing out there, bro."
A fire raging all around.
"Leonardo!"
"I remember that part," Leo finally spoke up, telling Donnie, and by extension all of them. "I remember...ugh."He raised a hand to rub the side of his forehead from the intensity of the flashbacks that were occuring, one on top of the other.
A baby turtle crying on the floor amidst a raging inferno.
A small gargoyle body slamming into him.
The turtle skidding across the floor on his shell toward a pair of cloven feet.
. . .
A giant razor-fanged terrorworm bursting up from the sand beneath his left leg.
The sound of his shell sizzling.
A severed, bloody stump of a leg left over from the horrendous terrorworm attack.
The loud *CRACK* of his own shell splitting from Big Mama's barbarous attack.
The scorching heat of hot metal burning through five layers of scutes.
A blood-curdling scream.
"You're only making this harder on yourself."
A baby turtle crying from fear.
The sound of water sloshing in a bucket.
A mutant rat gently cleaning the back of his infected shell with warm, soapy water.
"Shh... Leonardo must rest if he is to recover."
Leo opened his eyes to stare blankly at the floor and tried to calm his racing mind and pounding heart by taking slow, meditative breaths.Then, when he was ready, he asked them all an important question pertaining to their biological, mutated dad."How do you know he even wants me anymore?"* * *In the living room, Splinter was laughing at one of his absurd game shows when he heard the sound of someone clearing their throat behind him, followed by one of his sons telling him: "Papá, we have someone you'd like to meet."Splinter laughed out loud and dismissively waved a hand back at his sons without turning around."Not now, Purple, they just took out the snakes! Hahahaha!""I told you he wouldn't wanna see me," came an angry voice Splinter recognized from the few days he was able to help nurse his ill, mistreated son back to health.The son he never knew and took for dead all these years, until quite recently.The son's whose ninpo he realized now he could sense in the room"Leonardo?"The soft tone to Splinter's voice prompted the one-legged turtle, who was in the process of limping away on a set of crutches, to turn his head and look behind his back at the mutant rat who was now standing, facing him and away from his show.He stared at his missing son in disbelief, while Leo flashed him his winning faceman grin on his blue masked face, and simply greeted him with the single word: "Hey.""It is you!"Leo used the crutches to help him slowly turn around, and he nervously scratched the back of his neck while gazing around in the room - looking anywhere and everywhere except at Splinter - while stumbling out: "Uh, yeah, I was gonna crash here for a bit. Unless you don't want me arou..."Leo froze in place when Splinter abruptly rushed forward to warp his arms around him in a big hug, with tears falling down his cheeks and wetting his gray rat fur.A hug that warmed his ninpo, like it was close to turning back into the same inviting, pleasant campfire it had been at the moment he first awakened it."My son! My son you came home to your papá! I will never let you go again!""Wh..what?" Leo stuttered out in disbelief."I visited the hospital, hoping you would return so I could bring you home, where you belong!""That's why you were there?" Leo asked, once again in disbelief."Yes, of course my son! I would have returned to Draxum's for you if Red hadn't informed me what happened when he tried, and Purple hadn't very strongly insisted that would make things worse for you. I thought I watched you die in that fire! I never would have left you behind if I had known you were still alive! I am so sorry my son, I am so sorry I left you behind to live a miserable life with that cruel warrior!"Leo's mind numbed worse than it already was at those heartfelt words, but his warm ninpo thrummed in unison with every beat of his heart, while the mystic dark energy seemed to be weakening.Splinter wept openly now, and although still feeling very numb, Leo crouched low on his one leg to get down at the same level as the shorter rat, who instantly wrapped his arms around his neck and cried tears of joy and relief and years worth of regret on his son's shoulder.At first Leo stayed frozen in place, hearing the weeping and feeling the soft fur and the warm arms around his neck from his dad - his very own dad! - hugging him and crying on him, without in any way returning the hug.Until, finally, Splinter's heartfelt words and actions reached deep down into his heart, sending a flood of ninpo warmth flowing freely throughout his entire body; and he reached out to tightly grasp the dad he never knew, to return his warm, loving embrace for the very first time ever in his life.Splinter squeezed him tighter in response, and then Leo felt the tears coming even before his mind was fully cleared of the numbness; replaced with a flood of intense, somewhat conflicting emotions ranging everywhere from anger and resentment at Draxum for forcing him to live a hard life as a slave and stealing him away from the only family he had, to relief and happiness over finally being with the family he loved.But by far the foremost and strongest of all the feelings swirling around in the mess of emotions intermingling inside his mind was the intense relief he felt of finally being here, with his family, where he belonged."I love you, my Baby Blue," Splinter tenderly expressed through his weeping.Leo wasn't yet sure of exactly how he was feeling for the dad he never knew through all of the intense emotions raging around inside his mind, but he did know he felt happy at hearing the endearing nickname he was just given. So he sputtered out a weak laugh through his own tears, and said in a happy tone: "Baby Blue, hey? I think I could get used to that.""Now that you are home where you belong, we will have much time together for you to get use to many more things than just a nickname, my son," Splinter kindly promised.And although he wasn't yet ready to express what he was feeling toward his dad with words, Leo's heart radiated more joy and love than he had ever felt before in his entire short, lonely, miserable life.And for the first time ever, he finally understood how his little brother could feel so much without exploding and lashing out at everything in sight......because the many positive emotions he felt - like love and happiness and belonging - overrode any negative ones swirling around inside his mind and heart.Feelings that amplified when Raph cried out from joy: "Aw, come here!" and was the first of his four siblings to join in on the warm family hug.And everything felt just right."It's gonna take me a while to get used to this," Leo admitted, not only referring to the overwhelming flow of positive, happy emotions inside of him, but also finally being part of a family, in a place where he actually belonged, was wanted, and was deeply loved for just being his imperfect self.And in response, Splinter gently patted his back and reassured him:"Take your time, my son. We have the rest of our lives together."
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
After his joyous reunion with his rat dad, Leo's entire family - Splinter included - happily showed him around his new lair home, ending in the big circular rec room where they started, with the living room entrance off to one side, and four other rooms along the walls up on top of the skateboard ramps, each concealed behind a different colored curtain.One red curtain.One orange.Another purple.. . .And one blue.And that was where they were standing now - directly outside the blue curtain concealing a surprise behind it, as the very last stop in his lair home tour."I want to show him!" Mikey blurted out with excitement, bouncing on his heels."Scoff! Most of the work was done by yours truly, which means I shall have the honors," Donatello objected."Nuh uh, I worked harder than anyone," Mikey firmly objected."That's right Mikey, next to Raph, of course," the snapper proudly replied."Hey! I did just as much work as you three turkeys!" April firmly objected in an offended tone of voice.Leo snickered at the sibling banter and Raph scolded: "Guys, quit it, we're not gonna argue about this!" Then he proudly pointed to himself with his thumb and added in a much more pleasant tone of voice: "I'm the big brother, it was my idea, so I'm the one who's gonna show Leo!""You're idea!?" April yelled in anger."Oh no you don't!" Mikey barked out. He jumped at Raph and wrapped both arms and legs around his much bigger arm when the snapper reached ahead to pull open the blue curtain.Leo watched with amusement, as next Donnie innocently whistled in the background while discreetly sending out one of his patented tech claws from behind his back; but April caught him and pulled out her baseball bat to thrust it at his nose and sternly ordered: "So help me Donnie, if you as much as touch that curtain I'm gonna get the whoop out on all your tech!"Leo smiled as his siblings began pushing and shoving each other in a joint attempt to be the first one to do the big reveal while stopping each other from doing the very same thing. Then he leaned in toward Splinter - who was groaning and looking thoroughly unimpressed - to ask: "Are they always like this?""This is nothing, you should have seen them last Thanksgiving when Purple invented an automated turkey carver and accidentally knocked out the lights when a drumstick hit the breaker. Ugh, I was picking turkey out of my fur for a week.""Thanks. Giving. Huh. I think I heard about that, it's when you give stuff to turkeys or something, right?" Leo commented, not knowing what a 'stuffed turkey' he heard of was or having a very good grasp of human holidays; and wondering if the Thanksgiving turkey was in any way connected to April calling their bros 'turkeys' just now, while he quite happily watched the entertainment happening before his eyes."Uh, not exactly," Splinter replied. That was when he put an end to the fighting by yelling: "Boys, and April that's enough!"Everyone froze in their tracks, staring at Splinter, with Raph reaching up for the curtain, Mikey hanging onto his big arm with his mouth wrapped around his wrist that he had been gnawing on, one of Donnie's tech claws pulling back on one of April's buns to get her away from him while she was grabbing his tech shell in one hand with her bat raised, trying to climb over his shoulder and about ready to knock the other Extend-a-Claw reaching for the curtain right off.Splinter gestured to the wildly grinning Leo with both hands and suggested: "Perhaps we should allow Blue to have the honors.""Uh, yeah, good idea, pops," Raph commented, just before Leo happily said: "Blue, hey? It seems I'm gonna be getting a lot of nicknames around here."His siblings stepped back so they weren't standing between him and the blue curtain door, and they watched with eager anticipation as their red-eared slider brother limped up to the curtain on his crutches and pushed it aside to reveal his new, fully furnished bedroom.The slider's eyes sparkled with appreciation as he gazed around at everything his family had lovingly put together for him.On the opposite side of the curtain door where he was standing, Leo saw a white shelving unit pushed up against the back wall that would be the perfect place to start a new human knickknacks collection; and then he turned his head to the left to see a dresser he didn't know yet was half full of warm clothes."Is this all for me?" he asked in wonder."Yelp," Mikey said proudly.The slider next turned his head to look to his right at his brand new bed with a blue comforter on top......and prominently displaying on top of the comforter was the white unicorn stuffy with a golden horn and rainbow mane and tail that he had been cuddling into and weeping on the night he went out to buy some needed essentials.The unicorn he had to leave behind, because he couldn't afford it and his inner Hamato honor in combination with rubbing elbows with his hero brothers swallowed up the tiny voice in his head trying to convince him it was ok to steal it.Leo didn't take his eyes off the special surprise waiting for him, and he limped up to it on his crutches and tentatively reached his right hand out to stroke the rainbow mane, before pulling back, almost feeling like it was a crime to touch something so precious, as though it couldn't possibly really belong to him.(After all, Draxum would most definitely never permit his warrior creation to have such a thing, so even if he could have afforded it he knew from the moment he laid eyes on it that it would never really be his, because he would've eventually had to leave it behind in that cold hospital bedroom when his owner called him back)When the realization finally settled in that all of this was his, the slider laughed to himself, and then turned his head to gaze at his smiling big brother and happily tell him: "I knew I was being followed! I told you you're stealthy for a big guy!" "Heh, yeah," Raph happily admitted, a little bashfully.The warm family moment that Leo thought couldn't get any better did when Mikey eagerly ran up to him to wrap his arms around him in a hug and asked: "Do you like it!?""I love it!" Leo happily replied, before hugging him back.Then everyone, even Splinter, got in on the event, with each and every one of them thoroughly enjoying their complete Hamato family group hug.And Leo didn't think his life could possibly ever get better than it was right now.* * *~Not Long After~It was very late at night, April already went home to bed because she had school in the morning, and Splinter likewise went to sleep because it was too late for him and they had training in the morning. Meanwhile Leo and his three bros were still awake hanging out in the rec room, kicking back and relaxing after their long night.The slider who was new to the human world was perusing through the human side of the internet on his very own cell phone that Donnie had given to him, looking up pictures of different types of human food. Specifically meat.Donnie was on his tablet working on some software for the tech leg he created for Leo; Raph was flipping through funny videos on his phone; and Mikey was sprawled out on the floor reading one of his many JJ comics."What's steak?" Leo asked, after finishing looking up what turkey was from his conversation about Thanksgiving with his dad."Cow," Raph told him without looking up from his phone. Leo hummed in acknowledgement and after scrolling through a few pictures of cows he decided he was ok with eating the meat of that particular animal (unlike chicken, like the cute little hens he fed on Robert and Mariko farm).That was until Donnie pipped up: "Look up veal."Raph shot Dee a dirty look but didn't say anything, and after typing that in and seeing photos of baby cows, Leo's eye widened from surprise and he loudly blurted out: "You EAT that!!?"With a sly grin, Donnie looked up from his tablet to suggest next: "Look up lamb chops.""Donnie!" Raph chided at his fact-and-prank loving brother, at the same time Mikey glared at him in anger.But Donnie couldn't help but laugh out loud when Leo sat up staring at his screen, wide-eyed in surprise at the extremely cute the little critter called 'lamb' that was used for food."Who would EAT that!!?"He flopped back on a blue beanbag chair that was already there, waiting for him when he moved in, let his phone fall from his hand onto the floor, and grumbled: "That's it, I'm only eating pizza toppings and seafood.""Look up..." "DONNIE! NOT HELPING!!!" both Raph and Mikey yelled at him in unison.Leo merely glanced in their direction before letting his head fall back on the beanbag chair to stare blankly at the ceiling, thinking about the yokai-human amalgamation of food he had eaten at Hueso's, and mumbled: "At least there's nothing wrong with pepperoni.""Piglets," Donnie quietly said while staring at his screen. He couldn't help but snicker with the angry glare Raph shot him, and against his better judgement Leo picked up his phone to type the word 'piglet' into his search bar.As soon as saw what they were, he flopped his arm down to let the phone fall to the floor again, and then slapped both hands over his eyes to groan loudly and whine: "Don't tell me that's pepperoni!""Technically the adult is made into pepperoni, but that's what the babies look like," Donnie factually offered.In reply, Leo glared at his intelligent brother and imitated their two other brothers when he sternly said: "Donnie. Not helping."But that got everyone - including Leo - laughing, and the slider wondered if living with his very own family would always be this great.* * *~At the Foot Clan Lair~Draxum was standing proud and tense, with his hands clasped behind his back while gazing at the partly complete Kuroi Yōroi before him."So you are telling me an entire clan of trained Foot soldiers couldn't stop a one-legged mutant from escaping without his prosthetic leg?" he sternly inquired.The two Foot commanders - Hawk and his brother Ox - watched on nervously from behind his back, with Hawk coddling his broken arm, before clearing his throat to confidently reply:"Yes Baron Draxum, but I assure you, I have my recruits scouring the city for him as we speak!"Draxum whipped around in anger and aggressively demanded: "You mean those useless idiots who couldn't stop one little turtle from escaping with his inept family of untrained BUFFOONS!!!""Uh..." Hawk and Ox lowered their heads. "Yes, those recruits," the former shamefully agreed."We need his Hamato essence to complete the ceremony! It is the only way to stabilize the currently volatile and dangerous dark energy hidden within the armor!" Draxum aggressively informed them. "I sent him here, working for you idiots to keep him close to the dark armor that infected him so it would sever his mystical connection with his Hamato family and what do you do!?"He dramatically stepped ahead, Hawk cringed and pulled back, and the furious yokai (who never did any wrong in his own eyes) yelled even louder than before: "You put his life in danger with his unlawful arrest, and now you've turn my obedient slave against me by treating him so insolently you not only permitted but encouraged his escape! An escape that would never have happened if you weren't so arrogantly overconfident you didn't put up the proper securities to ensure your base wasn't infiltrated in the first place!"The Baron grabbed Commander Hawk, aggressively thrust him up against a wall, and loudly yelled in his face: "Do you have any IDEA what the Hidden City POLICE would have done to him if they didn't run his SLAVE TAGS before it was too LATE!?" "N-no, Baron, I was raised in the Western Cavern City, I'm not familiar with Hidden City slave laws," Hawk nervously informed him, referring to an underground hidden city on the west coast of the country, where slavery was illegal.A devious grin came across Draxum's face and he calmly said:"How fortunate. For me." He let go of Hawk so that he fell to the floor with an: "Oof!" and glared down on him while calmly but threateningly saying: "I suppose this also means you are unaware of the laws governing the use of contracted slaves?""Yes, Baron, I only know what was included in our contract.""Excellent."Draxum turned around to walk toward the Kuroi Yōroi and proudly gazed up at it for a moment, before raising a hand to snap his fingers, prompting the chief of police and a large squad of Hidden City police officers to storm into the room, armed and ready for a confrontation."What's this?" Hawk demanded.Instead of replying, Draxum exercised his legal rights as a slave owner who had been wronged by a contracted secondary owner.Incidentally, in the Hidden City if a secondary owner broke one of the many slave laws or breached a slave contract in any way, the primary owner had the right to take matters into their own hands in whatever way they saw fit, in front of appropriate sanctioned witnesses (in this case the Hidden City police). But if the secondary owner formally objected before those witnesses, the matter would be taken through a lengthy court case.Although the cops could be bought with a price and the slave auction house was owned by Big Mama, the courts were under the control of the Council of Heads, who had been sending spies in repeated (failed) attempts to infiltrate Draxum's home to try and prove he had been unlawfully attacking fellow yokai who got in his way, and to expose his mutagen work to find some legal grounds by which to publicly strip him of his title and run him out of town.But the Baron was good at covering his tracks, and he had a wide array of yokai followers the world over who were at risk of causing an uprising if they couldn't find solid, valid, legal means of stopping him in his work.Meaning if Hawk knew the specific wording of the one and only appropriate way to formally object to Draxum's next words, the matter would have been taken directly to the Council of Heads, who, although initially were the ones to bestow the title of 'Baron' upon the intelligent warrior alchemist, now hated Draxum and would do anything in their power to make his life more difficult."Due to your many breaches in our slave contract, I will be exercising my legal rights to procure a new slave for myself," Draxum calmly notified the current head of the entire Foot Clan.He turned his head to look at Commander Hawk from behind his back, and sternly told him: "You.""What!? You can't do this to me!" Hawk yelled aggressively, with spit flying out of his mouth.With a devious grin Draxum narrowed his eyes in anger, coldly told him the words: "Oh, I very much can," and then turned around to gaze at the Kuroi Yōroi once more, while calmly informing him: "Being your new owner and master, naturally all that is yours becomes mine. Meaning I am now head of your pathetic little band of ruffians you dare to call a Foot Clan.""No!" Hawk yelled."I will take your brother as well, as an additional compensation for the loss of my useful slave," Draxum dryly added."What!?" Ox blurted out from surprise, not knowing that he also had a legal right to formally object.Draxum turned his head to slyly grin at the big buffoon with the prideful words: "Wrong answer."Immediately, the two brothers were rushed by the Hidden City cops and held down to be shackled in chains, giving them the same treatment they gave to Draxum's slave, Leonardo, when he was carted off by them.There was quite a bit of cursing, aggressive yelling, and threats of retaliation on the part of Hawk and his brother, but in the end they were disgracefully led away, with Draxum instructing the police chief who remained behind: "After you've had your fun with them send them to Big Mama as a gift from me. And ensure your officers do not take things too far, I guaranteed they would be in fighting condition within the week for her Battle Nexus." He abruptly spun around to glare at the griffin chief and very sternly told him as a threat: "I trust I can depend on you this time, unlike yesterday when you came dangerously close to torturing and killing my very own personal slave and creation!""Yes, Baron, I guarantee you they will be delivered to Big Mama's office in fighting condition before the end of this day!"Draxum narrowed his eyes in anger and let out a cold: "Good. And make use of your many contacts to hunt down whatever remaining pieces of the dark armor you can find while I dig up some useful warriors to aid in the search.""Yes sir!" came the reply."Now if you'll excuse me, I have an appointment with an annoying spider to procure the use of her mystic train."The police chief respectfully bowed to the Baron and took his leave, just before a portal opened up in the room and Draxum stepped through, to barter with the likewise devious Big Mama for use of her mystic train, to transfer all the pieces of the dark armor to the necessary location for an important moonlit ceremony when the time was ripe.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leo leaned on his crutches and looked at the 'turtle pile' with apprehension.Apparently this was a regular occurence among his very huggy family - when his three turtle brothers gathered their beanbag chairs, pillows, and blankets to sleep all together in the middle of the living room.Even Splinter was there, getting comfortable in his cushy living room chair after Mikey woke him up to join them and he let his youngest drag his 'tired old rat bones' out of his bedroom - but only because Leo was here.And they were eager for their 'new' brother to join them for the very first time.(Well, Donnie didn't look all that eager with the way he kept his eyes glued to his tablet, but considering the softshelled member of the family took the liberty of grabbing Leo's blue blanket and putting it next to him - between him and Mikey - it was clear that the less-huggy member of the family wanted him to join the pile, as well)But Leo was eager to try out sleeping in his new bedroom for the first night ever (snuggling with his soft and cozy rainbow unicorn, of course).Alone.Like how he slept practically every night of his life, with the exception of a few times he was in a (short-term) relationship with one of those 'chickies' who frequented the Dark Alley, or spent the night at Sagi's.Honestly, he really doubted he would get any sleep whatsoever in between the active Mikey who he figured rolled around in his sleep, the techy Donnie, who would probably be up all hours looking at his too-bright tablet screen, and the bigger snapper who he suspected snored loudly."C'mon Leo, join us," Mikey cheerfully requested, while patting the spot where he was supposed to lay down."I don't . . . 'turtle pile'," Leo replied, using air quotes like Donnie, since he was away from Draxum now, who recently forbade the use of them.When he did that, Mikey gazed at Leo's black hands and arms, thinking. Then he sat up a little and his eyes sparkled from excitement when he got a 'great' idea and gestured to his brother’s arms while offering: "We could break into Draxum's and steal some mutagen so Donnie can whip up something to fix all of this!"But he slumped back and scrunched his head down into his shell a little with the way Raph sat up to glare at him, and from Leo's clearly angry reply at that suggestion when he very firmly told him: "No one's breaking into Draxum's, you'll never get out alive!" He crossed his arms in front of his tense body as best he could with a crutch stuffed under each armpit, and sternly added: "Either that or he'd use you as bait to get to me. He needs me for something to do with the dark armor, but I don't know what.""He requires your lifeforce to stabilize the powerful dark energy, my son," the very sleepy Splinter - aka Hamato Yoshi - spoke up and told him.All eyes were on their rat dad now, and he continued with his explanation while looking at Leo to inform him: "He may believe that stabilizing the power by sacrificing your Hamato essence will allow him to wear and control the Kuroi Yōroi, but that is impossible. No one can control it, it will only gain more power by draining his mystic force. However stabilizing the dark energy with your lifeforce is the only way to bring back the dreaded Shredder.""Why me?" Leo asked next, skipping over this whole 'Shredder' thing (that he had heard that arrogant Hawk drone on about) for another time.Splinter stood up and walked toward him, telling him in all seriousness: "The Hamato clan split away from the Foot five hundred ago, which was formed when the Shredder consumed the Hamato essence of one of our ancestors, Oroku Saki. That connects us to the energy lurking inside the dark armor, and, like our ancestor who succumb to the Shredder, you are a living descendent of the Hamato clan with blood on his hands, which is what is needed to reunite the banished Shredder with his armor here on earth.""Yeesh, soo, that's why Draxum wants me? To stabilize the dark energy because I'm a Hamato with blood on my hands?" Leo asked, not because he didn't understand but because he needed to hear it again to let the words fully sink in.And not realizing he still had a piece of the dark armor in his possession, tucked away inside his hip pouch, because the dark energy infection inside of him made him forget about it.For now.The same infection that made it so he didn't sense yet another piece of the dark armor laying in plain sight within the lair, as an unassuming item currently sitting on the kitchen stove - with the gauntlet having been safely stowed away in a secret, secure location before the three turtles retrieved their brother from the Foot Clan lair."I'm afraid so, my son," Splinter solemnly told him.Leo uncomfortably readjusted his crossed arms, turned his gaze to the side to look away from his family, and tensely informed them: "Draxum gets what Draxum wants. He probably has the Hidden City cops and every gang in the city searching for me." He turned his gaze back to his dad to firmly tell him: "It won't be long before they find me." After that he let out a sad sigh, looked at his brothers who he loved, and softened his tense tone of voice when he added: "All I did by coming here was put all of you in danger."In response, Splinter walked up to Leo and put his hand out to hold his. The slider uncrossed his arms to let him, and looked into his eyes when his dad lovingly told him: "You did the right thing by coming home with us, my son. Only by drawing closer to your family and moving forward from your dark past can you sever your mystical connection to the Kuroi Yōroi and successfully rid yourself of the dark energy that infected your ninpo." He patted Leo's hand and smiled at him while adding: "And I am glad to have you here with us, where you belong, my son. We all are."Leo's three brothers smiled and nodded their heads in agreement and he gently smiled back at his dad and softly said: "Thanks." Then Raph next asked: "Is there anything we can do pops? So Leo's life isn't in danger?"Splinter let go of Leo's hand and turned around to face Raph when he responded: "Leonardo is right, Baron Draxum is ruthless and cutthroat. He will not give up his search for Blue. Do not underestimate him. We must keep our guard up and be prepared for a fight. Training will resume first thing in the morning.""You got it pops!" Mikey agreed with a thumbs up and a smile on his face.Then Splinter stretched his back and said: "For now, I must get these old rat bones to bed." He patted Leo's arm, reiterated what he had been saying on and off ever since he returned home, namely: "It is good to have you back, my son," and - without a smile this time because he was pondering over everything he had just been told - Leo agreed: "Thanks, pops, it's good to be home."Splinter walked away to retire in his bedroom that was off the living room, keeping his sliding door open behind him, and Leo gazed at his three brothers, with the hopeful Mikey smiling up at him and patting the spot between him and Donnie.* * *~A Few Minutes Later~Despite Mikey's pleading and throwing every 'little brother' privilege he could think of at him, Leo's trouble mind was filled to the brim with woes, so he firmly resolved to sleep alone in his bedroom tonight, where he could think.At the moment he was laying on his back, with the stuffed unicorn by his side, gazing up at the glowing star stickers Mikey stuck to his ceiling, deep in thought."How am I supposed to move forward from my dark past?" the slider quietly thought out loud.He laid like that for a while longer, thinking, but getting absolutely nowhere, while the heavy drowsiness from a very long day kept weighing his eyelids down. So he let out a big yawn, said to himself: "I really ought to take off my belt," and tried fighting against the sleepiness trying to overtake him.But eventually the heavy weight of sleep took over, with the thought of moving forward from his dark past still on his mind when his eyes eventually closed and he fell fast asleep from exhaustion after his very long and very eventful day.In his sleep, a bright purple light flashed before his eyes, and the slider flinched from the sensation of the dark energy swelling inside his chest, with the dark energy piece in his belt that he was still wearing glowing inside the pouch.That was when, under the influence of the dark armor and in a sort of trance where he didn't know if he was awake or dreaming, he sat up in bed, grabbed his crutches, and made his way to the kitchen.But he made one little pit stop in Donnie's lab along the way.A few minutes later, Leo walked past the living room where Raph and Mikey were cuddled up together, each asleep, and Donnie was still awake with his eyes on his tablet. But he looked up when he saw his brother walking past, curiously wearing the tech prosthetic that was still in beta and that he wasn't supposed to wear until the injuries to his leg healed sufficiently.His brother who did not in any way acknowledging Donnie's existence when he called out: "Nardo?"When Leo got to the kitchen he walked straight up to a strange-looking tea kettle sitting on the stove.One with a horrendous face on the front of it.Leo gazed at the face staring back at him in a dazed stupor, sensing it was a missing piece of the dark armor but not really feeling it like how he normally could sense dark energy. And although he was activating his mystic vision, it didn't glow in the slightest.Without knowing for certain if this was anything but a dream, Leo reached into his pouch and pulled out the small, curved sliver of metal that he knew was a part of the mystic dark armor, and held it up to the kettle.It looked like a match, so he slowly spun the kettle around, to reveal a small crack near the top of it, where the lid fit on.He hovered the piece over the crack while feeling like it was pulling on his hand, begging him to rejoin it to the helmet belonging to the dark armor.But instead of joining the two pieces together, Leo blankly stared at it for a moment before pocketing the piece again (immediately forgetting he had ever taken it out), turning the kettle back around, and raising it up to his face, to stare at that grotesque face, trying to figure out why it wasn't glowing in his mystic vision."Oh my banana pancakes," Leo heard behind his back.But he didn't in any way react at first.In fact, he was really quite certain this was nothing but a dream.Eventually, as though 'dream Donnie' had the answer, without taking his eyes off the kettle held up inches in front of his face, the slider slowly asked: "Why's it not glowing?""It is glowing," came the very tense response, as Donnie could clearly see with his regular vision that not only was the kettle glowing a bright purple, plumes of purple, blackish, and greenish smoke were wafting off it onto the floor, drawn toward and completely encompassing the slider's feet, appearing to be absorbed by his green turtle skin.Then, his infected brother very slowly turned his head to look at him, revealing a scary sight..."And so are you eyes!" Donnie exclaimed."My eyes?" Leo calmly asked in confusion, with the pupils of his eyes glowing a purple that was just as bright as the glowing kettle in his hands.He grasped the kettle by its handle to hold it down by his side in his right hand, completely turned around to fully face his brother, and took out a throwing star - seemingly out of nowhere - to absently spin around in his bandaged left hand like a fidget spinner.Donnie really wished he was wearing his tech shell over his soft turtle shell, or that he at least hadn't taken off his wrist tech for the night, so he could alert his brothers and summon whatever other tech he needed in case Leo attacked."Uhh, you ok Nardo?""Nardo?" Leo immediately asked, seemingly in confusion."Uhh, yeeeah, you know, as in Leo-nardo? Your name?" Donnie tentatively replied."They call me X," Leo very calmly told him. He raised his hand up to stop the spinning shuriken in front of his face, with his glowing irises shining behind it, and then......he closed his eyes, shook his head, and absently dropped the ninja star to rub his forehead, before opening his not glowing eyes to gaze around the dim room, getting his bearings straight."Wha...am I in the kitchen?" Leo asked in confusion. Then he looked down at the prosthetic he didn't remember attaching to his leg and next gazed at Donnie - not yet realizing he was holding something in his right hand - to ask: "Why 'm I in here?"Donnie thrust his hand out to dramatically point at the kettle in Leo's hand, and loudly and firmly told him: "Because of that! It's a piece of the dark armor!"
"Bwa!"
Leo instantly dropped the kettle on the floor like it was burning his hand, and backed away from it, toward his brother who was very grateful he managed to break free before anything bad happened.Like the fully decked out, armed ninja warrior attacking his currently unarmed soft-shelled brother in the middle of the night.And that was the moment a ninja rat and two armed ninja turtles burst into the room, ready for a fight."What's going on in here!?" Splinter demanded. "I sensed in my ninpo something was wrong!"Donnie pointed to the not-glowing kettle on the floor with an outstretched arm and said: "Your kettle is a part of the dark armor and it was controlling Leo!""Skully!?" Splinter blurted out in confusion. Leo backed up some more, bumping into Raph's plastron in the process, and he felt a surge of ninpo warmth when the bigger snapper put a reassuring hand on his shoulder while Splinter walked up to the kettle to pick it up, and muttered: "I don't understand, Skully has been in our family for..." "Five hundred years?" Donnie interrupted."Oh," was the only thing Splinter said in reply."What are we gonna do with it so the Foot doesn't get it and so it doesn't hurt Leo?" Mikey inquired in a worried, borderline whiny tone of voice.Meanwhile, Leo shook his head and rubbed the side of his forehead, feeling the dark energy pulsating inside his head from the dark armor piece like a sickening pressure that was likewise squeezing inside his chest......with the second dark armor piece he forgot about still inside his pouch.He raised his hand to grip Raph's that was still on his shoulder, to keep it there, and the snapper thankfully squeezed his shoulder for reassurance.That was when the groggy, foggy-headed Leo informed them: "Mystic rotwood blocks the dark energy signals," remembering how he didn't sense the dark energy piece that Draxum gave him until after he opened the box it was in.That was when Donnie noticed something and pointed at Leo's belt to announce: "There's something glowing in your pouch!"The slider snapped his head down to see the cracks in the opening of his pouch were glowing brightly from the second piece he had completely forgotten about, and he reached into his pouch to take it out, while taking two steps backwards, to get some more distance between him and the kettle that was messing with his head.Then he spun around to slap the piece in Raph's big hand and hastily told him: "Take that, I can't stay here it's in my head!" before rushing out of the room.Donnie took chase, yelling: "What's mystic rotwood!?" at the same time Mikey cried out: "Wait Leo, where are you going!?""The rec room, or the sewers, or wherever I gotta go to get away from that so I don't sense it anymore and hurt somebody!" the nervous slider called back, anxious that the dark energy might take over again and make him attack his loved ones."We're coming with you!" Mikey called out, rushing out of the room behind Donnie, and followed close behind by Raph, who first stuck the sliver of dark armor into Splinter's hand, promised: "Don't worry, pops, we got this," and took off, leaving their rat dad all alone in the kitchen, wondering what to do with the dark armor items in his hands now that his dark-energy-afflicted son was living with them.Once Leo got out to the sewers where he could no longer sense the dark armor pieces inside his new home, he slowed down in his sprint and by the time Raph joined up with them, he and Donnie were in the middle of a conversation about the mystic rotwood and how to get their hands on some."Yeah, there's a forest in the lush caverns..." "The lush caverns you say!?" Donnie eagerly interrupted Leo to exclaim.The slider smiled fondly at his inquisitive, scientifically-minded brother who he knew was eager to explore the hidden underground world that was a daily part of life for him, and then instructed:"There's a portal west of us that leads to the lush caverns where we can grab some wood, but we gotta be careful. Don't go inside the forest, it warps your mind and drains your life.""That sounds familiar," Donnie sarcastically replied in reference to Leo's current affliction, but saying so in a very serious tone."Yeah, tell me about it," Leo huffed out in agreement, staring at his easily excitable and easily distractible little brother, who got them all locked inside Big Mama's booby-trapped vault after he was explicitly warned not to touch anything; and worried about him getting into big trouble in the dangerous rotwood forest."Mikes should stay home," he bluntly suggested."WHAT!?" Mikey yelled out in surprise. He threw his arms out wide, all ready to loudly object, until a big snapping turtle hand rested on his shoulder, and in his loving but firm 'big brother/leader' voice, Raph made it very clear to Mikey that he was not accompanying them with the words: "Leo's right Mikey. You stay here and help dad find a safe place for those armor pieces until Donnie can do something with that rotwood to fix this mess.""Aw maaan," the youngest of the bunch whined in reply. But he didn't object any further and turned around and drag his feet all the way back to the lair, grumbling to himself all along the way.* * *~Not Long Later in the Lush Caverns~Donnie was captivated by the wide array of mystic flora and fauna hidden deep underground within the network of caves and caverns Leo informed them was called the Lush Caverns.At the moment, he, Leo, and Raph were walking through a field inside one of the larger caverns. Glowing blue dragonfly-like insects flitted around their heads, each one as big as Donnie's tech shell, as they walked through a knee-deep field of glowing mystic flowers in a wide array of colors that attracted a plethora of glowing colorful butterflies, glowing mystic birds similar to above-ground hummingbirds (only bigger) and even some gigantic light gray sloth-like creatures they passed with swirls of glowing green fur across their bodies, that were peacefully chomping on the glowing mystic green grass."Keep your eyes peeled, the ravagers are in musk, it's mating season," Leo hissed out, while keeping his eye out for any sign of the wild beasts, with Raph walking by his side as Donnie kept getting distracted by the wildlife he wanted to study; and he kept having to reign in his inquisitive scientific mind to stay focused on the task at hand."There it is," Leo said when they reached near the edge of the field teaming with life.Straight ahead, past a barren landscape of nothing but bare reddish rocks where even the insects didn't fly, lay a dense, ominous black tangle that was the mystic rotwood forest.Leo used his mystic vision to see that the dark energy from the forest reached as far as the edge of the field they were standing in, looking like an impenetrable wall of black."Well that looks inviting," Donnie said sarcastically."Looks can be deceiving, bro. If you get too close it will look inviting, cuz the dark energy gets inside your mind," Leo warned them, while deactivating his mystic vision. "So stick close together and only grab what you need from the dead trees on the outskirts. Don't cut into a live tree, they ooze a black sap that gets in the air, and if you breathe it in it'll make you hallucinate."Raph firmly nodded his head once in and Donnie pulled his goggles down over his eyes to see the mystic energy that was invisible to the naked eye.But when he did so, like Leo, the only thing he could see was a creepy solid wall of black before them. So he put his goggles back up on top of his head and reiterated: "In and out, got it."The three of them cautiously stepped out of the field to walk through the bare, rocky field, and the instant they stepped past the threshold where the grass and flowers ended and the red rocks began, they had to push against a strong, stiff wind that kept blowing against them and was distracting the scientifically-minded Donnie because it didn't make any sense! Where was it coming from!!?That was until, after walking over two thirds of the way across the field, Leo stopped dead in his tracks and announced to them: "I can't see a thing," even though the both of them could clearly see all around them."The rotwood activated my mystic vision. Everything's black, I can't see anything and there's too much of it here I can't stop it from flooding my vision."Raph and Donnie watched him curiously as he took a few exploratory steps back the way they came, but when nothing changed he flopped his hands down by his sides and informed them: "I'll probably have to go all the way back to the flower field before it wears off. You two are gonna have to go on without me.""I'll stay with you," Raph offered."No, you need to stick close to Donnie, it's too dangerous to let him go alone.""We only need to get close enough for one of my tech claws to reach out and snap off a piece of sufficient size," Donnie informed him."Good, remember, make sure you get it off a dead tree, and don't pick up any of the rotten pieces scattered on the ground, they're no good," Leo instructed."Got it," Donnie replied. Raph patted Leo's shoulder with a reassuring grin that the slider couldn't see, and then he stayed close to Donnie's side as they ventured toward the creepy forest with its tangle of black branches that seemed to be reaching out for them and were sparsely adorned with tiny black leaves.The closer they got, the more an unusual fear crept up in the both of them, so that Donnie leaned in closer to his big brother and Raph was clinging onto Donnie's arm and walking so close to him he accidentally stepped on his foot."Ow! What was that!?" Dee yelled in a panic, literally jumping up to land in the snapper's big arms - who instinctively held him - at the same time Raph blurted out in his own panic: "Whaaa! I stepped on something and it moved!"That was when Donnie realized what had happened, and through gritted teeth he hissed out: "That's because you stepped on my foot! Get your head on right, o fearless leader!"Donnie got out of his big brother's arms, brushed himself off, and Raph gave his younger brother a big, nervous grin while saying: "Oh, heh heh, sorry." Then the two of them continued creeping toward the eerie forest, where the air itself was very still, dry, stale, and seemed to be just as dead as the trees almost within their grasp.As soon as they were close enough a tech claw extended out from Donnie's shell and he leaned ahead a little more, saying the words: "Al-most got it..." *crack* "There!" the claw retracted, holding up a very large, thick dead branch it broke off in front of Dee's face, and he smiled at it saying: "Well that was easy," before clamping it to the back of his shell with his tech claws and turning around.That was when Raph pointed straight out in front of them and said: "Uh, Don, it looks like we got trouble," directing Donnie's attention to a massive beast that looked like a huge, shaggy water buffalo on steroids, only instead of two thick horns, there was one gigantic one sticking out of its head, that extended all the way from between its eyes down to its nose......and the creature with incredibly poor vision was slowly but surely sniffing the air and making its way toward their currently blind brother."Leo look out!" Raph yelled. He ran toward Leo as fast as he could go, but his loud voice followed by his sudden movement prompted the ravager to change direction and charge directly at them."Good job drawing its attention to us, dumb-dumb!" Donnie loudly complained, now running by his side.Leo whipped around in his low, wide ninja stance, facing them and the ravager who was charging right at them, hearing the commotion but still not seeing a thing."It's charging them!" the slider correctly reasoned, and based on the sound of it and his brothers racing toward him, it would most definitely reach them before either one of them could escape to safety through one of the many caves and tunnels lining the edges of the cavern.So he did what he needed to do to protect them by kicking up dust and rocks and waving his hands around while yelling out loud: "OVER HERE YOU STUPID BEAST!" "LEO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Raph yelled in a panic."I'm getting it AWAY from the two of YOU! Run to the caves, I'll distract it!""You can't distract it, dummy, you're blind!" came Donnie's loud voice."I CAN HANDLE IT! COME HEEERE RAVAGER!!!" Leo yelled even louder than before.The ravager roared out loud and changed its direction once again to charge straight at Leo, and Raph yelped in fear: "He's gonna get himself killed!""Not if I can help it!"Donnie clicked at his wrist tech to send a small projectile straight toward the ravager from his tech shell. But the angry beast reached their brother before his tech reached the ravager.It charged with his gigantic horn,Leo jumped ninja style out of the way,the projectile set off a small explosion when it hit the beast in the side of its head; and the prosthetic knee was unexpectedly stiff when Leo hit the ground, so the ninja slider tripped up on the landing and fell flat on his stomach with an: "Oof."The beast with poor vision didn't see Leo now that he was laying flat on the ground, so it roared once again and turned around to rush straight at the threat that attacked it - the threat being Raph and Donnie."Uh, I think I got its attention, RUN!" Donnie yelled.But Raph stood his ground, gripped his tonfas tightly, and firmly replied: "No, Raph's not running! Leo needs us and Raph's gonna help!"Tiny red bolts of mystic light sparkled around the snapper's eyes; he rushed at the rampaging ravager, jumped up high, and his entire body enveloped in a sparkly light show of mystic energy when his red forcefield 'Raph' form enveloped his entire turtle form - like it had done the day he threw himself off the roof of Big Mama's hotel to rescue Leo - only bigger.With a very loud, dramatic: "HOOOT SOOOUP!" Raph slammed his giant mystic fist down over the ravager, and Leo got on his feet and looked in their direction, seeing nothing but blackness and wishing he could have witnessed the excitement - especially when a burst of ninpo energy hit him like a wave, knocking him back down on his turtle bum."Oh I just missed something totally awesome," he whispered to himself with a mixture of awe and disappointment, still looking up in Raph and Donnie's direction, but not knowing what happened beyond what he heard and felt - which included the sound of a whimpering ravager tucking tail and running away as fast as its legs could carry it, with Donnie exclaiming: "Woah! You cracked its horn off!""Aw man, I missed it!" Leo lamented, at hearing the verification that something totally awesome really did happen while he was blinded by the mystic energy.A moment later he heard the sound of Raph and Donnie's footsteps approaching, and when the snapper reached down with a smile to help him up, as soon as his bigger hand bumped into Leo's arm the slider smiled up at him and held his hand out, allowing the big snapper to pull him to his feet."Very dramatic big bro, I wish I could've seen it," Leo told him with a smile."Very dramatic landing too, mr 'I can handle it' dumb-dumb," Donnie sarcastically commented, referring to Leo's face-plant after he jumped away from the charging ravager.Leo reached his hand out to feel around for where the sound of Donnie's voice came from, and when his hand made contact with his brother's shoulder he patted it a couple of times and told him with a smile: "The knee seized up on the landing, and I gotta get used to this new prosthetic, it threw me off cuz its lighter than Draxum's.""Ah yes, the prosthetic you shouldn't be wearing yet because it is still in beta and you are injured," Donnie quipped back in a smug tone of voice.Leo cheekily grinned at where he knew Dee's face was was and jokingly replied: "Yeah, that one."The three of them walked out of the bare rocky field, and as soon as Leo's turtle foot made contact with the soft flowery meadow his vision returned and he turned around to look at the spot where Raph pounded the humongous beast to the dirt.And there, with the cracked off horn laying in the middle, was an impressive crater left behind from where Raph's mystic fist made contact with the ground."Woooah, I wish I could've seen that!" he exclaimed in amazement. Then he put one hand on Raph's shoulder on his right, another one on Donnie's to his left, and smiled at them one at a time before enthusiastically saying: "It's great to finally be somewhere I'm wanted! Draxum would've never done something like that for me!"Raph patted his shoulder and agreed with a smile: "It's great to have you, bro," with Donnie smiling and nodding his head in agreement, and the three of the happily walking away to head back to a home where they all belonged.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leo lay on his back in bed, wearing blue pyjama pants from a set that was already in his dresser when he moved in, with his rainbow unicorn snuggled up beside him, trying to get some sleep, despite it being mid-morning. But after he hardly slept a wink all night, Splinter told him he should try to get some shut eye now to make up for it, and postponed their training session until later that afternoon for him.And if he was to be honest, he really needed and wanted it.But how was he supposed to sleep with all that racket!?His three brothers were awake, with Mikey skateboarding in the rec room right outside his blue curtain door. Raph was with him, laughing periodically at a comic he was reading, and Donnie was there too, with two mystic rotwood boxes already completed in his lab with the sliver of metal in a little one to keep it separate from the helmet it was part of, and the two other dark armor pieces inside the other one, and now he was tinkering with the tech prosthetic he made for Leo, trying to figure out why the mechanism controlling the knee was stiff.Thrown in among the mix was Splinter, who was laughing so loudly at his too-loud shows Leo could hear both from the living room where he was.Draxum's place was always so quiet, the sleepy slider didn't realize before now how much he needed the silence to get a restful sleep.Leo tried closing his eyes once more, but no sooner had he done so then Splinter laughed out loud again and Donnie began loudly hammering the prosthetic knee.He groaned and dragged his hands down his face in frustration which was quickly morphing into anger.But Splinter had read something to him from one of those dusty old family scrolls, explaining how anger was like fuel to the dark energy infection inside of him, and he had to get it under control. So he tried sitting up in his bed to meditate, instead of sleeping.Leo took in a deep breath through his nose.*Bang! Bang! Bang!*He released it through his mouth."Bwahahahaha!" (Splinter)In through his nose."Check me out Raph!" (Mikey)Out through his mouth."Good trick lil bro. You learned that in no time!" (Raph)In through his nose."Thanks!" (Mikey)Out his mouth.*clink, clink, clink, clink*In...
"Leo. An abbreviated form of the name Leonardo."
...out...
"They're my brothers, Draxum!"
...in..."Hey Raph, hand me that screwdriver will you?" (Donnie)...out...
"They're nothing more than FAILED EXPERIMENTS!"
...in...
"My little turtley champion earned his very first ice cream for his very first victory." (Big Mama)
...out...
"Can you at least tell them to stay away from my face!?"
...in...
*CRRAAACK!*
...out..."Off the rail! Aw, I almost got it!" (Mikey)...in...
"Aaaugh!" "You're only making this harder on yourself!"
...out..."Let me show you how it's done, Mikes!" (Raph)...in...
*Shing!* "Good, the first one is always the hardest, but if you're strong you will persevere..."
...out...*Bang! Crash!* "heh, I guess Raph needs a little more practice." (Raph)...in...
"...only the weak give in to fear and remorse, and I have no room for weak, ruined experiments in my life."
Leo's eyes popped open."That's it! I can't take it anymore!"He shuffled over to the edge of his bed so hastily he knocked his stuffy to the floor.He ignored it, clipped on his belt so he could easily carry his dagger in its sheath, grabbed the crutches Mikey got for him, and pushed himself up onto his one leg. Next he snatched his dagger from off the nightstand, sheathed it, and stuffed his pillow under one arm before draping the blanket over his shoulders and hobbling out of his room to search for some place quiet where he could try to finally get some sleep.Then he yanked open his blue curtain door, glared at his brothers, and got everyone's attention (including Splinter one room over) when he yelled loudly and very angrily:"How's anyone supposed to SLEEP or MEDITATE or do ANYTHING around here with all that RACKET!!?"His three brothers froze in place staring at him in surprise, and the background noise of Splinter's show abruptly cut out."Whatrya talking 'bout, Leo?" Raph asked in confusion.Instead of replying Leo groaned out loud from his frustration and angrily limped away, yelling: "I'm going somewhere else to sleep! There's gotta be a quiet spot around here somewhere!"Splinter came out of the adjacent living room and stood in the entryway, joining his three other sons in watching in concern as Leo stormed away.Meanwhile, the slider went down the hallway, gave the dark kitchen a passing glance, and next stuck his head in Donnie's open lab door, remembering his twin once told him he made his lab soundproofed.But the many buzzing, humming, and beeping inventions was a definite deterrent. So he turned around to check out the med bay across from Donnie's lab.Inside there were a few small lights from med bay equipment cutting through the darkness, but the room was very quiet, prompting him to pick this location as the spot where he would try for some needed shut eye.He limped inside, past the gurneys to his left, opting instead to head toward the darkest corner in the back that was dimly lit only by the blue glow of a display screen on some kind of medical equipment.The slider threw his blanket on the floor for something soft to sit on, then he fluffed up his pillow, and laid it down against the wall for something to lean against before fumbling with the crutches to lower himself on the floor, where he wrapped half the blanket around his lap. But instead of going to sleep he stayed like that, spinning a throwing star he took out that was concealed in his belt instead of playing with his dagger like he originally intended, and lost in his own troubled mind; mentally reliving some of his more gruesome Battle Nexus fights, and seeing the looks of fear in his opponents eyes seconds before landing the winning sword slash.The disgusting sound of cheering from the blood-thirsty crowds sent a chill up his spine, and was immediately followed by the sound of Usagi's pained screams from the video the cops forced him to watch.Leo rested his mystically black index finger on the sharp tip of one of the three curved prongs of the shuriken in his hand, stared down on it, and ran his finger along the short blade to open a small slit. Then he silently watched it bleed and pushed in on it with his thumb to feel the sting and force out more blood droplets, as the only (unhealthy) way he knew how to cope with and distract from the inner turmoil of his grief-stricken, troubled mind and conscious.But it never really did anything at all besides provide a temporary distraction that lasted no more than a few seconds. So when the blood stopped trickling out he let out a deep, heavy sigh from the spiraling tornado of twisted thoughts and horrendous memories that haunted his young mutant turtle mind once more.But he hadn't realized someone extremely skilled in stealth came in the room, and the exceptionally observant ninja warrior didn't know he wasn't alone until they walked up to stand beside him.Leo discreetly curled his fingers over the shuriken and put his hand under the blanket to hide what he had done to himself, but it was too late because Splinter saw everything.In a soft tone of voice that carried absolutely no judgement whatsoever, his dad asked: "How long have you been harming yourself as a means of escape from your troubled thoughts, my son?"Leo blushed from embarrassment and without looking up he quietly responded: "I don't know, a long time. I started sometime after my first kill, I think."The slider cleared his throat nervously, unsure as to whether he should be having this conversation at all, but opening up because the warmth of the ninpo pulsating rhythmically in his chest with every beat of his Hamato heart was inviting him to do so.And the warmth increased and flowed throughout his body when Splinter approached and sat down on the blanket beside him.Next, his concerned dad put out both his rat hands and gently requested: "Would you let me see your hands please, Blue?"Leo didn't know why he did it, but after a moment's hesitation he pulled both hands out from under the blanket, dropped the shuriken on the blanket covering his lap, and rested them palm-side-up in Splinter's.They both gazed down on the black skin of his hands, with the injuries from the now unbandaged burn that idiot 'foot face' Hawk gave to him showing through, and he cleared his throat to nervously inform his dad:"I didn't burn myself, Commander Hawk did that to me.""Ah, I see. But I also see evidence of fresh cuts that are healing. Did he give those to you as well?"Leo abruptly pulled his hands back, looked away to the side, blushed a second time, and gave the honest reply when he very quietly said: "No."Splinter gently nodded his head in understanding, lifted his right arm to show Leo something, and when the slider looked up his dad pointed to a scar on his elbow and told him: "I left this mark behind when I accidentally cut myself too deep after my very last fight in the Battle Nexus."Leo picked up his throwing star, held it between his index finger and thumb, and slowly spun it around like a fidget spinner while looking down on it and very quietly saying: "I forgot you fought there, too."Splinter gently nodded his head and told Leo: "Mm hmm, and like you I vowed never to harm another living soul after that particular night, but it took much effort to learn how to forgive myself and let go of my gruesome past."Leo's eyes widened from surprise at that statement and he looked up at the previous Battle Nexus champ to ask: "How'd you learn how to do that!?"Splinter repositioned himself on the blanket to sit cross-legged, rested his hands on his knees palm-side up in a common meditative pose Leo recognized, and told him: "With much patience and meditation. I also came to understand through my regular meditation that bringing pain upon myself to distract from the pain in here," he tapped on his chest where his heart was before putting his hand back on his knee, "is a self-destructive behavior that may appear to provide temporary relief, but is really counterproductive because it fuels the destructive cycle of self-hatred."With a frown on his face, Leo sat back against his pillow pinned between his shell and the wall, gazed up at the blinking light of some sort of med bay equipment Donnie must have made (considering there was the same 'Genius Build' logo etched into it as what was on his other tech), and said in a sour tone: "I already know how to meditate.""What is the driving force for your meditation, my son?" Splinter inquired.Leo quietly watched him as he closed his eyes and meditatively took in one slow, purposeful breath after another, and casually replied as though it was the most obvious thing: "To help focus my mind so I'm not thrown off by distractions in a fight.""Ah, then you have not learned the Hamato way of meditation.""I didn't know there was more than one way to meditate.""Yes, my son. While you breathe slowly and deeply pick one memory you want to gain control over. Breathe in and put yourself in the scene. Breathe out, focus on what you see. In, on what you hear. Out on what you feel with your other senses - taste, touch, smell. In on what you feel in your mind and heart. Live in the memory, my son, and when you've finished that, replace the bad memory with a good one, or a place where you feel happy and at peace, whether real or imaginary. As you continue breathing live in the moment like you did with the bad memory. Eventually the pain, guilt, anger, resentment, fear, whatever strong emotions are attached to the bad memory will no longer feel as intense as they once were, and those memories will not reach down so deeply into your heart, so that you will be able to bear them and move forward from the pain and heartache. Give it a try, my son.""Huh. Just like that," Leo commented, watching the mutant rat who seemed to be at peace and who was once a human who also lived through terrible atrocities when he was younger."Yes, my son, with time and practice it will work for you just as it has for me." Splinter opened his eyes to look at Leo, and added with a smile: "Just like that. Tell me when you are ready, and I will guide you."Leo repositioned himself on the blanket to sit up, rested the back of one hand on his right knee, and the other one on the end of what was left of his other leg. Then he shut his eyes and took in a meditative deep breath through his nose, like how he had been taught by Draxum.On the exhale, he picked a memory at random and recalled when his 'beloved doting auntie' Big Mama betrayed and attacked him."I'm ready," Leo told his dad.Splinter started out the guided meditation by asking: "What do you see?""Metal shackles attached to the wall.""And what is happening?""I'm tied up and being dragged over to it.""By who?""A gorilla. A big, ugly, pink gorilla yokai. And there's a fox and a wolf yokai, and they're forcing me into the shackles..." Leo's breathing quickened, his body began to tense, and his rate of speech sped up."I'm trying to fight my way out but I can't. They forced me into it and there's a fire. No. That's from before, when I was little-no! They're doing the same thing to me I helped Draxum do to a..." "Calm, my son. Your mind is disturbed by many things. Focus on one memory at a time and slow your breathing."Splinter took in a deep breath and Leo copied him. His body relaxed slightly as he purposefully slowed his breathing; and as difficult as it was to intentionally think about that particular day, this meditative approach clearly had done good for his dad so he was willing to give it an honest try."What do you feel?" Splinter calmly asked next."The metal clasps. They're cold and tight. Too tight. Why do everyone stuff me in shackles just because I'm a slave!? Why are they always too tight!?" A tear rolled down Leo's face from the helplessness he felt at the memory that involuntarily popped in his mind of the very first time his wrists were locked in fetters when he was younger, by a temporary secondary owner he had been contracted out to, and at Splinter's reminder he realized he had gone back to tensing his body and was also holding his breath.Leo released his breath through his mouth, slowed his racing mind, and when his pounding heart calmed down he told his dad he was ready to try again.He and Splinter silently breathed together, but Leo's heart and mind was agitated and disturbed by many things, and even though he was trying to focus on the one memory Splinter was helping him move past, the flames of a raging inferno burst up through the floor behind himself in the memory, with the sound of terrorworms rumbling and screeching all around him, and the room was replaced with Draxum's dungeon, where - at his owner's bidding - he himself dragged a poor, hapless soul over to the wall and forced a scared skunk yokai's hands and ankles into the metal clasps to hold him in place."Breathe, my son," Splinter urged, but Leo didn't hear him because he was trapped inside his own troubled mind.The memory switched over to him kneeling on the floor, with his arms chained in shackles and Draxum standing directly behind his back, holding a smoldering hot torture device in his hands.Splinter said something else but his words were lost on the slider's ears as Leo winced his eye and tensed his muscles tighter than they already were as the memory continued.
The sound of his scutes sizzling under the intense heat of a torture device.
"Focus, my son and breathe, your mind is drifting."The slider gasped in a deep breath through his mouth - not realizing until now he had been holding his breath again - and refocused his mind on the memory his dad was trying to guide him through."What do you taste?" Splinter asked.Leo took in another deep breath, slowly exhaled through his mouth, relaxed his body a little more, and recalled the first punch to the face from that gorilla henchman of Big Mama's."Blood. My blood," the troubled slider replied."And what do you hear?"The memory of them putting what looked like some sort of giant nutcracker around his shell prompted Leo to tense his muscles again.
*CRRRAAAAK!*
He forgot all about his meditative breathing again and said in a tense-turning-panicking voice: "Cracking. Loud cracking. They're cracking my shell! It hurt! It hurt so much and I couldn't get away, I couldn't fight back, I just want them to stop but they wouldn't!"Fire raged all around him.He was a baby turtle laying on his back, crying from fear.
"Leonardo!"
"And there's a fire!""My son, focus...""It's all around me, I can't get away, I'm too little I can't...""Breathe, Baby Blue. Breathe with me.""I can't move, I can't even crawl I'm too little! It's hot and there's fire and I'm scared and all alone but I can't save myself because I'm just a baby..."Tears flowed freely down both of Leo's cheeks but he didn't feel it through the numbness."Leonardo this is too much for you, you must move on to the happy place you have chosen, and breathe with me."
A pair of cloven hooves by his little baby turtle head.
A pair of cloven hooves alongside his mutant teenage turtle head when he was chained to the floor in the dungeon.
The agony of his shell being burned for the very first time.
The caustic stench of his scorching scutes reaching his nose.
"Augh!" "You're only making this harder on yourself!"
A fire.
A baby mutant.
A giant razor-fanged terrorworm launching itself out of the sand beneath his leg.
A skunk yokai screaming from pain.
The sound of Usagi's pained groans.
The faceless voice yelling his name when he was a baby.
A fire raging all around.
"Leonardo!"
"Breathe, my son. Go to your happy place. What do you see?"Leo tried to take himself out of his inner turmoil, but instead of going to Run of the Mill with his brothers, like he planned, his mind took him back many years, to when he was younger and being treated more like a son than a slave by his father-figure and owner, Baron Draxum.
A young mutant turtle, listening to his 'guardian's' words of promise for a better future; for a name of his own, once he proved himself and earned it.
The memory that used to bring him joy only brought sorrow with it from the thought that he was never really loved by that wickedly powerful yokai.Leo stuffed his face into his hands and wept bitterly.Tears streamed from his eyes and wet his hands."He was like a dad to me!" he cried out in his anguish. "He raised me, he used to treat me like a son! What did I do wrong!? I thought he loved me, but he never did!"He hiccuped a couple of times and cried out in his anguish in between sorrowful sobs:"He told me things would get better again! He promised . . . he promised everything would go back to the way they were for us, but they never did!"He felt Splinter's soft, warm fur brushing against his skin as his biological dad he had been separated from all his life hugged into him and gently encouraged him to continue.So he did."It's all my fault! I'm never strong or fast or smart enough! I'm never good enough! That's why this happened to me! That's why he hates me! It's all my fault and I can't fix it because I'm not good enough! He made me, he made me to be perfect but I'm not! I'll never be perfect, I'll never be enough, I'm never enough! I trained till my hands bled! I did everything he asked me to do and more but no matter what I do it's never enough! I'm not good enough for him and it's all my fault!"Leo switched from sobbing into his hands to wrapping his arms around his dad who was here for him now, in the present, and he continued weeping on Splinter's shoulder.Then he sniffled and did his best to quiet his loud sobbing so he could clearly hear his dad's voice when Splinter lovingly reassured him: "It is not your fault, my son. Draxum is a monster, he will never change, that is not your fault. And you are enough for me, Leonardo. You are more than enough for all of us, my son. I love you, we all love you. We are your family now, and I am so proud of you for leaving that life behind and coming home with us where you belong."Leo's breath hitched from hearing the word 'proud' that his turtle soul always craved to hear but Draxum would never utter to him, and he noticed for the first time that Splinter was crying now too. So he listened carefully as his dad continued:"I'm sorry I failed you, my son. I am so sorry I left you there. I thought you were dead! I thought I watched you die when the beam fell on you, but you were alive and I left you behind and I am so sorry my son! If I had known I would have never left you there with that monster!"Leo's crying tapered off and was replaced with a numbness at the heart-wrenching pain in his dad's voice while he uttered those words of regret. He sniffled a little with his eyes open, staring blankly at . . . well, nothing, really.A few moments passed with Splinter still lightly sobbing in his son's arms and both of them sniffling and trying to process everything that just happened and all that was said.The numbness slowly rescinded, the gentle thrumming of his ninpo warmed his insides and his heart swelled with love for his dad and his brothers and sister - for the family he always knew existed out there somewhere but never had.The family who risked everything to drag him out of that life he was forced to live with that, that . . . monster and brought him here, into their home with them, so he could live a life where he was loved. A life where he felt safe and secure. A place where he could heal.A place where he belonged.The tears came anew and overflowed from his eyes as Leo grasped his dad a little tighter in their hug and sputtered out the heartfelt words:"I'm here now."Splinter hugged him a little tighter and softly replied with the words:"Yes, you are hear now, my son, and I will never let you go. I love you, my Baby Blue.". . ."I love you too. Dad."There was a brief moment of silence where Leo stared off into the darkness of the med bay while refusing to pull out of the hug he was sharing with his honest-to-goodness dad (the dad who loved and wanted him). That was until movement in the doorway caught his attention and he sat back, wiped away the tears, and looked up to see Mikey standing partway in and partway out of the room, holding his pillow and orange blanket, looking at them hopeful but not saying a thing.Leo smiled at him, and while wiping away the rest of the tears he told his little box turtle brother: "I keep saying you guys are rubbing off on me." Then he gestured for Mikey to come in with a wave of his hand and a pleasant: "C'mere bro, there's room for more."Mikey's face beamed with joy, he squealed with delight, rushed over to throw his pillow down on top of Leo's blanket for something extra soft to sit on, and then plop down between Leo and their dad, before squirming around to get all comfy cozy with his blanket draped over his lap.Leo smiled at him the entire time, and once he was finally cozy and settled down he happily wrapped his arm around his little brother, and then all three of them gazed at the empty doorway when Leo called out: "Come in guys, I know you're there."Immediately Raph's bashfully smiling face popped into the doorway, and he walked into the med bay carrying his pillow; followed by Donnie, who strolled in behind him, gazing at one med bay machine after another and saying something or other about coming in because he needed to run diagnostics on some of them. But despite what he said, he was conspicuously carrying his purple beanbag chair (with his tablet grasped in one of the tech claws poking out of his tech shell); and without stopping even once to do anything with the many pieces of medical equipment he walked past on his way to the turtle/rat pile, he forced his way in between Leo and Raph by dropping his beanbag chair right on top of the snapper.Raph shot Donnie a dirty look but willingly moved over for him, and Dee silently sat down, used the Extend-a-Claw to stick his tablet right in front of his face, and made another claw pop out, holding out a tissue for his red-eared slider brother.Leo accepted it, blew his nose, smiled at Donnie, and in a somewhat hoarse voice after all that crying, softly told him the same thing he did the very first evening they hung out as a family at Run of the Mill; but much more softer, in a fond tone, and throwing in an extra word at the end that he didn't use before:"You're gonna need glasses if you keep looking at that screen like that, twinsie.""That's what contacts are for," Donnie immediately quipped back, saying the same thing he did on that day, and overlooking the erroneous 'twinsie' comment from his half brother who was a different species than him.But Mikey didn't overlook it, and he sat ahead to glare at Donnie from around Leo and whined: "Heeey! Why'd you sic your SHELLDON tech on me when I called Leo your twin, but you're ok if he says it!?"Donnie didn't look up from his screen, and without missing a beat he calmly replied: "Because you're not Leo."The slider chuckled at that reply, looked at Mikey with a big grin on his face, and playfully shrugged his shoulders while happily saying: "He's got a point there bro." Then he turned his head to smile at Donnie, nudged him with his elbow, and asked: "Ain't that right? Twinsie.""Ain't isn't a word," Donnie calmly replied. Then he tore his eyes off his tablet to look at Leo and used air quote when he said: "And if you abuse your 'twinsie' privileges I will rescind my compliance with said word and sic my SHELLDON tech on you."Leo's playfully nudged Mikey to get his attention while keeping his eyes on Donnie and 'poking the turtle' by snarkily replying: "Aw c'mon bro, you literally hatched twenty three seconds before me, that makes us twins!"Raph rolled his eyes (but with a grin) and a bigger smile spread across both Leo and Mikey's faces when Donnie gave his 'twinsie' the reaction he was looking for with his incensed: "Scoff!"The tablet went away into his shell, Donnie tensely sat up, and went into his 'speech-mode' by listing off all the reason why it was impossible for them to be actual twins."Firstly, although a rarity it is possible for two embryo to be produced inside the same egg, making them twins. We, however hatched from two different eggs, which leads me into my second point in that we are not the same species, and thirdly..."Leo snuggled down onto his blanket leaning against his pillow, wrapped his arm around his little brother who snuggled into his side, and watched Donnie go off on his speal with a big smile on his face without really paying any attention whatsoever. And eventually he pulled Mikey's blanket up over his body, and when Donnie took a deep breath in through his mouth to continue on with yet another point in his long, detailed explanation of why they were not technically twins, the slider took the opportunity to sneek in a cheeky: "Whatever you say, twinsie," before closing his eyes to take a nap.While Mikey rolled around way too much;Donnie kept right on talking;Raph began snoring the instant he fell asleep;And Splinter borrowed Mikey's phone to watch videos on it and was laughing loudly at his favorite game show.But despite all of that, Leonardo had one of the most peaceful, restful deep sleeps in his entire life.And he decided he wanted this 'turtle pile' thing to become a new regular part of his life.Hopefully for a good, long time.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
~The Next Morning~Shortly before training was supposed to start for the day Leo sat hunched over at the kitchen table, scooping up his cereal and letting it fall back into the bowl while gazing down on it and not eating much of anything after the first bite; with Raph sitting at the table beside him, chowing down on his breakfast cereal, and Donnie standing back-on to them at the counter, putting on the pot of coffee."Guess I'm back to eating human junk," Leo muttered under his breath, being thoroughly unimpressed with the sugary, milk-filled concoction sitting in front of him."Hey, where's Mikes? He said he wanted to make a three course brunch cuz Leo's here," Raph commented."The last I saw he was heading to the living room to ask papá where he put the cajun seasoning," Donnie blandly replied without turning around.With a big grin on his face, Leo sat up, pushed the disgustingly sweet sugary cereal away, and expressed his gratitude by emphatically saying: "Thank. You. Mikey!"That was when a very frightened-looking Michelangelo rushed into the room and got everyone's attention when he proclaimed: "Guysguys, we have a code R, I repeat we have a code R, this is not a drill!"Leo gasped and jumped up, wide-eyed from fright with his katana out at the ready when Raph likewise jumped up, pointed toward the hallway, and announced: "Quick, to our battle station!"Everyone ran out of the room with Leo yelling in a panic: "Code R? Battle station!? WHAT IS GOING ON HERE!!?"That was when they all skidded to a halt dead in their tracks outside Donnie's lab door when a very sick looking Splinter came from around the corner, with both hands grabbing his head and loudly complaining: "Ooow, my brain!""WHHHAATT!!?" Leo yelled in surprise at the sight of his very sick rat dad, just before Raph hastily shoved everyone inside Donnie's lab and slammed the reinforced door shut (and locked) behind them."Is this one of those zombie things I heard about!?" Leo exclaimed, facing the door with his katana out."No, Leo, zombies are interested in other people's brains," Donnie flatly told him."Zombies ARE real!? AND-WHAT'S-GOING-ON-WITH-DAD!!?" the slider yelled even louder than before, and running his words together because of how fast he was talking."Papá is ill," Donnie calmly and factually informed him, as though this was a regular occurence for the three turtle brothers."Whatever he's got, it's not contagious to mutant turtles, right!? Tell me it's not contagious to mutant turtles!" Leo exclaimed in a panic."Oh, the rat flu is contagious to mutant turtles and a flu this intense is going to affect all areas of his brain," Donnie replied, before a tech claw came out to hold up one extra finger in addition to his raised six turtle ones, while warning his brothers: "I'm talking the full seven stages before his body naturally heals itself."In a very somber tone and with a frown on his face, Raph wrapped his arms around Leo and Mikey, pulled his two brothers close, and said: "You guys know what the full seven stages mean.""Mm hmm," both Mikey and Donnie replied while nodding their heads, with Leo blurting out a panicked: "NO!"Then the somber attitude abruptly shifted to one of joy when Raph cheerfully announced: "Another chance to get whatever we want!" and all three of Leo's brothers joyfully fist bumped the air, with the slider who was new to this whole 'rat flu' thing blurting out a confused: "What?"Ignoring Leo's clear confusion, Mikey sadly commented: "Poor dad, he must feel terrible," before sticking a big smile on his face, doing a little happy dance, and exclaiming: "But lucky us, he'll say yes to whatever we ask for!""I'm starting to think this rat flu is some sort of mind control virus," Leo commented.Once again ignoring their very confused brother, Donnie said: "But only if we make it all the way to the end of the flu. The elusive stage sevon. And we never get there!""Did he eat some weird mutated fish or something?" Leo asked next.Like his two other brothers, Raph ignored Leo's worry to put his arm around his blue-clad brother and confidently told his siblings: "This year's gonna be different, cuz there's all four of us this time. Nobody's getting bit, nobody's getting infected.""Bit? Infected? What's going on around here!?" Leo loudly exclaimed."I'll tell you what's going on, papá is ill with the rat flu..." "That's contagious to mutant turtles," Leo interrupted Donnie, for clarification. "Yes, the rat flu that's contagious to mutant turtles. There are seven distinct stages to this flu ending with stage seven, which is the stage in which the infected person - in this case our beloved papá - must say yes to whatever we ask.""And you guys are ok with this?" Leo questioned, not sure of how he felt about taking advantage of his new-found (sick) dad, but also having something in mind he really, really wanted."He's perfectly fine using it against us when we get sick," Donnie flatly replied.A little smile came out on Leo's face at the thought of actually for real getting something he saw in a human store window on his way to the warehouse when he worked for the Foot Clan (but thought he could never have) and he said: "Oh I get it, so as long as we don't get infected too, when we get to stage seven - which I'm now calling the 'must say yes' phase - he'll agree to anything we ask? And he's ok with it? This isn't a joke, it's for real?""Correct, except that he will only say 'yes' to one request," Donnie answered, before he and Mikey turned to Raph, and the youngest of the bunch inquired: "What are we gonna ask for?""This year I was thinking we could ask for..."Raph's voice trailed off."Wait, what do you mean this year?" Leo questioned."Um, er, ah..." Raph spit out as he thought."This doesn't happen every year, does it!?" Leo asked next."Uuughh!" Mikey and Donnie groaned before the box turtle exclaimed: "He's got nothing, we're dead!" before Leo inquired: "Why does Raph get to decide what we all ask for?""Because he's our big brother!" Mikey enthusiastically replied, just before Raph put his hands on his hips, stood tall and proud with a proud grin, and told them: "And I'm your leader!""Leader? When was this decided? I think I missed that family meeting," the slider who never followed the orders of anyone who wasn't 'Draxum' or 'Draxum sanctioned' sarcastically quipped.He was ignored yet again when Donnie very emphatically stepped out into a wide stance and with an 'evil genius mad scientist' look (that Leo didn't know yet he would eventually come to be very familiar with) he loudly and enthusiastically proclaimed: "Uranium! Oh we should absolutely ask for uranium! If I could get my hands on a little of that we would be virtually unstoppable!"A big smile came across Leo's face as he was finally coming to fully comprehend exactly what this stage seven 'must say yes' phase of the thing called a 'rat flu' really meant, and then Mikey pushed Donnie aside while happily exclaiming: "What about a brick oven for pizza!?"Next it was Leo's turn to push Mikey away when he asked: "Who's gonna clean that?" thinking about the night Bully had him help with the hot, laborious task of scrubbing every inch of his restaurant brick oven. He was starting to really get in to this whole 'must say yes' thing and emphatically suggested: "What we should ask for is matching unicorn onsies! I saw them in a store window once, those things are sic! Pun intended. And I nailed it.""'Unicorn onsies'?" Donnie calmly questioned, with appropriate air quotes. "This coming from the turtle who keeps telling us he is a 'real ninja warrior'."Leo's smile fell, he stared at Donnie, and very flatly replied: "Hey, you know I sleep with a rainbow unicorn.""Guys, I got this," came Raph's very determined voice. "I'm gonna ask Splinter for something that benefits all of us.""I suppose that sounds fair," Leo quietly grumbled under his breath, trying to think up reasons why his suggestion would 'benefit all of them', but falling short (beyond the fact they were matching and warm, but his New York raised brothers didn't seem to mind in the least when it was mildly cold out - unlike him, who was raised under ground where it was always warm)."Alright, we need to get out there and keep pops in the lair to make sure we make it to stage seven," Raph instructed his three ninja brothers. He walked to the lab entrance with the three of them following close behind, the door slowly creaked open, four sets of eyes peered out into the empty hallway, and then, one by one with Raph taking the lead, they all left the safe confines of Donnie's lab to search for their rat dad.Along the way creeping down the hallway, Mikey whispered excitedly: "This is so exciting!" "Yeah, exciting," Leo muttered, hoping he didn't end up sick with this 'rat flu' thing, but wanting to be there with his brothers to help increase their odds of making it to this 'elusive stage sevon' they were so excited about.Then he shivered a little, hugged into himself, and asked: "Is it cold in here or is it just me?"Mikey took in a deep breath of air and blew it out through his mouth, for everyone to see his warm breath condensing in the cool air in front of his face.Leo shivered some more and complained: "Do you have extra heat lamps around here or something? I do not wanna go into brumation again.""Again?" Raph questioned."Guys, he's over here!" Donnie exclaimed, pointing into Splinter's bedroom.Raph peered into the room with Donnie, turned around to face his other two brothers, and very sternly told them: "Buckle up boys, it's about to get weird."* * *STAGE 1: FEVER* * *"Weird? I'm not gonna get all 'rat fluey' weird if I get sick, am I?" Leo questioned, wondering what other 'treats' awaited him besides this strange 'must say yes' phase of something they called a flu. Then, when they heard ragged coughing coming from the other room, he hugged into Raph's arm and nervously asked: "You're the leader, you won't let me get sick, right big bro?"Raph muttered: "Oh, sure, now I'm the leader," while Mikey rolled his eyes at the 'warrior ninja' who was acting like a baby at the moment, and complained: "You act like you've never been sick a day in your life.""I HAVEN'T!" Leo loudly countered."What about when you had shell rot?" Donnie questioned, prompting Leo to slap both hands on the sides of his head and exclaim: "THE RAT FLU'S AS BAD AS SHELL ROT!?" before wrapping his arms around Raph's bigger one in a shivery hug and asking: "Seriously guys, Donnie said you got some extra heat lamps around here, right?""Dad's fine if he's in his room, lets get our resident warrior under the new heat lamp Don installed in the rec room before his little ninja toesies freeze off," Raph told his brothers with a grin for Leo.Mikey snickered at Raph's condescending little joke and Leo shivered some more and complained through clattering teeth: "It's not f-f-funny, brumation is a r-real thing bros!" Then, on the way to the rec room, he looked up at his big brother and told him: "Unicorn o-onsies would come in real handy right about now. J-just saying."* * *~A While Later~Leo was huddled up in a pile of blankets with his brothers, under the warmth of a large heat lamp set up in the rec room that helped offset the freezing cold in the entire lair from when Splinter turned the central air conditioning up on maximum because of his fever; while Mikey was telling himself: "Think warm thoughts. Pizza ovens. Bricks from Italy. Wood chips roasting." He cuddled in on himself, and then the chilly Leo questioned: "And you're saying this is an annual thing?""We're four hours in," Raph next told his brothers, and Leo was starting to think this whole 'ignoring my valid questions' thing might be a regular occurrence among his family."His fever's gotta break soon," the snapper finished.That was when their rat dad emerged from his bedroom, wearing nothing but his whitie tighties with his entire body shaved of most of his gray fur."Wha, what!? Whhhy!?" Leo exclaimed at the sight. He looked up at Raph and requested: "Tell me this doesn't really happen every year!""Had to . . . air myself out," their feverish, ill mutant dad told them, before falling flat on his face.The four of them gazed at their dad laying face-down on the floor, and that was when Leo asked: "Uhhhh, what comes after stage one?" just before a threatening, deep roar came from the mutant rat in front of them.* * *STAGE 2: WILD RAT MAN* * *"Suits on suits on!" Raph urged.Donnie threw hazmat suits at his three brothers - even having a blue one ready to go that fit the slider - and Leo hastily stuffed his feet into, yelling: "Suits on!? What is this! Whaaa!" just before Splinter jumped up, growling and snarling like a wild beast, sending Raph, Mikey, and Leo in a panicked tizzy running around circles in their hazmat suits on the top of the skateboard ramps in the circular rec room, with a savage mutant rat chasing them as Donnie casually and calmly put his suit on in the middle of the room at the bottom of the skate ramps."Donnie, get the device ready!" Raph ordered in his panic, with Splinter close at his heels."DEVICE!? WHAT DEVICE! BWAAA!" Splinter snapped at his right foot with his sharp rat incisors and he yelled in a panic: "WHY COULDN'T YOU HAVE BROUGHT ME HOME TOMORROW INSTEAD!?" while Donnie seemed completely apathetic to their plight."Uh huh, it's ready," Dee calmly replied to Raph's request. He zipped up his hazmat suit and quite pridefully told them: "You know my inspiration for this device was simplicity." He pulled the hazmat helmet with the built-in face shield over his head and continued (with his brothers still running laps around the top of the ramps, being chased by their crazed, ill dad): "Why dress it up with lots of bells and whistles when you could just let it speak for its..." "NO ONE HAS TIME FOR THIS!!!" Leo loudly objected.Donnie's proud grin fell, he clicked at his wrist tech, and out of one of the pipes leading into the room came a large, clear ball that almost knocked Leo off his feet, but he managed to jump up on top of it and kick away thanks to his refined ninja reflexes."Nice!" Raph exclaimed when he saw Donnie's giant 'hamster wheel', before ordering his brothers: "Alright, lets get him inside.""HOW!?" Leo loudly questioned in a panic."I got it!" Mikey emphatically told him. He ran off to grab something from the kitchen, and came back with a pizza in one hand that he threw into the giant hamster ball, with the savage, snarling mutated human-turned-rat immediately launching himself inside after it."Is there anything pizza can't do?" Leo questioned in amazement as Donnie shoved what looked like a huge bathtub plug over the only opening."Ok, this should hold him for a while," Donnie told his three relieved brothers."Are you sure this isn't cruel?" The Hidden City raised slider - who had seen (and experienced) his fair share of atrocities in his life - asked.A memory came to mind of when he was once captured for interrogation by a group who were trying to work against Draxum and his plans, had his hands very tightly tied behind his back with ropes, and was stuffed into a tiny, stuffy solitary confinement room where he could barely breathe - one that was too small for him to be able to stand or even sit without banging his knees against the opposite wall(But boi weren't they surprised when they opened the cell to find the turtle ninja had freed himself from his bonds and fought them off with a concealed weapons they missed when they checked him over! The memory of their stunned faces might have put a smile on his face if not for what he next did to those rebels that Draxum preemptively ordered him to kill)Raph gestured to the rat munching on a whole pizza - box and all - with a smile on his face and confidently replied to Leo's query: "He loves pizza and confined spaces you can barely breathe in.""But he can breathe, right?" Leo asked next, this time directing his question toward the techy turtle who made the confinement device."Sure he can," Donnie replied with a proud grin, prompting Raph to clench his hands into fists and demand: "Donnie, pops can breathe in that thing, right?""Get him out!" the slider abruptly exclaimed in a panic before Donnie had a chance to answer 'yes'.But they soon found out that getting him out was not necessary when the confined savage rat began running around in the ball so rapidly it spun in place.Leo watched wide-eyed with his two other brothers when the ball took off and banged into Donnie, taking him along for the 'joyride' all around the room; and the slider yet again questioned: "This isn't really a 'once a year thing'! Right!?"No reply."WOULD SOMEBODY ANSWER ME FOR ONCE!!!"The ball revved up speed, bounced off a ramp, and hit the opposite wall with such force it smashed in two, freeing the snarling, vicious rat, who rampaged through a sewer tunnel, heading toward the living room where his bedroom was located.Donnie fell down to the bottom of the ramp on his back with a grunt of pain, and Leo pointed at where their dad just left through and nervously asked: "That's not gonna happen to me if I catch it, right bros?"Once again, instead of answering Leo, Raph sternly told Mikey in his 'hero big brother leader' voice: "Mikey, follow me and be careful..." "Why do you keep ignoring my questions!?" the exasperated slider exclaimed.Raph ignored him once again to continue:"We can't afford to lose anyone before . . ." (pause for dramatic effect) "stage seven.""I thought we all agreed it was now called the 'must say yes', stage!" Leo objected, before once again exclaiming: "And would someone tell me this doesn't happen EVERY YEAR!!?"Instead of replying to him, in a deceptively sweet tone Mikey looked at Raph to say: "It would be easier for me to be careful if I knew you were going to ask for a pizza oven."Raph yelled in frustration: "I'm still thinking!" and then Donnie pipped up when he asked: "Quick question, is uranium still on the table?" before Leo said: "C'mon bros, cozy warm matching unicorn onesies will be great on those cold New York winter nights when we're all cuddled up together in our turtle pile."From his position laying on the floor on his back in the center of the skateboard ramps, Donnie raised his hands to make air quotes and - quoting Leo's words from his first night here - commented: "I thought you don't 'turtle pile'.""I could warm up to it," Leo replied, then he looked at Raph to address his big bro with the words: "Especially if we all had matching unicorn onsies.""Once again, the 'ninja warrior' wants us all to cuddle up in kiddy unicorn costumes," Donnie factually objected.In response, Leo clenched his fists and yelled at his brother: "They're not costumes and they're not kiddy bro! Those onesies I saw in the store window came in adult sizes too!" He crossed his arms, smirked at his purple-clad brother, and snarkily added: "And I do believe I saw you sleeping with a toy."That got Donnie's attention, He jumped up, thrust a finger at Leo's chest, and the slider calmly looked down at it while he yelled: "First off, why were you in my room!?" "I was trying to find my way back to my room from the bathroom," Leo calmly replied. "Ah yes, your room behind the purple curtain." "Bro, it was dark, I couldn't see what color it was.""And secondly," Donnie yelled, ignoring Leo's comment to get back on track, "it's not a toy, it's a limited edition Jupiter Jim action figure with real chopping action! And I could genetically modify a unicorn for you if we tell papá to get us that uranium I've been asking for ever Christmas since we were seven!" "Ok, two questions. Who's Jupiter Jim, and what's this Christmas thing those humans seem to get so excited about every year?" Leo asked. Mikey slapped his hands on his cheeks and dramatically exclaimed: "Ohmigosh, you don't know about Jupiter Jim!?" "Or Christmas," Donnie calmly added. "Or Christmas!?" Mikey very loudly and emphatically repeated in surprise."That's enough, we need to focus," Raph sternly ordered. "Mikey, you're with me."Mikey nodded his head and followed behind Raph, leaving Donnie and Leo behind in the rec room that was now toasty warm since the air conditioner was no longer running on full blast throughout the lair.Actually, perhaps it was getting a little too warm.Or perhaps that was because of the completely sealed hazmat suits they were wearing; the ones that were getting stuffier by the second.The now sweating red-eared slider gazed around the room, listening carefully for any signs of a savagely snarling mutant rat or two mutated turtles crying out in terror, and when everything stayed nice and quiet he pushed back the helmet section and pulled the suit off the top half of his turtle body, holding it up at his hips to air out, and complained: "These things do not breathe."Donnie watched him and commented: "I know, right? But I wouldn't do that if I were you."His brother flashed him a playful grin and confidently replied: "Relaaax bro, those two hero brothers of ours can handle one little sick rat.""Says the guy who keeps calling us 'action hero movie star ninja wannabes'," Donnie factually commented, while taking off his helmet (after using appropriate air quotes).With an air of playful confidence, Leo replied: "Hey, that was before you started your Hamato training with Splinter. And you guys did great when we fought those idiot foot faces together once you took your eyes off your phones and got into the fight." Then he smugly grinned and added: "You're real heroes. Like me," while pridefully pointing to himself with a thumb.Donnie raised one eyebrow and asked: "Like you?" and Leo smiled at him and replied: "Yeah I'm a hero now too thanks to my bros not giving up on me, coming to the rescue, and bringing me here where I belong.""Coming to the rescue? I thought you didn't need rescuing by anyone?" Donnie next questioned, before blandly adding: "At least that was what you told Raph when he saved you after Draxum dropped you off a roof."Once again, Leo smiled at Dee, but fondly this time with a sparkle to his eye, and frankly admitted: "I was wrong, bro."Instead of smiling back, Donnie defensively thrust a finger out at him and exclaimed: "Alright, who are you and what have you done with my brother!?""Chill, Dee it's alll...waitaminute . . . Do you hear that?" Leo strained to listen, prompting Donnie to do the same thing, and the next thing they knew a terrified snapper and box turtle came running into the room, with Raph yelling in a panic: "Stage three stage three!" followed by . . .* * *STAGE 3: CAPTAIN CUDDLE CAKES* * *...a wildly grinning, shaved mutant rat whose arms were out wide, ready for a hug, running into the room behind Raph and Mikey.One who was looking right at the newest member of their mutant family and happily saying: "Oh Little Baby Bluuue, come to papá!""Why me!?" Leo yelled in a panic. He and Donnie rushed out of the room along with their two suited up brothers, with Donnie popping the headpiece back on his hazmat suit, but Leo - who had taken his off all the way down to his hips - fumbled to pull it back on over his arms. And in his panic tripped over his own two feet before swiftly jumping back up to rejoin his brothers in running away from their dad."Why weren't you in your suits!?" Raph scolded. "It was Leo!" Donnie yelled. "Nobody forced you to, Donnie!" Leo yelled back, before sniffing the air inside his suit and asking: "What's that smell?"Instantly, a sick rat popped up in the face screen hugging into Leo's head, happily telling him: "I love you thiiis much" and began kissing his face all over while Leo yelled: "No nooo! You barely know me!" before falling to the floor, with his sick rat dad's arms wrapped around him in a big hug, still kissing his cheeks over and over."Ahh, Leo's infected, quarantine him," Donnie told his brothers. The three of them stopped to watch the show, with Donnie taking out his phone to take pictures (along with the video he was recording from his hazmat suit and the lair's security cameras)Mikey grinned at the panicking turtle on the floor, trying to both squirm out of his hazmat suit and push away the rat squeezing him tightly at the same time, and cheekily (smugly) commented: "Oh look at that, the 'real ninja warrior' is the first one out.""I'm going to have so many picture for my archives," Donnie calmly commented, snapping one picture after another, before adding: "And blackmail.""This isn't funny bros, get him OOFFF ME!!!" Leo whined, rolling around on the floor with the hazmat suit half off, pushing at his rat dad who he could not get off his shell, that was hugging and snuggling tightly into him."I shook off a sticky thornthistle suckerbat when it stuck to my shell, why can't I get away from one sick rat!?" Leo yelled.* * *~Not Long Later~Leo was quarantined behind a clear film firmly attached to the front entrance of his bedroom, sweating from a fever and complaining to his brothers: "Hey you need me to get to the must say yes stage, we gotta ask for those unicorn onsies!""Yeah right, says the first one out!" Mikey tauntingly replied with a huge grin.Raph and Donnie smiled at him too, and the big snapper playfully told his sweating, feverish brother: "I gotta say Leo, I expected better, what with you being a 'real ninja warrior' and all."Mikey snickered and Leo objected: "Hey! I never had to deal with a sick rat trying to snuggle me to death before! Pleeease tell me this isn't an annual thing," before sneezing: Ah-ah-chooie!" in a very cute way."Ah chooie? What was that?" Raph questioned. "That, my brethren, was the battle cry of a sick ninja warrior," Donnie sarcastically replied, while Leo wiped his runny nose with a tissue."Ah yeah, real funny Don," he replied in his own (grumpy) sarcastic tone, before leaning ahead against the barrier separating him from the rest of his bros to look straight at the 'big brother leader' of the family 'Mad Dogs' group and say: "Seriously bros, you gotta get to the must say yes stage! Don't let my sacrifice be for nothing! We need those onsies!" Then he scanned his eyes around, listened to the silence, and asked: "Waitaminute . . . do you hear that?"The three of them listened, but when they heard nothing, Donnie commented: "Hear what?" and Raph said: "I don't hear anything.""That's my point, bros. Where is he?" Leo asked. His three brothers whipped around, weapons in hand, and all eyes were gazing around for a sick rat as Leo sneezed: "Ah-ah-ah-chooie!" once more."Gesundheit," Mikey told him."What?" the ill, Hidden-City-raised slider asked."Shh, I think I hear something," Raph next instructed.Everyone listened carefully for the sound Raphael heard and then they were hit with a smoke bomb, that filled the entire room with dark 'ninja' smoke, signaling the beginning of . . .* * *STAGE 4: NINJA SUPREME* * *Dressed head to toe in his Hamato ninja apparel and decked out with numerous weapons, Splinter jumped into the room, the smoke cleared, and he instantly threw three throwing stars at Raphael, who blocked with his tonfas."Oh no it's the ninja supreme stage, look out!" Donnie yelled.The ill slider watched while his dad yelled: "HOOOT SOOOUP!" chased his three brothers around the room, and with a swift slash of his sword cut them down to size......and by 'cut them down to size', he sliced off their protective hazmat suits, of course.Leo casually grinned at the sight of a short, plump rat chasing around his three much taller, muscular ninja hero brothers while sweating profusely, just before the lights went out.Raph asked: "Where'd Splinter go?" and the three of them fumbled around in the dark."Guys! I think I got him!" Mikey announced. Leo wiped his nose and laughed when he heard the *thump* from Donnie hitting Mikey on the head and sternly telling him: "Hey, that is my butt!"Next there was the grunt and a louder *thump* of Raph tackling Donnie to the floor, before Mikey jumped on top of the big snapper, and Donnie complained: "Ow, would everyone please stop hitting me?"He put his goggles down over his eyes, turned on the night mode that let him see in the dark, and watched a rat tail disappear into the hallway leading to his lab."No, not my lab!" Donnie immediately complained, before disappearing behind his dad.The lights flicked back on when Donnie got to his lab and flicked the breaker, and Leo cockily joked: "You call that ninja supreme?" before crossing his arms pridefully and announcing: "I could take him on blindfolded!"Mikey grinned smugly at Leo and countered: "Yeah, says the turtle who couldn't make it past stage three!""First one out, Leo, you'll never live it down," Raph playfully told him next, and the slider put his hands up to lean his weight against the clear barrier and defensively yelled back: "Hey! I never dealt with anything like a captain cuddle cakes before! Ah-chooie." "Gesundheit," Raph told him this time. "What does that even mean!?" the sick slider grumbled in frustration, before sneezing again."It's another way to say 'bless you' after you sneeze," Mikey 'explained'. "That doesn't explain anything!" Leo dramatically objected, before sneezing a third time, with both Raph and Mikey saying: "Gesundheit," this time."Would you quit it, it doesn't make any sense, like that whole 'handshake to seal the deal' thing," Leo complained, before sitting down on the edge of his bed and grabbing a tissue from the box someone kindly put in his room for him, to blow his nose.Raph dared tear his eyes away from the entrance to the hallway where Donnie and Splinter were somewhere in Dee's lab to look Leo up and down with a smile and say: "You're taking this whole getting sick this like a trooper, bro."The slider began detaching his tech prosthetic Donnie made for him, to air out his leg, when Mikey asked: "Yeah, didn't you say you've never been sick before?"The feverish, sweaty slider laid his prosthetic aside, pulled off his blue mask to lay it on his night stand, and picked up his rainbow unicorn to cuddle into it before sniffling and quietly reply: "Yeah, but this is nothing after some of the stuff I've dealt with."Raph and Mikey briefly glanced down at Leo's left bandaged stump that had been severed above the knee at some point in his life (not knowing how, because Hueso respectfully left out that particular tape when he shared the videos of Leo's Battle Nexus career with them at the slider's request, shortly after he first met his bros). Then he gazed at the three long scars running down the length of his brother's face from what his cruel owner, Draxum had done to him - in addition to badly burning his shell.And he still had the hairline marks left over from Big Mama's torturous attack, that would take years to fully disappear.And those were only the things they knew about."I guess I never thought of that before," Raph quietly commented. "Yeah, me too," Mikey agreed. Then he leaned in close to his big brother to whisper: "You know what we gotta do now, right big guy?"They both gazed loving at Leo, who hadn't heard what his little bro said and grabbed another tissue to blow his nose before hugging into his unicorn a little more; and they knew now what they should ask Splinter for when they reached the 'must say yes' stage.Raph and Mikey shared a knowing nod, before Leo sniffled again and asked: "Hey, this doesn't mean I'll go through that whole ninja supreme stage, does it?""I thought you'd be more worried about the 'captain cuddle cakes' stage of the rat flu." Raph commented. "Mm hmm," Mikey agreed, thinking about how long it took Leo to warm up to the idea of hugs in the first place."Yeah well, I'm starting to get use to this whole 'huggy family' thing, but I don't wanna..." He curled in on himself while snuggling into his unicorn a little more, put his eyes down on the floor, and very quietly said: "...hurt anybody. Know what I mean?"Raph fondly smiled at his ill brother, who sniffled again and buried his face into his stuffy, and softly replied: "Don't worry about it bro. The rat flu affects us turtles a liiitle differently." He shared a knowing glance with Mikey and Leo shot his head up to ask: "What do you mean 'little differently'? What's gonna happen to me?""Well, first, we skip the whole 'wild stage two'," Mikey happily informed him.Leo raised one brow suspiciously and questioned: "Aaand," looking at the big snapper to clarify his 'liiitle differently' comment."Oh, let's just say the 'ninja supreme' stage is more like a cute kitten stage for us turtles," his big brother told him."Wait, you mean like those baby cats I keep coming across in the alleys? The ones humans brainwash with those useless laser thingies that don't even burn paper?""They're not brainwashed, Leo, they're playing," Mikey informed him, before taking his own laser pointer out of his belt pouch and very happily announcing: "And I've got mine riiiight here!"That got Leo jumping up on his feet and exclaiming: "Ooooh no Mikey, you're not gonna use that thing on me, right! Ah-chooie! Don's already got dozens of pictures of captain cuddle cakes tackling me to the floor and kissing all over my face!"In a confident, factual tone of voice, Raph simply replied: "Leo, you're part of our family now, and if there's one thing you gotta learn while living with us, it's that blackmail is an acceptable way to get what you want.""Better watch out bro, that goes both ways," Leo threatened before blowing his nose.*Thump!*That was when Donnie was knocked out of his lab and fell flat on the floor behind Raph and Mikey, with a cut on his arm."Donnie, you hit?" Raph asked him."No, no I'm fine, I just cut myself on that janky old door. Raph have you decided yet what we're going to ask for?"Mikey and Raph gave each other one firm nod, Leo blew his nose again, and the snapper confidently replied: "Yeah, I got it, I'm gonna ask for..." Splinter jumped in the room, they jumped from fright, and then . . .* * *STAGE 5: KAROKE LOVE SONGS* * *...he began singing love tunes in a karaoke mic with disco lights flashing around the room.Leo groaned, flopped down on the bed on his stomach and covered his head with the pillow; Mikey slapped his hands over the sides of his head and complained: "I can't feel my ears! Nothing is worse than this!" and Raph slapped his hands over his ears and sternly asked Donnie (yelling to be heard over the horrible singing rat in the room): "I thought we agreed to take down the disco ball, Don.""I will gladly take down the disco ball and make any other changes you want to our lair, oh leader of ours, if you could find it in your heart to ask papá for uranium.""Uuughhh, how long is this gonna last!?" Leo's muffled voice groaned from under his pillow, just before he heard his 'twin' brother sneeze: "Achooie!"Leo popped his head out from under the pillow, questioned: "Achooie?" smiled at him and commented: "Bro, didn't you make fun of me for the exact same thing?" before Raph and Mikey swiftly quarantined Donnie; who subsequently pounded on the sealed entrance to his bedroom and complained: "You're going to get squat from Splinter without Donnie! Not without ol' Donnie! Achooie!""Guess it runs in the family," Leo commented, referring to his, Splinter's, and Dee's cute little sneezies, before stuffing his head under his pillow again to block out the horrible sound of Splinter's screeches singing.That was when the room fell silent, Leo poked his sweaty head out from under the pillow, and Mikey asked Raph: "Uh, what stage are we on now?"* * *STAGE 6: FANFICTION* * *Splinter stood at a table in the room plopped a Lou Jitsu toy action figure on the table, and said:"Ok ok listenlistenlisten, we open our noodle shop, it's raining, hawooosh!" he made windy sounds while gesturing with his hands and fingers to signify rain. Leo sat up a little on his bed and watched on, listening closely."Lou Jitsu hooot soups two assassins..." Mikey hauled out a notepad and pencil from somewhere-or-other while Splinter ninja chopped the air before dramatically continuing: "An interdimensional door opens and out walks 🎵dun-dun-dun🎵" he popped a Jupiter Jim action figure down on the table, "Jupiter Jim! and we smash to . . . Titan!"Leo sat up a little more, paying rapt attention; Mikey commented: "This is amazing," while still taking notes; and the slider mumbled under his breath: "I gotta find out who this Jupiter Jim is." Then Raph leaned against a support beam with his arms loosely crossed and said: "We're almost at stage seven. This is the closest I've been to success, uh, ever!"He and Mikey raised their hands for a high three, but before they made contact Mikes let out a loud: "Ahhh CHOO!" and then fell to the floor."What? No achooie?" Leo questioned, genuinely surprised that the smallest one of their mutant family had the loudest sneeze of all.Raph immediately put Mikey in quarantine, who complained: "Raph is totally gonna blow it!" before briskly waving a hand in front of his face from his fever and complaining: "It's like I'm on the sun here!"Raphael chuckled, stared at Splinter, and said (mostly to himself): "Raph is not gonna blow it!"And that was when Leo progressed out of the fever stage, into the 'captain cuddle cakes' stage, got up on his one leg to lean against the barrier with his hands clasped up beside his face, and sweetly said: "Raphael, I looove you my brother, but you're never gonna get to the must say yes stage without us. Pishposh, it doesn't matter, cuz we're all together right bro? Now bring it in buddy!" He hugged himself tightly and happily told his big brother: "I'm gonna hug you till your tail wags!"Raphael kept his eyes glued to the rat in front of him and replied: "As much as I love hearing your words of brotherly affection Leo..." "I'm lovin' it too!" the sweaty, feverish Mikey happily exclaimed, with his phone in hand, videoing Leo's very uncharacteristic lovey-dovey, huggy attitude from his room, that was located across from the slider's bedroom. Donnie popped his sweaty head up from off his pillow in his position face-down on his bed with a: "Huh?" at Mikey's words, and he gazed over at Raph when the big snapper finished: "I got this! Because in big-time moments, big-time leaders make big-time shots, and I'm big time..." "Make him say yes! He must say yes!" the hot, feverish Donnie interrupted."I'm gonna hug you too, bro!" Leo happily exclaimed, pointing at his sick, sweating softshelled brother."Enough!" Raph yelled at them both. Then he closed his eyes, mentally preparing for the task at hand, while telling himself: "Don't mess this up, Raph. Don't mess this up."Then he opened his eyes to look at their dad, and firmly said: "I know exactly what I'm asking for!"* * *STAGE 7: MUST SAY YES!* * *Splinter stood up from the table where the two action figures were, sniffled, and stared blankly at Raphael, who clenched his fists in anticipation and told him:"Master Splinter, I know you'll say yes to whatever I ask for. I want you to give..." "RAPH A BIG HUG!" the ill Leonardo yelled out loud, before finishing with the unusual-for-him phrase: "Everybody loves hugs!" then he thought out loud: "I wonder if Draxum could use a hug? I bet that would make him smile!"Splinter gave Raphael a big smile and stepped closer.The big snapper cried out in a panic: "What!? NO! Anything but that!"Their cheerfully laughing rat dad ran up to him happily saying: "Come here!"And despite Raph's best efforts to dodge out of the way, the experienced ex-tv star ninja hero tackled him to the ground, hugging and kissing him while the equally ill Leo watched on with a smile, his hands clasped together up at the side of his face again admiring at the hugging pair and saying: "Aw that's so cute, I want a hug too! And so does Squeezies!""Squeezies?" Donnie questioned, before sneezing and blowing his nose."Yeah, bro..." Leo happily picked up his stuffed unicorn and volunteered something he would have never told his brothers in a million years had it not been for the rat flu:"That's what I named my big, floofy unicorn."He squeezed his stuffed toy tightly in a big hug while adding: "Because he's so much fun to squeeeeze!"With sweat dripping off his head from his fever, Donnie raised one of his big eyebrows and questioned: "And you named your unicorn 'Squeezies' just this moment?"Leo looked up at Donnie with a jovial smile while still hugging into his soft stuffy, and happily told him: "Nah, bro, that's what I named him in the store after I hugged him the very first time." He held his rainbow unicorn's face up to his to look at it with a smile, and talked to it like a baby: "Isn't that right Mr. Squeezies?" before very happily hugging it tightly again."'Mr. Squeezies', noted and logged," Donnie factually commented, typing this information into his 'My New Dumb-Dumb Brother' app that he made about Leo, and glad the entire lair was decked out with his security cameras, before groaning from his terrible headache, plopping down on his bed, and blowing his nose once more.All while Raph was laying on the floor with a very happy rat dad hugging and kissing him all over.And then it was his turn to catch the rat flu, and the big, muscular brute of a mutant turtle sneezed: "Ah-ah-ah-chooie!"* * *~That Night, After Everyone was Better and Recovering~Leo was sitting back in a blue beanbag chair with Donnie sitting on a purple one beside him, and Splinter snoozing in his comfy living room chair.Meanwhile Mikey and Raph left temporarily to grab something the snapper asked April to pick up for them.And playing on the projector screen in front of them was 'Jupiter Jim Sails the Seven Galaxies' that Mikey picked out to be Leo's very first JJ movie ever (despite Donnie strongly objecting Leo's first JJ movie should be 'Jupiter Jim's Pluto Vacation Six' because - according to him - it was waaay better)Despite what he previously said regarding watching 'human screens', Leo was really in to this particular movie and he didn't take his eyes off the screen once until Raph and Mikey returned with their sister, April, who were all holding their hands behind their backs with big grins on their faces."Oh Leeo, we got a surpriiise for you!" came April's playful voice from behind his back.Donnie paused the movie, he and Leo turned around without getting up from there comfy spots, and Raph told his 'new' brother: "I know we didn't get what any of us wanted in the 'must say yes' stage..." Leo happily pointed at the big snapper with a big grin and gladly commented: "Heey! You're calling it what I suggested!""Yes, I'm calling it what you suggested," Raph agreed. Then Leo's smile fell and he stared at Donnie when his techy brother calmly clicked at his wrist tech while saying: "You mean the stage where Splinter was going to give us anything we asked for, but our resident 'real ninja warrior' ruined the whole thing by telling papá to give Raph a hug?""Hey, I wasn't in my right mind at the time, okay?" Leo sourly spit back out at him."Ah yes, just like you were 'not' in your right mind when you were the very first one out, oh ninja warrior of ours," Dee calmly and sarcastically replied.Instead of arguing back, Leo huffed out through his mouth, slouched down with his arms crossed in anger, and then Donnie looked up at him with a cheeky grin to playfully torment: "Would it help you feel better if I go get Mr. Squeezies for you, ninja supreme?""That's a great name!" Leo defensively countered in anger, before pointing his finger between his three brothers and saying: "And you three bozos wouldn't know about it if it wasn't for that whole 'rat flu' thing." Then he crossed his arms again, huffed out once more in frustration, and slumped down in his chair with a big pout on his 'ninja warrior' face."Who's Mr. Squeezies?" April asked in confusion.The pouty slider looked up at her, grumbled out in reply: "I'm ignoring you. Apparently that's what we do in this family when someone asks a question," referring to the many questions he asked about the rat flu that were one and all ignored. Then a huge, smug grin came on Donnie's face when he very happily told their sister: "That happens to be the name Leo gave to his stuffed unicorn we bought for him.""Oh how cute," April sweetly commented with a little giggle. The grumpy slider turned back around to face the projector screen and scrunched his head down a little, and Donnie excitedly continued:"I can't wait to show you the security video! And the footage of our resident 'ninja warrior'..." he playfully eyed Leo, added: "I used that tern loosely."The slider merely grunted at him before Donnie continued with: "Ah, watching the video of my ill warrior brother running around on all fours, chasing that laser pointer is forever etched in my memory. Oh, and one more thing, I took a screenshot from my security video of the big baddie over here..." he pointed with his thumb to the grumpy turtle (who seriously considered biting it), "hugging into his 'Mr. Squeezies' stuffy and sent it away to be put on a t-shirt."Leo's face fell when he looked at Donnie from that surprising comment, and then his jaw fell open from shock when his big brother asked: "Can you get one in extra-extra-extra large for Raph?" "Oo-oo me too!" Mikey enthusiastically requested.The slider (who was still getting used to the dynamics of living in a family environment) blurted out: "Wha!? Not you too, little bro!""Yes I can," Donnie factually replied to both of them, before clicking at his wrist tech to send off two new orders.Instead of arguing anymore, the slider conceded his defeat, slouched down in his beanbag chair with his arms crossed again - feeling very grumpy - and complained: "I can't believe this rat flu thing happens every year."Donnie comfortably sat back, looked down at his wrist tech that he was clicking at once more, and calmly asked: "Didn't you say you have a surprise for Leo?""Yeah I did," Raph proudly replied, before he, Mikey, and April each whipped out five matching unicorn onsies, a big red one and a purple one in the snapper's hands, an orange and a blue one in Mikey's, and a green one for April in hers.Leo's eyes sparkled from the sight and a big smile spread across his face, but Donnie was less than amused and he complained: "You got those onesies Leo wanted but wouldn't even look in to getting me any uranium!? And I am not wearing that thing!" before staring at the star-struck Leo and sternly telling him: "I could have genetically modified a horse and a goat to make you your own personal pet unicorn if we asked for uranium, but nooo! You had to ruin everything by telling papá to give Raph a big hug!"Splinter snorted awake from the sound of Donnie's way too loud, angry voice, and Leo ignored his incensed brother to excitedly jump up and run over to the blue onsie in Mikey's hands. Meanwhile Raph's smile fell and he very flatly told his genius brother: "I wasn't asking for uranium and I already told you NO ANIMAL EXPERIMENTS!""But Draxum experimented on animals and look at what happened to us!" Donnie whined in objection, before begging: "Please Raph, just two little rats, that's all I ask.""RATS!?" Splinter exclaimed. Donnie scrunched his head down with a quiet: "Oops," not having realized his dad was awake until now, and he was abruptly snapped in the face and knocked to the floor by a fast, whip-like rat tail, before Splinter stood over him and very angrily said: "I am standing RIGHT HERE!"Meanwhile, the very appreciative Leonardo was in the process of putting on his blue onsie already, with a huge smile plastered across his face, and he very happily told his two loving brothers and sis: "I can't believe you did this for me! This is great! Ooohh, and it's so waaarm!"He zipped up the front and put the unicorn hood up over his head with a joyful smile with Raph, Mikey, and April smiling at him......and a short while later four ninja turtles and a human were one-and-all dressed in matching unicorn onsies - even Donnie. With the five of them all happily sitting together in a turtle pile, their dad warm and comfy in his living room chair, all watching the rest of Jupiter Jim Sails the Seven Galaxies; which very quickly became the favorite JJ movie of all times for the slider who was beginning to think he might actually like living above ground among the humans - even if it did mean dealing with an annual rat flu, human food, and months at a time of cold, rainy and snowy weather.But at least they had their unicorn onsies, heat lamps - and each other - to keep themselves nice and toasty warm.Besides, who in their right mind would ever go outside in the cold wintry weather if they didn't absolutely have to, Leo figured - not knowing anything at all about one of his family's favorite annual up-and-coming snow-filled winter bonding day.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Leo walked over to a table that held a pitcher of water and four glasses, with a katana in his right hand and his body just as shiny from sweat as his three turtle brothers.He poured himself a glass, turned around to face the rest of his family in the dojo, and tipped it up to his mouth to take a drink.Splinter had just finished spending the larger chunk of an entire day training him and his three brothers in preparation for their inevitable fight against the Foot Clan; and Leo had to admit, not only was it awesome learning directly from his childhood idol (and dad), Lou Jitsu, but Splinter's approach at training was very different from his previous master (and owner), Draxum, who was very harsh in his dealings and rarely ever provided any words of encouragement - opting instead to focus his attention on where his marvel of creation personally fell short in some way or another (because of course there could never be a flaw in his design).But if he was to be honest about it, the positive reinforcement from an authority figure made him feel a little uncomfortable.. . .Ok, a lot uncomfortable.That was why, when the fourth and final session of the day was completed and Splinter began offering words of praise one at a time to each of his sons, along with gently pointing out areas for needed growth, Leo walked away to grab a glass of water.When he was done counseling his sons, Raph, Mikey, and Donnie each left their positions standing in front of their father after their grueling training day. They came over to join Leo, with Splinter walking behind them so he could offer some commendation to the newest member of their ninja hero family.Raph patted Leo's shoulder before picking up the jug to pour three glasses of water for him and his brothers, and then the slider put his glass down while his brothers picked theirs up, and Splinter smiled up at him to say: "You performed excellently today, Leonardo. Your technique is flawless, and your timing is practically perfect. However you could learn a few more things about fighting as part of a team as opposed to alone, as you have been all these years."Leo never returned Splinter's smile, instead he simply respectfully replied: "Hai, sensei," like he used to reply to Draxum when he was younger; and Splinter's smile fell as Leo quietly picked up a towel off the table to drape over his shoulders, and simply wiped the sweat off his head while walking away.Instead of saying anything about it, Splinter called out to his son: "Remember to study the ancient art of Hamato meditation, I left the scroll Purple translated in the living room for you to read. And the four of you are all ordered to rest tonight. Training resumes bright and early tomorrow morning."'Rest?' Leo thought in confusion. He was never ordered to 'rest' before. He and his three brothers were specifically engineered to be warriors in every sense of the word, he had always been taught that 'rest' was not needed for their superior mutant bodies beyond the required sleep and sustenance.What was he supposed to do with an order like that!?Instead of airing any of his concerns to the one who was training them - making Splinter not only Leo's dad but also his sensei and master - the slider showed him all due respect by very quietly replying: "Yes Master Splinter," before heading to the bathroom to be the first one to shower, so he could get that distasteful task of studying done and over with.* * *~About Forty Five Minutes Later~Despite having recently gotten out of a very warm shower, the lair was a little cool for the slider's liking, and he was currently in his bedroom wearing a warm blue hoodie he took out of his dresser from among the warm clothes Mikey previously pointed out to him, sitting at a small table he brought into his room under the heat lamp Donnie provided for him, hunched over the information he was trying to read with his brows furrowed from frustration and rubbing the side of his forehead from the headache studying always gave to him.Donnie showered in his ensuite bathroom that he built off his lab while Mikey took his turn in their shared bathroom, and they were both done now as the biggest of the family (who always took the longest) was now showering while Mikey briefly went topside to meet up with April who was coming over for something or other.Leo left his curtain partway open as an invitation to his brothers that it was ok to come on in without first knocking on the sewer wall outside his room, and that was exactly what Donnie decided to do.The softshell quietly walked up to Leo to see how his studying was coming along, and gazed down at the sheets he printed out for him after using one of his computer systems to translate the ancient Hamato scroll into English.Leo continued rubbing his forehead while occasionally huffing from frustration, like he had been doing ever since he first sat at the table and began his studies, and Donnie inquired: "How's the studying?""Huh, what?" Leo stopped his reading to look up at his brother, but before Donnie had a chance to repeat himself something came to his mind, and he said: "Oh here, I forgot to give you this."Donnie watched as the slider reached into his belt pouch and pulled out a tiny bag holding an even tinier computer chip.Dee took it from him and opened the bag to take out what was inside, and Leo pointed to the chip in his hand while informing him: "That'll let you access the yokai side of the internet, so you can research whatever you want.""Thanks Nardo," his sciency brother said with genuine appreciation and a smile to match Leo's. He put the chip away in his tech shell for now, eager to try it out, but wanting to see how Leo was doing since he seemed to be struggling, so he repeated his pervious unanswered question: "How's the studying?"In reply, Leo's smile fell, he put his head down to stare at the pages in front of him while rubbing his forehead from frustration again, and grumbled: "As good as it can be, I guess."Donnie looked over his shoulder at the information he translated, and he asked: "Did I not put it in simple enough language for you?"Leo's initial reaction was to shoot his eyes up to glare at him, but then put them back on the paper, figuring that Donnie was likely referring to his common use of techy, sciency words like Draxum that he never understood, and he tensed his shoulders when he complained: "It's not that!" He sat back to slouch in his chair, gestured in anger to the information in front of him, and complained a little more aggressively: "How can anybody read this stuff with the way the words keep bouncing around on the page like that!?"Leo rubbed his sore eyes and let out a frustrated sigh, just before Donnie calmly commented: "The words are bouncing around on the page?""Yeah, bro, that's what I said," his brother replied in an exasperated tone of voice, still rubbing at his sore eyes."Does this happen regularly?" was Donnie's next calm question."All the time. Doesn't it happen to you?" came the reply."No, it does not happen to me, in fact it does not happen to most people. I would say it appears as though you are dyslexic."Leo abruptly snapped his head up to glare in anger at his brother with his fists clenched, and curtly demanded: "What did you call me!?""Dyslexic," Donnie very calmly repeated.Leo's chair squeaked across the floor when he abruptly stood up with his fists clenched, looking about ready for a fist fight with the way he stared Donnie down, but he relaxed again when his 'twin' calmly explained: "It's not an insult.""Oh."Leo sat again, still tense from frustration but trusting that whatever it was his genius brother - who often used big 'sciency' words - called him, he was telling the truth and it wasn't meant as an insult.Donnie calmly continued: "I am merely pointing out you appear to suffer from a common learning disorder called dyslexia that affects how your brain processes written language."Leo crossed his arms in anger directed inwardly, stared at the sheet, slouched back in his chair, and grumbled: "Just great, something else I don't do right. It's no wonder I keep missing what's right in front of my nose. Cuz I really am a dummy."The slider thought about the day Draxum chained him to the floor as part of his grueling punishment because he missed what was right in front of his face in connection to the 'no yen' signs displayed everywhere in Señor Hueso's restaurant, while staring blankly at the papers in front of him, still with his brows furrowed in frustration (and anger)."You are not a dummy, Leo," Donnie reassured in a kind tone of voice.Leo glanced up at him, looking every bit as grumpy as he felt on the inside, and then stared at the sheet on top of the pile once more and asked in a sour tone: "No? Then how else do you explain that whole dys-lex-whatever it was you said?""Dyslexia and it is in no way your fault," Donnie factually replied, before going into speech mode when he began explaining: "Although not yet fully understood, it is believed there is a genetic..." "Bro, I already told you before, if I want a walking encyclopedia I'll go rent an audio book from the Mystic Library," Leo interrupted, but in a much more sour and much less joking tone than the last time he said that during one of their - now eliminated (thanks to Draxum) - telepathic dream realm conversations."What I'm trying to say is that there was a problem with the way your brain formed in early development. One that is most definitely not your fault," Donnie told him."Impossible," Leo immediately barked out in reply. "Draxum made our mutant bodies practically perfect. The last I checked, my brain's a part of my body, too.""Yeah practically, but even he could not completely eliminate any trace of possible genetic flaws that crept into our DNA any more than he could control our individual, unique personalities. Take Mikey, for example, he has ADHD."Leo rubbed his sore eyes, and still sounding a little bit grumpy he asked: "What's that?""Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is also a neurodevelopmental disorder that has genetic components.""Attention deficit, hyperactivity, hey? I suppose that's why he has such a hard time staying focused on anything for too long," Leo commented, thinking about the day he very clearly told his brothers not to touch anything in Big Mama's vault because there were mystic booby traps everywhere, only for his impulsive little brother to almost immediately lock them all inside because he picked up a shiny orb that caught his eye."Correct, and it is in no way his fault, just as your learning disorder is in no way your fault.""Hmm," Leo hummed in reply, wondering what kind of things he might be able to do to help strengthen his little brother where he was weak, and mulling over Donnie's words about his own shortcomings. But the harshly raised ninja mutant was all to familiar with the blame for any flaws being placed squarely on his turtle shoulders, so he had a very hard time wrapping his mind around the whole 'not your fault' aspect of this dyslexia thing; which was why he next blurted out: "So I didn't read enough as a kid in my free time, or something like that?""No, Leo it's. Not. Your. Fault," Donnie repeated, only firmer this time. The slider crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair again, and pointed his very grumpy face at the sheets on his desk when he said (still in that sour tone): "Oh I get it, I gotta figure out for myself what I did wrong if I wanna fix this."In frustration Donnie blurted out: "No, Leo, that's not what I...ugh! Look at me!" He reached his arms out to squish Leo's cheeks between his hands to point his brother's face up at him, and Leo put his eyes on the softshell's when he was very firmly and clearly told him: "This is not your fault, it's not Draxum's fault, it isn't anyone's fault, it's just something that happened in early development. Something that was beyond anyone's control, including yours. Do you get it?"The slider pulled away, rubbed his cheek, and grumpily replied: "Yeah, I get it."But he didn't believe it.Donnie straightened up, crossed his arms, and raised one eyebrow when he looked down on Leo and asked: "Do you really?"In response, Leo gave Donnie his (fake) crooked grin, casually draped one arm over the back of his chair, and said: "Yeah don't worry bro, I'll figure it out.""Ugh, Leo, there's nothing to 'figure out'! This isn't your fault and it's not something you can just fix!" Donnie replied with a hint of anger, and using somewhat aggressive air quotes.Leo looked away from him once again to put his eyes back on the papers he had to study, with his shoulders slumping a little.Donatello didn't notice the sad vibe his brother was giving off, so he gestured vividly when trying to get his point across when he very firmly said in clear frustration that his ninja warrior brother - who was actually very soft-hearted on the inside - wasn't getting it: "There's absolutely nothing you did or did not do that could have possibly contributed to your dyslexia!"He sucked in a deep breath of air and was about to loudly explain the matter in more detailed (sciency) terms that he hoped might help, but stopped himself when Leo quietly replied: "Oh," without looking up at him.That was when he noticed his previous cruely-treated slave brother was absently rubbing his right wrist in the same spot he saw him rubbing one day prior, when there were still marks leftover from Draxum's burn punishment attack - when he was heartlessly chained to the floor in too-tight, abrasive shackles.Leo's words from the other day when Donnie and their other brothers were standing outside the med bay door, listening in on his guided meditation with Splinter (and waiting for the right moment to announce their presence) sounded in his mind:
"Why do everyone stuff me in shackles just because I'm a slave!? Why are they always too tight!?"
Donnie's mouth closed, his entire demeanor softened, he lowered his hands down by his sides, and asked: "You're used to having the blame put on you, aren't you?"Leo stopped rubbing his wrist, slouched down in his chair a little more, and without taking his blank gaze off his desk he replied in a hushed, quiet tone of voice that revealed how very little he felt about himself on the inside right now:"Yeah."The confidence in Donnie's voice carried through so well with his next words that Leo raised his head in surprise to look at him when he put a hand on his shoulder and reassuringly told him: "It's not like that anymore, bro." Then the kindness clearly showed through in his eyes when he softened his voice to add: "And I mean it when I say it's not your fault," before fondly joking: "And you're not really a dummy . . . Dummy."Leo returned Donnie's smile with a small one of his own and softly replied: "Thanks, I'll try to remember that.""I hope you do," Dee told him, before offering: "I'll need to conduct some research first, but there may be ways I can help."Leo's genuine crooked smile showed when he gazed up at his loving brother who had done a whole lot to prepare in advance for the day he finally moved in with them (like providing the heat lamp he used regularly, and his very necessary prosthetic leg), and that was when Mikey and April burst into the room, the latter carrying a bag that came from the Hidden City, and both of them fair glowing with the huge smiles on their face and sparkles in their eyes, but each for their own reason."It's snowing!" the ecstatic box turtle exclaimed."And that's a good thing?" Leo inquired skeptically, before looking at the bag in his sister's hand and sternly telling April: "Don't tell me you went to the Hidden City!""No, but Sunita bought me a few things I asked for. C'mon Stripes, I've got something to show you, you're gonna liiike it!" April happily replied while playfully jiggling the bag in her hand; just before Mikey exclaimed: "I can't wait to tell Raph about the snow!" He ran out of the room and Leo got up to follow April to the bathroom, where his human sister abruptly handed over the bag to her brother who used to be very fond of his good looks before Draxum slashed three long gashes through his face.As soon as the slider gazed into it his brows furrowed in confusion, and he pulled out a container of green concealer, that was inside the bag along with red concealer, as well as green foundation, a red one, and a tube of reptile face moisturizer."Uhh, why'd you get green and red makeup?" the confused slider inquired."It's for you!" April replied with joy."For me?" Leo asked, feeling more and more confused by the second. He continued holding up the green concealer that matched his turtle skin, and gazed at it (and himself) in the mirror.And when his eyes settled on the three long gashes coming out above and below his blue mask, a big smile came across his face because he understood now. So he threw the concealer back in the bag with the rest of the stuff and pushed Donnie and April out of the bathroom while excitedly telling them: "I'll show you when I'm done!" before slamming the door in their faces."Uhh, Leo? Do you even know how to put it on?" April asked through the locked door, with Donnie sticking around to see the end result, while casually clicking at his wrist tech.From the other side she heard her turtle brother excitedly call out: "Yeah, I've seen it enough! That place I used to go for my manicures does makeup too!""Manicures? Is that why his skin is so much softer than ours?" Donnie wondered, gazing down at his own two somewhat rough turtle hands before resuming his clicking at his touchscreen, this time to research 'reptile moisturizer' on the yokai side of the internet (thanks to the chip his Hidden-City-raised bro gave to him).And it wasn't long before a ravishing (if he did say so himself) red-eared slider turtle with a blue ninja mask opened the door to show off his scar-free handsome mug."Heyhey, whatdoya think?" Leo asked in excitement, donning his winning 'faceman' smile for them to admire.Well, for April to admire, Donnie's eyes were down on his touchscreen, even though he stayed just for this moment."Ooo, lookin' good Stripes," April complimented. Then, when Donnie didn't look up or say anything April roughly elbowed him, so that he raised his eyes to put them on her."Huh? What?" he asked, and April gestured to Leo and sternly told him through gritted teeth: "Say something.""Ah yes." Don lowered his arm, put his eyes on Leo's smiling face, and very factually 'complimented': "April and Sunita did an exceptional job matching the foundation to your skin coloration."April's smile fell and she let out an annoyed: "Really?" but Leo kept right on smiling and told her: "It's fine, Pril, I'll take it to mean he thinks it looks good.""That's what I said!" Donnie whined in an exasperated tone while staring straight at 'Nardo'. That was when Leo squinted his eyes and leaned his face in really close to his brother's, before asking the odd question: "Hey, bro, what are those contacts things you told me about?""Explain," Donnie told him in reply."I said you'll need glasses if you keep looking at that tiny screen, and you told me that's what contacts are for," Leo reminded."Ah yes, contacts are corrective lenses that sit flush to the pupil to correct vision without the need for bulky glasses," Donnie gladly told him with a smile.But then his smile fell when Leo pointed at his left eye and asked: "How'd you make a camera small enough to fit inside your contact?"The new 'faceman' of the Hamato family 'Mad Dogs' team of turtle heroes grinned wildly when Donnie clenched his fists, scowled at him, and yelled: "How do you know these things!?" and Leo happily told him: "Ninja's secret." He gave his brother a playful wink and added: "Maybe I'll teach you one day."That was when Mikey appeared in the hallway, wearing warm outerwear, and holding up Leo's winter apparel for him with a huge grin on his face.Leo's smile immediately fell, Mikey opened his mouth to say something, but before his little brother got out a single syllable there was the loud *SLAM!* of the always-needs-to-be-warm Hidden City raised turtle very forcefully slamming the bathroom door shut, followed by the *click* of it being locked from the inside.A moment later, inside the bathroom Leo heard the pleading voice of his little brother begging from right outside the door: "Please, Leo, it's a family tradition. We go to the park every year on the night of the first snowfall. You gotta come with us."Leo refused his invitation with a very firm, angry: "Hard. Pass. And did you forget Draxum and the Foot Clan are looking for me? I can't go above ground right now, neither should you!" Then he added a very un-apologetic sounding, sarcastic: "Sor-ry."Mikey groaned and looked at Donnie to request: "Help a turtle out here, Dee."In reply, their techy brother began clicking at his wrist tech and dryly replied: "Ah yes, why don't I open my 'tap into every security camera in New York app'? Sorry if that sounded like sarcasm I am in."There was a moment of silence while Donnie checked out the security feed in and around the Bronx park before programming his app to search for any sign of Foot soldiers, and then he informed his fam: "Not only is the area surrounding the Bronx Park clear, but the Foot are currently searching for Leo in New Jersey.""Bro, even I know to stay away from Jersey and I was raised underground. In the Hidden City. Where it's warm," came the muffled sound of Leo's voice from the other side of the door."C'mon Stripes, it's safe to go out," April urged, "and Donnie will set up alerts to let us know if any of those Foot soldiers get close to where we are, right Dee?"Without looking up from his wrist tech (or dropping the sarcastic attitude) Donnie replied: "Ah yes why don't I..." "Drop the attitude Dee, we all know you can do it," April flatly told him. "Sigh," *click* "it is done," Donnie replied. He lowered his arm to join April and Mikey in looking at the bathroom door where Leo locked himself away, then the Mikester tried to get Leo on board by sweetly reminding him: "Dad did say we're supposed to be resting, and what can be more restful than spending some quality time with your bros?""No. Thank. You, I'll rest at home, in the dojo, training for when we gotta face Draxum and the Foot Clan." came the angry reply."C'mon stripes, you gotta go with us, it won't be the same without you."That was April's pleading voice this time."No!" came the firm reply."Please Leo we can't go without you, you're our family now too!" Mikey next pleaded.He and April listened carefully at the door, and when no harsh rebuke came, they looked at each other, April whispered: "Ok, one, two, three..." and then the both of them very sweetly said in unison: "Pleeeaaase?"
. . .
No response.They waited with bated breath.
*click*
Mikey fist-bumped the air with an excited: "Yes!" and he and his sister shared a high five/three when the doorknob slowly turned and the door pulled open, to reveal the very grumpy face of one Hidden City raised mutant red-eared slider, who roughly snatched the coat out of Mikey's hands and stormed toward the rec room entrance where Raph was waiting for them, grumbling along the way: "I gotta learn how to say no to you two! Especially when you gang up on me like that!"Mikey happily ran after him, saying: "Hey looking good bro! That makeup really brings out your red stripes!""Humph," came the grumpy reply from the likewise grumpy Leo, but Mikey's gleeful smile stayed stretched across his face as he hurried to catch up for their very first ever complete sibling family snow day!* * *~A Short While Later~Three happy turtles, an equally happy human holding her dog yokai pet Mayhem, and a cold, grumpy, shivering red-eared slider whose arms were wrapped around his body in a hug and whose hands were shoved in his armpits were all together in an unoccupied section of an above ground park after sunset.The day's snowfall left a thick layer of crisp, clean white snow on the ground that sparkled and shimmered under the overhead lights of the Bronx Park.But the beauty was missed on the cold turtle, who gaze around at the cold whiteness surrounding him, and grumbled: "Ok we came, we saw, now lets get back home to our nice heat lamps."He abruptly turned around to leave, but Raph stopped him by grabbing him and turning him back around to face their family. And with a big smile he said: "C'mon Leo, just give it a chance!""Yeah, I just know you're gonna like the snowball fight! That'll warm you right up!" Mikey emphatically told him with his own big smile."Snowball fight?" Leo questioned in surprise. "You mean you pick up that cold stuff and fight each other with it! HARD PASS!"The New York raised box turtle rolled his eyes and playfully replied: "No Leo, we don't fight each other with it, we make snowballs out of it and throw it at each other, like this."Leo watched, shivering and cold, as Mikey reached down with both hands to pick up a heaping helping of snow, packed it into a snowball, and threw it at Raph. It hit his jacket, the snapper laughed, and then he smiled down on his shivering brother to say: "See, bro, like that.""Uh huh, like that," Leo 'agreed' before abruptly turning around to walk back home.But he was stopped again when Raph picked him up and plopped him back down where he had been standing."Draxum's collecting the dark armor pieces and we're here playing in the cold snow," Leo griped."Hey, pops told us to relax after our long day training," Raph objected."Yeah, dad taught us that knowing when to rest and refresh our minds and bodies is an important part of our ninja training," Mikey told him with his never-ceasing smile."I can rest and refresh at home, training in the dojo," Leo objected.Then, with calm factual words, Donnie told him: "Papá is training you now, Nardo, that makes him your sensei. And isn't respecting one's sensei an important part of ninja training?"Leo narrowed his eyes in anger at his brother's logical statement and firmly countered with: "Fine. I can rest and refresh at home, laying in bed under my WARM heat lamp."He abruptly spun around to leave, Raph huffed out from annoyance and immediately picked him back up again to plop him down in the snow in front of him, and Leo glared up at him to say in a threatening tone: "I know where you sleep, bro.""Alright fine, here," Donnie said, while taking a pair of warm mitts out of his pockets to hand them out to Leo, telling him: "These are electric, they'll keep your hands warm. I have a pair of matching socks at home, it'll take but a moment for my Shelldon tech to retrieve them and bring them here."Instead of taking the gloves, Leo eyed them suspiciously and asked: "Electric? You mean like electric shock clamps? No thanks.""Electric shock clamps!?" April blurted out."Uhh, what are..." "Don't ask," Leo firmly interrupted Donnie. His inquisitive softshell brother shut his mouth, clicked at his wrist tech to summon his Shelldon hover tech to bring his heated socks, and then held out the mitts again while informing Leo: "What I mean is they are battery operated to warm your hands. You are welcome."Leo still looked suspiciously at the mitts being held out to him, but this time he slowly reached out while saying: "Alright bro, but if they shock me you're getting more than a ball of snow to the face." Then he snatched the gloves out of Donnie's hands and carefully looked them over. When he was done, he hastily switched out his gloves for Donnie's mitts, mumbling something under his breath about his turtle body not being built for this and: "Somebody's gonna get it if I go into brumation again." But after he switched out the gloves and then the socks when the hovering Shelldon tech brought them, his turtle body was beginning to warm up sufficiently, so he wasn't nearly as grumpy when they got to work making something his brothers called a 'snowman'.A Jupiter Jim snowman, to be precise.That put a smile on his turtle face!When it was done, Leo and Donnie gazed up at the snowman together, that April finished off with a Jupiter Jim helmet on top over the head; and with a smile on his face Leo jokingly said: "Great job fam." His smile fell when he looked at Donnie and he sarcastically (playfully) added: "And Donnie, I guess."In reply, Donnie flatly said: "If I weren't so enchanted by the beauty of our replica of Jupiter Jim I'd probably say something like look over there PUSH!"Donnie tried to push Leo down, but the skilled ninja saw it coming a mile away, dodged out of the way, grabbed Donnie's outstretched arm, and threw him face-first into a snowbank.April, Mikey, Raph and Mayhem all laughed, Donnie sputtered, spit snow out of his mouth and looked up to see Leo standing over him with a very tense grin on his menacing-looking face, to tell him in an oddly pleasant (but yet somehow threatening) tone:"If you ever try to push me in the snow again, I'm gonna short out your security system, snatch something from your lab, and dip it in the toilet." His creepy smile stretched across his face when he added: "You'll never know what it was.""Duly noted," Donnie replied. He wiped away the snow that snuck its way into the collar of his jacket, and accepted Leo's 'helping hand' when he stretched it out for him.But when Leo yanked him up onto his two turtle feet (very roughly, might I add) he grabbed Donnie's wrist tightly, pulled him in way too close, and menacingly whispered in his ear: "Don't forget I know where you sleep too. Bro.""I will not be up half the night teaching myself how to sleep with one eye open, he said without a hint of sarcasm," Donatello sarcastically replied. Leo snorted out a laugh from the way his 'twin' brother tacked on that last part as though he was his own personal narrator, and then they both gave Raph their attention when he proudly looked up at a flag he had added to a flagpole held in the snowman's hand, and told them: "For the cherry on top, this flag of Jupiter Jim Sails the Seven Galaxies!""Best JJ movie of all time baby!" Mikey emphatically agreed, with Leo - who had only watched two JJ movies so far - smiling and nodding his head in agreement. But his smile fell when April blurted out: "What the what!?" They watched (aghast) when she ripped Raph's flag down and threw it in his face before smugly saying: "Hold up Skip. Jupiter Jim's Pluto Vacation Four is the best JJ movie of all time."Mayhem sat atop her shoulder, smiling in agreement, and Donnie smugly agreed: "Ranked, by us, just now, sooo it's-basically-official-no-arguing."Raph and Mikey instantly laughed at them, and Leo asked: "You mean the second one we watched last night where Jupiter Jim spends the entire movie searching for ice before realizing the surface of Pluto is ice?""Uh, yeah," came the incensed reply from April. "And last night when you watched it for the first time, you and those two bozo brothers of yours laughed your heads off!""That's only because Raph fell over when he dozed off and broke the projector with his face!" Leo replied in an amused tone with a big smile, while Mikey was leaning against him, laughing at the happy memory."Yeah! My face takes damage like a boss!" Raph happily exclaimed. He pointed to his smiling face with both hands and said: "Leo, hit me!""Ok if you wa..." "Oh please let me!" Donnie requested. His tech bō was already in his hand with a mallet on one end, and he jumped up behind Raph's back with it raised up high over his head, intending to smash his big brother in the face with it.But he was stopped when both Mikey and Leo yelled: "No!" and tackled him to the ground.While holding him down, Leo firmly told his brother: "I take it back. You should not learn how to tap into your ninpo. Woahwoahwoah, is that snow in my jacket!?" He jumped up, dancing around for the uncomfortable coldness trickling down his shell while reaching his hands in beneath his scarf to try an scoop out some of the cold stuff that made its way past the collar of his coat, whining: "I can't get it out!" The when he finally grabbed the icky snow he threw it out (right a Donnie's face, for a bonus) and complained: "That stuff gets everywhere!" Then he looked to his big brother to ask: "We're going home now, right?""Home!? Home he says! The night's only beginning!" came the very angry sound of Donnie's voice.Leo gasped when he saw his brother had a big snowball in his hand, and he put up his hands and backed away while nervously saying: "Okok bro I'm sorry, I won't throw snow in your face anymore, just don't..." *SPLAT!*A ball of snow hit him square in his turtle nose, Leo cried out: "Bla!" quickly wiped it off while mumbling: "Ok, I deserved that," and that was when his three brothers and sister energetically announced: "Snowball fight!"Leo very slowly backed away and nervously said: "Heh heh, I'll sit this one out, fam. Knock yourselves out. Don't mind me I will not be on my way home to my nice warm heat lamp."But he stopped when Raph announced the stakes of their snowball fight when he said: "Last player standing gets to fly their team's flag!"Leo next watched when April agreed: "Ok, we're up for a friendly game. No safe base, no weapons..." she stepped out in a wide stance and aggressively yelled (with a smile on her face): "NO MERCY!""Hold up, I can't let you three bozos ruin our replica of Jupiter Jim with that inferior flag!" Leo exclaimed. Donnie let out an incensed: "Inferior?" and the slider walked over to stand on the 'winning' side with Raph and Mikey, announced: "I'm in," before sharing fist bumps all around with his two brothers.Then Leo gazed at his little brother in surprise when Mikey elaborated on the rules by saying: "Aaand, no ice balls, no slush slappers, no horse hoppers, pepper poppers, liberty launchers, downtown hammers, dream hackers, thrashers, no Freddie Prinze junior. *ahem* No corked snowballs of any kind. We aren't savages."Next Leo gazed at his 'twin' brother - who he was coming to believe more and more that he was perhaps a little morally ambiguous - as he turned his back to Mikey cradling a skull-shaped snowball that definitely had rocks or something of the kind hidden within, and whispering in a threatening tone: "Speak for yourself.""Oookay, I changed my mind, I am out," Leo announced to his fam while backing away. But (once again, for the fourth time that night) Raphael picked him up, plopped him back down in the snow in front of him, and sternly told him: "Oooh no Leo, nobody leaves after the game starts, not until it's over!""Who said the game already started!?" Leo cried out in exasperation."Me," came the threatening reply from his brother Donatello, right before throwing his 'skull' snowball at Leo's face.Leo dodged, smiled at his ambiguous brother while scooping up some snow, and yelled: "Oh it is on!"And that was the beginning of a long night outside in the cold New York winter air as part of an annual family tradition his siblings had been participating in for a long time now.After they went home and got settled away, Leo thought back over their night from his spot laying in the turtle pile under the big rec room heating lamp (in his unicorn onsie that matched the ones his brothers were wearing, of course).The mystic infection inside of him felt much weaker than it was when he first arrived here, with his ninpo warmth radiating in his chest feeling almost as strong as it had been before the day the dark armor infected him with its dark energy. And with a smile on his face he thought of building the snowman, how Mikey went out of his way to tailor warm clothes they bought for him to fit over his turtle body, Donnie went out of his way to share his heated gloves and socks with him; as well as the fun they had bantering over the best 'JJ' movie, their snowball fight, and this thing called coffee he heard about but never tried before, that Donnie shared with him (when their other siblings sipped on this way too sweet stuff called 'hot chocolate').And he honestly admitted, he really hoped this 'snow day' thing would become an annual family tradition for him as well.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
~A Couple of Days Later~Shortly after sunset on a Friday night a manhole cover was moved aside, and after carefully checking that the coast was clear a caped figure came up out of the sewers in an alley between two apartment buildings and scaled the fire escape to the fourth floor of one of them.The unlocked bedroom window of one of the apartments slid open and the cloaked ninja silently climbed in and gazed around the dark room, with the only light coming in from the hallway through the partway open door.The ninja turtle decked out in his ninja gear and winter apparel (including his long, hooded cloak on top of everything else) looked around for his human sister, but she wasn't there so he shrugged it off - assuming she went out to get their pizzas - and took off his outerwear: starting with his mitts, hat, and cloak, then his winter jacket, snowpants, and finally his boots; revealing a blue hoodie and gray jeans underneath that extra layer, his two katanas that went everywhere he did in their sheaths, with the handles sticking up out of the wide neck opening in his hoodie.But Leo opted to keep Donnie's~ his warm heated socks on, shivered and hugged into himself with a: "Brr," and then turned around to shut out the cold winter air blowing in through the open window behind his back.That was when he heard a light growling coming from the corner, and when he looked over at the foot of April's bed, there on the floor in his little doggie bed the 'cute dog thingie', Mayhem was curled up, snug and warm with his big floofy tail wrapped around the front half of his body.A big smile stretched across Leo's face and he greeted Mayhem with the cheerful (sarcastic) words: "Hey dumb-dumb! Get yourself stuck in anymore mirrors?"Mayhem paused his growling long enough to bark as a warning for him to stay away, but Leo was undeterred, walked over to sit on the floor beside him with his back against the wall, and still with a smile, said: "Don't worry about it, I've done some pretty dumb stuff in my life, too."Mayhem barked at him again, and then when Leo put his hand out to pet him, he had to pull it back from a sharp set of teeth snapping at his fingers.The slider only laughed, put his hand down, and gazed around the room while saying: "Looks like you got a good thing going here," knowing that although this particular yokai couldn't speak himself, he very definitely understood everything said to him.Leo smiled at the angry, growling yokai and said: "Beats that nasty spy work in the Hidden City, hey boy?""Grr-ruff!" came the 'curt' reply, followed by more growling."Yeah, I can see why you left that life behind."The slider next took out a shuriken he had poked away in his big hoodie front pocket for this very reason, and looked down on it while spinning it around in his fingers as a fidget toy."I did the same thing. Left my old life with Draxum behind to come up here and try out a new one with my family. It's, ah . . . it's nice."He stopped the shuriken and looked at the growling dog yokai to sincerely tell him as his form of an apology for hunting him down and taking him to the murderous alchemist against his will: "I guess what I'm trying to say is that . . . well, I'm happy you're still around."As expected, Mayhem simply barked at him in reply once more before getting up from his bed, and Leo watched him with a smile all while he slunk across the room, happily calling out just before he left through the door: "Hey nice talk boy, we'll have to do it again sometime!"Mayhem looked back at him, but only to flash a dirty look at the turtle who chased him down, captured him, and dragged him back to what would have been an inevitable death, if not for April and the others intervening. Leo simply smiled and watched him leave the room, before putting his eyes back down on the throwing star in his hand and mumbling to himself: "Yeah, I wouldn't forgive me, too."That was when someone opened the door and flicked the light on."Did you get the manicure set, sis-uhhhh, you're not April!"When Leo looked up from his 'fidget spinner' he was very surprised to discover someone he did not recognize standing in April's open bedroom doorway, gazing at him.April's mom.Her mom who caught him waiting for her daughter in her bedroom of all places!The frightened slider jumped to his feet, frantically waved his hands around in front of his body, and blurted out in a panic: "It's not what you think! April's my sister!"He next gazed at his two (black) turtle hands held out in front of him, commented: "Aaand I'm a mutant turtle..." he put his eyes on the sharp shuriken he was holding next, and said: "...with lots of shiny weapons." Then he pocketed the throwing star, nervously rubbed the back of his neck, gave the human - Mrs. O'Neil - a big, toothy smile along with a nervous laugh, pointed back to the window with his thumb, and said: "Heh heh, I'll just be going now." But when he picked up his cloak off April's bed, Carol O'Neil smiled sweetly at him and said: "You must be Leo," she raised one eyebrow and added: "April's mutant turtle brother..." Her smile grew and she leaned in a little, playfully adding: "...the one with lots of shiny weapons."Leo knew April had a mom named Carol O'Neil, but he wasn't aware she knew anything at all about him or his brothers, so he looked at her in confusion and questioned: "Uhhh, yeah? How do you know about me?"Carol gently laughed and told him: "I know a lot more than you think. It's good to finally meet you; Leonardo.""Uh, thanks, it's good to meet you too, Mrs. O'Neil," Leo nervously replied, this having been the first time he had any sort of a friendly conversation with a human who wasn't his spunky sister or that wildly crazy and unpredictable Cassandra Jones (and, quite frankly, those two didn't count, because they were different from other humans, as far as Leo was aware)"Please, call me Carol. April's out getting the pizza for your 'girl's night'," Carol said, before pointing into the hallway toward where the kitchen was located and offering: "Would you like some tea while you wait? I just put on the kettle.""Uh, no thanks, I'll wait here for her to come back. Un-unless you want me gone," Leo nervously replied, really having no idea how to talk to a normal, everyday 'run of the mill' human face-to-face, without the whole 'I'm here to end your life or drag you underground for a round of excruciating mutation experiments' thing the ninja assassin of Baron Draxum did when he was routinely sent above ground to collect more specimens.Used to do, but didn't anymore."Oooh no, I wouldn't want to ruin your girl's night!" Carol replied with a laugh, before telling him: "April's been so excited to get some one-on-one time with you, she's been talking about it all day!""Really?" Leo asked, confused. He didn't understand why anyone would be excited to hang out with him. But then the slider thought about something else Carol had just mentioned, and nervously asked: "What else do you know a-about, uh..." and then trailed off, not wanting to volunteer information about his mutant family that April's mom might not have been informed of, and having absolutely no idea how much information Mrs. O'Neil was privy to, beyond knowing 'a lot more than you think'.They were mutants, living above ground in a human-dominated world after all.Humans who who were one-and-all violent war-mongers, slow, weak, dim-witted, afraid of what they didn't understand, and who lashed out at whoever and whatever made them afraid.At least that was what Leo had been taught all his life, and firmly believed."What do I know about your family?" Carol kindly offered when Leo didn't finish his sentence."Uh, yeah," Leo replied, absently rubbing the back of his neck (a habit he had been doing much more than usual since spending more time with his big brother, who did the same thing). The nervous slider kind of wanted to end this uncomfortable conversation with one of those humans he was taught to despise, but he also really wanted to find out if she knew anything about his family that he didn't."How about I put on a pot of coffee for you?" Carol offered.Leo gave her a genuine smile and replied: "Yeah, I like coffee," and he laid his cloak down and followed her out of the room in his gray jeans, blue hoodie......and warm heated winter socks too, of course.* * *~A Few Minutes Later~Leo and Mrs. O'Neil were sitting at the kitchen table, one scooping a spoonful of sugar into her tea while the other sipped on a mug of black coffee."Are you sure you wouldn't like some sugar?" Carol offered, before stirring her tea and taking out the spoon.Leo screwed up his green turtle nose and replied: "Ugh, no thanks." He put his eyes down on the coffee before taking another sip, secretly glad she hadn't mentioned anything about his solid black hands and arms, and casually commented: "I don't understand why humans poison their food with that super sugary or super salty junk they eat all the ti..." he raised his eyes to see the human, Carol, smiling at him, and blurted out a nervous apology:"Uh, I'm sorry I didn't mean..." "It's ok, Leo, you didn't upset me, and you're right, a lot of people do eat too much sugary or salty junk food," Carol reassured.Leo let out a sigh of relief, looked back down on his mug of coffee again because he felt more comfortable when he wasn't looking at the human sitting across from him, and nervously admitted: "Thanks, I, uh . . . I really don't know how to talk to humans. This is my first time.""But you talk to April all the time," Carol questioned, genuinely confused.Leo smiled at the thought of his spunky human sister, raised his eyes to look at Mrs. O'Neil, and said: "Oh yeah, but April's different." He sat back casually in his chair, raised his arm to rest it on the back of it, and told her: "She's not at allll like those ot..." his smile fell. "...ther . . . humans. Eugh boi."The red-eared slider 'warrior' took his eyes off the human looking at him to put them back on his coffee, curled in on himself - sort of looking like a sad, lost little puppy - and quietly mumbled: "Sorry.""You really have nothing to apologize for," Carol reassured him. Her tone of voice carried the same air of genuine kindness that he often heard in his sister's voice, so although he stayed curled up with his hands in his lap (discreetly spinning the shuriken he took out, out of sight under the table) he raised his eyes to look at her when she asked: "But what do you mean, she's not like other humans?"Leo returned Carol's gentle smile, but he felt too uncomfortable maintaining eye contact with her, so looked back down on the shuriken he was holding under the table, out of sight of April's mom, and began spinning it faster while factually repeating what he had been taught by Draxum and his Draxum-sanctioned tutors all his life (as though it was common knowledge among the human world, too):"You know. War-mongers..." the ninja star spun faster in his hand, "...violent savages that'll kill you as soon as look at you. Slow, weak, and really dumb." He abruptly stopped the spinning ninja star in his hand, staring at it while numerous horrible memories flashed through his mind of times he obediently captured humans for Draxum - who were innocently going about their day and just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time - and subsequently did his part to help the cruel yokai alchemist conduct his inhumane mutagen experiments on them, before he was ordered to finish the job and dispose of the body.And it was this teaching on humans that had been inculcated into his turtle mind and heart from a tender young age that helped him to sleep at night after all the cruelties he witnessed and partook of against those very humans Draxum routinely experimented on.Leo stared down on one of the sharp tips on the throwing star and rested his pinkie finger on it, but didn't follow through with discreetly slitting a small cut like he had planned on doing. Instead he sadly sighed, put it away again, and took in a deep breath through his nose - mentally reminding himself to try the new meditation technique Splinter had been teaching him later that night, when he was alone.Carol seemed to understand that Leo was lost in his own mind and needed some time. So she quietly sipped on her tea, giving him however long he needed, before waiting for the right moment to kindly ask: "So all yokai are strong and intelligent?"With a shrug of one shoulder, Leo casually replied: "Most yokai are strong, but some of them are really kinda dumb.""Oh, Ok. So are you saying yokai are never violent toward one another?" was the next well-placed, genuine-sounding question the intelligent human, Carol, asked."Oh, oh yeah some yokai are really violent," Leo replied, still sounding a little tense and nervous. He raised his eyes from his lap, but put them on his mug of coffee instead of her face, and then wrapped both hands around the warm surface, thinking over some of the terrible injustices the crooked cops did to his friend, Usagi, before killing him and then forcing Leo to watch it all from beginning to the bitter end.With the promise that he was about to receive the same treatment, if not for the fact they found out in time that the powerful, ruthless Baron Draxum was his owner.Leo shivered from a chill that memory elicited, and Carol next asked: "But they never kill one another?"The consistent softness in Mrs. O'Neil's voice helped ease some of Leo's nervousness, and he raised his mug while keeping his eyes down, replied with conviction: "Ohhh yeah, yokai kill each other all the time," and then took a big mouthful of coffee - hoping to feel the sting of the too-hot liquid inside his mouth as an alternative to cutting his own finger over the disturbing images of Usagi's final moments playing on repeat inside his mind. But the coffee had cooled down sufficiently so that it was still warm but not hot enough to burn the inside of his mouth, so he swallowed what he had and laid the mug down without taking his hands (or eyes) off it.(He knew deep down he shouldn't have done it anyway)Carol next hinted that she perhaps knew a whole lot more about yokai society than Leo realized when she next softly asked: "Have there ever been wars among yokaikind?""Yeah, there've been wars. Only sixty years ago the Great Slave War split the country in half," Leo replied. He slid his hands off the table to take out his shuriken and fidget with it in his lap again, but when he raised his eyes, he stopped it from the knowing look Carol was giving to him; gazing at him with one eyebrow raised, waiting for him to connect the dots from her line of reasoning that humans were not actually all that much unlike yokai."Oh.""Mm hmm," Carol hummed, before taking another sip of tea.Their conversation had gone down a totally different path than Leo expected, and he wanted to get his mind off this unpleasant subject, so was about to ask her what she knew about his family when the front door opened and April came home, stomping the remaining snow off her boots on the front entrance mat, holding two pizza boxes, and cheerfully greeting her misfit human-mutant family with the words:"Oh hey Leo! You finally got to meet my mom!"In an annoyed tone, Leo replied: "Uh, yeah I got to meet your mom, and it would've been nice if someone told me she knows about," he gestured around his turtle face with one hand, "this whole situation." Then he abruptly stood up, threw his hands out, and exclaimed: "I nearly jumped out of my shell when I looked up and saw her looking at me!"April snorted out a laugh, walked into the room, and cheekily replied: "Don't tell me the 'real ninja warrior' didn't know an untrained civilian came into the room!" Then she grinned at him and asked: "Weren't you the first one out when Splints got the rat flu by the way, oh ninja warrior supreme?"Carol smiled at them as they both walked to April's bedroom, with Leo sarcastically replying: "Oh hardy-har-har! Firstly..." "Is that even a real word?" April interrupted. "It must be, Donnie uses it all the time," Leo calmly told her, before raising his voice again and complaining: "I thought it was you opening the door, and secondly..." "Leo! You tracked snow all over my bedroom floor!" April loudly complained when they reached her open bedroom doorway."Secondly..." Leo repeated, only firmer, having learned a thing or to from his interactions with his brothers and ignoring her loud interruption. But just before turning into April's room he looked back at her mom with a smile, said: "Thanks for the coffee, Mrs. O'Neil," and then disappeared in the room with his sister, exclaiming: "I never dealt with a 'captain cuddle cakes' before! I'm more used to guys trying to slice my head off, not hug me to death!"Next came the unimpressed sound of April's voice when she asked: "Really, Leo? Your winter jacket, snowpants, and your cloak? And are you still wearing Donnie's heated socks? It's not that cold out!""My heated socks and maybe not for you freaks of nature who live above ground all year long!" Leo loudly objected, before complaining: "And they call me the mutant!"The bedroom door shut and Mrs. O'Neil smiled to herself over the pleasant conversation she had with the mutant turtle she knew about but thought had been dead for sixteen years - ever since she found Splinter sitting inside a refrigerator box in the rain, carrying three turtles that were really mutant babies and crying over the loss of the fourth one he thought for sure died in a tragic fire.Although a single parent herself with a young toddler at the time, Carol did what she could to help Splinter get back on his feet; even going so far as to help him find a safe place for a human-rat and four mutated baby turtles to live away from prying human eyes; and ever since then they had been a part of her family and April grew up knowing the turtles as her brothers.* * *~A While Later~Two pizza boxes lay on the floor, one open and empty and the other closed with two slices left. Leo was sitting on April's bed with his back resting against her headboard and with her sitting cross-legged beside him, while he had his hand out for her to file his fingernails as part of their manicure."Draxum's out there putting the pieces of that disgusting dark armor together and I'm here having a 'girl's night'!" Leo complained to his honorary sister."And what's wrong with a girl's night?" April asked in an incensed tone, before calmly saying: "Give me your other hand."Leo switched the shuriken he was spinning to his left hand and obliged. April started by filing his thumbnail, and the slider told her: "It's not that, it's this whole 'resting' thing, I don't get it!" He spun the ninja star around in his hand and continued in his annoyed tone: "We train and rest, and train and rest, and train . . . and then we rest some more! It doesn't make any sense!" He stared down at his very black fingers, looking very unimpressed at the sight while April was filing his nails for him, and then abruptly pulled his hand away from her."Hey! I wasn't finished!" his sister complained.Leo hugged himself, stuck his hands under his armpits where he couldn't see them, and replied in a very grumpy tone: "You are now." Then he let out a deep sigh and sounded frustrated when he said: "There's no point, they don't look any different with all that black gunk stuck to me."April smiled at him and suggested: "You'll feel better after I get some nail polish on them." She picked up a new bottle of blue nail polish wiggled it in the air while playfully telling him: "I got blue to match your mask.""Hmph, nail polish? No thank you, it's bad enough I wear makeup," Leo gruffed out in reply. He turned his head away from her to gaze at a cute pen on her nightstand with a green pom-pom on the end of it, and she whined: "What's wrong with makeup!?""It's not exactly something a ninja warrior should be wearing," Leo sourly replied.April put her hands on her hips and sternly asked: "Says who!?""Uh, everybody!" he yelled a little too aggressively, and mostly referring to Draxum, who he knew would never tolerate something like that.Just like he never would have tolerated a rainbow stuffed unicorn.(Or any stuffy for that matter)"It's practical," April argued back, and then in her own angry tone of voice demanded: "And what's up with you? You've been in a real mood all night!" She slouched and added with a little whine: "This was supposed to be our first..." she glanced up at him, firmly said: "of many," and sadly finished with: "...happy fun girl's nights."Leo huffed out an exhale through his mouth, looked away again as his mind filled up with a 'hot soup' of bad memories and conflicting, intense emotions; and unknown to April he gave in to his wrong desire by squeezing his hand around the shuriken in his grip a little too tightly, drawing blood when one of the three tips poked into his finger; but only just enough to feel the sting without alerting April to what he had done to himself, with nothing more than a tiny droplet of blood coming out."Yeah, I know, I didn't mean to ruin our girl's night. It's just that..."Leo quietly watched as April reached across him to lay the manicure set down on her nightstand, and then she scooched over to sit beside him, with both of them leaning against her headboard."It's just what, Blue Boy?" April softly asked.Leo switched the shuriken to his right hand and gazed at April's star lights strung across the top of her wall across from them. He absently spun the ninja star around and quietly told her: "I was talking to your mom, and...". . .How could he tell her something like 'maybe those innocent humans I captured for Draxum and helped him torture, mutate, and destroy weren't the blood-thirsty savages I thought they were'?There was no way, so instead he cleared his throat, pocketed the ninja star, and pulled his knees up to his chest to wrap his arms around them, before asking: "What does she know about us?" hoping he could learn more about his family that he loved and had been separated from for far too long as a distraction from all of the craziness happening inside his head.Leo turned his head to look at April's face, she copied him by bending her knees and wrapping her arms around her legs, and then said: "Mom told me I was about two when she found Splints in our alley one night, hugging your three brothers and crying because he thought you had died. And because of all the bad stuff that happened to him."Leo hummed in acknowledgement and kept his eyes on her as she continued."I was too young to remember it, but Splints told me mom let him stay for a few nights, helped him get back on his feet, and together they found a safe place he could live off an abandoned subway tunnel, the place where you live now. We went there once or twice a week for the first few years to help him out, and even though he doesn't need her help anymore, mom still checks in on him every once in a while.""Mm, that's nice of her," Leo quietly replied. Then he reached into his hoodie pocket for the shuriken, put his eyes down on it while softly poking at one of the three tips (but being careful not to puncture his skin in front of his sister) and very quietly said:"I guess that's why they call you their sister.""I'm your sister too, dummy!"The firm, no-nonsense 'you better not argue with me' tone to April's voice got Leo looking up at her with a smile, and he playfully said: "Aye-aye, capt'n!""Captain! You got that right!" April playfully poked Leo's chest and added: "And don't you forget it!"They smiled at each other, and then Leo pointed his face ahead to gaze at the star lights again, and April asked with a smile: "What about you? Have any interesting Hidden City stories to tell?"
*Shing!*
A bloodied, dead body falling to the floor.
A young mutant red-eared slider murderer, holding a bloody katana in one hand and splattered with the blood of his first (of many) victims stared down on the body of the person he obediently killed in disbelief.
“Good. The first one is always the hardest, but If you are strong you will persevere. Only the weak give in to fear and remorse, and I have no room for weak, ruined experiments in my life.”
"No," Leo replied quietly and sourly. He curled in on himself a little, but April pushed it, trying to get him out of whatever funk he got himself into, and with a smile she cheerily said: "Aw c'mon! Sunita's always telling me about interesting stuff that happens in the Hidden City! You must have some good stories to tell!""No I don't!" Leo loudly snapped in anger. Her smile fell, and he turned his body away from her and told her in a bitter, angry tone: "Nothing in my life was worth talking about until I met all of you."He wanted to leave - to take off somewhere to be alone, where he could curse and scream and get out all that angry energy bubbling around inside of him by training until his hands bled and he collapsed from exhaustion......by finding someone to antagonize and fight.But that wasn't the 'Hamato way', and he was really trying to embrace this whole 'honorable Hamato ninja hero' thing, not only for the sake of his family but also for himself.Besides, the warmth of his ninpo thrumming in his chest - his ninpo that was gradually gaining strength while the mystical dark energy infection was weakening - begged him to stay here, with his sister, who was somehow a Hamato and yet not by blood.So he listened to it and stayed."Is that why you've been in a mood all night? Because of your bad memories?" April softly enquired."Yes-NO!" Leo snapped, abruptly changing his quiet yes to a loud no."More yes than no though, right?" his sister next asked.Leo hunched his shoulders and grumbled: "What do you care?""I'm you sister and I love you, that's why I care!" April very firmly replied.Leo briefly glanced at her before putting his eyes back on the shuriken he was still playing with, and quietly saying: "Sorry. This whole 'people caring about me' thing is new to me."Leo thought about Vienna, Patrick, Usagi, and the injured Bunny - who lived in California, but might as well have been on another planet now that he didn't have access to his portals so he could go visit him."Mostly," he added in a tone that came out sounding grumpier than he meant."Do you wanna talk about it?" April next kindly offered.Leo very briefly glanced at her again, then watched the spinning shuriken in his hand and huffed out: "You wouldn't understand.""I might not understand but I can still listen," April next kindly offered.Leo let out a condescending laugh - not meaning it to sound bitter - and thinking about one of the first times Yolinda showed him genuine kindness and how at the time he barked at her 'I don't get you!'But he was starting to get it now - that other people really, truly did care about him; just like he cared about them. So he didn't snap those words at her. In fact, he didn't say anything at all in reply, instead he spun the shuriken faster and faster, intently staring at it and tensing his body more and more the quicker it spun around, with a tornado of bad memories and self-loathing thoughts spiraling out of control inside that warrior turtle head of his.That was until April blurted out: "Woah woah Leo! Watch it you're gonna cut yourself!" and rested a hand on his arm, down by his wrist.The previously chained down and tortured slider tensely pulled away, abruptly stood up to get distance between them, and snapped in anger: "Don't touch me!"He put his back to her, rubbing his right wrist and holding the shuriken so tightly his fingers felt numb, with April sitting up on her bed, wide-eyed and staring at him."I'm sorry Leo, I didn't mean to...you're bleeding!"Leo stopped the pacing he didn't realize he had been doing and opened his hand to look at it, revealing (to him and not April) he had punctured all three sharp prongs in through the skin on two fingers and his right hand so deeply he had to pull it out of his palm; and his blood had been dripping onto the floor.The sensation of the dark energy swirling around inside his chest from the self-inflicted injury and anger he felt combined with everything else going on in his head left him on edge, so his voice sounded curt and tense when he told her: "Yeah, it happens sometimes, I'll clean the mess."Leo grabbed a few tissues out of the box on the nightstand, stuffed some in his hand to stop the bleeding, and then as he was in the process of bending down to wipe up what dripped onto the floor, April stood up and exclaimed: "I'm not worried about the mess, it's you I'm worried about!"'I'm not someone worth worrying about,' Leo thought but didn't dare say. He shut his eyes, took a deep, mentally reminded himself that wasn't true anymore as his Splinter-guided 'Hamato' way to work at putting his bloody past behind him, and then wiped up his blood droplets on the floor.When he straightened up again April requested: "Can I see your hand?" being careful not to get too close after he freaked out when she touched his arm.In reply, Leo huffed out from frustration with an eye roll, barked out: "Fine," and chucked the dirty tissues into the garbage before switching the shuriken to his other hand and holding his right one out palm-side up for her to see.She put her hand underneath his to gently pull it closer to her face and gazed down on the three cuts. He huffed out: "It's nothing. The bleeding's stopping already," unintentionally sounding just as angry as he was feeling on the inside."It's not the bleeding I'm worried about, Stripes," April said in concern. She raised her head to gaze at him and asked: "What did you mean when you said it happens sometimes?""Nothing!" Leo snapped at the same time he yanked his hand out of April's and turned his back to her."Leo? . . . Do you hurt yourself sometimes?" came the soft, caring question from his sister who just wouldn't let it go."Can we talk about something else, please!?" Leo defensively snapped in anger. He tried to take deep, meditative breaths to calm his racing mind and heart - like Splinter had been teaching him - but ended up tensing more and inadvertently holding his breath with April's firm reply: "No! We're talking about this!"Leo crossed his arms, briskly tapped his right foot on the floor, and kept his back to her, doing his best to fight against the anger so he could get the dark energy infection under control (but even now, with as mad as he felt and as much as it was swirling around inside of him, at odds with his strengthened Hamato ninpo that was doing the same thing, he didn't fear that things would get to the point of him losing control, so he stayed).April waited in anxious suspense, and when her turtle brother was ready to say something, he opened his mouth and curtly snapped: "Pops knows about it and he's helping me, alright?""Splinter knows about it?" April questioned, not because she didn't believe him, but because she needed to hear it repeated for her own peace of mind.Leo stuffed his hands into his big hoodie pocket, scrunched his head down a little from the flush of embarrassment he felt at being exposed, and keeping his back to her softly said: "Yeah. He used to do it too, but he doesn't anymore. And he's teaching me a new way to meditate to help." He cleared his tense throat and added: "I haven't done it once since we started. Not until tonight.""So there is something bothering you," April next inquired."Yeah," came the immediate, quiet reply.Leo cleared his throat again and pulled out his right hand to look down on the three cuts he gave to himself, with April watching him from behind his back - waiting for him to continue.When he was ready, Leo stuffed his hand back into his pocket with the other one and tentatively told her: "I talked to your mom tonight and, uh..."His voice trailed off as he decided where to go from here. And when he was ready, he cleared his throat and continued:"I was always taught humans need Draxum's mutagen, that it'll make their lives better. That they're dumb, savage war-mongers always looking for a fight, and that getting mutated like me is a gift for them because it'll make them smarter and stronger and happy. But, uh but if..."His voice trailed off again, he anxiously tapped his foot while squirming around uncomfortably, and when he was ready to continue he told her so quietly April had to strain to hear him:"If that's not true then it means I..."He stopped.He couldn't finish that sentence, so instead he changed his wording, cleared his throat because of all the tension he was holding in, and sounded a little angry when he told her:"Draxum experimented on them a whole lot."'and I helped,' were the unspoken words that didn't need to be heard.There was a moment's silence, during which time Leo seriously considered hastily grabbing his stuff and leaving, but he stuck around, thanks to that ninpo warmth prevailing over the darkness deposited inside of him.It took a moment for the full depth of those words to sink in, but once they did April kindly offered the reassurance: "It's not your fault what Draxum made you do, you didn't have a choice. You know that, right?"Leo sighed, thought back over the first dream realm conversation he had with Donnie after they watched the tapes of his bloody, murderous Battle Nexus fights, and told her: "That's not what Donnie said."April crossed her arms, made a mental reminder to have a few 'words' with Donatello later, and asked him in a firm tone: "What did Donnie say?"Leo took his hands out of his pocket to put them down by his sides, repeatedly clenched and unclenched his left fist, and still without turning around to face her, said: "He told me we do have a choice once we're strong enough to fight for what's right."Through gritted teeth, April threatened: "Oh I am going to have a few words with him," but stared at Leo, shocked by his next words when he whipped around to look straight at her and told her with clear conviction: "He's right.""What do you mean he's right!?" April demanded in anger, with all of that anger directed at the 'dumb-dumb' turtle who put that thought into her long-lost brother's head.But she softened her composure when Leo softened his tone - and his body - when he told her: "I could have fought for what was right. I could've refused to help Draxum and let him kill me instead. But I didn't, because I was afraid." He looked down at the cuts on his hand, and continued."I used to alway think 'it's better them than me' but..." he raised his head to look at her, and with the way his pupils were dilated and his facial expression softened, she knew whatever inner turmoil he had been going through was beginning to settle down.And she was right. The swell of dark energy lessened, the ninpo energy warming his heart radiated from his chest into every inch of his body, and he told her: "But I don't think that now. Now I know it's not true. And I'm not afraid to die anymore, if it's for the right reasons." He softly smiled at her, moving April to relax significantly and return his smile, then he tentatively continued with the grateful statement: "All cuz you four are rubbing off on me. And, uh, *ahem*. And pops is teaching me how to put my past behind me with that Hamato meditation thing. It's gonna take a long time to sort through everything, but it's really helping." His smile grew and he finished by telling her: "Thanks for not walking away when you found out about my past. And for not giving up on me."Leo wasn't at all surprised when April abruptly stepped closer to wrap her arms around him in a warm embrace (because he was getting used to his huggy family now), but he was surprised by the heartfelt thing she said next, when she loving told him: "Thanks for not giving up on yourself."Leo wrapped his arms around her to return the hug, and thought out loud: "Huh, not giving up on myself. I never thought of it like that before.""Mm hmm, don't ever sell yourself short, Stripes. You fought good and hard to get yourself where you are today."With a smile, Leo agreed: "Yeah. I guess I did."They lingered in their hug a little longer, and that was when there was a knock on the door and April's mom pushed it open to tell her daughter: "I got called into..." "I'm her brother, it's not what it looks like!" Leo blurted out at the sight, while also abruptly pulling out of his platonic hug with his human sister; worried that her mom would think there was more going on between the two of them than sibling fondness, considering they weren't biologically related and he only just came into April's life a short while ago.Then Leo saw where April got her spunk from, when Mrs. O'Neil put her hands on her hips and countered with the very stern words: "I know you are her brother, do you really think I'd leave the two of you alone in her room with the door closed if you weren't!?"Leo's shoulders dropped and he nervously rubbed the back of his head while replying: "Uh, no, I guess not."Carol smiled at him and then told April the reason for her intrusion when she said: "I just got called into work, dear. I'll see you in the morning.""K mom see you tomorrow," April replied. She gave her mom a hug, Mrs. O'Neil left, and then Leo's human sister turned around to take something out of her manicure bag. And when she spun around again she had a big, bright smile on her face and was holding up the blue nail polish she bought especially for him."It's time to paint our nails!" she enthusiastically said.Leo's smile fell, and he crossed his arms and replied: "Seriously sis, I don't wear nail polish.""C'mon Leo, Sunita gets her nails done at a yokai manicure place and I don't have any other girl friends but you.""How did I end up becoming your girl friend?" Leo complained."You got a problem with it?" came the 'spunky' reply."No," he immediately gruffed out. "And I'm not wearing nail polish!"She gave him her patented 'puppy dog eyes' (that looked an awful lot like Mikey's) with a well-timed: "Pleeease," and he rolled his eyes with a huff, before smiling and conceding with a grumpy: "If you gotta do my nails, use the clear stuff."Leo sat down with April sitting beside him, but instead of taking out the clear nail polish, she promptly began shaking the bottle of the blue stuff."Hey I said clear!""C'mon Leo, I went out of my way to find the shade that matches your face mask just right!" April whined. He glared at her and sternly insisted: "Clear. Or. Nothing!" But April was unphased, unscrewed the lid of the blue stuff, and cheerfully replied: "Blue it is."Leo rolled his eyes and huffed out through his mouth in frustration, but despite the annoyance in his tone of voice, he still had a little smile on his face when he agreed: "Fine, but I'm taking it off before I leave tonight. The last thing I need is to go home wearing nail polish after that whole 'Mr. Squeezies' incident. The guy's 'll never let me live it down! Donnie even got shirts in the mail with a picture of me on the front, hugging my stuffy, and they wear them around me every chance they get!""Yeah I know, and I exchanged a few words with Donnie when I found out he didn't order me one," April told him, before flashing him a cheeky grin and saying: "He put in a rush delivery, it'll be here tomorrow.""Ouch, betrayed by my own sister!" Leo joked.They both laughed and she began painting his first of six fingernails before telling him (in excited detail) all about how her and Donnie watched a video he complied from his lair's security system of his favorite moments highlighting their 'real ninja warrior's' very first experience with the 'rat flu'.And the night ended on a much happier note than it began . . .even if April couldn't convince him not to grab the nail polish remover and rub off the blue stuff on his black fingernails before going home for the night.(So she reminded herself to check in with good ol' Mikster to make sure she was still doing the 'puppy dog' look just right)* * *~Early the Next Morning~Before another lengthy Hamato ninja training day began, Donnie walked into his lab to start the schematics for a new project he wanted to work on, only to be greeted by Leo stepping out of his lab's private bathroom, brushing his teeth with a purple toothbrush, holding a compatible tech grappling hook that was still in beta, and wearing Donnie's 'Mr. Squeezies' shirt with the picture of the 'real ninja warrior' happily hugging his stuffed unicorn on the front of it."Oh hey Don!" came the cheerful greeting.Donnie's eye twitched at the sight, and through gritted teeth he sternly asked: "Is that my toothbrush?""Huh?" Leo casually took the toothbrush out of his mouth, 'innocently' looked it over, and with a shrug said: "I dunno, it was just sitting there," before sticking it back in his mouth to finish brushing his teeth.A vein began throbbing on Donnie's big forehead, and as though he didn't see it (he very much did) Leo turned around to spit the toothpaste out of his mouth into the bathroom sink, and came out again, wiping his mouth off with the bottom of Donnie's shirt. Then he looked over the grappling hook in his hand while calmly telling him: "I was looking at some of your stuff. Boi, you got a lotta small, handy tech in here." He looked up at his 'twin' bro with a cheeky grin and snarkily told him: "Sorry bro, I might've dropped something in the toilet by accident."Donnie's eye twitched again while he scowled at his long lost brother, and the vein in his head looked like it was about to explode when he gritted his teeth tighter and demanded: "What did you drop in the TOILET!?""Uhhh..." Leo tipped his hip to the side, rested a hand on it, gazed around the room full of intricate pieces of tech, then blew raspberries and very casually replied: "I don't remember. Nice shirt by the way, mind if I keep it?"Donnie's eye twitched again.Leo walked up to him grinning ear-to-ear, patted him on the shoulder and said: "It's good to know we wear the same size. You know..." a sly grin came across his face, "for future reference.""Nardo, what did you drop..." "Welp, time to go, training starts soon!" Leo happily interrupted. He patted Donnie's very tense shoulder and walked away while adding: "Thanks for leaving your lab unlocked for me, Mikester was taking waay too long in the bathroom."Donnie kept his angry gaze staring straight ahead at his private bathroom where Leo emerged from, and his eye twitched yet again when Leo stopped at the lab door, turned around to grin at him, and slyly added: "Oh and you really should setup a better password than Bootyyyshaker9000..." "Wha..." Donnie turned around in surprise to stare at Leo, who was grinning wildly at him and continued: "Isn't that your username for the online shooter you play? Just about anybody could break into the security system and, oh I don't know, shut off the cameras in your lab. Anyhoo, see you at breakfast, bro!"With a playful wave goodbye, Leo left the lab, snickering to himself over his 'payback' for the 'Mr. Squeezies' shirt and the video compilation that April told him she watched with Donnie, from his very first 'adventure' with the rat flu; and Donnie rushed over to his computer and clicked at the keyboard like a madman to bring up his lab security video, only to watch his 'new' brother calmly enter the unlocked room no more than fifteen minutes prior, happily whistling to himself.He watched all while Leo walked straight up to the computer, inputted the password to unlock it, and proceeded to click at the screen until he opened the files controlling the security cameras inside Donnie's lab.Next, Leo looked up from the computer to smile at the camera, and with a playful wink and the click of a button, everything went black.Donnie whipped around with his eyes darting around his lab at the wide array of compact tech on display just about everywhere, completely mortified and wondering what, exactly, Leo infected by dipping into the dirty toilet bowl; and coming to the conclusion he'd have to thoroughly disinfect all of it if he couldn't find out.Outside the lab on his way down the hall toward the kitchen for breakfast, Leo laughed to himself when he heard a very loud, very angry techy softshelled turtle crying out in anger:
"LEEEEEOOOOOOO!!!!"
"Heh heh heh, you'll think twice before messing with me, hey bro?" Leo asked himself. He smiled down at the shirt Donnie printed for the one and only reason he wanted to bug his blue-clad brother, and his smile grew when he thought out loud: "Yeah, I think I'm gonna like living here," before happily whistling all the way to the kitchen, wondering what Dee was going to do to get back at him, and also wondering if his 'twin' brother - who was so easy (and fun) to bug - would be willing to take things as far as he could with their sibling pranks.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
~That Evening~After washing up in the bathroom from their most recent round of intense Hamato ninjitsu training, Leo joined his three brothers in the kitchen for supper; where he eyed Donnie suspiciously, who was sitting at the table, calmly munching on some food, and looking down at his wrist tech, because his techy brother previously informed them that morning he would be in his lab, finishing a project he took inspiration from his research on native mystic wildlife hidden deep underground, thanks to the computer chip Leo gave to him that unlocked access to the hidden yokai side of the internet.So he glanced down on Donnie's touchscreen to see he was on a webpage about Hidden City laws, shrugged it off, and continued on his way past the table to open the fridge, looking for something to eat.Because he was NOT eating any of the chicken stir fry leftover from supper yesterday that Mikey made, having vowed never to taste that particular poultry after seeing the cute, plump little animals called 'chickens' in the flesh at Mariko and Robert's farm when he dropped off the injured little Bunny (and giving his brothers a hard time for eating the 'cute little chickens', until Donnie threatened to cook up a whole rack of lamb and eat it all in front of him if he didn't stop).Without looking up from his touchscreen, Donnie calmly commented to Leo: "I've been doing research on the mystic flora and fauna native to our area. It's really quite interesting, there appear to be a number of potentially dangerous wild animals lurking deep underground, some of them harboring their own biome."The ex-Nexus Champ, who had fought against his fair share of savage wild beasts during his bloody 'career' grumbled in reply: "Yeah, tell me about it.""I finally discovered what this 'terrorworm pit' is that Hueso mentioned," Donnie next continued in a flat tone of voice, and referring to the first time they met Hueso when he threatened to give them an up close and personal tour of his terrorworm pit if they did anything to make Leo's life more difficult than it already was.No one could see it because he was standing back-on to everybody, but Leo's left eye twitched."Fascinating creatures," Dee continued. "Did you know they create their own sand they live in by crushing the bones of their prey into calcite powder via a special digestive sack?"Leo's eye twitched again and his body tensed.He could have happily lived the rest of his life without knowing what happened to that particular part of his severed leg."Can we please talk about something else?" he spat out through gritted teeth."Huh? Oh yeah yeah," Donnie dismissively replied.Incidentally, not one of Leo's siblings knew exactly how the ninja turtle champ lost his leg; but Leo didn't know that, because he wasn't aware Hueso respectfully left out that particular fight among the tapes he previously shared with them, shortly after the then-murderer ninja first met his hero bros. And he was most definitely not open to having that particular discussion if he didn't absolutely have to.And considering Donnie had watched (and rewatched - with April at her place - but Raph didn't know that) what he thought had been every single one of Leo's Nexus tapes without a single terrorworm appearing even once, he reasoned that this particularly large, dangerous animal was something safe he could use to prank his long-lost, Hidden City raised brother, in retaliation for his prank in dipping something of his in the toilet.(which amounted to nothing more than his tech plunger, but Leo wasn't telling him that!)Mikey and Raph continued on with what they were doing as Donnie took a sip of coffee.Their one-legged slider brother, who was gazing into the fridge, reached his left hand down to absently scratch a phantom itch below where his real leg ended, with his body imperceptibly tense. So he took deep breaths to get his anger under control and to settle down the dark energy that began swirling around inside of him, feeding off it.And having no idea what sort of prank Dee was about to pull on him in retaliation for his prank earlier that morning.Mikey and Raph carried on with what they were doing - with the box turtle 'chef' reheating his chicken the 'right' way - on the stove - and the snapper pressing buttons on the microwave where he put his leftovers to heat up.That was when Leo heard what he thought for sure was the gentle, almost inaudible sound of a terrorworm slithering through the sand."Whatwasthat!?" he exclaimed, spinning around with his eyes darting all over the room, trying to pinpoint the location of the noise he could no longer hear."What r you talkin' about, Leo?" Raph calmly asked. "Yeah, I don't hear anything," Mikey added, while calmly stirring his meal in the wok."Uhhh, nothing."Leo gave the room one final sweep with his eyes before turning around to face the open fridge. But he was antsy now, and it showed through in the way he began briskly tapping his right foot on the floor.Mikey, Donnie, and Raph shared a mischievous grin with each other from behind Leo's back, and the slider took a deep breath to help his frazzled mind move on from whatever that was that he heard in his new sewer home that often made strange sounds he was unaccustomed to, while he gazed around at all the stuff in the fridge - either not knowing what he was looking at among the mixture of human food, or already knowing he didn't like what his eyes settled on.That was when Mikey spoke up, informing him: "I think pops went to the Hidden City to pick up some yokai food for you."Leo snapped his head up to stare at Mikey in surprise, and exclaimed: "By himself!?" concerned about Draxum getting his hands on him again, even though he was now a short, plump rat and not a tall, muscular 'Lou Jitsu' human.Because Draxum had ways of getting what he wanted."Mm hmm," Mikey innocently replied, not giving away any signs that this was all part of one of their many elaborate, playful pranks that he and Raph eagerly helped Donnie setup as a pranky 'house warming gift' for their 'new' brother who just moved in with them, while he was in the shower.Leo rolled his shoulders to ease the tension he was feeling, made a mental note to discuss this important issue with their dad later, and then scanned his eyes around in the fridge again, searching for anything whatsoever that looked even remotely like 'yokai' food.But there was nothing."Where is it?" the hopeful slider asked. He looked up to his big brother when he shrugged his shoulders and dismissively said: "I dunno," before taking his meal out of the microwave and walking toward the table, so Leo couldn't see the grin that broke out on his face. But his 'helpful' little brother said: "It's up there," and pointed up to one of the top cupboards, at the same time Donnie raised his coffee mug to cover the smirk on his face when Leo closed the fridge to reach up for the cupboard door his little brother pointed out to him.But instead of a cupboard full of yokai delicacies, opening the door triggered a chain of events resulting in the very loud surround-sound of rumbling terrorworms coming from Donnie's speakers hidden all around the room, and a spring-loaded, tech razor-fanged terrorworm shooting out of the cupboard at the ninja slider's face, which chomped down on his arm when he used it to block, with a set of harmless but rough fake teeth that he could not shake off."BWA!" Leo cried out from fright, with the pupils of his wide eye constricting into tiny dots from the terror he felt inside as he fell backwards, banged into the table, and instinctively unsheathed a katana at the same time a bright flash of light from a hidden camera blinded his eyes for a second - sending him into a real panic.Leo's brothers watched the 'harmless' prank they helped Donnie set up with smiles on their faces, but then Raph and Mikey's smiles fell when Leo cried out in obvious terror:"GET IT OFF GET IT OOOFFF!!!""Uh, I think we took it too far, help me get it off him, Mikes," Raph interrupted.They tried to approach their wildly panicking brother while the oblivious, apathetic Donnie (who didn't quite get just how terrified his 'twinsie' really was) griped: "Aww but the fun's just getting started!" "This isn't funny anymore Donnie, help me get it off him!" Raph urged.But when he and Mikey tried to help Leo out, he was freaking out so much the sword he forgot in his panic he had unsheathed was whipping around wildly in the air, so they had to back away, and he was screaming too loudly for him to hear anything they were saying; very much like the day the dark armor melted onto his hand and traveled up his arm to infect his mystic energy."Fiiine," Donnie grumbled, and he clicked at his wrist tech to open an app he installed connected to the tech terrorworm that would make it open its teeth-filled jaws and release its tight grip.Leo was so panic stricken he didn't even have the sense to grab the fake worm and rip it off his arm, so before Donnie had a chance to activate the release mechanism the terror-stricken ninja warrior finally got his head on straight enough to slash the worm in half with the sharp blade of his katana; and only then did he had enough sense to rip off the mouth section stuck to his arm, before using his sword to very dramatically hack it into tiny pieces on the floor.When it was over the room fell silent, with the angry slider breathing heavily through his mouth, his heart pounding, his katana tightly gripped in both hands, staring down at the worm he was ready to aggressively attack again if even one piece moved as much as a millimeter.His two brothers looked on in shock, with Donnie calmly closing out his app while mumbling: "That won't be necessary anymore. Thanks for destroying my prototype, dumb-dumb."Leo didn't hear him, he was stuck inside his own mind.Unbeknownst to everybody, the mystic energy of the two dark armor pieces tucked away inside a rotwood box in Donnie's lab surged in power, connected to the intense surge of anger inside the infected turtle's heart and sending glowing purple cracks through the mystic rotwood box. The box that Donnie didn't know he had made too thin to properly contain it now that many more of the powerful dark armor pieces had been assembled by Draxum and his team of Hidden City cops and yokai warriors (As well as a few mutants he scrounged up, and one very overzealous human he kept among the ranks).Leo's anger mounted.He tried to get himself under control."Uhhh, Leo?" Mikey asked tentatively.The narrow cracks split wide open in the rotwood box inside Donnie's lab, and plumes of green mystic smoke began seeping out."You need to leave before I hurt you," were the only stern words the slider was able to get out, trying in his own way to protect his brothers from him as he exerted every ounce of energy he could muster to regain full control of himself (or at least drop the sharp, shiny sword he held tightly in his left hand)."Me?" Mikey asked softly and nervously."No."Leo tightened his grip on the katana, whipped around, and his pupils flashed a glowing purple for a split second when he glared daggers at Donnie and very angrily said: "Him!"The instant he motioned to go on the attack, before he moved an inch both Raph and Mikey threw themselves on top of their potentially deadly brother.Despite being held down two-to-one, they couldn't tackle the dark energy fueled Leo to the floor - not even with Raph's impressive size and brute strength - and his grip on his sword handle was so tight Mikey couldn't pry it out of his hand; all while Donnie was frozen in place from shock as Leo angrily snarled at him and his eyes glowed a bright purple once more, but just for a second."Leo, snap outta it!" Raph tried to urge.The sound of his big brother's voice helped snap Leo to his senses and he squeezed his eyes shut - battling for dominancy against the raging dark energy inside his ninpo. But he inadvertently tightened his grip on his sword without realizing he was doing it, or that Mikey was trying to take away."Snap OUTTA it LEE-OOO!" his little brother screamed at him."I'm TRYING!!!" the ninja slider loudly yelled in return."Don, get OUT of here!" Raph next yelled at his techy brother who Leo directly threatened.Dee stood in place, not wanting to leave his two other brothers alone with what appeared to be a murderous trained assassin. The one who was shaking his head with his eyes slammed shut, trying to break himself free from the pull of the mystic dark energy that was feeding on and contributing to his anger, while at the same time physically pushing with all his turtley might against the two brothers who were holding him in place, trying to prevent him from attacking their fourth Hamato sibling."AAAUGH! Get the SWORD outta my HAND!!!" Leo aggressively yelled at his brothers."I CAN'T GET IT!!!" Mikey screamed at him, still trying to pry his fingers open."JUST DO IT!!!" was Leo's forceful reply."Raph's got this!" the snapper next yelled. He grabbed Leo's left arm just above his wrist, loudly told his brother: "Leo, Raph's sorry for what he's about to do!" and slam the back of his hand against the counter so forcefully it made a loud *BANG!* and knocked the katana out of his grip, which Mikey hastily kicked toward their other brother, before reaching up to unsheathe Leo's other sword and throwing it to the floor, out of reach."CHECK THE BOX, AND GET MY DAGGER!!!" Leo next screamed at them, sensing within himself there must have been a breach in the big rotwood box Donnie made with the way a surge of dark energy filled his body like he was some sort of 'mystic energy' water jug, almost completely drowning out the Hamato ninpo he could feel flowing into his chest from the contact points where his two brothers were holding him down.He needed to get his rage under control to stop the overwhelming swell of powerful mystic dark energy but how was he supposed to do that!?Mikey unsheathed his dagger to throw it toward Donnie, who was already holding Leo's two katanas and picked it up in his free left hand just when a very surprised Splinter rushed into the room to help, and Raphael loudly urged: "Get those OUTTA here, NOW Don, we got it from here!"Donnie abruptly spun around, and on his way to his lab to secure Leo's weapons and check out what was going on with the rotwood box, Leo opened his glowing purple eyes to glare at the kitchen entrance he left through, and yelled loudly and spitefully:"How do you think I lost my LEG Donnie!!!? HOW DO YOU THINK I LOST MY LEEEEEEG!!!"* * *~About Two Hours Later~A very tired Donnie, Mikey, and Raph were sitting in the rec room, with a now calm Leo meditating in the dojo with their ninja rat father.Although the smaller sliver of mystic armor was still tucked safely away inside its mystic rotwood box, the two much bigger dark energy pieces that literally shattered the rotwood box they were encased inside had been separated via Dee's Shelldon tech, and moved to two different secure temporary locations, somewhere far enough away that they didn't influence their dark-energy-afflicted brother, and somewhere the Foot wouldn't find. Right now the techy softshell was researching mystic rotwood to learn where he went wrong to aid in making a new rotwood box (being thankful to his past self for having enough foresight to crack off a large enough branch to make a number of boxes).While he did that, Raph tried to concentrate on a Jupiter Jim comic he was reading, but he mind kept taking him to the dojo where their other brother was; and the exhausted box turtle was asleep on his back in his orange beanbag chair, with his JJ comic covering his face.Eventually Raph gave up the fight against his own troubling inner thoughts, put the comic book on top of a pile of comics beside where he was sitting, and looked up at his busy brother to break the silence by tentatively saying: "Are you sure those pieces are secure?"Without looking up from his research, Donnie calmly replied: "Yes, I am sure." Then he looked up at the worried snapper when he added: "I separated them to ensure if my tech alerts me that one is found by the Foot, we have time to retrieve the second one before it, too, is discovered, but I highly doubt either one will be found where I hid them."Mikey stirred at the sound of their voices, but didn't wake up yet, and Raph nervously scratched the back of his head and said: "Uh, yeah, that sounds good Don. Did you figure out what went wrong?"Donnie put his eyes back down on his laptop and told his big brother: "Not yet. There is absolutely no information whatsoever on the yokai web regarding dark energy like what is emitted by those armor pieces, and the research on mystic rotwood is limited considering most yokai steer clear of it."Raph let out a nervous laugh and suggested: "Perhaps Leo will know something that'll help."Mikey stirred again as he began waking up, and Donnie very sarcastically replied: "You mean our sword wielding brother whose infected with dark energy that turns him into a maniac and tried to kill yours truly?""He's not a maniac!" Mikey abruptly snapped, with the comic falling off his face onto the floor when he sat up to glare at Don.Raph crossed his arms in front of his tense body and sternly added: "And what happened wasn't his fault.""It wasn't Leo's fault when he killed that tiger yokai either, but that doesn't make him any less dead," Donnie very factually objected."You take that back!" Mikey yelled in anger as though Dee had insulted their blue-clad brother by simply stating the truth.A fact that didn't escape his notice, as he stuck his eyes on his wrist tech and very calmly replied: "I would Miguel, if it wasn't true."That got Mikey fuming and he jumped up on his feet with his fists clenched and yelled: "Leo's not a murderer anymore and he's NOT a maniac!"Under his breath (but being sure he was loud enough for Mikey to hear him), Donnie very sarcastically replied: "You mean like how you and Raph did not have to jump on top of him and hold him down so he didn't take my head off with his katana?"Tears filled the corners of Mikey's eyes with the intensity of his emotions over this particular subject, and he yelled even louder than before: "Leo's our brother, he'd never hurt us! He would've stopped himself first!""Guys, that's enough!" Raph barked out as an order.But Donnie, who needed to have the last word, muttered: "It didn't look that way to me," prompting Mikey to take out his weapon and angrily yell: "I'm about to take your head off with my fundo if you don't take that back!"Donnie jumped up when the youngest of the group jumped at him, but was caught mid-air in Raph's big snapping turtle arms, and from there the three of them engaged in a very heated argument.~Meanwhile, in the Dojo~As that 'discussion' continued in the rec room, Leo was sitting cross-legged on a blue mat on the floor, with his hands resting on his knees, his eyes closed, and taking one deep meditative breath after another."You are doing well my son, I am proud of you for breaking free from the influence of the dark armor," Splinter quietly told him.Leo took in another deep breath, focusing all his mental energy on the Hamato ninpo he could feel thrumming inside his chest (like how Splinter taught him), to help him strengthen his inner mystical connection with his family that he needed in order to be able to break free from the dark hold over him.After another slow, meditative breath and still with his eyes closed, Leo quietly objected: "I couldn't fight against it even when Raph and Mikey were on top of me."He took a deep breath in through his nose.Exhaled through his mouth.And finished with: "It took you touching my shell to break me out of it," before taking another deep breath in."Continue with your meditation and eventually you will not need to break out of it because you will be able to eliminate the dark energy inside of you," Splinter kindly told him.Leo took another breath in, exhaled through his mouth, and now that he felt sufficiently calm he opened his eyes to look at his dad and ask: "You really think so?"Splinter was sitting in front of him on his own mat, in the same cross-legged position as he guided Leo's meditation; and he softly smiled at the son that had been literally ripped away from him as an infant, and reassured him with the words: "You have made great progress in your meditation and recovery my son, I have no doubt whatsoever that you are on the right path to putting your past behind you so that the dark armor will soon no longer have a hold on your Hamato ninpo."Leo returned Splinter's smile, and despite how uncomfortable it made him feel to hear words of praise from a parental figure, he replied with genuine gratitude: "Thanks, dad.""You are welcome, my son."Splinter stood up but his smile fell into a frown and at the same time he put his hands behind his back, pondering over something.Leo knew better than to interrupt him, so he kept his eyes on his dad from his position sitting on the floor, waiting for his next word.And when he spoke, he shared what was on his mind when he said: "I fear many more pieces of the dreaded dark armor have been assembled my son, which would explain the surge of dark energy you felt inside of you, as well as the surge of mystic energy from the pieces in Purple's possession, that was strong enough to destroy his protective box."Leo tensed at his dad's hard-hitting words, and he stood up and asked: "What are we gonna do about it? I almost attacked Donnie today, I'm not ready to fight the Foot..." he sadly looked away from his dad to gaze at the floor, and quietly added: "Or face Draxum."Splinter reassuringly patted Leo's turtle arm and his son looked down to make eye contact with his shorter dad, who told him: "Yours and your brothers training is coming along nicely, and you were able to calm your mind and heart much more quickly than I anticipated after what happened today. I have a feeling you will all be ready very soon.""I hope so pops, because I really don't want a repeat of what happened today," Leo agreed. Then he cleared his throat, nervously scratched the back of his head, and gazed out the entryway of the dojo, asking: "Do you think I should leave for a bit, until I can figure out this whole 'putting my past behind me' and get the dark energy out of my system? So I don't, uh, hurt anybody. Señor Hueso told me he has contacts all over the word who can help.""No, my son, it is vital that you stay as close to your family as possible to assist with your internal struggle. If you separate yourself from us it will only give the dark armor a foothold to strengthen its grip over you," Splinter told him, before asking: "How do you feel now that the two armor pieces have been removed from the lair?""Better," Leo replied, still staring at the dojo entrance, feeling like the dwindling dark energy inside of him was so weak at the moment he could barely sense it, and he had no fear that it would take hold of his mind and heart as long as the dark armor pieces weren't near to him. Especially in comparison to the burst of Hamato mystic energy calmly flowing throughout his body, like it was being pumped through his heart into every blood vessel.Then, without taking his worried eyes off the entrance he was about to walk out through, Leo softly told his rat dad: "I gotta go smooth things over with Donnie," and walked away to do just that.* * *Leo stopped in the hallway outside the rec room, listening quietly and out of sight of his brothers, who were engaged in a heated argument in the other room.A heated argument about him."Leo's NOT a maniac, he'd NEVER hurt us! SAY IT!" Mikey aggressively yelled from his position where he was held tightly in Raph's big arms.Leo's heart sank in his chest when he heard they were arguing about him."Nooo, I said he turns into a maniac when he's influenced by the dark armor, big difference Miguel. And I would agree with you that he'd never hurt us but then we'd both be wrong."Leo's heart sank further at Donnie's very calm, factual words, but instead of walking away he decided to stay and listen a little more, against his own better judgement."Don would you just zip it and apologize!" came Raph's stern, angry voice next."I would apologize if I said anything that wasn't true, which I did not," Donnie stubbornly countered."When I get my HANDS on you! You're gonna REGRET saying those things about Leo! Let me GO RAPH!!!" Mikey loudly yelled with the obvious sound of struggling accompanying his words.Leo's figurative heart sank a little further and he considered walking away here and now, but stopped himself when the big brother/protector of the family tried to reason with Mikey next, by sternly telling him: "I don't like what he said any more than you do, Mikey, but Donnie's right. As long as Leo's influenced by that dark energy we gotta keep our guard up around him."Leo listened carefully for Mikey's over-zealous (loud) rebuttal, but one didn't come. Instead the sounds of struggling tapered off and in a soft, quiet, defeated tone of voice he heard his little brother say: "Alright. But make him apologize for calling Leo a maniac."Leo hung his head and sadly walked away, heading toward the back entrance where there winter outerwear was located to find somewhere he could go to clear his head.Not because the things he heard said about him were unkind or hurtful......but because they were true."Don, c'mon, be the bigger turtle and....waitasecond, do you feel that?" Raph asked, suddenly realizing he could sense Leo's ninpo nearby now that their heated argument had settled down."Yeah," Mikey quietly agreed.All three of them looked at the hallway entrance Leo was walking away from, with even the skeptical Donnie sensing his brother's heightened ninpo now that the dark energy was at an all-time low.Raph put Mikey back down on his feet, and Donnie nervously asked: "Uhhh, you don't suppose he heard what I said."Without taking his eyes off the hallway entrance, Raph sadly said: "Yeah, I do."And that was when a notification chimed on Donnie's wrist tech, alerting him that someone opened the back lair entrance. So he clicked at his tech to bring up the security video showing Leo, dressed in his warm outerwear, leaving the lair to venture above ground all by himself without his katanas and dagger, which were currently laying on a work table on the other side of Donnie's securely locked lab door.* * *~Not Long Later~Leo quietly sat back on a hospital bed in a cold room he once called his temporary home, wearing his winter outerwear with the blue and white striped blanket he bought specifically for this room and was still here over his lap, and fidgeting with a throwing star while switching between sadly looking down on it and raising his eyes to gaze at the mural of him with his three brothers and their spunky sister, April, all smiling at him in return.One big happy family.But despite everything that was going on inside his head, Leo didn't once feel the urge to slice his finger with a sharp blade on one of the three prongs, thanks to Splinter's guided Hamato meditation.And he wasn't surprised in the least when his ninpo warmed up in his chest and he heard the voices of his three brothers approaching in the empty, dark hallway outside his room door.The one that was still hidden by the tech he got from Draxum that put up an artifical wall in place of the real door that was wide open - the one Leo set to the solid setting on his way in via a button on the concealed device, so no one could just walk on in.But it didn't matter, if they could sense him like he could them, it would only be a matter of time before the three of them were standing right outside his door. And with Donnie's photographic genius mind combined with Raph's brute strength, he knew it wouldn't be long before they busted in to have a talk with him.And quite frankly, he was glad they came.Leo didn't say a word when he heard three voices directly outside his door, with Mikey saying there was nothing here but a wall and Raph searching around for a door he knew must be here somewhere because they could all sense Leo nearby, and Donnie insisting this was the exact location of the door for the room where Mikey painted his mural.So after a little bit of conversing from the hall outside his room, Leo calmly watched when a big red glowing mystic fist punched straight through the solid structure exactly where the open door was located.Draxum's tech wasn't designed to take a hit as strong as the one the genetically engineered mutant snapper could throw (especially with his mystic mojo) so it shorted out, revealing a mutant red-eared slider turtle gazing up at them and greeting them with a sad little smile on his face."Hey," was the only thing he said, before putting his eyes back down on the shuriken he was spinning around in his hand.Raph gave Donnie a stern look and a nudge with his elbow, indicating he was expecting the 'genius' who called their brother a maniac to say the first words. So the techy softshell who wasn't good with this whole 'feelings' thing nervously cleared his throat and asked: "Do you have room for three more?"Without looking up from his spinning shuriken, Leo curtly replied: "Better watch out, I'm a maniac I might hurt you if you get too close."Mikey and Raph both glared at Donnie for his hurtful words that Leo clearly heard, and sweat beaded on Don's head as he nervously replied: "Ah, yes, about that..." "Don't worry Dee, I didn't leave cuz of that, I left to clear my head because everything you said was true," Leo calmly interrupted. He abruptly stopped the spinning shuriken and put it away to give his attention to the mural on the wall while his three brothers slowly came into the room, with Donnie taking the lead.Before anyone said another word, Leo raised his arm to point at the beautiful mural Mikey painted, and he asked the three of them: "Do you think we'll ever have that?"He lowered his arm and the three of them gazed at the painting together of all of their happy, smiling faces, and Raph tenderly told him: "We already do have that, bro."Next, Mikey plopped on the bed to sit beside his slider brother, with Raph sitting his big frame on the edge of the bed and Donnie standing beside them all.A crooked grin came on Leo's face as he fought through the worry and anxiety he felt over the thought of one day for real hurting someone he loved, to focus his mind on the many happy memories they already managed to build in the relatively short time they knew each other."Yeah, I guess we do," he softly agreed. Then, when Mikey snuggled a little closer to him, he lifted his arm to wrap it around his little brother and smiled down on him.The sense of inner peace Leo felt from his warm ninpo practically drowned out the sensation of the dark energy that had been deposited inside of him, so that now it felt like a tiny, dying flame. But instead of feeling glad about that he sadly sighed and his smile fell at the thought that his ninpo was able to recover from such a weak state, meaning the dark energy could do so as well.And the events of earlier that very day was proof of the matter.But instead of chastising himself or wallowing in a sense of self-loathing like he used to do before moving in with his family who loved him, and learning the Hamato way of meditation from his dad, Leo asked the serious question: "What are we gonna do about all of this?""First, we're going to get you back home before one of foot faces snoops around and finds you up here," Raph sternly suggested, but in a tender sort of way."Heh, yeah, I supposed it was pretty dumb of me to leave the lair without checking the security feed Donnie set up," Leo agreed with a nervous laugh."Especially alone," Mikey sternly pointed out to him."And without your weapons," Donnie factually commented, before raising one eyebrow and snarkily adding: "Isn't a ninja warrior supposed to go everywhere with his weapons?""Alright, I get it, I was a dummy, let's go back and figure out what we're gonna do about this whole situation to keep everyone safe," Leo agreed. He took his arm off Mikey to stand up, grabbed his warm downy comforter, and on the way out of the no longer concealed room, he patted Donnie's shoulder and offered a sincere apology when he said: "Sorry 'bout trying to take your head off with my sword, bro.""I knew it!" came the confident reply, before Donnie shoved a finger in Mikey's face and proudly announced: "In your face Miguel! I told you he was trying to take my head off with his katana!"Leo laughed at such a typical 'Donnie' thing for him to say, but Mikey glared at Dee in anger and Raph bumped his shell with his elbow, reminding him he still had the need to apologize.But after saying: "Ahem," in lieu of clearing his throat, Leo stopped to smile at the mural on the wall and commented to his brothers: "Someone's missing, don't you think?""Yeah," Mikey agreed with his own smile, knowing Leo was talking about their dad, who he reconciled with. "We'll have to come back some time to finish it."Leo wrapped his arm around Mikey once more, smiled down on him, and on the way out of the room he said: "I like that idea little bro, but not until after we kick some Foot butt and stop them from putting together that dark armor!" "Yeah!" Mikey enthusiastically agreed. Then Leo shivered from a chill and looked over his three mutant brothers who were not wearing any outerwear whatsoever, to exclaim: "How can you dress like that!?""Leo, it's really not that cold out," Raph flatly objected. But his Hidden-City raised brother who liked to be warm and was still getting used to the (cold) life above ground dramatically threw out his hands and exclaimed in return: "Yeah, for you!"* * *~The Next Night at the New Secret Foot Clan Lair Located Somewhere in the Hidden City~One of Draxum’s newest recruits, a hippo yokai who was really a mutant, and his likewise mutant worm bestie (with exquisite hair) approached to show their Foot Commander - the great and powerful Baron Draxum - a picture he took on his phone."We found this inside an abandoned hospital, commander," the hippo told him, before informing him: "It was hidden the first time we searched the area, and it looks like someone was there recently."Draxum’s lips curled into a wicked grin when he saw a picture taken of a mural painted on a wall of four mutant turtles and their human friend he likewise recognized."Excellent work Hypno and . . . uh, other recruit.""The name is Warren Stone!" the little worm sternly (and a little pridefully) told him with clenched fists and an angry snarl on his tiny little worm face.Draxum couldn't care less about the little worm or what he had to say. In fact the only reason that guy was brought on as a recruit in the first place was because it was the only way to convince his useful hippo friend with magical, witch-like powers to willingly join his cause; after Draxum caught the worm red-handed wearing one of the two missing dark armor gauntlets and was about to dispose of him when Hypno displayed his usefulness when he intervened to try and save his buddy."General!" Draxum called out to the single, solitary (useful, dedicated, wildly passionate) human he chose to not only keep on as a recruit when he dismissed (aka secretly killed) all the other humans (who could become a liability if permitted to live), but to also promote to the honored role of general, second only to him, after she displayed her competence and fiery zeal for the Foot Clan and their cause time and time again.An over-energetic female Foot soldier by the name of Cassandra Jones rushed into the room with all her usual dramatic zeal and eagerly saluted her new commander with the loud, enthusiastic words: "I live to serve!"Draxum calmly looked down on her, and gave the order: "Take a crew of soldiers with you and post lookouts in the general vicinity of the hospital where Recruit Hypno found evidence of my missing slave..." "And Warren Stone!" the small worm angrily interrupted when he noticed he was left out (yet again).Draxum dismissively glanced down on him before continuing with his instructions to his new General."I want every available recruit scouring the area, is that understood?"General Jones once again enthusiastically saluted her commanding officer with the loud, zealous words: "Sir yes sir! But I really wish you would allow me to capture that fox yokai for interrogation!""No," Draxum firmly and calmly replied. "She is protected by a family of pirates and I am too close to reaching my life's goal, now is not the time to make powerful enemies. Do as I ordered, and set aside fifteen of your best warriors. I have my doubts that he will return to the area, however now that I know for a fact he is still in the city I have a plan that should entice him out of hiding."In reply, Cassandra passionately grabbed the air like she was choking someone and dramatically exclaimed: "We will search EVERY INCH of the area until we drag his traitorous shell back to you for appropriate punishment! I WILL NOT FAIL YOU COMMANDER!!!"Draxum simply (and calmly) looked down on her, having become accustomed to her seemingly never-ending bursts of energy - that were quite useful when pointed in the right direction - and inquired: "Are you certain you would not like me to mutate you into a stronger form? Perhaps a squirrel would suit you nicely.""Sir no sir! I am QUITE HAPPY with my human appearance, I once overheard some of the recruits you dismissed say I WAS VERY FETCHING, SIR!!!" Cassandra very enthusiastically replied."Perhaps a tasmanian devil or weasel would work well for you?" Draxum calmly offered next, knowing many above ground animals because of his mutant experiments against the humans he knew very little about.Cassandra ignored his second offer and loudly proclaimed: "My team will search every inch of the area until he is found, sir! I WILL TEAR APART THAT HOSPITAL BRICK BY BRICK IF THAT'S WHAT I MUST DO TO FLUSH HIM OUT, SIR!"In reply, Draxum rubbed his chin while he looked her over, and then when an idea came to mind he snapped his fingers and commented: "I've got it, you would make a lovely wolverine." But when she refused his (generous) offer a third time, Draxum dismissed her and she pushed Hypno and . . . uh . . . his friend out of the room in front of her in her eagerness to hurry up in setting up look-outs all over the area Commander Draxum instructed; in addition to the lookouts who had been posted around the area surrounding Run of the Mill restaurant, of course, where his slave once worked.Lookouts that did not escape the notice of one ex-pirate captain and his previous first mate/restaurant chef, who managed to discreetly send a warning to their mutant turtle ruffian friend, for him to stay away from their establishment.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
After sharing a round of heartfelt apologies for the prank gone wrong (and an extra one from Donnie for calling Leo a maniac) the four brothers spent that night sleeping together in one of their turtle piles.Now, three days later, everyone but Leo and Mikey were huddled around a wooden table Donnie setup in the dojo, looking down on a rather large map of the Hidden City, and discussing their next plan of action.Earlier that day Hueso used one of his contacts to discreetly get in touch with the honorable Hamato family and inform them word got to him that three pieces of the dark armor had been found and were being held in the downtown Hidden City prescient, awaiting the return of Baron Draxum, who was (apparently) away on an important business trip and wouldn't return until the next morning.Meaning their window of opportunity was short.Leo, for his part, wanted to meet with Hueso alone on a stealth mission to iron out the details of their plan - insisting he talk to the skeleton yokai in person.Raphael, of course, was dead set against that idea, and after a round of heated debating on the subject Splinter put an end to it by informing 'Red' that 'Blue' was right, they could use the help of an ex-pirate with contacts, Leo and Hueso knew each other well so he was the best choice, the fewer the better was necessary for the success of a stealth mission, and face-to-face was the best option when dealing with something this serious.But he surprised Leonardo by also ording him not to go alone and insisting he take Mikey along on the mission.At first, the skilled ninja warrior who was used to working alone was skeptical about taking the one implusive brother who set off Big Mama's booby trap in her vault because of his short attention span. But he showed all due respect for his dad and sensei by not arguing back, and after checking Donnie's security feed to confirm the only Foot Soldiers in the area were the two staking out Hueso's restaurant they left without further ado.And he had to admit, he was rather impressed by his little brother's stealth and abilities when he really focused on a task.(Plus they also had a little sibling 'fun' together with the evil ninjas staking out Hueso's restaurant before leaving to go back home)Meanwhile, Splinter pointed down to a spot on the map and was about to give his next instructions when the two ninja turtles decked out in all their gear briskly walked into the room, with Leo taking the lead and informing them: "Hueso's in.""Were you followed?" came the serious question from the overprotective big brother of the family who was still a little peeved that Leo went above ground at all (especially without him)."No," came the blunt, one word reply.But with the way one corner of both Leo and Mikey's lips each curled up in a tiny grin, the big brother/protector of the family straightened up, crossed his arms in anger, and demanded: "Alright, spill it, what'd you do to them?"They both looked up at him all innocent-like and Leo playfully replied: "Whaaat? We can't have a little fun with those soldiers after Mikey knocked them out with that sleeping gas Dee made?"Mikey playfully elbowed his 'stealth mission' brother and giggled at the memory, prompting Leo to do the same.Everyone looked up at them and Raph raised one of his brows when he once again demanded: "What did you two bozos do?""No-thing!" Mikey blurted out in a faux-offended tone.Both he and Leo shared a mischievous grin with each other before the slider volunteered the information Raph was fishing for by muttering under his breath: "We just miiight have stuck them together with that foam agent bonding spray Dee made and dumped a whole vat of mustard over them from the hot dog vendor down the road."He and Mikey snickered again, and then outright laughed out loud when Raph yelled in anger: "LEO!!!" (incorrectly) assuming his prank-loving red-eared slider brother instigated the entire thing.In reply Leonardo casually tipped his hip to the side to rest a hand on it, flashed his big bro his relaxed 'faceman' grin, and replied in an overly pleasant tone: "Don't worry, we paid for the mustard, and it's allll good bro, the pigeons were already eating it off before we left." Then it was Mikey's turn to mutter under his breath when he said: "And I think I might have seen a rat or two."He and Leo snickered together again, especially when Raph groaned and slapped his face in frustration over their shenanigans.That was when Splinter got them back on track by firmly reminding them of the importance of their mission.That got Leo back in his warrior mindset, so he and Mikey both wiped the grins off their faces, and Leo pointed to a section of the map where the Hidden City docks were located, saying: "Hueso's brother is going to sail his pirate ship in close enough to the docks to get spotted by the mystic coast guards. There's not enough of them to handle pirates on their own, and the closest police station is this one."The slider tapped his finger on the downtown prescient where he had been dragged to in chains and subsequently witnessed the tragic death of his closest companion and lifelong friend, Usagi.A death he hadn't informed his family of yet because he was still having an exceptionally hard time coping with the loss and was accustomed to bearing this type of heavy burden alone."Most of the cops will be sent out to deal with it," Leo informed them, "and that's when you three swoop in, grab the pieces, and get out of there before you're spotted."Leo's already serious voice took on a somber tone when he gazed around at his three brothers and very sternly reminded them: "Remember, the cops are working with Draxum, so they must know you're mutants and not yokai. That means if you're caught you'll be treated like slaves - so don't get caught!"His three ninja turtle brothers nodded their heads in agreement and then Leo put his focus on Donnie when he asked: "You got those boxes ready?"Donnie's smug grin was answer enough, but he still replied with the confident words: "The new and improved rotwood boxes are ready, my brethren, and triple reinforced."Leo seemed unconvinced and thrust a finger at his bro while sternly telling him: "Good, and they better be thick enough this time! I don't want a repeat of what happened with those other flimsy boxes you made!""Scoff, my boxes were not flimsy, and how was I to know..." "That's enough!" Splinter sternly interrupted.Donnie and Leo argued with one another just as much as they got alone, and they glared at each other but closed their mouths instead of continuing this sibling argument they had been having on and off ever since the incident when their dark energy afflicted slider completely lost control of himself (in between their 'turtle piles', heart-to-hearts, playful sibling banter, and pranks they either pulled on one another, or teamed up to pull on their other siblings; quickly earning them the nickname 'disaster twins' from the rest of their family).Their dad nodded his head in approval when the arguing stopped, and then he looked up at his newest member of their sewer ninja family to ask Leo: "Is your rabbit friend able to help as well?"Leo, for his part, was supposed to have contacted Usagi on his cell phone to enlist his help staking out the area around the police station before anyone went to the Hidden City, but for obvious reason he had not done that; and he also didn't say anything beyond giving a hum in reply and subsequently walking away when he was asked to do so by his older brother earlier that day.The slider's body tensed when he stuck his eyes back on the map and answered with the curt, one word reply: "No.""No?" Donnie immediately questioned, with a hint of anger.Leo's jaw tensed and his eye twitched but he didn't take his eyes off the map or in any way reply, prompting the intelligent softshell to throw his hands out and loudly inquire in annoyance: "Did you even ask him?"Leo's eye twitched again."No. What's the plan?""You didn't ask?" came April's much softer, concerned voice.Leo scrunched his already tense shoulders, kept his eyes glued to the map, and took in a deep breath through his nose to try and calm himself down, before replying: "What's the plan?"But his family wasn't dropping this so easily, and Raph next spoke up when he said: "We could really use his help keeping lookout.""Yeah, he knows the Hidden City," Mikey next spoke up."What's. The. Plan," was the increasingly angry slider's only reply.He clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles would have turned white underneath his ninja wrappings if not for the black mystic-energy-blocking substance infused into his skin.But thanks in part to his progress with his Hamato meditation combined with his ninpo gradually gaining strength every day from living with his family, even with the intense emotions swimming around inside his head there was no noticable spike in the dark energy lurking inside of him.Splinter, who was standing directly beside him, next spoke up when he kindly asked: "Leonardo, why did you not ask your friend for help?"Instead of replying, Leo turned his head away from him just far enough to get his shorter rat frame out of his line of vision, still without taking his eyes off the map (but only so he didn't have to look at anybody).Mikey, however, looked at him trying to read his body language and facial expression - but he couldn't decide if his brother was about ready to scream and curse at everyone in the room or burst out in tears any second.Maybe it was a little bit of both.He wondered in confusion what was going on when April next reminded Leo: "Yeah Stripes, you can't go anywhere near those dark armor pieces.""It would be useful to have someone we can trust helping us who knows the Hidden City well," Donnie flatly remarked.Through gritted teeth, Leo very angrily replied: "He can't."That got Donnie throwing his arms out in frustration and yelling: "How do you KNOW he can't if you didn't ASK him!!?"Leo spun around to put his back to everybody, took two big steps away from the table, and snapped in anger: "I just DO, OKAY!!?"A tear escaped his eye but he didn't wipe it away because he didn't want anyone to know what had happened."NO you DON'T know because you DIDN'T ASK HIM!!!" Donnie predictably yelled in anger.Although still carrying an angry undertone, Leo's voice was much quieter when he replied: "I don't need to ask him to know he can't help, now can we pleeease get back to the plan?"Two more tears fell down his face and all eyes were bouncing back and forth between the two arguing twins when Donnie yelled: "We'll get back to the plan AFTER you ask Usagi for his HELP!"Leo's fists clenched tighter and big, fat tears welled up in his eyes when he yelled in anger: "I can't!""Why not!""Because . . . I just can't!""That's not a reason! There HAS to be a REASON!!!""There IS!""WHAT IS it!""Can we just get back to the PLAN!?"
"NO!"
Unknown to everybody in the room, more tears spilled over, dripped down Leo's face, and instead of saying another word he began storming away."You better be going to ask Usagi for his help!""I'm not!"
"WHY not!!?"
"BECAUSE!"
"Because WHY!!?""Because . .. just BECAUSE!!!""That's not an answer!""I need to clear my head!""Hey, while you're doing that why don't you, oh I don't know, ASK USAGI FOR HIS HELP!""I TOLD you I can't DO that!"
"WHY NOT!!"
In a fit of grief-fueled rage Leo whipped around to reveal to everybody he had been actively crying, and with an angry scowl he threw his hands out and yelled at the top of his voice:"BECAUSE HE'S DEAD!!!"The room fell silent, everyone stared at Leo, shocked and aghast at that very unexpected mournful news.The grief-stricken slider sniffled and wiped away the tears with his ninja wrappings covering the palms of his hands while walking up to the table, where he put his hands on the edge of it and eyes back on the map.Mikey was the first to break the silence when he abruptly squeezed Leo tightly in a hug and quietly and tentatively asked: "What happened?"The grieving slider leaned into the embrace, but without hugging Mikey back for fear doing so would unleash a tidal wave of tears right here and now when he needed to focus on the more important task at hand. Then he sniffled again, replied in a curt yet sad tone of voice: "The cops got him," and forced back more tears before pulling away from Mikey's hug and asking firmly but quietly: "What's the plan?"Instead of getting right into it, Splinter laid a compassionate hand on his, making the slider significantly relax what was left of his tense composure after his little brother's much needed hug. And although Leo kept his eyes down on the map, his dad gazed up at his face to kindly offer: "This can be the focus of our next meditation if you would like, Blue.""Yeah, thanks," came the quiet reply."We're here for you too, Stripes," April next reminded him, with Raph throwing in a: "Yeah," Donnie nodding his head in agreement, and Mikey putting a reassuring hand on Leo's shoulder.The slider kept his eyes down on the map and opened his mouth with the intent of saying something to his family about how he kept forgetting he wasn't alone anymore when it came to stuff like this and thanking them for their support, but instead his bottom lip quivered and another tear slowly left his eye to drizzle down his face. So he shut it again, cleared his throat, and when he was ready to talk he softly asked: "Can we get back to the plan?"Splinter patted Leo's hand, the slider wiped away the final stray tear that escaped his eye, and everyone got back on track with the exceptionally important mission they were planning - although the atmosphere in the room had definitely shifted after that grave news was announced.* * *~Later That Night~The plan was simple.Splinter and April kept lookout in the Hidden City - with April keeping an eye on the portal the needed to leave through to make sure no Foot Soldiers showed up to block access to it, and Splinter keeping watch from the roof of the police station while his sons were inside.Raph, Mikey and Donnie's job was to infiltrated the police station to search for the three pieces of dark armor they presumably had in their possession and stick each one in a rotwood box of appropriate size that Dee made from the last of the wood he had, to block the mystic energy signals from reaching their dark-energy-afflicted brother when they were brought back to the lair with the other pieces; which was the safest, most secure location to stash them away.Meanwhile, Leo kept watch on the New York side of the portal to guard against a possible ambush waiting for his family when it was time to leave the Hidden City; sensibly staying above ground and far away from the Kuroi Yōroi pieces until after they were secured inside the mystic rotwood boxes.The plan appeared to be seamless, and went flawlessly......for the first half.Splinter and his three sons waited for the moment a large group of police personnel were sent out in blaring squad cars to deal with an apparent pirate attack on the docks.When their dad gave them the signal Donnie used his tech glass cutter to cut a Raph-sized hole in one of the top floor windows, and three stealthy ninjas descended to the dark room that was adjacent to the secure inner room the pieces were presumably stored away in.Without a word, Raph led the way through the dark room to the likewise dark hallway, and from there Donnie used his tech to pick the lock on another door so they could all file inside.Once in, Mikey closed the door behind them and flicked on the lights, to reveal a large storage room filled floor to ceiling with video tapes on their left, filing cabinets in front of them, and large shelving units to their right that were holding all sorts of confiscated contraband - from mystic weapons to stolen jewellery and everything in between."Everyone know what we're looking for?" the team/family leader asked.The determined Mikey firmly nodded his head with a: "Yes," before getting to work searching through the shelves to their right.Donnie, however, was rubbing his chin and gazing to his left, distracted by the rows upon rows of security tapes."Whatcha doin' Don?" Raph asked his brother in annoyance."Leo said the cops got their hands on Usagi..." Raph stopped him mid-sentence by thrusting a finger at his intelligent younger brother and curtly demanded: "You better not be thinkin' of looking for that tape!""Nooo," Donnie calmly replied as if it was obvious, "But I am wondering if Leo has ever been arrested.""I found one!" Mikey proudly announced, popping his head from behind one of the storage units with a hand up, holding something that looked like a metal knee pad."We don't have time for this! Help us find the pieces so we can get outta here!" Raph barked at his brother."Got another one!" Mikey happily announced."Huh? Oh yeah yeah, Mikey's got it covered, I'm just going to take a quick peek over here."Raph rolled his eyes but knew it would be a waste of time to object further when Donnie went in the opposite direction as where the storage shelves were to peruse through the tapes; and the snapper joined Mikey in the search for the third and final piece.'"T t t t t" Donnie mumbled to himself, while searching through the alphabetical display of tapes lining the 'slave interrogation room' shelving unit. But when he didn't find what he was looking for, he commented out loud: "Hmm, no turtle tapes."That was when Mikey piped up: "Aren't turtle yokai called kappa?"Dee's face brightened from the reminder, he snapped his fingers while replying: "Yes Miguel they are," and then searched through the 'k' section......to find one solitary tape marked 'kappa.'Just as he was taking it off the shelf, Raph told him: "That's enough Donnie, we got the pieces, come here to do that thing with your goggles so we know they're the right ones."An Extend-a-Claw came out to grab the tape and put it snuggly away inside of his tech shell, and the softshell left that area and lowered his goggles down over his eyes to read the mystic energy signals being emitted by the three pieces in Raph and Mikey's hands.The pieces that weren't emitting a shred of energy - mystic or otherwise."These are not the dark armor pieces," Donnie informed his bros, before raising his goggles and taking the biggest one out of Raph's hands to get a better look at it and test its weight in his grip."What do you mean they're not the pieces?" the team leader questioned."They are made out of inferior metal, the trim is the wrong width and shade of purple, and they are not emitting any mystic energy signals whatsoever," came the factual reply.Raph and Mikey exchanged a confused look before they both gazed at the two armor pieces in the box turtle's hands, and the youngest of the three questioned: "If they're not the dark armor pieces, what are they?""I would say they are a decoy," came Donnie's reply."Decoy?" Raph and Mikey questioned in unison."Yes, the most likely explanation is that this, my brethren, is a trap," the unusually calm Donatello - whose brain switched over to 'factual' mode when stressed - commented."If this is a trap then we gotta get outta here before...!"Before the words finished coming out of Raphael's mouth, the room was stormed with armored officers who each were armed with powerful mystic blasters."FREEZE!" came the harsh command from the officer in front.* * *Meanwhile, on the New York City rooftop, Leo was making use of his keen ninja senses to keep watch for any signs that the Foot somehow got wind of their plan and were setting up an ambush on the New York side of the exit portal, when Mikey's panicked voice blasted through his com: "It's a trap! The COPS found us!""TRAP?!" Leo yelled in a panic.The Hidden City raised slider knew exactly what the crooked cops who were aligned with Draxum would do to his three mutant brothers who had pitted themselves against the powerful baron and were not legal yokai citizens, so without thinking he rushed through the portal to come out the other side where the likewise panicking April was waiting for him......only to instantly get slammed in the chest with an overwhelmingly disgusting barrage of dark energy that he knew meant there were many, many pieces of the Kuroi Yōroi assembled and very, very close.And worse still, the portal snapped shut behind him, zapping out of existence like a broken lightbulb.The instant he stepped through onto a Hidden City rooftop Leo felt like he was hit in the chest by a sledgehammer and bogged down with an incredible weight so overpowering it forced him to his knees with a grunt."Leo!!!" April cried out in alarm. She ran over to her dark-energy-afflicted brother, who fell down further so that now he was on his hands and knees, with his eyes squeezed shut; making use of his Hamato training by putting up such a hard fight against the evil influence of the mystical dark infection inside of him that he couldn't even hear April's pleading voice when she was standing right beside him.It wasn't until she put a hand on his shoulder and he felt her ninpo flowing through him to combine with his strengthened Hamato essence that he realized she was even there."Go help the others!" he managed to spit out at her."I can't leave you here all alone! You need my help!" April pleaded with him.Leo tensed his body with a groan and then told her through a clenched jaw: "No, the cops'll treat them like slaves! You gotta get them out first, then come back for me!""I'm not leaving you!"Leo squeezed his eyes tighter, putting up the hardest fight of his life, and begged his sister: "Please sis, get them out before they're killed and hurry back! It's too strong, I need all of you here to break free!""Ok we'll hurry back, hang in there Leo!""I'm tryin' my best!" the anguished slider told her, with sweat beading on his head.April didn't waste another second, she rushed away toward the downtown cop station to join Splinter in freeing the other three before something horrible happened.Meanwhile, without her Hamato essence nearby, Leo was slowly losing grip with reality. His mind was clouding over, his body was growing increasingly hot and numb, and beneath his tightly closed eyelids the pupils of his eyes were beginning to glow a dim purple.That was when an armed and dangerous group comprised of about fifteen highly skilled Foot Soldiers and a handful of crooked cops surrounded the skilled ninja warrior, ready for a fight."PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR!" one of the officers loudly demanded.Instead of raising his hands, the dark-energy-afflicted Leo raised his head with a crooked grin on his face, to open his eyes and reveal two purple glowing pupils, with wisps of black and greenish mystic smoke wafting off from the outer corners of his eyes.Without a word, the infected trained assassin slowly stood on on his feet and drew his swords, ready for battle.* * *In the prescient, Raph, Mikey, and Donnie managed get out to the roof after the big snapper smashed a hole through the wall mystic ninja style, and now they were engaged in a tense standoff with the cops in a location Raph and Mikey had more room to make use of their mystic powers, and Donnie likewise had more room to use his impossibly futuristic high tech weaponry, with Splinter joining them. And that was around the time April showed up to help win the battle."We gotta hurry up, Leo..." April was cut off when a blaster was aimed at her head that Raph thankfully blocked with his ninpo powers.And the fight was on.The mutant rat kicked butt with his impressive 'Lou Jitsu' skills, Raph skillfully used his mystic forcefield body to block and absorb all the blasters shot at them while Mikey made use of his wicked flaming ninpo fundo to systematically demolish the blasters being fired at them one by one, and Donnie put up a good fight on his end in hand-to-hand combat via his bō against the cops whose blasters were destroyed......that was until the exceptionally powerful mystic beam of one of the blasters hit his titanium tech bō, destroying the entire top half in an impressive explosion that significantly injured his shoulder and upper arm, thus taking him out of the fight.As soon as Splinter saw what happened to his son he firmly ordered: "Orange, you're with me, Red and April, get Purple out of here, we will be right behind you!""On it!" Raph yelled at the same time Mikey loudly announced: "Whip-o-rama!" and shot his flaming fundo out to obliterate two more mystic blasters.* * *Meanwhile at the portal, the dark-energy-influenced Leo - who was most definitely not himself - stared straight ahead at the officer in charge who loudly and forcefully ordered him to get down and put his hands up.The mystical concoction Draxum infused into his skin stopped the transfer of mystic energy from the hands and arms only, meaning Leo's portals were useless. But there were other, dark energy ways to make use of mystical might. So a devious grin came across the slider's face, with the mystic smoke gently wafting off the corners of his glowing eyes, and in reply he cooly and menacingly demanded: "Make me."Purple and black sparks of electrified dark energy began fizzing and crackling from the corners of his eyes down toward his shell. When the officers opened fire, there was a loud *WOOM* from a black dome-like forcefield extending out from his body, obliterating all of the magenta beams of concentrated deadly mystic energy on contact, and knocking each and every office back, throwing them through the air to land on their backsides, with their now ruined mystic blasters in their grip fizzling and popping with the same purple electrified ninpo that had been crackling around Leo's eyes."Impressive," came a very familiar voice from one building away.Without in any way losing that smug grin, Leo raised his head to cast his eyes upon the goat alchemist who setup this trap for him and was standing on a taller rooftop one building away.While spinning the katana around in his left hand he coldly said: "You ain't seen nothing yet," hinting at his willing rebellion against Draxum with the fake word 'ain't' that he had never been permitted to use in front of his harsh ex-owner."Move aside!" came the demanding order from the Head of the Foot clan, directed toward his subordinates.Everyone parted to make room for the large warrior, and Leo's wicked smile grew when Draxum himself jumped down to land in front of him to lead the fight in getting his slave back."I will give you one opportunity to return, Leonardo!" Draxum loudly and authoritatively offered. "Rejoin me and we will leave here peacefully. There does not need to be bloodshed this night!"In reply, Leo smirked at his previous owner and slyly asked: "Where's the fun in that?""Very well. But do not forget who trained you. Everything you know you learned from me," came the calm, unbothered reply."Not everything," Leonardo threateningly replied.Electrified sparks of purple and black dark energy shot from the corners of his glowing eyes and encompassed his shell like a raging tornado of lightning-like mystic energy.Draxum activated his impenetrable yokai armor, covering both arms up to his elbows with it.His dark-energy-afflicted opponent sheathed his left katana to replace it with the dagger he used to kill the tiger yokai, Vinnie, spelling out his wicked intentions without saying a word.He shot ahead first.In flash of magenta light, Draxum went through a portal.And the fight was on.* * *Back at the police station, Mikey managed to take out the last cop just before Splinter ordered their retreat.In true ninja style they were gone in a flash to join Raph, April, and the injured Donnie - who was being carried by his big brother."Purple, are you alright?" Splinter asked in concern when he saw the serious injury done to his son's arm and shoulder.Donnie hissed through his teeth when Raphael put him down, and clenched his jaw from pain when he told his dad: "I'll be fine, it's Leo who needs our help!""Leo!?" Mikey exclaimed in confusion."Yeah Mikes, the trap wasn't for you three it was for him!" April urgently informed him - and by extension Splinter. "He's at the portal trying to fight against the dark armor, we gotta go help him before something bad happens!""Hurry!" Splinter urged; and whether he liked it or not, the injured Donnie was scooped back up in his big brother's arms and held snug and tight to Raph's plastron, just before the five of them ninjaed across rooftops as fast as they could go to help Leo before it was too late.* * *On the rooftop, with the help of his quick ninja reflexes and the dark energy that sparked from his eyes and shell, blurring his turtle frame with each movement, Leo was evenly matched with the bigger and more experienced goat warrior who raised him, and who was skillfully making use of his portals for one swift attack after another.But that was when a small group of cops showed up and the ninja turtle saw it out of the corner of his eye.Or rather him.'Him' being the despicable spiky hedgehog yokai who took the lead in Usagi's torturous attack and ended his close friend's life by shooting him through the back with a mystic blaster.Purple and black sparks of light fizzled and cracked loudly from the corners of his eyes when Leo blocked an attack from Draxum and snapped his angry gaze upon the dishonorable yokai who deserved to die!"YOU!" he yelled out in anger.Then, with another *WOOMP* of dark powers, a dome of black energy originating from Leonardo’s shell forced Draxum through a portal to avoid the powerful mystical attack, which was just what Leo needed to get away from him.With the speed and skilled precision of a true ninja warrior, the previously cruely-treated assassin slave practically appeared in front of his intended target as though he had portalled there, and swiftly kick him off the roof all the way down to the ground below, in an alley.The injured cop landed with a *thump* and a winded: "Oof!" but Leo wasn't done with him just yet! He jumped off the roof to land in front of him, disarming him by chucking his dagger at the blaster in a skillful way that simultaneously knocked it away and sliced all the way through his hated enemy's hand, pinning it to the ground.There was a screech of pain and the warrior alchemist's large frame appeared over the edge of the roof, as Draxum stared down in approval of the honorable Hamato warrior who had lost all control of himself and was about to take the life of another.Without a word, Leo unsheathed his second katana so he had both at the ready, the officer yanked the dagger out of his hand with a loud groan of pain and got to his feet; and what happened next seemed to go in slow motion for the trained killer ninja turtle.The glow in Leo's eyes pulsated in unison with his rapidly pounding heartbeat.The officer reached out with his uninjured hand for his blaster, but was stopped when a katana was chucked at it, busting it apart from the sharp blade that went straight through it to stick out of the ground.The ninja warrior rushed ahead at the officer, who took out a mystic energy wrapped baton to defend himself but had no hope against such a skilled adversary.Leo jumped with the intent of landing the killing blow by slashing through the wicked yokai's throat with the incredibly sharp sword in his left hand......but that was the moment his ninpo warmth returned to his chest because his entire family was in close enough proximity for him to sense their Hamato ninpo essence. So at the last instant his eyes widened from a mixture of fright and shock at the realization of what he was about to do......and the only thing he had time for was to twist his body in such a way that the back of his hard shell slammed into the yokai instead of the blade of his sword, sending them cartwheeling across the ground until both of them landed with a loud *thump* and a *bang!* against a dumpster.From there, Leo's ninpo that was strengthened from living with his family combined with his Splinter-guided, Hamato meditative training was exactly what was needed to get himself the rest of the way to breaking free from the hold the dark energy infection had over him.The instant the slider regained full control of himself, from his position on the ground beside a dumpster he shot his now not glowing eyes up to stare at his previous owner and father-figure, the great and powerful Baron Draxum.The one who was glaring down on him in contempt - as though just peering at his 'weak' slave who 'couldn't' finish what he started was a source of disgust for him.Leo didn't know why, but for some reason the look of judgemental contempt in Draxum's eyes made him freeze in place from a combination of shock, fear, and an all-too-familiar sense of shame and insecurity.The eyes staring down on him seemed to pierce through to his soul and conveyed the message to him without a word:'you are not good enough and you will never be good enough.'Then there was the *bam!* of a mystical police baton slamming into the side of his head, knocking it hard against the dumpster on the other side of him.Draxum shook his head in disgust - knowing that mystic attack most definitely resulted in yet another concussion for his 'marvel of creation' - just before jumping down to the alley to finish this fight; uttering the single word:"Pathetic."
Leo's heart wrentched and crumbled into a thousand pieces inside his chest at the sound of his previous father-figure's voice that carried a tone of disgust and loathing with it.Draxum locked eyes with Leonardo as he walked closer, never averting his gaze with his claws out at the ready and having every intention of permanently binding his disobedient slave - who he needed alive (for now) - with a swift slash across the slider's eyes so he could take him back where he 'belonged' without a struggle.But before getting his hands (or rather, claws) on the dazed mutant, Leo's family minus April abruptly jumped into the alley to stand between Draxum with his cronies, and their brother/son; with Raph protectively standing over Donnie and all of them facing the threat in front of them.Leo's ears began ringing loudly and his head throbbing in unison with his heartbeat when April loudly cried out: "Apriiiil O'Neeeiiil!" as she jumped off the roof ninja-attack-style and slammed the officer standing over her brother with her metal baseball bat that now had a mystic green flame on the end. One she got thanks to a witch's potion Sunita picked up for her in the Witch Town section of the Hidden City. A potion that strengthened both the durability of her metal bat and the force of any swing that made contact - similar to the mystic baton that slammed into the side of Leo's head.The officer was knocked away, and Leo's aching head throbbed again when he got to his feet.From his spot standing in front of him - between him and the evil warrior alchemist - Splinter loudly ordered Draxum: "STAY AWAY FROM MY SON!""HE DOESN'T BELONG TO YOU, HE BELONGS TO ME!!!" Draxum very forcefully and aggressively countered."He doesn't belong to ANYBODY!!!" Raph firmly announced in anger.The concussed Leo winced from all the loud shouting, rubbed the side of his head, and groaned: "Uh, he has a concussion, so can we have this loud argument some other time and get out of here?" before picking up his dagger with a wobbly hand to sheathe it. Then he grabbed his second katana sticking out of the ground to brandish both of them, but with the way he was wavering unsteadily in his stance and seeing double he knew he wouldn't be able to do much of anything to aid in the fight, beyond perhaps staying in place and defending any incoming attacks."Yet another concussion?" came the deep, booming voice of his previous owner and the one he used to deeply respect, admire, and look up to as the only father-figure he had."Have you learned nothing?"Leo's heart filled up with an all-consuming dread and a deep, guilt-ridden sadness and self-loathing over his own ineptitude at the sound of Draxum's verbal disapproval; and he once again felt like his heart dropped clear out of his chest for just a moment at the stern tone to his voice that was clearly overlaid with disgust.
So to try to prove he was worth something (to who, he didn't know) he stepped out in a familiar fighting stance with his swords up, prepared to strike. But with the way the alley was spinning around him he couldn't quite be sure which way way up and what was down.In fact this particular concussion was so overwhelming he felt a wave of nausea hit him and wavered in his stance so badly he had to stick his hand out on the dumpster to steady himself."Woah Leo, take it easy," April kindly urged. She kept her flaming bat out, prepared to defend her brother, and put her hand on his shell to help steady him, while the rest glared at Draxum and the other enemies before them, in a silent standoff.The surge in Hamato ninpo warmth accompanied by his sister's touch helped to calm down the storm of intense emotions swirling around inside Leo's head that were all directed inwardly. That finished off settling the infectious dark energy while simultaneously filling his heart and mind with warm, reassuring reminders that he was loved now because his family viewed him as someone worth loving.That was until the sound of sirens cut through his throbbing head like a chainsaw on fire when they filled the air as more Hidden City cops were quickly heading in their direction.Considering two of his sons were out for the count and they would soon be outnumbered ten-to-one, Splinter made the wise decision that they needed to flee if they had any hope of living to fight another day and stop the dreaded Kuroi Yōroi from being assambled. So he sternly ordered all his family to retreat.The mutant rat rushed at his red-eared slider son, throwing a smoke bomb at his feet as soon as he was within range. The ninja smoke screen enveloped him, April, and Leo, with Mikey announcing: "Sneek away jitsu!" and doing the same from his position with Raph and Donnie.Draxum immediately lunged ahead and struck at where his disobedient slave's face had been, but his claws only made contact with the ninja smoke, which swirled around in the air before dissipating.When the smoke cleared, the only ones remaining were Draxum and those on his side, so in a senseless rage the warrior alchemist growled out loud, tore three sizeable gashes through the dumpster when he slashed at it with his sharp claws, and aggressively ordered: "Search the area, do NOT let them escape!""YES SIR!" came the cry of his overzealous second in command, General Jones, before she loudly and enthusiastically barked out orders to her recruits and left with them to search for the 'traitor' who got away.But before they even finished dispersing, the stealthy ninja family were already topside on the other side of a Hidden City portal, walking through one of the tunnels in the underground maze that was the New York sewer system on their way home.With two of their own badly injured from the fight they lost and had to flee from.But at least they were one and all alive.And still together.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
On the way home through the sewer tunnels, the family medic, Donatello - who himself was injured - noticed how Leo wavered and was unsteady as he walked, and asked: "How's the head?""I'm fine," the slider curtly replied through gritted teeth. "It's just a concussion, I can walk it off."Leo winced and the sound of his 'twin's' voice drummed in his ears when Donnie loudly exclaimed: "Walk it off!? You can't walk a straight line!""I'm fine," Leo reiterated, "How's the arm?""Better than your head!" Donnie snapped back.The rest of the family walked on in silence, feeling sad and dejected, as the two 'disaster twins' continued their argument."How bad were you hit in the head!?" the family medic snapped.Leo clenched his fists in anger and snapped right back: "Concussions are easier to get after the first three or four!"He winced and rubbed the side of his sore head when he raised his voice a little too loudly for his own ears, and Donnie didn't help with the ringing or his splitting headache when he raised his voice to yell: "They're easier to get after the first one! How many concussions have you had!?""Uhhh..." Leo rubbed the side of his head again while he thought, then he put his hand down and answered: "I don't remember.""All the more reason to get you checked out in the med bay!"That was when the slider turned his head to look at Donnie with his brows furrowed in apparent confusion, and tried to use humor to deflect from this conversation he did not want to have right now by asking: "Who are you?"Splinter groaned from this sibling banter while the big brother of the Mad Dogs team rolled his eyes, their older sister muttered under her breath: "Here we go again," and Mikey snickered at Leo's joke; but the family medic took him seriously, thinking the concussion was worse than Leo let on, and opened his mouth all ready to blast out an answer in reply. But he closed it again and frowned with the cheeky smirk Leo gave to him, before his concussed red-eared slider brother turned back to face the same direction he was walking."Funny," Dee said very sarcastically, before sternly telling his dumb-dumb stubborn brother: "I'm not dropping this Nardo, if you don't..." "Fine! I'll get checked out in the med bay if it'll shut you up! Now be quiet, I've got a splitting headache."Now it was Leo's turn to groan and roll his eyes when Donnie very smugly replied: "Thank you."And he didn't need to turn around to see that cocky grin he knew was plastered all over his 'twinsie's' face for 'winning' this round.* * *All along the way home and while they were being patched up in the med bay, Raph and Mikey kept glaring at Donnie every time Leo's back was turned, warning him without a word that he had better not watch that 'kappa interrogation' tape he picked up at the prescient.And after having his arm and shoulder patched up and confirming Leo would be alright, Raph had a few words with Donatello about it outside the med bay door.But whether the headstrong techy softshell would listen or not was yet to be seen.After their eventful and disappointing night, Donnie quietly retired to his lab with his busted tech bō in hand, lamenting the fact that even his impossibly futuristic high tech weaponry was no match for the mystical powers of the blasters used against them; so that he ended up becoming a liability instead of an asset to their family hero team of ninjas.April - who was close to him and knew him well - noticed his dejected body language on his way out of the med bay and decided to follow behind for one of their heart-to-hearts.When she got to the lab, as expected, her techy brother was slouched in his chair with the eighty's jams blaring from his computer speakers, sitting back-on to her and appearing to be sadly gazing down on his busted tech bō.Dee didn't hear anyone come into his lab over the loud music he used to soothe his soul, so he wasn't aware April was even there until she put a hand on his shoulder and he jumped from fright."Bwa! Don't do that!" he yelled, before clicking at his computer to shut off the music.In typical April fashion, his sister got right to the point of her visit by asking "Dee, are you alright?"And in typical Donnie fashion Dee replied with anger and sarcasm through gritted teeth: "Oh I'm just peachy," before laying his half demolished tech bō aside to click at his computer keyboard."Alright Dee, what's on your mind?" April next asked, knowing something more was going on with her brother than the fact he and Leo were both injured and they had to retreat from the fight."Oh no-thing," Donnie replied, still heavy on the sarcasm and his tone thick with anger. He didn't take his eyes off his screen or slow down in his work, and with an angry scowl continued: "I only lost my favorite bō to that unscientific 'magic' and now I have to start all over again on a new and better design.""Did you ever think of taking Leo's advice and tapping into your inner Hamato ninpo?" was the next direct question April asked him.That got Donnie's blood boiling and he stopped typing to loudly object: "Scoff!" before facing her to begin one of his many rants expressing his dislike (to put it lightly) for the 'unscientific magic' called 'mystic powers'.But April was having none of that this time and with a hint of frustration she firmly interrupted: "Admit it already, sometimes mystic powers aren't all that bad!""I will not!" Donnie angrily replied from his own frustration.In reply, April groaned out: "Ugh, why!? Why are you so obsessed with being right on this!?""Because..."Donnie's tense demeanor softened, he slouched in his chair again, put his head down to gaze on the busted tech bō laying against his desk beside him, and curled in on himself a little when he softly told her:"I'm the science guy. If mystic powers can do everything I can do but better, then why would . . . you guys even need me?""Donnie, how could you say that!?" April immediately countered. She reached out to squish his cheeks in her hands so he would look at her, and in a voice radiating love and kindness, she firmly told him: "You're not important to us because of your tech, you're important to us because you're you. I don't think mystic powers are better than science, if anything they're stronger together, just like us. Right?"April lowered her arms to put her hand out for a fist bump, and a big smile came across Donnie's face, just before he happily agreed: "Right!" and shared a gentle, friendly fist bump with his sister who always seemed to know how to add a little sunshine to a cloudy day.So instead of working on the designs for a new tech bō, Donnie spent most of that night working on opening up and tapping into his inner Hamato ninpo.* * *~The Next Day~Donnie was sitting slouched in his chair at his desk, back-on to his closed purple curtain bedroom door, facing his laptop, which had a USB sticking out of it that contained a video he transferred over via his tech.And feeling an astronomical amount of guilt for what he had just done.He took in a deep breath through his nose, and slowly exhaled out of his mouth.That video he saw was different.It was so, sooo different than the violent entertainment he often enjoyed with April.Because it wasn't entertainment.It was also completely different from the science videos he occasionally viewed alone, late at night when everyone else was asleep, of animal experimentations. The ones he tried convincing himself he watched for enlightenment and scientific exploration, but deep down he knew he really viewed to satisfy a morbid sense of curiosity hidden inside his hero's mutant turtle mind.But he didn't watch this to satisfy his curiosity - morbid or otherwise.This......this was different.Not because it wasn't entertainment, not because it was real, not because it wasn't to satisfy a morbid curiosity.But because it was Leo.Raph warned him not to watch it last night after he and Leo were mended in the infirmary, but he wouldn't listen.. . .As if on cue, there he was - his red-eared slider brother knocking on the side of the archway making up his bedroom door before pushing the curtain aside and telling him with excitement to his voice:"Mikey just threw some of those mentos things in a bottle of pop and it squirt out like a volcano all the way up to the ceiling! He's gonna do it again and try to chug it! Raph texted April, she's on her way with more, you joinin' us Don-Tron?"The mutant hero family was taking a much-needed breather from the disappointing events the day prior to refresh and recharge while Splinter was working out something or other with a friend of Mikey's for their next training exercise.But his smile fell with the way Donnie stayed slouched in his chair, sitting back-on to him, appearing to be sad about something.So Leo's smile fell and without prompting he slowly walked into the room up to 'Don-Tron', gazed down briefly on the bandages covering his left shoulder and upper arm before looking at his sullen and dejected face, and tenderly asked: "You still upset about what happened yesterday?" knowing that Donnie blamed himself for walking right into a trap that put all of their lives in danger and almost got their red-eared slider brother taken from them (again, like how he had been stolen from them all those years ago).He also knew how Donnie blamed himself for not working on bringing out his inner Hamato ninpo sooner so that he was a better help in the fight, and so (in his eyes) things wouldn't have escalated to the point they were both injured and their family had to flee.He knew all this because they had one of their back-to-back, heart-to-hearts late last night before either one of them could sleep; with each of them sitting on a meditation mat on the floor in Donnie's soundproofed lab with the back of their shells touching, in lieu of sitting on the telepathic dreamrealm floor like they used to do, both when they were little and the few times they got to use that 'dreamworld' after they reconnected, before it was permanently taken away from them.Donnie gazed up for but a moment at the marks and bruising on the side of Leo's head from where he had a mystic police baton slammed into him, but turned away again. The injury had been bandaged by Mikey the night before, but his 'real ninja warrior' brother stubbornly removed them sometime after their little brother went to bed for the night.A hand rested on his shoulder, and a compassionate voice told him: "Listen bro, it wasn't your fault that..." "No, it's not that," Don interrupted in a quiet, sad tone of voice.Leo took his hand off his 'twinsie's' shoulder and leaned back against his desk so he could look down on him and softly say: "Ok, it's what then?"Donnie opened his mouth as if to reply, but instead he let out a heavy sigh, slumped his shoulders a little more, and hung his head from sadness.Leo let the silence stretch on for a moment to give 'Don-Tron' time to speak up. But when it became increasingly apparent that wasn't going to happen without some brotherly encouragement, he took out a shuriken 'fidget toy' to spin around in his fingers, and looked down on it while asking: "You ever miss our twin communication thing we had?"That got Donnie looking up at him, but just a glance before he shot his eyes back down on the simple, unassuming USB sticking out of the side of his laptop, because of the overwhelming shame he felt when their eyes met for just that micro-second."Twin communication? That's what we're calling the telepathic connection we had?" he asked with a very slight hint of fondness for his 'twin' brother that we thickly overlaid with sadness.Sadness and another tone to his voice that Leo couldn't quite place his finger on.That tone being the guilt Donnie felt coming through for what he had done.For what he had watched.Why didn't he feel this when he first turned the tape on!? He never would have done what he did if his brain hadn't shut off his emotions all while he was watching it!Why was his brain so intelligent sometimes and so dumb and broken others!?To try and break him out of whatever funk Donnie had gotten himself into, Leo smiled down on him and - in answer to his question - light-heartedly joked: "Of course, duh! Cuz we're twinsies, right bro?"Once again Donnie opened his mouth and motioned as if to reply, but instead he let out another deep sigh and closed it again, before dragging a hand down his face and muttering under his breath: "You're really making this hard on me, Nardo."Leo's smile fell. He abruptly stopped the spinning shuriken in his fingers and looked at Donnie's forlorn face to say: "Oh hey bro, it's ok if you need some time alone, I get it. I sometimes..." "I watched your video," Donnie confessedLeo furrowed his brows in confusion and asked: "What video?" Then a thought came to him and he blurted out: "Are you talkin' about the one Mikey and I recorded in the kitchen? Cuz I swear that was oregano we put in the chocolate cake! We were just trying to freak Raph out is all and..." "No, Leo, your tape, your tape, I watched your. Tape!"Leo didn't get what he was saying and he watched silently with curiosity as Donnie reached down to unlock and open a hidden compartment underneath his desk, pulled something out of it, and slapped a video tape down on his desk beside the laptop.A yokai video tape.One with the words: "Kappa interrogation" written across the top of it.Leo's face paled a little at the sight.He knew exactly what it was.It was a good thing his Hamato training and strengthened ninpo kept that nasty dark energy infection in a weakened, dying state whenever he wasn't around those dark armor pieces because oh boi he would have gone 'ninja assassin' mode in the blink of an eye if not!About a million and one questions crashed and swirled around inside his head, each like a flash of lightning inside a raging storm that was picking up momentum and feeding into his mounting anger.With the foremost being:
'Why?'
But Leo didn't ask that question.He didn't ask any of those questions.Instead he made Donnie jump with the way he slammed down his throwing star so that one of the three sharp prongs embedded into the desktop right beside the video tape, and then he clenched his fists and silently stormed away in anger.Dee raised his head and looked behind his back to watch him leave, but was surprised with his 'twinsie,' 'Nardo,' stopped at the partly open doorway with his back to him. Not taking a single step across the threshold and not turning around to face him.Even from back-on, with the way his body moved with every breath Donnie knew he was breathing heavily through his mouth from what he suspected was anger.But there was so, so much more going on inside the distraught slider's mind.Anger, yes. But also grief and helplessness and vulnerable and shame and all sort of other emotions centered around that particular event and all it encompassed.He couldn't believe his brother actually watched it! He actually saw him like... like that! Dragged into the room, chained down to a table with his hands likewise chained behind his back, threatened, disgraced, humiliated, forced to watch the gruesome, heart-wrenching torture and death of his closest friend and companion under threat of having his eye ripped out if he refused to comply.Disgust.Disgust directed at himself for what did happen to him - what he was expecting to happen to him - even though it wasn't his fault.Disgust directed at his brother because Donnie watched itDonnie. Watched. It.Donnie saw what he saw, saw what they did to Sagi.Fear.Fear of what happened to Usagi, of what was about to happen to him - what he thought was about to happen to him - what would have happened to him if they hadn't run his slave tags and found out 'the great and powerful Baron Draxum' was his owner before it was too late.But despite everything he endured and feared for himself, the very strongest emotion of all - the one that battled for and prevailed in dominance over all other thoughts and emotions inside his mind - was grief.Grief for the loss of Sagi, for the death he hadn't properly mourned yet.Grief for the life that was unjustly cut short.For the life that was taken away from him.Leo's breathing began slowing, his heart began calming, the raging storm in his mind began settling down at the heaviness brought on by the all-consuming grief; feeling like that one emotion was so immeasurably immense and powerful in scope and grandeur it drowned out all the other emotions as though there simply wasn't enough room for them.Donnie watched with surprise when, instead of cursing and screaming at him or storming away or coming at him to throw a punch (a punch he felt he deserved), Leo slowly turned his head to look at him.He looked at him.Donnie felt like he was stabbed through the heart with the grief and sorrow and disgust painting his twins face.The pain in his eyes that reflected a sense of betrayal.He would have preferred to be cursed and screamed at - to be punched in the face - than to have to endure his brother's gaze for one more second.But yet, he couldn't tear his eyes away.And when Leo finally spoke, his voice cracked from the tension he was holding in his throat, and Donnie's figurative heart broke into tiny pieces with the desperate, pleading undertone and heart-wrenching grief overlaid in Leo voice with the one, short but powerful word that he asked of his brother.
"Why?"
"I . . . I don't kno..." "You do know!" Leo yelled at him, but being careful not to raise his voice so loudly that their other two brothers overheard this conversation and came running to find out what was wrong.Leo straightened his proud warrior frame, clenched his fists, and glared at his brother with anger in his eyes.But despite the anger he saw, there was still a plethora of overwhelming grief lined with that disgust that showed through.Disgust at Donnie, his own brother, for what he did - for what he watched.Voluntarily.The video Leo refused to watch, the one he seriously contemplated rather having his eye gouged out than being forced to witness, Donnie had watched voluntarily by choice.Donnie tried to find a way to convey all the reasons why he chose to take that tape, why he chose to watch it.The reasons were so complex that he doubted he could articulate it in a way even he would comprehend if he didn't have access to the inner world that was his genius mind.So he went with the basic, bare-bones, factual truth."I wanted to understand you better." "Did you watch all of it?" came the next immediate question so quickly Dee didn't even have a nanosecond of breathing space in between his last word and Leo's first."No."The two of them stayed in a silent stalemate for a while. Leo clenching and unclenching his fist, standing stiff and erect, staring down his brother who sat slouched in his chair gazing up at him despite wanting to tear his eyes away, and wishing Leo would yell and scream at him or punch him in the face for what he did.The silence was so much worse, and he wondered if Leo knew it with the way he just kept staring at him, locking eyes with him, never once shifting his gaze away for even a split second.Leo, for his part, was reading him.Reading his body language, his facial expression, mulling over his choice of words, the tone to his voice; thinking.He was good at that. Not so much the 'thinking' part (believing in himself that he didn't have much to offer in the way of 'brains' and 'intelligence', often selling himself short in that area of life as a result of the cruel way he had been raised).But, rather, the analyzing part.He was good at that, at reading people, reading the room.But he needed time to think, to settle down the shame and humiliation and betrayal he was feeling so he could siphon through the raw emotions to get to the facts.But not the grief. He couldn't siphon through that or push it aside because it was welling up and overflowing inside of him like never before.He knew he couldn't hold it back for long, but he had to try, because he needed to read Donnie.He needed to know if he was telling the truth."What did you see?" came the next definitive question."I um..." "What did you see?" Leo forcefully demanded, not wanting to give his brother a foothold to think about it - a chance to come up with an untrue story.(If he would do something like that. Leo really wasn't sure, but he couldn't take the chance with something of such extraordinary value)Donnie's brain overloaded and fried out from the intensity of his own emotions surrounding this very dire mistake he made, so as per usual for him his emotions shut off and he switched over to facts-and-logic mode."I didn't watch what they did to Usagi," came the calm, factual-sounding reply.'Good,' Leo thought, not specifically about the 'not watching what they did to Usagi' part but the fact that he knew Donnie well enough now to realize the 'factual' side of his mind took over.That would make this whole uncomfortable process that much quicker, because now he was assured in his mind he would get immediate, straight-forward answers to his questions.So he continued in his 'factual questions' mode and started by calmly but firmly repeating his question:"Why did you watch it?"Because he wanted to make sure Donnie would give the same answer to confirm in his own mind he was telling the truth."Because I wanted to understand you better.""In what way?""I want to understand the life you had to live.""How?""How what?""How would watching that video help you understand anything?""I could see things you would never talk about, analyze them, study them, break them down to their individual components and build them back up in a way I can comprehend, like a complex algorithm."Leo didn't quite understand everything Donnie meant with his answer, but refused to get hung up on that one question so kept the 'Interrogation' moving by asking:"Like?""Are we really having this conversation?" Donnie asked, concerned that his 'twinsie' wouldn't want to be reminded of - to be pulled into a deep discussion about - the atrocities he had to suffer through in that life. That he wouldn't want to be thrust headfirst in that headspace again.Leo gritted his teeth and replied more forcefully: "Like?""Like being dragged into a room against your will," came the immediate reply."And?""And having your own dagger thrust into your face and threatened to have an eye gouged out if you didn't do what they say."Leo clenched his teeth tighter and raised his voice in anger when he asked:
"And?"
Donnie's voice softened from sadness when he replied: "And being forced to watch a two hour long video of your best friend's death."The slider's countenance shifted a little - as did the look in his eyes. Both his expression and his body language softened, and his eyes glazed over with tears from the memory.Ever the warrior, he chugged on through the heartache to ask:"And?"but his voice significantly softened with that one."And being helplessly tied down...""Chained down, there's a difference.""I wouldn't know.""I hope you never know some of the stuff I know.""I wish I could say the same for you.""And?""And not able to do anything to protect yourself, to defend yourself, not able to do anything but watch when that big ugly rhinoceros yokai showed up, not knowing what he was going to do to you but knowing whatever it was it would be bad."In his 'using humor to cope' approach to life, Leo softly laughed, averted his gaze, and quietly agreed: "Yeah, he was ugly, wasn't he?""The ugliest," Donnie agreed in a softer tone of voice himself, one that conveyed the love he felt for his brother who he had wronged.He really hoped he hadn't ruined the friendship they had built up and the brotherly bond they developed since first getting to know each other.How could he go back to pranking Raph and Mikey without Leo by his side!?How could he live in a world where he was not devising elaborate pranks to get even with his 'twinsie' who, despite accidentally being pranked with the very thing that took his leg still found new and interesting ways to keep their prank streak against each other running!There was no way!He would never prank anyone ever again! That was the only answer if he ruined everything he had built up with his long-lost brother and friend. His very own twinsie!Donnie relaxed just a little from that impromptu joke, hopeful he really hadn't ruined everything with his impulsive, not-thought-out decision; but he tensed slightly when Leo tensed again. Then the slider kept his head pointed down to the side but snapped his eyes to look at him and very firmly asked:"Are you sure you didn't watch what they did to Usagi?""I didn't watch it, Leo," Donnie honestly told him.Leo turned his head to match his gaze."So you're saying you didn't watch any of it, not even a second?" came the angry sounding, yet somehow calm, question."Uhhh, that is not..." "What did you see?" Leo abruptly interrupted, not sure where Donnie was going with that response but sensing from the tone of his voice and his body language that the answer was most definitely not a 'no'.With a deep sigh and a heavy heart Donnie slumped in his chair and hung his head when his cheeks blushed from embarrassment before answering with the honest words:"I saw when they threw him up against the table and threw the first punch." Then in an almost panicky tone of voice he added: "But that was only because I wanted to see what that cop was doing with your dagger! I promise I stopped it there and and programmed my system to skip past to the end!""The end of what?" came the calm question that carried a hint of some form of retaliation if Donnie admitted to watching the dishonorable way Usagi's life ended.In other words, Leo was asking:'Your system skipped past to the end of Usagi's video after it clicked off, or the end of Sagi's life, when he was shot through the back?'Or, more importantly, he was asking:'Did you, my brother, witness by choice the death of my dearest and closest friend and lifelong companion?'Because if Donnie had chosen to watch the horrendous way his closest friend ever had his life ripped away from him in death, he knew he could never forgive him. Not now, not for all time."To the end of the tape," came the answer.Donnie raised his head to look at Leo's face and the slider knew he was telling the truth with the words: "My program restarted your video point two five seconds after his was shut off."That was it. Leo couldn't handle this anymore.He didn't know why it happened, he really had no idea, but the last residual amount of anger he felt directed toward his brother who had watched that video and who he had been separated from almost all of his life washed away.Donnie saw. He saw - he watched.Why?For entertainment?No.To satisfy some sort of morbid curiosity?No again.. . .Because he wanted to understand him better - his brother who had been raised a slave?Yes.Him.Donnie wanted to understand him better.A slave.Someone who always felt his life wasn't one worth living because he wasn't worth anything.Someone who felt he was worthless, not deserving of life at all.Someone who had always been treated like his life wasn't worth anything.He saw.His brother saw what they did to him because he wanted to understand.That meant, perhaps, to some degree, he did understood.
"I wanted to understand you better."
Leo's final traces of anger washed away and was replaced with a flood - a torrential downpour - of grief and sorrow. With a hollowness inside his chest, an emptiness he could never fill, one that would stay with him until his dying breath that was ripped wide open and tore him apart from the inside out at the very moment he witnessed Sagi's unjust and infuriating murder.
"What are you afraid of?"
Donnie's voice once again sounded in his mind. This time from their very last dream realm telepathic communication.Leo had opened up to him then.Could he do that now?Could he let himself be vulnerable in front of the brother who witnessed his humiliating treatment as a Hidden City slave?He didn't really have a choice, he realized, when he pulled himself out of his own inner thoughts and workings of his mind to the present and realized he was crying.Not just crying. Not frustrated, angry, 'I can't believe this happened I want to hurt somebody' crying but pitiful 'somebody hurt me and I don't know what to do!' crying.'I miss my friend and I want him back!' crying.'Life's not fair why do people treat us this way!?' crying.. . .'I'm just a little turtle tot and I'm afraid' crying.The type of crying he hadn't done once since the night after the very first time he killed a man and bid his 'dreamworld' twin brother farewell because he knew he could never be a hero like him anymore. So determined in that knowledge that he reached out to him to say his 'good bye' so he could hurry up and get it over with before he even washed the blood of his very first victim off his face and body.Believing - whether he was real or nothing more than a figment of his childish imagination - that they would never meet again.It felt like 'Little Donnie' had died on that night.Died just like the yokai he stabbed through the heart with his katana on that very same day.. . .No. He was wrong.He had cried like this before. Just once, not too long ago.He wept in Bully's arms, after his ruffian friend and comrade skillfully unleashed a torrential downpour of tears with the incident involving the terrorworm pit.When his insides felt like they were coming out and it felt like time stood still just for him so he could spend forever and a day crying in that moment.Like how he felt right now.He cried, not just for Sagi, not only for the torturous way he had to die or for the fact that he was dead, but also crying, weeping, mourning the life he didn't get to live.The life he finally understood because he fled his figurative (an in some ways, literal) slave shackles to come home, with his family, where he belonged.The life he got his first real glimpse of on the night they went out to the skate park together, just before he left them behind for what he thought would be the last time, and returned to his cruel owner-not-father-never-father, Draxum.His own weepy voice from that night sounded in his mind.
"This was...
. . .
This was the best night...
. . .
I've had in all...
...in all my life."
Followed by his very own voice telling his brothers something he knew back then and he still knew here today:
"I belong with you."
. . .
"I don’t know what my life would’ve been like if we were raised together; but I know now...
I would’ve been happy.”
He wept and mourned the life that had been ripped away from him on the night of the fire when he was literally ripped out of his dad's arms as a helpless little infant and stolen away from his very own family - the family who loved him - to be forced into the harsh, bitter life of slavery and raised by a monster.Although he had mourned that missed life when he cried in Bully's strong arms, he had never mourned it like this before because now he knew. He knew what he had been missing out on for all of those years.. . .He mourned the life Sagi had to live. How he knew his friend's family had been ripped away from him on the night of his parents death, and shortly thereafter when his brother was literally ripped out his arms by his master and owner; and how he had to watch helplessly as Bunny's new heartless owner literally dragged his little rabbit brother away. His little brother who was crying and begging they be permitted to stay together. Sagi wept with his turtle friend that night and expressed how he didn't understand what he ever did to deserve this.Leo had spent many nights awake pondering that same question in relation to his own life.And now Leo wept and mourned the life Sagi never got to taste because he was born a slave and he died a slave.Donnie sat up a little from the tears washing Leo's blue mask and face, not sure what to do - what to say.Was there anything he could say?Should he stay silent?Would Leo want to hear his voice right now?But then 'Nardo' cried out in the most bitter, heart-wrenching tone of voice 'Don-Tron' had ever heard uttered in his life with the sorrowful words:"It's not fair!"He covered his face and wept profusely into his hands right there, standing on his feet in Donnie's bedroom.Instinct took over......no, it wasn't instinct, it was his ninpo.His newly awakened Hamato essence that connected him invisibly with his family; with his Hamato ancestors.That connected him with his sobbing brother here in the room.He had sensed it before, had been aware of something, but never to this degree.It was his Hamato ninpo that moved him to action. Despite the factual side of his mind screaming at him to give his brother space, that he was the very last person Leo would want around right now - would want to be held by.As if driven by a mind of its own, as if there was someone else in the room with them - whispering in his ear, telling him to get up off his chair - his ninpo rose him up onto his feet and filled him with an overwhelming urge to hug his anguished, grieving brother right here and now.One foot in front of the other.One step after another.Donnie almost felt like he was gliding across the room with the way he was allowing his heightened ninpo to take charge, pulling him in Leo's direction.Two hands out.Two arms stretching, reaching.A shudder from the red-eared slider when they connected with his turtle skin and shell.His arms wrapped around his weeping brother.A warm embrace.A ninpo connection.Between the two of them?No, between the three of them. Someone else's invisible presence was in the room. The same someone who gave Leo the inner strength he needed to teleport out of that solitary confinemenet cell and get his weak, feverish, infected turtle body into Sagi's bed.The same someone who had whispered in his ear at that critical moment in his life:
"Anata wa hitori ja nai.
You are never alone, Leonardo."
Leo felt it too.Comfort.Hope.Comfort in his grief and hope for a better future, a better life.Not for Sagi - it was too late for Sagi - but for him; for Bunny.For Sagi's little brother who he might never get to see again if there was no way to get that black goop off his hands and arms that blocked the use of his mystic portals.A surge of sorrow filled his heart anew at that thought. One that was strangely combined with an odd sense of happiness for the reason he might never get to see his little friend 'Bun-Bun' again.Because he was free - believed to be dead by those who had the power to capture and enslave him again, living above ground with a family who loved him in a place where yokai slavery was illegal.Leo leaned into the hug, and despite the way he kept his hands over his face as he wept, he hugged Donnie back.Not physically, but with his strengthened Hamato ninpo.They hugged one another, an invisible-to-them amalgamation of purple and blue ninpo meeting in the middle and twirling around, hugging, the other color; with both of them and their ninpos invisibly enveloped in the bright green ninpo of one of their Hamato ancestors, who had been watching over them all this time - who had a hand in helping to bring them back together.Leo wept in Donnie's arms, mourning the loss of his friend, the loss of a childhood he could never reclaim.And in that moment the two of them realized that Draxum might have taken away their telepathic 'dreamworld' connection, but he could never take away what they had here and now.They would always have this - this ninpo connection. Here in this life and in that to come.And no one - not even the most cunning, deceptive, powerful warrior alchemist in the world - could ever take that away from them.
Leo laughed through the tears from the inner joy that thought gave to him, at the same time Donnie deeply apologized for his wrong.Leo forgave him from the bottom of his heart.His intelligent dumb-dumb softshelled brother hugged him a little tighter.His weeping red-eared slider brother lowered his hands off his face to hug Donnie back, and opened his eyes to peer over his shoulder and gaze at the unassuming video tape laying between a laptop and a shuriken sunk into the desktop.Then with a mischievous grin he parted his lips to ask his 'twinsie,' Don-Tron:"Wanna blow it up?"Donnie instantly let out a relieved laugh and tears of joy filled the corners of his eyes when he replied with the words: "You read my mind."Leo pulled out of the hug, smiled at Donnie, and wiped away the tears while saying: "Let's do it in Raph's room! He'll be so mad, but I can't wait to see the look on his face when we tell him what it was! He won't know what to say!"Donnie and Leo shared a laugh at the thought and then the scheming began as they put their two turtle heads together to devise an elaborate way to turn 'blow up that tape' into 'prank our big bro together.'After all, they weren't called the 'disaster twins' for nothing!
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
~The Next Morning~Leo came out of his room, feeling much better from the new concussion he managed to sustain two days prior and even better emotionally after blowing up that tape with his 'twinsie Don-Tron' in their big bro's bedroom (but it was ok because they only caused a little bit of minor damage to his floor, and Leo was right, the look on his face after he found out what they blew up together was priceless!)Despite all of this good news however, he was not feeling better about that whole situation surrounding Draxum and the mystic dark armor......the situation that was ripped wide open, like a ravenclaw slashed apart his gut after their~ his miserable failure (at least in his eyes).But the dark energy was dull again now that he was away from the dreaded mostly completed Kuroi Yōroi, and his dad gave him a solemn promise that he would take them all out to a place called 'the woods' to help finalize their Hamato training and (hopefully) advance Leo's mediation so he could finally rid himself of the last vestige of dark energy that very clearly still had a hold over him.* * *~A While Later, Somewhere Deep inside a Forest~"The woods!?" Donnie exclaimed, having been tricked into coming here and not knowing what to expect until after they were ushered out of the turtle tank by their ninjitsu master and father.Leo gazed around in wonder, being accustomed to routinely going out in the wilderness that was the Mystic Lush Caverns, but never having seen any place quite like this; while Donnie - who was clearly panicking - grasped the sides of his face tightly and loudly complained: "I need my phone and my phone needs me! We can't survive in the woods!""That's why I'm here! Hey hey, ho ho, ha ha!"With a wave of his furry capybara hand, Todd greeted his friends (and Leo, who he hadn't met before this day) with a smile, a wave, and a cheerful: "Hey guys!""Todd!?" Raph, Mikey, and Donnie exclaimed together.Then Leo slapped a hand on his face and groaned when Raph asked: "How did you get here?""We drove up together, in your tank. Like ten minutes ago, remember?" Todd told him with a little chuckle in between."Uh, ahhh, no," Raph and Mikey each stumbled out, while Donnie was sitting on the ground, rocking himself back and forth and hugging his legs for comfort.Leo glared at his big brother who (like their other two brothers) spent the entire drive here with his eyes glued to his phone, and exclaimed: "And that's why I stay away from those tiny screens."Then they all gave Todd their attention when he happily announced: "Welcome to Todd Scouts, where fun meets wilderness survival skills!"Leo often went to the lush caverns to get away from . . . well everything. "Ah yeah, I can get behind that," he said with a nod and a smile, while Donnie grasped his face and exclaimed: "I don't think I'm gonna make it!"Next the ninja slider gave Splinter his attention when he said: "No, not you Blue, you are coming with me to perfect the art of Hamato ninjitsu meditation.""Aw, but I wanted to try Todd's lemonade Mikey told me about that tastes like sunshine!" Leo griped, referring to his conversation with his little brother shortly after they met and spray painted graffiti art together in the hospital.Despite his objection he knew Splinter was right, and after parting ways with his soon-to-be 'Todd Scout' brothers and walking through the woods a ways, Leo heard Todd loudly cry out: "NEVER eat those! Those are NO NO BERRIES!""No no berries?" Leo questioned. He looked behind his back, wondering what sort of trouble his brothers were getting into already, and also wondering exactly what 'no no berries' were, what they did, and if they were something he could use to pull a prank on one of his prank-loving siblings.(Donnie. Wondering if he could use it to pull a prank on Donnie)"Here we are," Splinter announced when they arrived at a clearing in the woods, one that was full of tall grass and flowers blowing in the wind, with only the sound of rustling leaves to be heard for miles around."Here where?" Leo questioned, gazing around and looking up at the white fluffy clouds high above their head in the blue sky, wondering if 'Bun-Bun' was doing the same thing from the farm where he now lived.That brought him down a train of thought wondering if Bunny was well enough now to have been told about the death of his brother, and if so, how well he took the news; but he pulled his mind out of his own inner workings with Splinter spoke again."This is where your meditation journey will be complete," his dad told him, before picking a spot to sit down among the tall grass.Leo watched a bee buzzing past his face before likewise sitting in front of his dad and copying his meditation pose by sitting cross-legged with the back of his hands resting on his knees."How is meditating in the woods going to help me finish my training?" the Hidden-City-raised slider asked."Out here, there are none of the distractions we find in the big city, allowing us to become one with nature, which, in turn, will open up and strengthen your Hamato essence to better connect you to our ancestors."Alright," Leo replied skeptically, but he still followed his sensei's lead by closing his eyes and taking in deep, meditative breaths through his nose that he slowly exhaled out of his mouth.At first, it seemed as though nothing out of the ordinary was happening. His mind was a hot soup of conflicting emotions, worries, fears, and the like; his Hamato ninpo and the currently weakened dark energy swirled around inside of him as though the mystical dark energy infection didn't like whatever he was trying to do. And despite being far away from any big city distractions, the buzzing of bees, rustling of leaves, breeze brushing against his turtle skin and shell, and sound of the wind blowing all around him served as a sufficient distraction to prevent whatever it was Splinter was trying to lead him to."Deep breaths my son, you are disturbed over many things," Splinter calmly and quietly reminded him when he noticed Leo's breaths were becoming shallow and rapid.In response, Leo took in one very deep breath before slowly letting it out through his mouth, not realizing until now that his heart had begun pounding. But that simple reminder and deep, meditative breath was enough to calm his heart back down so he could try anew.* * *~A Long While Later~Although they arrived early in the morning, it was pushing toward late evening before the meditating slider was finally able to calm the raging storm inside his heart and mind, and settle down the troubling mixture of dark energy and Hamato ninpo that was swirling around inside of him.Splinter had been calm and patient with him this entire time and never once spoke, unless it was to remind him to slow his breathing and calm his heart and mind once more.And that was when it happened.Leo's heart calmed and he felt a sense of serene peace the likes of which he had never felt before.Scratch that, he did feel it once before, back when he had shell rot and teleported to Usagi's little hut, when some force - someone - helped him into the bed as if he was being lifted by the air itself.With his eyes still closed, Leo took in another deep breath, and on the slow exhale softly told his dad: "I think it's working."But instead of his rat dad's rough voice, Leo heard another voice, a female one; one he had heard before. A voice that sweetly agreed with him:"Yes, it is Leonardo."He snapped his eyes open to reveal he was no longer sitting among the grass in the middle of a meadow, but rather, was inside a grayish abyss sort of like the dark dream realm he used to share with Donnie, only brighter......and standing in front of him was not only a glowing green human who he didn't know yet was his ancestor, Hamato Karai, but also, to his immense surprise and pleasure, the glowing white form of his close companion and lifelong friend, Usagi.Ignoring the lady gently smiling at him, Leo's eyes widened at the sight of his deceased companion, and he gasped in a breath of air before exclaiming: "Sagi!" and rushing to get to his feet so he could grab his friend's mystic form in a tight embrace.Sagi greedily returned Leo's warm embrace, and the slider cried on his shoulder."I thought I'd never see you again!" Leo expressed through the tears, before sniffling and asking: "This is real, right.""Yeah, this is real, Leo, I'm really here, and so is Karai," Sagi kindly responded.That was when Karai got the slider's attention by gently laid a hand on his shoulder, so that he looked up at her kind smile and Sagi pulled out of their hug.Leo wiped away the tears with the palm of his ninja-wrapped hand and Karai gently told him: "Anata wa hitori ja nai, you are never alone, Leonardo.""That is what that means," Leo commented with a weak little smile while still wiping away fresh tears from the overwhelming surge of emotions that overtook him at seeing his deceased and very much missed best friend.Karai nodded her head, and then Leo next gave Sagi his attention when he said: "I'm here with you Leo, we all are."Leo furrowed his brows in confusion, the waterworks finally abated, and he questioned: "All?""Yes, Leonardo, you are never alone," Karai told him, while extending an arm out toward the emptiness of the abyss, where rows upon rows of green glowing Hamato ancestors appeared, all wearing some sort of matching Hamato hooded cloak, and all appearing to be mighty warriors."Woah," Leo expressed as an exhale from the sight. Then he tore his gaze away from the warriors to look at Sagi again when he put his glowing rabbit hand on the turtle's shoulder and told him with a smile: "We're with all of you, and together, you, your family, and all of us..." he gestured to the large crowd of Hamato ancestors, "we can defeat the Shredder."Then, just like that, the vision was all over.Leo felt like his consciousness was rushing back to his body like an out-of-control locomotive zooming backwards along the tracks.With a sharp gasp in through his mouth he opened his eyes to reveal he was sitting back on the grass in the middle of the meadow at sunset, with Splinter smiling at him.And when he noticed a soft glow, he looked down to gaze at the glowing blue symbol hovering in front of his chest.The one he had seen before when he was given the mystic strength he needed to escape the dark confines of the Black Crystal Labyrinth, that looked somewhat like a five-sliced pizza with a single glowing pepperoni on each slice."The Hamato crest," Splinter broke the silence to quietly tell him.A big, crooked smile formed on his face as Leo continued gazing at what he knew now very definitely connected him with not only his living family here on eart, but also his ancestral Hamato family - and his honorary rabbit companion, Usagi.Then, still with that confident grin and his face beaming with determination, he raised his face to cast his eyes upon Splinter to tell him: "I'm ready."Splinter nodded approvingly, then they left the meadow together, father and son.When they rejoined with the rest of their family it was apparent that they likewise had some sort of mystical connection with their Hamato ancestors judging by the looks of firm determination on their faces.And when he approached them, his suspicion was confirmed when a glowing Hamato symbol appeared hovering in front of the chest of each one."We have sooo got this!" Leo enthusiastically remarked."That Shred-head won't know what hit him!" Mikey emphatically agreed.The Hamato crest faded away from each one of then and that was when the ever-chipper Todd who (according to Mikey) was the 'nicest guy ever') snorted a little in the midst of his cute little laughter before cheerfully telling them all: "That was a wild ride! Who wants some of my internet famous lemonade!?""Oo oo I do, I do!" Leo enthusiastically replied with a big smile on his face, before following the capybara and the rest of his family to a grassy opening where the tank was parked, and where he was going to finally find out if Todd's lemonade tasted 'exactly like sunshine' as he was led to believe by his brothers.(And, of course, it did)
🔹🔹🔹~A Few Days Later~Under the control of Draxum, with the aid of the Hidden City police force and a much better group of yokai and mutant recruits he dubbed his 'Evil League of Foot Soldiers', all of the dark armor pieces had been collected, with the exception of the gauntlet and helmet that were both inside a very thick mystic rotwood box in Splinter's bedroom; as well as the sliver that was kept separate from the helmet so they didn't join together, hidden away in a smaller but durable rotwood box inside Donnie's lab.And now, the whole gang was together in the turtle tank that was tearing down the road - Splinter, his four sons, and honorary human daughter; with Hueso, Bully, and Yolinda in the Hidden City, doing things on their end to aid in their success for this vital mission."Everyone know the plan? Use your portal chips to get aboard Big Mama's mystic train. Do you have the one Bully gave you, Blue?" Splinter confirmed, referring to the last portal chip Leo had left that he gave to Bully as 'payment' for stitching the three long gashes across his face, and that Bully gave back to him so he could board the train with his brothers (and only asking Leo to give Draxum a good stiff punch from him as his 'payment' when Leo insisted on paying him back for the portal chip)."I got it," Leo replied.Splinter nodded at him and continued: "April and I will get you close enough to Big Mama's train for you to get in with your portal chips, but remember the train blocks all mystic energy except portals, which is how you will travel between train cars, so you won't be able to use your ninpo once you're aboard."Leo gazed down on his black-infused hands with a frown. "Only portals, how convenient," he grumbled under his breath, too quiet for anyone to hear, and lamenting the fact he wouldn't be able to use his portals to aid in the fight."We're ready, pops," Raph told him with conviction."And you, Blue? You may come face-to-face with Draxum again, are you prepared to face that possibility?" Splinter asked.Leo flashed him his winning 'faceman' smile and emphatically informed him: "I'm more than ready.""Are you certain your ninpo is no longer infected by that dark energy?" Donnie next asked his 'twin' brother with one of those oversized eyebrows raised inquisitively."I guess we're about to find out now, aren't we?" Leo gave as his firm reply, despite feeling very confident that the answer was 'yes', considering how he no longer felt any trace of the dark mystic infection inside his chest, thanks to his close contact with his Hamato family over the past few weeks along with his guided Hamato meditation.Even when they tested it out by taking a piece of the armor out of one of the rotwood boxes, Leo felt absolutely nothing, so that was a very good sign.Donnie opened his mouth to say something, but before he had a chance to reply, Splinter told his family team of ninja heroes: "Hueso's getting ready to distract Big Mama so she doesn't watch the security cameras and notify Draxum you're aboard. As soon as we get word from him, it's time to move."With a smile for his father, Leo emphatically told him: "We'll make you proud, dad!"In return, Splinter rested a hand on 'Blue's' ninja-wrapped black one, looked him fondly in the eyes, and reassured him (and by extension the rest of his family): "You already have, my son."* * *~Meanwhile, Deep Underground in the Hidden City~Hueso and Yolinda were each wearing a long winter coat with the hood up over their heads to hide their appearance from any cops or crooked yokai who were aligned with Draxum (or who would recognize 'Bones' from his pirate days), while Bully had on his custom-made ruby ring that changed his appearance into a hunking muscular human so he could likewise evade detection.With all the Foot soldiers occupied with loading the train no one was staking out Run of the Mill, so Hueso, Yolinda, and Jack - aka Bully - were able to go through a New York to Hidden City portal undetected so they could take another portal that was only located in a singular back alley inside the underground city; which was one they needed to reach an isolated shady mystic coast where 'Bones' knew one pirate ship in particular regularly harbored, and was there right now, according to his informants.After all, with a mission this vital, this was something he had to do in person.After safely getting through the Hidden City and coming out the exit of a portal that led to the mystic harbor, there she was, the stunning SS Queen Alexis.Yolinda lowered her hood before taking off her too-warm winter coat to lay aside on the ground, and Hueso raised his eyes to get a good look at his old ship, that was now owned and captained by a pirate who he knew very, very well."Ah, isn't she a sight," the skeleton yokai said with a fond smile.Bully walked up to stand beside Hueso with his own appreciative smile, and commented (in a very thick pirate accent from long ago): "She's a sight for sore eyes. Almost makes ya want to give up the landlubber life and sail the seven mystic seas again, don't she Bones?""Aye, but we left that life behind us..." Hueso smiled fondly at his adoptive daughter Yolinda next, who was wearing her mother's silver chain and locket, and who gently smiled back at him. "...and I have never regreted my decision," he finished fondly.Bully lovingly patted his beloved niece's shoulder before saying: "Time to go aboard Bones, I want to see if that brother of yours is taking care of her like he promised.""Aye, Jack," Hueso agreed, and the three of them made their way across the small foot path through rough terrain to get down to the shore, where glittering pinkish waves of watery mystic energy gently lapped at the pebbly beach.Aboard the ship, a flabby, all skin pirate captain with a hook for a hand was barking out commands to his crew, who were preparing for a long voyage, when a very foxy yokai got the attention of more than a few pirate eyes as she stepped across the creaky board onto the deck of the ship, walking in between a hooded figure and a muscular 'human', who was behind her.The 'human' who knocked one disrespectful pirate into a keg of whisky with an oversized fist to the gut when he whistled at his niece.Once all the way aboard the ship, Yolinda tipped her curvy hip to the side, rested a hand on it, gazed up at the captain up above where the helm was, and called out:"I heard you're recruiting pirates, Tío Piel!"The captain abruptly stopped barking out orders to give the maroon and black fox yokai his attention, and with a big smile on his face he cried out: "Do me eyes deceive me!? Is that me lil niece Scraps, all grown up? Why you look just as feisty as the day you sat on me lap and gave me a good wallop in me eye when I pretended ta take yer nose!"As soon as hearing their captain's word that this particular foxy yokai was his niece, all the pirates swooning over her immediately put their heads down and got back to work; and Captain Piel leaned against the railing to the ship, smiling down on her to loudly say: "I'd love ta take aboard such a feisty thing, but if yer Tío Hueso got wind of it he'd come here himself and take off me other hand for allowin' it!""You got that right, brother!"The mysterious hooded figure standing in front of Yolinda lowered his hood and gazed up at the flabby-skin yokai, whose eyes sparkled at the sight at his very own twin brother, and his smile spread across his face.“Hueso you ol’ bag ‘o bones! I never thought I’d set me sore eyes on such a sight! You vowed never to step foot on a mystic pirate ship for the rest of yer days!”“I am in need of your unique services brother! Do you remember how we used to sweep the maidens off their feet when we young and headstrong swabbies!?" Hueso yelled loudly to him in reply, to be heard above the roar of the mystic waves."Tío never told me about that," Yolinda whispered to Bully with a playful grin, who simply laughed and told her: "There's a lot of stuff your tío's never told you, darling.""You don't mean jolly ol' Don Suave!? Walloby Rum and Majorian Whisky for all! This is a day to remember, me chaps!" Captain Piel ordered his crew, who all loudly and boisterously cheered in reply.Then, with a devious grin on his face, Hueso said to his pirate brother: "Si mi hermano! Come with me my brother, we have a spider to seduce!”* * *~At the Mystic Train Station~Draxum oversaw the work of bringing all the pieces of the mystic dark armor aboard the train he rented from Big Mama - at a price, of course, she wasn't one to drop a grudge so easily, and she did lose a lot from her Battle Nexus ring when her champion ninja turtle fighter was 'rudely' pulled out of the ranks.The spider yokai herself was standing by his side, in her human form."So it's agreed then, Draxy. As soon as you're done with your piddly little moonlit ceremony, your mutant slave becomes Big Mama's property, and I get my splendiferously profitable turtley boo champ once more.""Yes, in addition to the astronomical fee you charged for the use of your train for one night only," Draxum replied in a calm - yet annoyed - tone of voice, and never having once hinted to her that Leonardo would not survive past the moonlit ceremony, if all went according to plan.But that didn't matter, because annoyingly powerful yokai like her would no longer pose a threat to him once his plan saw fruition.The spider yokai sweetly laughed and told him: "Big Mama did have to earn back her losses from when you rudely pulled my twiddly widdly Tampy bug champion from the roster list. Are you really quite sure he'll show his scrumptious turtley face? Hmm?""I have no doubt he and his meddling family will show themselves," Draxum calmly replied, before telling her in a very stern tone of voice: "I will remind you once again, I will be preoccupied setting up the final touches of the snare I am laying for Leonardo, so I expect you to keep up your end of our deal by making sure your spider eyes are on every security camera this train has to offer. This matter is too important to leave to one of your bumbling idiot servants, and inform me the instant those Hamatos come aboard!"In reply, Big Mama rubbed her hands along one of Draxum's thick muscular arms and replied in a tone heavy on the flirtatious side: "Yes, of course Draxy, and perhaps after your little 'dark energy 'adventure,' you and I could celebrate together over some tiddly champagne and cocktails?""No," Draxum sternly replied without in any way looking at her, just before abruptly walking away."How rude!" Big Mama complained, before gazing at backside of the muscular goat yokai and playfully adding: "I love it!"* * *~A Few Minutes Later~Big Mama walked in to her Nexus Hotel office leaving the door open behind her, settled down behind her desk in her human form, and picked up a remote to click it, which revealed a hidden wall straight across from her that was full of screens - all of them playing live security video from various different sections aboard her train.But that was when she heard a very smooth talking voice in the doorway.“Pardon the intrusion fair lady, but I have sailed the seven mystic seas in search of a powerful spider yokai renown the world over, whose ruthless might is only surpassed by her voluptuous beauty."There, leaning against the doorway in a very seductive manner, was one of the most handsome yokai Big Mama had ever laid eyes on."But how could that be," the dashing human-like hunk continued, "when the most captivating enchantress of all stands before me?”“Oooo, hel-lo tall dark and handsome, tell me, what is you name? Big Mama must know,” the spider in human appearances asked in a very pleasant tone with a grin on her face.The yokai in the doorway (who sounded an awful lot like Señor Hueso) replied in his own dashing way:“They call me . . ." (pause for effect) "...Don Suave."*Raarr!* came the sound of a panther-like roar (with no big cat in sight - yokai or otherwise) at the sound of his name (him being an amalgamation of the bone yokai, Hueso, and his skin yokai pirate twin brother, Piel, of course).Next, this handsome Don Suave fair swooped into the room like he was walking on clouds and graciously approached to hold Big Mama in his arms. He tipped her down with his arm wrapped around the small of her back and leaned over her face, gazing into her eyes with her reflection gazing back at herself from within in the deep, alluring pools that were his eyes. Then he continued on in his seductive tone:"Alas, you must be the most villainous of all enchantresses for you have captured my eyes, enslaved my mind, and stolen my heart. Tell me fair lady, do you know how to . . . cut a rug?”In reply, Big Mama happily squirmed in his arms and expressed her gleeful excitement when she said:“Oooo, Big Mama is going to have fun tonight!”* * *~Meanwhile at the Train Station~After all the dark armor pieces were brought aboard and all members of the Foot clan were tucked away in different train cars among the paying passengers.Draxum boarded Big Mama's mystic train last of all, the doors closed, the whistled blared, and the train took off - leaving the below ground network of caves and caverns that twisted and turned to take a much swifter, mystical route, invisibly taking it in a straight line across the water that was the New York bay, barreling toward its destination.Inside the turtle tank roaring down a road that stretched along not far from where Big Mama's invisible train was chugging, Leo, Donnie, Raph, and Mikey each held their insta porta chip, and with one final "Be safe, my sons," from Splinter, Raph told him: "We'll make you proud, pops," and all four of them disappeared in a flash of purple light, to reappear inside the train.But because the chips did not lead to an exact destination, Leo and Mikey were portalled into one train car, while Raph and Donnie ended up in a separate one.Mikey gazed around in surprise and asked: "Where are they?" but Leo was quick to unsheathe his two katanas, facing the threat that was a number of masked ninjas who made up the new Foot clan, and told him: "They're aboard, and we have trouble."Mikey snapped his head up to join Leo in staring down the enemies and grasped his kusari fundo, laser-focused on the threat at hand and ready for a fight.~Raph and Donnie~Meanwhile, in an empty train car, Raph and Donnie came out in the same storage compartment where they assumed parts of the Kuroi Yōroi had presumably been packed up in boxes. The first thing they did was put their weapons in hand and scan around for anyone else, but once they verified they were alone, Donnie next used a blade he got out of his new tech bō to cut open one of the wooden crates - only for Raph to tear through it and reveal it was stuffed full of straw and nothing else.So Donnie broke open another crate and yet another, but one after the other they were all stuffed full of nothing more than harmless piles of straw.The big snapper held up a handful of straw and said in a confused tone of voice: "I don't understand. If the dark armor's not here, where is it?"Donnie looked down at the useless straw in Raph's hand while those genius gears were turning, and then the realization hit him, his eyes widened from fear, and he exclaimed: "Draxum must have assembled it at the front of the train!" He snapped his eyes up from the crate to Raph's eyes and exclaimed: "Pops said it's more powerful when the pieces are assembled together! That devious capra aegagrus hircus must've set up a trap for Leo!""That mean he knows we're here!" Raph exclaimed.He hastily led the way to the front of the train car where a wall completely full of different colored spherical buttons stuck out, and they both gazed at it, with the softshell thinking out loud: "Now, which one will take us where we need?""I guess we'll have to try them all," Raph suggested, reaching a hand out to press one at random.""No, wait!" Donnie exclaimed, but it was too late and with a *bzzt* of mystical energy, they disappeared in a flash of light, to reappear in another train car where a boring slug yokai was blandly giving a detailed lecture on the importance of properly filing out Hidden City taxes.~Leo and Mikey~After fighting their way to the front of the first train car, the easily excitable Mikey continually pressed one shiny button after another, taking them on a tour around the train to various different locations. Until Leo finally slapped his hand away and yelled at him in anger: "Stop pressing buttons, you're getting us nowhere!""Heh heh," Mikey nervously chuckled, tucking his head down into his shell a little, before shyly asking: "Do you know what one we need?"Leo gazed around at the gym full of bodybuilders who were not wearing Foot soldier uniforms and seemed to have absolutely no interest in them - not aware that one Foot recruit in particular was exercising on the treadmill out of sight, in behind a very muscular buffalo yokai.Leo gazed at the huge array of mystical buttons that would transport them to various different areas of the ship, and slowly replied: "I dooon't know." Then he pointed out a glowing black button on the upper right of the dead center, and sternly ordered: "But whatever you do, don't press this one, black always leads to a dead end.""Got it," Mikey replied in a determined tone that told Leo he would not forget."Leo?" next came a voice from behind them that the slider recognized.Leo whipped around, ready for a fight, with Mikey following suit, to face none other than his old Foot recruit friend, Cassandra Jones.In a stern, no nonsense, 'don't get in our way or else' tone of voice, Leo narrowed his eyes in anger and greeted: "Hello, Casey."Cassandra likewise stepped out into her fighting stance with her weapon in hand, ready to take on the 'traitor' who her commanding officer needed for something to do with the moonlit ceremony."She's Casey!? I thought she was your friend!" Mikey gasped out when he saw that they were about ready to fight one another."She was, but she's loyal to the Foot above all else," Leo informed his little brother, before yelling at Cassandra: "We're here to stop Draxum at all costs, Casey! Don't get in our way and you won't get hurt!"In her usual over-dramatic way, Cassandra yelled in reply: "You are a traitor and an enemy of the Foot," then she yelled even louder: "WHICH MAKES YOU AN ENEMY OF ME!""I don't want to fight you, Casey, but I will if I have to!" Leo called back to her.In reply, Cassandra narrowed her eyes in anger and sternly replied: "Oh you will have to!" before whistling, which signaled two of the yokai who had been working out to reveal themselves as Foot soldiers when they rose from their workout stations to join Casey in staring down the threat in front of them, weapons in hand.And with the word: "FOOT SOLDIERS ATTAAACK!" Casey and her possy rushed ahead, with Leo and Mikey doing the same, and the fight was on.~Raph and Donnie~The two other ninja turtles ended up in another train car where two oversized, muscular Foot soldiers, both of them being the same size as the big snapper, and the first one immediately attacked him with a broad sword that split at the end to form two curved tips.Raph and Donnie worked together as a well-oiled team, with Donnie thrusting out his tech bō for Raph. The big snapper grabbed it and used it for leverage to throw Donnie at the yokai who was grasping a huge, spiked bat.Donnie yelling: "Phalnge sandwich!" while bringing out a drill on the end of his bō to slam it down over the yokai's head.The yokai blocked his attack and Raph took on the other one, who swung low, tripping him with his sword, and then swung at his head.The big snapper blocked with his tonfas, but the yokai pulled back, snagged the curved tip of his sword into one of the tonfas, and with an: "Uh oh," the big snapper was thrown back toward his brother.But they were well trained as a team and Donnie saw him coming out of the corner of his eye, so he jumped over the big 'Raph' body coming at him, and on the descent swung at the yokai's head with the drill on his tech bō.The yokai was preoccupied with Donnie's attack so Raph barrelled into him like a bowling pin, knocking him down and out for the count, and then the second yokai swung and missed at the softshell who dodged out of the way by jumping over his shoulders. Then, coming at him from right behind Dee, the big snapper cried out: "Raaaph smash!" and punched their enemy square in the chin with his red glowing mystic fists.~Leo and Mikey~Leo fought Casey head-on while Mikey was mostly preoccupied with fighting against the two Foot soldiers.Their weapons clanged together over and over again, the mutant ninja turtle against the equally matched human Foot commander."You will never defeat the Foot!" Cassandra loudly proclaimed.*Shing!* went their weapons.Casey jumped over Mikey's fundo and bore down on Leo.*Clang!* their weapons clanged together when the ninja warrior blocked."If Draxum gets all that dark armor put together..." *clang!* "...it'll mean the end of everything..." *whip* "...and everyone you know!" *shing!* Leo tried to warn his once upon a time friend, before blocking another attack and loudly yelling: "You're fighting on the WRONG SIDE Casey!""The name's CASSANDRA to you, TRAITOR! We WILL bring back the Shredder and when we do he will lead the Foot Clan to GLORY!!!" Commander Jones dramatically yelled in reply. She skillfully ducked below another fundo attack and raised her weapon to block Leo's sword. "The Foot WILL SUCCEED!"Their weapons clanged together once more, Leo jumped back and ducked while sticking up his katana, to let the chain of Mikey's fundo wrap around the blade of his sword. Mikey stepped back, his glowing fundo swung in wide circles around Leo's blade, and it landed a swift hit at Cassandra's face.She pulled back, rubbed her bleeding cheek, and then grinned deviously at the box turtle, who she saw was now standing directly in front of the portal buttons at the front of the train car.Leo lowered his sword in preparation for another slash attack, Mikey got his fundo in hand again to prepare for a follow-up attack, but when Leo saw Cassandra deviously grinning at his little brother with two throwing knives at the ready, the slider whipped his head around to see exactly why she was grinning.As the only remaining Foot soldier not knocked out or down by Mikey rad skills, Commander Jones threw her blades right at the box turtle.Leo blocked both of them before they could streak past him, but unexpectedly at the same time that he blocked the second one, two more whizzed past toward his target, that Casey had concealed in the ninja wrappings covering the palms of both hands.The box turtle managed to block the first throwing knife with his spinning fundo, but he dodged the second one instead of blocking and it hit its intended target......right in the center of the black button.The slider ran right at his brother in a panic, yelling: "Mikey, get out of there!"But it was too late.The only thing Leo managed to do was protectively kick his little brother out of the way the same instant there was a light *bzzt* of mystical energy; and in a flash of light the ninja slider was gone, seconds before Raph, Donnie, and more Foot soldiers appeared in the very same train car.~Leo~The slider came out the other side in a dark train car with no way out.A trap.Although the mystical infection had been cleansed from his Hamato ninpo, the dark armor was here, in this very room, he could sense it with his ninpo - like on the night he sensed the dark energy gauntlet when he and his family went to the mall together, only worse.The dark armor was here, and assembled. Hidden somewhere in the darkness.As was someone else.. . .Leo slowly made his way to the center of the room, walking in his wide ninja fighting stance, a katana in each hand, and his eyes searching around through the darkness for the person he knew was there."I know you're here, Draxum! Show yourself!"No response.The sound of fire igniting prompted him to snap his head to the front of the train car, where a wall-to-wall, floor-to-ceiling inferno of fiery red and orange flames burst up, highlighting the frame of the mostly complete Kuroi Yōroi sitting on an armor stand directly in front of it.Draxum was trying to use his creation's fears against him by reminding Leo of the night of the fire, when he was separated from his family for sixteen of the most grueling years of his life.But despite his current predicament, he wasn't afraid, and he called out to the darkness:"It won't work, Draxum! I put my past behind me!"The room filled with the sound of deep rumbling and unearthly shrieking of giant razor-fanged terrorworms.Although freed of the dark energy infection he could still sense it with his ninpo, so he shook his head to try and rid himself of the fogginess from being in such close proximity to the completed dark armor and took a deep breath in, before slowly exhaling it through his mouth to focus his thoughts on the present. Like how his dad, Splinter, taught him.And he listened carefully for any faint sound.. . .The squishing slithering of mutant vines.Leo jumped back, slashed with his sword when two came at him from his left, then he whipped around and stabbed his katana up at a third one attacking from behind.More vines came.The sound of terrorworms playing from speakers all around him echoed in the room.Leo slashed and dodged, jumped and rolled, and managed to skillfully fight against and evade all of the vines coming after him.The terrorworm rumbles and shrieks abated.To be replaced by the sound of a body being shoved against a hard surface......an "Oof" on contact......the voice of a police officer taunting his latest slave victim......the sound of a fist making contact with flesh......a blade being unsheathed......a scream of pain.Usagi's scream of pain.Leo's eyes widened from shock.Draxum had begun playing the sound file of the night Leo's long-time friend and confident, Usagi Yuichi, was tortured and unjustly murdered by the crooked cops."You KNEW DIDN'T you!!!" Leo cried out in a desperate, panicking, heart-wrentching tone of voice.Tears filled the corners of his eyes.The lack of response - of having a wrong statement corrected - was answer enough.Leo realized now that Draxum knew his lifelong friend and companion was going to be handed over to the crooked cops before it even happened.The distraction was sufficient for one attack.A vine came at him.With a winded: "Oof!" it hit him square in the stomach and he was knocked off his feet.More vines appeared from the darkness.Leo got his head back in the game, slashed apart the vine pinning him down, and skillfully attacked and evaded each and every mutant vine coming at him."You really ARE a monster!" his sourly bit out like venom, his voice overlaid with a combination of the pain he felt at heart and an anger - a hatred - that welled up inside of him from the sound file he was being forced to listen to all over again.He gritted his teeth in anger and shook his head again to try and rid himself of the mental fogginess creeping in from the mystical dark energy.Then he took in another deep breath, focusing his mind as the sound of Usagi's dying groans and screams of pain reached his ears......along with the laughter of the cops who took delight in slowly and torturously murdering him.Then everything went silent.The flames abated, but the glow on the armor remained......a purple glow, from the dark energy trying to creep its way back in to take control of Leo's heart and mind.He fought against it and listened carefully.. . .The light, almost inaudible *bzzt* of a portal about to open.Leo whipped around and raised a sword to block.A flash of light.A magenta portal.The clanging of mystical impenetrable yokai battle claws against the sharp blades of two katanas.A flash.Draxum was gone.Apparently this train car did not block mystic powers.'How convenient,' Leo sarcastically thought to himself.Another flash.Leo jumped away when a portal opened beneath his feet.He landed right where a second one opened behind his back.A clawed hand reached out.With impeccable reflexes the turtle whipped around with one blade blocking the atttack and the blade of his other katana making contact with - slashing through - the flesh in Draxum's thigh.The proficiently skilled warrior alchemist wasn't deterred or slowed in any way and withdrew through the portal he came out of.Leo pulled back from his attack and danced around a blinding lightshow of portals, one opening right after the other, all on top of each other and all gradually pushing the ninja warrior turtle back toward the Kuroi Yōroi.The purple light of the armor's trim glowed brighter.Leo groaned, trying to fight back against the evil influence distracting him, that still, apparently, had some sort of connection with his honorable Hamato ninpo.He wouldn't let it - he couldn't let it - win the battle for his psyche.Another flash of light, another *shing,* another swipe, another land on flesh.This time Leo's.The slider let out a hiss of pain through his teeth when three claws slashed across his upper left arm.But he wasn't out yet.The ninja turtle whipped around again, ready to defend against another attack from behind......but nothing happened.The portals abated.The room was left in silence once more, with nothing but the eerie glow of the Kuroi Yōroi which was directly behind the turtle now.He was so close to it the back of his shell was only inches away from grazing against the cool surface."Remember your training dumb-dumb," Leo quietly whispered to himself, and intentionally using a nick-name Donnie routinely called him to remind him of who, exactly, he was fighting for - who he was fighting with.He may have been alone in the room, but he wasn't alone anymore, and the knowledge that his brothers were here, somewhere, fighting with him on the same side - as heroes - gave him strength and comfort.Splinter had taught him how to focus his mind when it seemed as though everything was falling apart around him and he felt like he was being violently ripped into tiny shreds from the inside out.Thanks to his Hamato training, he was able to calm his heart and the swirling influence of the dark energy settled down.The armor trim glowed brighter, before it died out all together.His ninpo settled down inside his chest, thrumming in unison with his heart and flowing freely through every part of his body.He used his mystic vision, to see the glow invisible to the naked eye of Draxum’s clawed mystic yokai armor, covering his hands and arms up to the elbows."Gotcha," the ninja turtle whispered. He threw two shuriken straight at the glowing object, they swiftly moved when Draxum blocked, but a third one launched a split second after hit its target where Leo knew he would be vulnerable while blocking the second shuriken thrown at his knee, landing in Draxum's right shoulder.And then the goat alchemist spoke."Impressive."Was the first word to come out of his mouth."It appears as though you've learned a thing or two from that Hamato family of yours.""I won't let you hurt them! I won't let you hurt anyone!" Leo yelled in anger.A single dim light came on above-head, shining down over Draxum, while casting a deep shadow over parts of his face and body, giving him a menacing, threatening appearance."Your so-called brothers are nothing to me. But you..."Draxum didn't finish his thought - there was no need to, Leo knew exactly why he was so important to the outworking of his previous owner's life's goal."You are aware as much as I am, there is no such thing as a free slave, aren't you. Le-o-nardo?"Draxum spoke that name with contempt.Leo gritted his teeth when the sound of his name being spoken from that mouth rested in his ears."What is that saying on the streets I have heard repeated?" he next asked in a deceptively calm tone of voice.Leo knew what he was referring to, there was no need for him to finish that thought.But he did anyway."Ah yes. Born a slave, die a slave."The goat yokai stepped forward, Leo raised his blade, threatening to attack if he came too close, and the warrior alchemist who raised him from an egg - who he used to view as a father - calmly said: "Do you object to my plans? You used to agree wholeheartedly with my life's goal to make this world a better place for all.""For all who you let live you mean!" Leo spat back out at him like venom.Draxum was unphased, and he calmly replied:"Naturally. The gift of life is a precious one only to be bestowed upon those who deserve such an honor.""And what about those humans you call disgusting? Your plan was never to mutate them, was it? Your plan was to mutate a few to join in your fight, destroy the rest, and then destroy all the mutants once you reached your life's goal! ADMIT IT!" Leo yelled out aggressively, with spit flying out of his mouth from the intensity of his words."Not all mutants," Draxum calmly replied. "I will give you one final opportunity to rejoin me. Fight with me by my side once more and together, as father and son, we will rid the earth of those who waste its resources, pollute its environment, and destroy one another in their senseless, barbaric wars.""You're not my father - you were NEVER father! And you don't want me to join you, you want my Hamato essence! You want to sacrifice me to the armor! But it won't work! Nobody can wear it, Draxum, not even someone as powerful as you!" Leo spat back in anger."It seems you have been taught a thing or two by that rat who you claim is your father, when I have been the one to not only create you but also to raise you, feed you, teach you, discipline and train you. Everything you are is because of me, who you are is because of me! If that does not make me your father, than what does?"Leo's anger against the cruel-heartd owner who dangled the promise of being viewed as a 'son' out of his reach and instead treated him as a slave for all those years bubbled over into rage that the mystical dark energy latched onto, dulling his senses.The enraged slider screamed louder than before: "You're LYING! Just like you LIED to me all my LIFE! YOU'RE not my dad, you were NEVER my dad! I have a dad and HE'S. NOT. YOU!"Mutant vines shot ahead from behind Draxum's back.Leo rushed ahead on the attack.There was the loud hissing sound of valves being opened.The room suddenly flooded with such an intense barrage of icy cold wind that the ninja slider was forced to stop dead in his tracks, instantly triggering the effects of brumation on his mutated turtle body.Leo raised his blade to block a vine, but his movements were slow and sluggish.He was far too slow to stop them from coming at him.He felt so helpless.All he could do was watch.One vine ripped his katana out of his right hand.Another knocked away the second one, which clanged on the floor and skidded far out of reach.The third one wrapped around his flesh-and-bone right leg.And when that one yanked his foot out from under him, the fifth one aided in his collapse by banging into his chest, knocking him to the floor and from there wrapping its cold, slimy grasp around his shell to pin him in place.Cold and numb and barely able to move or even think, Leo forced himself to gazed up at the goat alchemist who was now standing directly over him.A flood of lights filled his vision when Draxum used his wrist tech to turn on all of the rooms overhead lights, making everything blurry for a moment until his eyes adjusted.Draxum was kneeling over him now, protected from the cold by his warm goat fur, and not susceptible to the effects of the hibernation-like brumation state his turtle creation was currently in.Leo realized now that Draxum had intentionally never mutated that out of them as a failsafe in case his creations ever turned against him.They could have prepared for this! He should have seen it coming!He berated himself internally for being such a short-sighted fool.Such knowledge was too late to do him - to do any of them - any good now.Leo tried to reach up for his dagger to defend himself, but with ease - like pushing aside the hand of an infant - Draxum batted his hand away, pulled it out of its sheath to lay it on the floor beside his turtle creation; and Leo once again did the only thing he could do by watching helplessly when his once-upon-a-time father-figure who he used to look up to and deeply respect got to work removing his prosthetic leg that Donnie loving made for him - keeping his yokai armor over his hands to protect himself from the shock mechanism he assumed was built into the leg as a protection.There was the *bzzt* of electricity, Draxum was unaffected, and Leo watched, unable to do anything whatsoever to defend himself, to stop this senseless plan from seeing fulfillment.Everything but talk that was; albeit slowly."D. . . Dra . . . xum. D-don. . . n't do . . . it," Leo tried to warn, talking very slowly, slurring his speech, with his sluggish mind having just as much trouble thinking up the words as his mouth and tongue were having in forming the individual syllables.Draxum ignored his plea and silently continued on with his work in disarming the ninja turtle, first by unclasping his belt that contained various different concealed weapons and casting it aside; and then moving on to the ninja wrappings covering his right leg, followed by the ones covering his black arms and hands, with more concealed weapons falling out as he did so.Leo took in a slow, deep breath, and tried to continue with his thought."It . . . 'll . . . drain . . . your . . . m-mystic force.""Nonsense," the goat alchemist - who thought he had thoroughly researched the dark armor and understood it well enough - replied.But the ancient strolls the Foot clan provided were all lacking some very essential information.Information and warnings that were written in the Hamato scrolls in Splinter's possession, and nowhere else.Draxum finished disarming his turtle creation - right down to the very last concealed smoke bomb and throwing star. Then he tightly grasped Leo's hand with his and picked up the slider's very own dagger to rest it against Leo's left wrist.Leo cast his eyes down to watch but unable to in any way stop him when the one who he once viewed as a father stretched his arm out toward the armor - like on the day he forced Leo's arms in shackles on his dungeon basement floor - and in one quick, smooth motion slit his wrist.Leo winced from the sharp pain and watched as his blood seeping out and pooling on the floor was drawn to the armor like a magnet, where it was absorbed by the feet.The armor trim glowed a bright purple like the glowing blue crystals had in the mystic crystal pool the day a small portion of Leo's mystic lifeforce was absorbed by it via his spilt blood.Slowly but surely the room began warming up and Leo raised his eyes to look up at the warrior alchemist who was carefully watching the blood pumping out of his turtle's arm with each beat of his Hamato heart."Aaaree . . . yooou . . . kiii...kiiilling mmmeee . . . noooow?" Leo slowly asked, unable to get out much more than that through the cold numbness of brumation and the rapid deprivation of oxygen from his blood loss."No," Draxum calmly replied.Leo's heavy eyelids closed on him.He forced them open again to join Draxum in watching his crimson red blood pouring out of his gash and draining onto the floor, but raised them to put his gaze back on his owner when he informed him:"I'm weakening you sufficiently so you're unable to escape or fight back when it comes time to move you to the ceremony platform."Leo's head felt funny, he was dizzy and light headed, and when he cast his eyes back on his bleeding wrist they closed again.It took considerable effort this time, but he eventually managed to force them open once more.He tried to speak, but his tongue felt heavy in his mouth, his lips didn't want to move for him, and his words came out slow and very slurred when he said: "Eeeugh booi . . . yoooour reeeeallly . . . . goooin' . . . aaaaalll . . . ooouuut."His eyes closed.He wanted to keep them open but he didn't have the strength to do so, even when he tried with all his might.He could feel his life slipping away and there was nothing he could do about it.Then he heard - but did not see - when Draxum took an item out of one of his pockets. He winced and groaned when a searing hot something was pressed firmly against his cut wrist and held there long enough to cauterize the bleeding.Draxum let go of his hand and it fell to the floor.The rest of his blood was licked up by the armor, which stopped glowing once it was all absorbed.Leo's body lay limp, his eyes stayed closed, his breathing was light and shallow, and he didn't have the strength to move or even wince from the pain this time when Draxum next clamped a metal shackle over his injured, burned wrist, before doing likewise to the other one.Shackles he next attached to an anchor point on the floor with heavy metal chains, directly between the two feet of the Kuroi Yōroi.Leo lay still, unmoving, too drained to move, too tired to think.His entire body felt heavy, like the weight of gravity was pushing down on every inch of him, as though a full-grown ravager was sitting on top of him.All he could do was listen as Draxum rose to his feet and the cold, squishy vines finally retreated from around his shell.Then, without a word, Draxum picked up Leo's two katanas and turned around to face the front of the train car.He clicked a section of his wrist tech and a large screen came on, covering the entire opposite wall and showing the train's gym, where an all-out battle was being waged between three skilled turtle ninja warriors and numerous members of the Foot Clan who portalled there from different areas of the train when ordered through their coms to aid in the fight by Commander Jones.The wicked warrior stepped aside to prominently show Leo's limp, still body laying on the floor, pointed one of the ninja turtle's very own katanas down at him dangerously close to his throat, and loudly proclaimed in his commanding voice into the camera facing him - the one that came on in every screen in the entire gym:"Surrender! Unless you want to watch your brother die before your very eyes."The fighting stopped.The three turtles stared in disbelief at the largest of the many screens that were showing their brother chained, on the floor at Draxum's feet, almost appearing to already be dead.That was until Raph blurted out in a panic: "Leo!""Don't hurt him!" came Mikey's panicked voice next, while Donnie gripped his bō tightly and scowled at the cruel goat yokai."Throw aside your weapons and surrender and no further harm will come to him," came the commanding reply.Knowing that Draxum would definitely kill them all if they gave up their weapons and surrendered, Leo mustered up some sort of hidden energy reserve he didn't know he possessed, to open his eyes and look at his bewildered brothers on the screen.He tried to warn them not to surrender by saying: "No."But his voice came out as an inaudible whisper on the exhale - one that even he didn't hear.As much as he tried, that was the extent of Leo's energy and his far too heavy eyelids closed on him again.But he didn't need them open to know that the sound he heard next was his big brother Raphael throwing his tonfas to the floor.A mixture of fear and dread filled his heart.Mikey must have followed his lead, based on the sound of his fundo chains that he relinquished when they hit the train car floor next.Then Donnie handed over his bō, just before removing his tech shell and wrist tech at Draxum's command.Finally they were surrounded by armed Foot soldiers, who searched them over for concealed weapons, before leading them off to a waiting cage in the confinement section of the train.Despite not having the strength to even open his eyes, a tear fell down Leo's face.They lost.The ninja turtle family of heroes had one and all been captured, disarmed, and led off for confinement, there to await whatever gruesome death Draxum had planned for them at his hands.Was all hope lost?It was really beginning to look that way.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The train arrived at its destination on time, with four extra souls aboard; one chained to the floor directly in front of the almost completed Kuroi Yōroi, barely hanging on to consciousness; and three confined to a cage with impressively thick bars, hanging from a chain above what appeared to be some sort of mystical bottomless pit.Or maybe the floor was right beneath them and they just couldn't see it through the darkness.But it wasn't over yet for the ninja hero turtle family; they still had an ace up their sleeves.The ceremony area was located in the dead center of a playing field of an old football stadium that had fallen into disuse.This was the perfect spot for the moonlit ceremony, where the full brightness of the rare mystical moon would shine down upon the Kuroi Yōroi.To mere humans who lived above ground and knew nothing of yokai or mystic energy, the mystical moon was nothing more than another blue moon which happened once about every two to three years. But this one only occurred once every ten years and was the key component to activating the powers hidden deep withing the mystical dark armor.The only thing left was to procure the remaining pieces of the armor, and then offer the lifeforce of a Hamato with blood on his hands to stabilize the potent dark energy.Then, as far as Draxum knew, he would be able to wear the dark armor himself, and unleash its terrible power upon the entire known world.All yokai who were on the side of the great and powerful Baron Draxum, with the exception of the Foot soldiers who were working with him, made sure to either go or stay below ground as an extra precaution until after tonight was over.And if everything went according to plan, within one hour Draxum would combine the dark energy of the Kuroi Yōroi with the mystical powers of the mystic moon, channeling the dark energy up into earth's thermosphere, shooting across the world in a dramatic display of purple mystic light that would look like an impressive world-wide aurora light show. But in reality it would rain down upon every creature living on the surface of the ground, killing and destroying like poison all whom Baron Draxum foreordained, with nothing more than a mere thought.And Draxum had foreordained as part of his life's goal that all human (and mutant) life would cease to exist.The humans would die and the yokai would resurface from their underground bondage, properly dispose of the plethora of bodies, and take over the above ground world as the dominant species, working in harmony under his rule to cleanse the earth from centuries of damage done to it by those disgusting humans, making the world a better place for all who remained.At least that was the plan.But as the powerful warrior alchemist already knew, this thing called life does not always take us in the direction we choose for ourselves.* * *When news that a member of his misfit restaurant ruffian didn't contact his loved ones via his com for the last three check-ins - along with his three turtle brothers - the ruggedly handsome 'Don Suave' abandoned the spider yokai Big Mama on the dance floor and separated into their respective parts - that being the pirate Piel, and his ex-pirate twin brother, Bones - and together with Scraps and Bully they met Splinter and April at their pirate ship and set sail to arrive at the destination where the mystic train had taken their family.The train that was supposed to be infiltrated, stopped by the four ninja turtles, and offloaded of its cargo instead reached its destination and now there was the very real threat of the return of the dreaded Shredder.When they arrived at the nearest underground mystic harbor, the portal to take them above ground where they needed hadn't been used in decades and was fallen into disuse, so that its mystical energy signals were weak, at best.Splinter and April, along with Bones, Bully, and Scraps gazed at the flickering, dim light of the portal, with the pirate Captain Piel and his crew behind them, who were all armed and ready to fight by their sides.But the portal would only take a few of them through at best, or perhaps just one, they couldn't be sure."Can it be fixed?" was the first thing Bully asked, who had more experience stitching gashes and cooking in the galley than working with mystic items."Aye, but it would take the ink sacks of twenty glowing squirt squiddles along with the dust of a spring nymph and the wings of one hundred blueblaze mystic butterflies to do the job," Piel answered in his thick pirate accent."I don't suppose you have any of those aboard your ship, brother?" came Hueso's voice."Nay. These waters are rich with squirt squiddles but it would take a three day round trip to collect the blueblaze wings, and I haven't laid me eyes upon a spring nymph in over twenty swell tides."The ex-pirate, Hueso, and his ex-pirate first mate, Bully, knew that a 'swell tide' happened an average of once a year, so basically Piel was saying there was no hope of them getting what they needed in time."There is another harbor around the coast. It'll take us two hours to reach it, but only if the mystic wind and currents take us there smoothly, and it is rough going in these parts this time of the year," Piel informed them."There's no time for that," Hueso commented. Then, the brave ex-pirate captain puffed out his chest, clenched his fists, and announced with determination: "I will go through first."He stepped forward but stopped when a soft hand rested on his arm.A soft rat hand.He looked down to see Splinter gazing up at him, to tell him: "I will go first."Hueso's composure softened and he nodded his head in understanding, being a parent himself and knowing it was Splinter's children whose lives were in imminent danger.Splinter stepped through, with April, Hueso, Bully, and Yolinda coming after him. But when they gazed back at the portal behind them, the weak light flickered a few times and then went out, leaving Piel behind with the rest of his pirate crew, unable to join in the fight.Splinter looked up at Hueso and Bully, commented: "I guess it's the five of us then."The comrades went on toward the eerie purple glow coming from an old, abandoned football stadium, with the brisk wind of an early wintery, cloudy night blowing all around them and swirling around the football stadium, where the strangely cloudless sky directly overhead revealed the brightly glowing mystic moon.And when they entered the stadium from the underground train station where Big Mama's mystic express took them, they split up to find any signs of the turtles, with Splinter and April going up the stairs directly in front of them, Hueso and Yolinda going to the left, and Bully going by himself to the right.It wasn't long after Splinter reached the top of the stairs that he was met with quite a sight."The great Lou Jitsu," came a stern sounding voice.There, standing before him, was the wicked Baron Draxum.And on the floor between him and Splinter was an orange kusari fundo, a pair of tonfas, a purple tech bō, and a pair of katanas with a dark gray, matte dagger thrown into the pile.April gasped and Splinter ran toward the weapons in a panic, fell to his knees, and reached out to pick up the sword belonging to his son that he only just got back a few short weeks ago.April walked up to him and clenched her fists, glaring at the goat yokai staring down on them, and Splinter raised his head to demand in anger: "What have you done to my sons!?""They are safe, for now, but if you want them to stay that way I suggest you turn over the remaining pieces of the armor I know are in your possession," Draxum replied in his commanding tone of voice. He threw an odachi with a blue handle toward the rat, with it landing in the pile of his son's weapons, and then informed Splinter: "I purged that mystic weapon of your son's mystical powers, so it should work just fine for a warrior of your calibre, Hamato Yoshi."Splinter, who knew a thing or two about mystic weapons after his time fighting in the Battle Nexus, snarled up at Draxum and demanded: "How do I know you didn't kill Leonardo to drain the sword of his mystic powers!?""You don't," came the cold-hearted reply.Splinter cast his eyes on the sword and April put a hand on his shoulder as he reached out for the mystic weapon."You're not really going to do it, are you Splints?" she asked in concern.In a very sad tone of voice, Splinter let out a sigh and replied: "I have no choice, he will torture and kill my sons if I do not."Yoshi next raised the blade of the mystic odachi and when it was ready he swiped it in a circle in the air, leaving a glowing green portal behind that was just big enough to stick his hands in through.When he pulled them out, he was holding a large rotwood box that Draxum ordered he throw over to him, and four Foot soldiers rushed over from the sidelines where they had been waiting to remove all of the weapons laying at Spinter's feet, including the odachi still in his hands.The portal closed, the box landed at Draxum's feet, and he calmly picked it up to open it, before demanding: "Where is the final piece, old man?" referring to the sliver he had given to Leonardo for him to hold on to."I do not know where it was laid!" Splinter yelled back with an angry scowl."This had better work without it, because if it doesn't I will be interrogating your sons very soon," Draxum threatened, with them both knowing he meant interrogation through torture.The wicked alchemist took the gauntlet and helmet out of the box, threw the box to the ground like garbage, and then walked away to attach the pieces to the Kuroi Yōroi waiting for him in the football field......with about two dozen masked Foot soldiers all armed and wearing black uniforms jumping in between the human and mutant, and the yokai, who was leaving."What about my sons!?" Splinter yelled out aggressively.Draxum simply turned his head far enough to see the rat out of the corner of his eye, and with a smile and a glint to his eyes he replied in a very casual tone of voice: "I lied, they'll die along with the rest of you." Then he sternly ordered: "Kill them.""You scum!" April cried out. She held out her bat with the glowing green flame and she and Splinter prepared themselves for a fight while Draxum walked out of sight.* * *~Meanwhile in the hanging cage~Raph was standing on his feet, clenching his fists tightly and grunting as though he was putting effort into trying to do something, despite the fact he was simply standing there."What are you doing Raph?" the youngest finally asked, after watching with a mixture of confusion and curiosity along with his purple-clad brother."Leo said he could access his powers without that mystic sword, Raph's trying to do the same thing," the snapper replied, still trying with all his might to access the Hamato ninpo he could feel thrumming inside his chest."Did he tell you exactly how he did that?" the scientific, data-collecting one of the family asked next."No," was the only one-word reply.The two of them continued watching their brother, who was trying - apparently unsuccessfully - to tap into his ninpo so he could use it to smash out of there, with neither one of them very hopeful that it would work; not even the usually optimistic Mikey, who face looked sullen and whose brows were furrowed in worry as he wondered what Draxum was doing to their other brother, Leo.And then, red sparks of ninpo light ignited in the corner of Raphael's eyes.* * *After leaving Splinter and that annoying human behind to meet their inevitable death, Draxum oversaw the work of the dark armor being removed from the first train car to be reassembled on a platform in the middle of the football field. And when it was almost complete, he walked back into the train car when Leo was confined, along with his second in command - Commander Jones."Drag him out to the center of the field," the head of the Foot Clan ordered his second in command."Yes sir!" Cassandra enthusiastically replied.But when Draxum didn't move, Leo slowly opened his eyes to look up at the yokai who raised him, who was right at this moment staring down on him in disgust - without a hint of remorse or regret showing through in those cold warrior eyes of his.Leo closed his eyes, Draxum silently walked away, and Cassandra gazed at the pale face of the turtle laying helplessly on the floor with what might be likened to uncertainty or doubt flashing across her eye for just a second.But then it was gone, she very boisterously reminded herself of her loyalty to the Foot, and got to work doing as she had been commanded by her new Foot Clan master.But when she crouched down to unlock Leo's chains from the floor, she felt something touch her hand and looked up to see Leo's hand on hers, and his eye open, looking straight at her."Casey . . . don't . . . do this," came a whisper of a voice from the turtle she once called her friend.Casey looked at him with clear pity written all over her face, but when Leo couldn't keep his eyes open any longer and let them close, she shook her head and regained composure of herself by curtly saying: "You are nothing but a traitor and you will get what you deserve for betraying your master. And when the Shredder returns he will lead the Foot to glorious victory and bring in an era of peace for everyone!"But her tone lacked the usual wild passion common for her."No. . . . He's gonna . . . kill . . . every . . . one," Leo let out as a barely audible whisper.One Casey heard.Leo would have shivered from a cold breeze that blew into the train car if he wasn't so utterly weak.Casey looked at him with pity once more."General, what is taking so long!?" came the gruff, angry voice of the master she swore allegiance to."Coming master!" she yelled out loud. Then she continued on with the task at hand; but after unclasping the shackles from the anchor point in the floor, she draped Leo's limp arms over her shoulders and tried to stand, with her legs trembling under the weight."Ugh, that shell makes you heavier than you look," she complained to the barely conscious turtle on her back.Leo didn't say anything, but a dark shadow appeared in the doorway, and Draxum - who heard what she said - watched as she struggled to get to her feet, calmly saying something Leo had once said to Sagi: "Naturally, it is his armor after all."Leo opened his very heavy eyelids just long enough to see Draxum's warrior frame standing tall and proud in the train car entrance, before letting them shut again.And struggling with each step, Commander Jones very slowly but surely made her way out of the train car toward the station, where she had to take Leo up the stairs and across a very large field.Draxum calmly watched her struggling to walk past him, but eventually he rolled his eyes, frustrated with her slow pace, whisked Leo off her back to slump his unresponsive body over his shoulder, and briskly walked away."See to it the confinement train car is properly secured with guards posted on every side," he dryly ordered her.With a prideful salute, Commander Jones loudly and emphatically replied: "Sir yes sir!"But her composure softened and a frown formed on her face as she watched one of the few people who ever accepted and liked her for just being her being carried off to his untimely death; while thinking back on their enjoyable night together at the hoverboard park.
"Pardon me, I can get a little overexcited at times."
"Yeah, I know, it's something I like about you!"
* * *Leo curled up on the platform from the cold wind that chilled him to the very bone as Draxum proudly stood in front of the Kuroi Yōroi, which only had one final piece missing after he attached the gauntlet he got from Splinter.The clouds directly overhead were parted to reveal the full mystical moon above them, shining down brightly on the armor.The time was ripe.With a prideful grin spread across his warrior face, Draxum reached up to attach the helmet to the very top of the armor.It pulled out of his hands and clinked into place like how all the other pieces were joined together, but this time a purple flame ignited in the chest piece that was so hot Draxum had to step back; and the poor little turtle chained to the floor would have shrunk back from the fire that was burning his skin, if he had the strength to do so.But it didn't last for long before it settled down, and as soon as it did so Draxum watched with rapt attention and excitement as the Kuroi Yōroi did exactly what he was expecting when it liquified into a black puddle on the platform.Leo opened his eyes partway at the sound it made when it transformed and tried to pull away from the liquified dark armor that was laying right beside him, but he was far too weakened to do anything at all to defend or protect himself as it oozed across the platform toward him.All he could do was watch as it enveloped and spread up the chains attached to his arms, and the second it made contact with his hands he gasped in a sharp breath through his mouth from his fright.At that same moment, his turtle family who had freed themselves fought past the Foot, and rushed to his aid, arriving on the outskirt of the field just in time to see the moment when the Kuroi Yōroi completely enveloped Leo's entire Hamato turtle body."LEO, NOOOO!" Mikey cried out in anguish.But it was too late - or at least it appeared to be too late for their brother from their perspective - as they watched the dark armor reform itself and open up in the front to allow the great and powerful Baron Draxum to pridefully step inside, where he planned to used the unparalleled power of the dark armor to destroy humanity and usher in a new world of peace for all yokaikind.The armor enveloped around Draxum, he completely ignored the Hamato family who no longer posed a threat and who were watching on in shocked horror as he clenched his armored fist, and loudly cried out: "At last I will finally free my fellow yokaikind from their underground oppression!"But that was when something went horribly wrong and the armor began sucking his mystical powers out of him instead of lending its dark strength to the prideful warrior alchemist."What!? NO!" Draxum cried out in alarm.Leo's three brothers were about to rush ahead on the attack but Splinter put a hand out to stop them, knowing they may be killed by the aftermath of the warrior alchemist's bad decision. So they all watched as the armor sucked the mystic lifeforce out of the prideful warrior before rejecting him and spitting him out on the ground, drained completely dry from all his mystical powers and physical might, leaving him as a skin-and-bones shell of his former self staring up in fear at the armor that consumed all his strength.That was when there was a bright blue bolt of lightning shot straight down - apparently from the mystical moon itself - accompanied by a very loud clap of thunder that sent a soundwave across the field, knocking all the attending Foot soldiers down to the ground, as well as the Hamato family who were standing on the outskirts.A violent wind was churned up swirling around the brightly glowing Kuroi Yōroi, and at that moment Hueso, Bully, and Yolinda - who had been busy keeping more Foot soldiers at bay - rushed up the stairs to stand behind the Hamatos. Yolinda cried out over the roar of the wind: "What's happening!?""Shredder is returning! We cannot stop it, be prepared to fight, he cannot leave this stadium, we must stop him before the ceremony is competed and he regains all of his strength!" Splinter firmly yelled in reply. His fur and whiskers were whipped around by the violent storm winds and Raph stared at the glowing armor with worry and likewise yelled to be heard over the roar: "What happened to Leo!?""I do not know my son, hopefully it is not too late for him!" their grief-stricken dad yelled in reply.Then there was a brilliant flash of purple light, the wind settled down, and the armor moved.More specifically, it - or rather the Shredder - snapped its head to stare straight at the one and only threat that could possibly get in his way.The last remaining descendants of the honorable Hamato clan."At last I have returned!" came the booming voice of the Shredder himself. "I have only to rid myself of the final vestige of the Hamato Clan before I can finally lay waste to this pathetic planet!"Splinter, his sons and honorary daughter, and the misfit family of ruffians Leo aligned himself with prepared for the battle of a lifetime, with Casey standing behind them, staring on in disbelief at what the Shredder - who she had a hand in returning - said about laying waste to everyone, and feeling immeasurable grief for her decision to lead someone she once called a friend off to certain death.But before the incredibly powerful armored villain finished taking a single step toward his hated enemies, there was another flash of lightning, this time a green one, and a glowing green human woman brandishing an impressive glowing green sword appeared between the Shredder and his intended victims.The glowing faded away in all but the long sword in her hands, and the one the Hamato family didn't know yet was their ancestor, Karai, loudly proclaimed: "I will not allow you to harm a single life on this planet, Shredder!"The Shredder roared out loud and went on the attack, swiping at Karai who swung her sword at him, but to no avail. He knocked her back with such force she tumbled across the field all the way over to where Leo's family were standing, and he yelled at her: "You have grown weak Karai! As soon as I finish you and these last remaining descendants of the Hamato Clan no one will stand in my way!"Splinter rushed to Karai's side to help her to her feet, and she stared at the Shredder, who roared out in anger, and firmly told them: "He has grown to powerful, we must bide time for Leonardo to join the fight from the inside!""Leo's still alive!?" Raph cried out in surprise."Yes, now hurry Shredder cannot be permitted to leave this field or he will gain strength until there is no hope and all life on this planet will be laid to waste!"Cassandra watched in disbelief as Karai, along with the Hamato's and their 'misfit ruffian' family joined them in rushing ahead on the attack......and inside the Shredder's mystical dark armor, the weakened slider who had given up all hope was about to be visited by a dear old friend.
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The sound of silence encompassed the warrior red-eared slider, who was weakened, laying inside what looked like a giant sand timer with his back against the glass, and a thick black tar-like ooze very slowly dripping down onto him, gradually filling up the bottom.The entire bottom half of Leo's turtle body was covered by the thick liquid, with even his hands and the lower section of his arms laying limp in the puddle of the armor's dark energy that would eventually fill up the entire section he was in and completely consume his Hamato essence when he finally succumbed to it by drowning.There was nothing left to do now.Nothing but wait.Leo took in one slow, steady breath after another, staring ahead at nothing save for the times he fixed his gaze on a new glob of disgusting black dark energy that fell down from above, and he let out a heavy sigh from the deep sorrow he felt inside.From behind his back there was a flash of white light, but the despondent slider couldn't be bothered turning his head to see what it was.Not until he heard a very familiar voice speaking behind him."So this is it? This is how you go out?"Leo let out a single sad laugh when he heard Usagi's voice, and he turned his head a little, just enough to see the glowing white mystic form of his comrade and friend from the corner of his eye, before fixing his gaze straight ahead on another glob of liquified dark energy that was slowly consuming him alive."Got any room in your mystic house for one more?" Leo asked in a sullen, dejected tone of voice.From outside the sand timer, Usagi walked closer to his turtle friend and Leo let his head fall to the side so he could see his glowing white form better when he did so."Yes. But not for you," came the stern reply that carried an air of kindness, and sounded a little muffled because of the layer of glass between them.Leo's shoulders bounced when he huffed out a weak, bitter laugh, another glob fell, the liquid he was laying in rose another inch, and the slider quietly replied: "Yeah, I wouldn't want me, too."He watched another glob fall.Usagi crouched down to get at eye level with him and raised a hand to rest it on the outside of the glass.Leo knew what he wanted, but instead of raising his black, goopy hand to rest it on the inside of the glass opposite Sagi's glowing one, he simply glanced at it and then turned his head back to watch more of the dangerous goop falling down onto him."Let me guess, you tell me a warrior never gives up the fight if there's still hope, I say 'there is no hope' and you give me one of your pep talks that gets me back on my feet and into the fight, right?""That, or you could just give up," came the soft reply from outside the glass.Another glob fell.The liquid rose to completely cover Leo's stomach now.The slider let out a deep sigh, resigned to his fate, and asked: "So, if you're not going to convince me keep up the fight and you're not here to take me to the mystic realm then what is this? You're final good bye?"Usagi didn't answer, Leo laughed again, but only because of his 'using humor to cope' approach to life, sadly watched another sticky, viscous glob fall into his deathtrap, and very quietly added in a barely audible whisper: "Figures. Someone like me doesn't deserve to go to the mystic realm."Sagi silently watched with him as another glob fell down."I guess this is it then," the slowly dying turtle said.Another glob fell.The dark liquid he was bathing in rose another inch.Leo let out another deep sigh and finished with: "Thanks for the good bye but I think I'd rather die alone if you don't mind."Usagi rose, another gob fell, and Leo's long-time friend told him with a snarky grin: "Or you could get off your butt and help your family before it really is too late.""Heh, help my family, that's a good one."Leo watched another glob fall.The liquid rose up to just below his chest.He sighed again and watched another thick glob fall into the pool he would soon drown in."All this time I thought my family needed me, but the truth is, I need them."Another glob succumbing to the pull of gravity.Another inch added to Leo's deathtrap.Another deep, sad sigh from the turtle waiting to die.And then in a desperate, self-loathing kind of way, Leo expressed the deep-seated sentiment he felt on the inside when he said:"I can't help them. I'm nothing without them.""Nothing?" Sagi questioned.Leo glanced up to see he was crossing his arms with his hip tipped to the side and that look in his eyes that told the slider he was about to convince him otherwise.Another glob fell.Leo's nose felt itchy but he resisted raising his goop-covered hand to scratch it.Stuff like that didn't matter anyway. He was about to die after all.Permanently, with no hope of an after life.At least as far as he was concerned."I suppose it was nothing who mustered the inner strength to teleport out of that cell without your mystic odachi when you had shell rot?"Another glob, another inch, another second closer to death.Sagi crouched down to get his glowing face in closer to the slider's, and very firmly told him: "And I guess it was nothing who rescued my brother from slavery and gave him a new life - a good life - with our family?"Another glob.Leo decided he didn't care anymore and raised his sticky hand to scratch the incessant itch on his nose, leaving a thick, sticky, goopy mess smeared across his face.Then he let his hand fall back down into the thick pool of dark energy encompassing him.The pool that had now reached up to his chest."That was done by someone who's already dead," Leo solemnly replied.Another glob fell.The liquid surrounding him rose once again."So I guess you are just giving up?"Another glob fell.Leo furrowed his brows.'Are they coming faster?'. . .
'It doesn't matter.'
He opened his mouth and sadly replied to his deceased best friend: "A warrior never gives up when there's still hope."He watched another glob fall into his cramped confinement.The liquid rose up to just below his shoulders."And hope already died when Draxum slit my wrist and captured my brothers."Another glob.The pool Leo was laying in went up over his shoulders.A shot of fear burst up in his heart when it did, but then it settled down again.He had accepted his fate, but that didn't mean there wasn't an ounce of fear at the prospect of the whole distasteful dying process."Your family hasn't given up hope. They're out there, fighting while you're in here waiting to die instead of helping them," his lifelong best friend pointedly told him.Sagi pointed out his hand and Leo raised his eyes to see what looked like a screen appearing directly in front of him, outside the giant timer he was trapped inside, showing both his families - his flesh-and-blood Hamato family along with his misfit ruffian family - fighting tooth and nail against the incredible power of the Shredder.Along with another woman (Karai) who he felt he should recognize for some reason.Another glob fell in.The liquid rose up over his mouth.There was only a small pocket of air left.Leo's eyes widened with fear when he witnessed the horrible sight of Mikey whipping his glowing kusari fundo at the terrible dark armor, only for the Shredder to grab it and yank on it so hard he pulled his little brother toward him and tightly grasped his head in the clawed gauntlet before Mikey had time to even react.Leo watched the horror when the Shredder raised Mikey off the ground by his head, and he sat ahead, gasped in a deep breath with the intent of crying out 'Mikey!' but instead the instant he gasped in, the final glob of dark energy goop fell into his deathtrap right on top of his head, and he accidentally sucked in a mouthful of the disgustingly thick black liquid.By now the bottom half of the sand timer was completely filled with the dark energy liquid.There was no escape, save for one.The dark energy inside the Kuroi Yōroi was connected to - and therefore only weak to - Hamato ninpo.Usagi, unable to free his friend on his own, tensed his body, clenched his fists, and whispered to himself: "Come on come ooonn."That was when both of Leo's hands appeared pressed against the glass.He pulled one back to pound on it, and when he did so bright blue ninpo light shone from his fist into the cracks that appeared in the surface."Yes!" Sagi yelled, and at the same instant a glowing white odachi appeared in his hands.Leo hit his fist against the glass once more.The glowing blue cracks spread.With a loud battle cry, Sagi swung his mystic odachi right at the contact point where Leo's cracked the glass, shattering it at the weakened point and spilling out all the black, tarry contents of the mystical timer......including the warrior ninja turtle, who was coated black with the sticky substance and violently coughed up everything that had been sucked down into his lungs.Still weakened tremendously from his physical and mystical attack, instead of rising Leo curled up in a tight ball on his side and shivered from the bitter cold he felt that bit through his skin and shell all the way to his bones and into his very Hamato essence.But he did it, he escaped, and he was still alive.* * *Outside in the football stadium there was an impressive light show as Hamato mystic powers collided with the Shredder's dark powers.Mikey was picked up by his head and thrown through the air.The big snapper who was rushing at the Shredder inside his mystic forcefield body changed directions to catch his little brother before he hit the hard ground."You ok little bro?" Raph asked tenderly."Yeah, thanks for the catch! But what about Leo!?" Mikey exclaimed, wondering why nothing happened yet from the inside, where Karai said Leo was alive and would be aiding in the fight.They both looked toward Karai, who was standing her ground with Splinter, taking their turns jumping in to land a blow on the Shredder along with Donnie - who was blasting the creep with his newly awakened mystic tech - and Hueso, Bully, and Yolinda, who each took their turns charging in on the attack, one practically on top of the other.While April kept her distance, making use of the skills Leo encouraged her to learn by pelting the Shredder with one smoke bomb after another - to throw off his aim so their family could each get hits in."I must find out what is taking Leonardo so long, keep him in the field, I will return!" Karai loudly proclaimed to her Hamato family, before disappearing in a flash of green light.Just after she was gone, Yolinda went in on the attack with her dagger up, ready to drive it into the joint between one of the gauntlets and the armored arm, but Shredder spun around and swiped at her, knocking her to the ground."Augh!" she cried out in pain."Lindy!" Bully yelled out when he saw what happened.In a panic he rushed ahead and lunged at Yolinda, just in time to block with his body when the Shredder's powerful armored foot came crashing down on top of him instead of her."Uncle Jack NO!" Scraps cried out from fright.The Shredder was distracted by a giant red mystic fist from behind, and that was when Hueso swooped in to snatch his adoptive daughter away before the armored monster had a chance to attack her next.And they both stared wide-eyed at Bully, who was laying still on the ground.* * *Inside the mystical dark armor, the glowing form of Karai appeared the moment after Sagi helped Leo burst free from his mystical deathtrap, and she stood over her turtle descendant, who was curled up on his side, coated in a thick layer of the sticky black dark energy, pitifully and weakly coughing up the remains of what was left in his lungs.When the coughing subsided, Leo curled in on himself some more, still weakened and shivering from the bone-piercing cold.That was until a warm hand rested on his arm and a soft voice he recognized - from the day he escaped his confined by teleporting out of Draxum's dungeon when he had shell rot - gently told him:"Gain strength, Leonardo. The fight is not over yet."Leo gasped and took one deep breath after another from the sensation of Karai's Hamato ninpo freely flowing into his body, slowly strengthening both his Hamato essence that had been almost completely drained by the Shredder, and his physical body.The hand retreated and a commanding voice, the voice of his ancestor, the voice of a warrior, told him:"Get up."Leo took heavy, deep breaths through his mouth and tried to push himself up onto his hands and singular knee, not having his prosthetic leg in here.But he fell down on his stomach again."Get. Up," Karai very firmly urged him.Usagi stepped ahead, but she put her arm out to stop him, kept her eyes fixed on her turtle descendant in front of them, and told him: "No, he has to do this himself or he'll never be strong enough to prevail against the Shredder."Sagi firmly nodded his head and watched as Leo once again tried to pull himself out of the mire that clung to every orifice and weighed him down.But his arms trembled under the weight of his heavy shell, before falling flat on his stomach once more."Leo, get up!" Sagi urged in a heartfelt, pleading tone of voice.Leo nodded his head and summoned every ounce of inner Hamato strength within himself.He felt his ninpo gaining strength, pumping throughout his body with every beat of his heart.His family needed him to help with the fight.They needed him just as much as he needed them.Karai and Usagi watched as Leo's Hamato ninpo glowed brightly through the blackness coating him, melting away the remnants of Shredder's dark energy that was clinging to him.His legs, arms, face, and shell markings glowed brilliantly, and - just like the day he trained against Draxum with his mystic powers, the day his owner-not-father slashed his face in three places - Leo could feel his amputated left leg all the way down to the sole of his foot and the tips of his toes.He got up on his hands and knees.Both knees.And opened his eyes to look down and see the amazing sight of a glowing blue mystic leg taking the place of where his real one belonged.A grin came across his face as he felt his body filled with strength, and he raised his proud warrior frame to stand firm and tall on both feet, staring ahead at the glowing black mass a ways' in front of him that was the Shredder's inner mystical ninpo where he gained inner strength. The one that fed the ooey dark energy in the sand timer"C'mon, we got a shred-head to defeat!" he told his glowing ninpo family with confidence, just before two glowing blue katanas appeared - on in each hand - from the hilt all the way to the tip of the blade."I will assist our family on the outside Leonardo," Karai told him.Sparkles of blue ninpo electricity flashed from the corners of his eyes and without taking his gaze off the black infected ninpo in front of them, Leo told her with confidence: "Don't worry, we got this."* * *Outside in the field, Raph had managed to get Bully's unconscious body out of the fighting area and at the moment Yolinda was leaning over him from their position off the field, near the train station, where she was shaking his shoulder, calling out to him, trying to get him to wake up.Meanwhile, as soon as the Foot soldiers who were loyal to Draxum saw what happened to him, they one and all fled for their lives, taking the mystic train out of there, along with the cowering alchemist who only just barely mustered the strength he needed to jump aboard.All except recruit Jones, that was, who stayed behind, unsure of what to do from here, and staring wide-eyed toward the field from her position behind Yolinda and Bully.After trying unsuccessfully to rouse her unconscious, injured uncle, Yolinda snapped her head up to stare at the human who was standing back and watching the action taking place outside, weapon in hand, but doing absolutely nothing to help with the fight on either side."What are you doing!? Why are you just standing there!?" Yolinda cried out in desperation. "Go help them!"Casey stared at the flashes of light coming from the fighting Hamato's and Shredder in the field, aghast.In an instant, her entire belief system - her entire way of life - had been shattered right before her eyes.Bully groaned.Lindy snapped her head down to stare at him.And Cassandra got her head on right, tensed her warrior stance, gripped her bent naginata tightly (that resembled a bladed hockey stick), and decided to get into the fight.On the right side this time.Meanwhile in the field, Karai appeared in a flash of green light just in time to use her impressive sword to block an attack aimed at April's head."Leonardo is up, he will help us from the inside!" she loudly informed her family, to be heard over the roar of the wind and the loud sound of the battle raging all around them."How!?" April cried out. "I've only got one smoke bomb left and we're doing nothing from here!"That was when Splinter ran up to them and informed Karai: "There is a weakness in the armor, a piece is missing from the back of the helmet!"Karai turned to April and told her: "Young one, keep your distance and stay behind the Shredder at all times! When Leonardo's attack is successful a blue light will flash from within the armor, when that happens aim for the crack in the helmet!""You got it!" April loudly agreed, before running to get in position, ready to attack with the last of the explosive smoke bombs Leo gave to her on the night he gave her some friendly advice, before they all went to the indoor skate park together.* * *Inside the armor, there was a loud sound reminiscent of screeching terrorworms accompanied by slippery black tendrils shooting out from every direction, attacking Leo and Usagi, trying to keep them away from the pulsating black clump of ninpo light shining in front of them.Leo slashed his sword down and whipped around when a vine wrapped around his wrist. But before he had a chance to swipe at it, Sagi already slashed it off with his glowing odachi, and then both friends stood back-to-back, defending themselves and one another from the incessant barrage attacking them from all sides.Another vine wound around Leo's flesh and blood ankle.He slashed it in half before it could yank him off his feet, and then swiped at another one coming at Sagi's head."We're getting nowhere like this!" he yelled to his sparing partner, both of them locked in place, fighting for their (for everybody's) lives."Don't you have portalling powers!?" Sagi yelled in reply, slashing at more vines coming their way."Don't you think I tried!? It's not working in here!" Leo yelled right back. "Look out!" he lunged at a vine that attacked Sagi from behind, wrapping around his glowing rabbit body and picking him up, but he managed to slash it in half before it got his friend more than a few feet off the ground."We need to back away and come up with a new plan!" Leo frantically suggested.He slashed at more vines that just wouldn't stop coming, completely overwhelming them, and Sagi yelled: "NO! We need to combine our mystic powers together!""We'll lose everything if we do that, our weapons are mystic!" the turtle with two glowing mystical swords and a mystic leg objected."If you hold back a little you can keep one!" Sagi replied between slashes of his odachi! "One's all we need."Leo grinned back at his friend, and with a nod of his head it was decided.They slashed away more vines that just wouldn't stop coming! Then both turtles turned their backs to the imminent threat all around them to face each other, with Sagi grasping his one odachi with both hands, Leo grasping the sword in his left hand tightly, and both of them crying out a loud battle cry while slamming their mystical weapons down into the white floor together.They poured everything they had into their mystic attack, with Leo only holding back just enough to not lose the katana he gripped tightly in his right hand. There was a combination of a brilliant white and blue light that flashed out from both of them, chasing all the groping tendrils away, and clearing an opening for Leo to get through, but only for a moment.The only problem was that his left leg was also powered by his mystic ninpo, and now, after draining it to pull off that hero move, he only had his one katana and one leg left."You do it!" Leo instructed Sagi, standing on his one foot and handing out his glowing blue sword for him to take.In the distance, they could see more slimy dark energy vines fast approaching, rapidly filling in the gap that was split wide open from their powerful mystic attack."You're the Hamato, only you can do it!" Sagi informed him, before telling him: "Remember that game we used to play at the hot springs when we were kids, when we launched each other into the water?"Leo grinned at his long-time friend. He knew exactly what Sagi was talking about, and when the rabbit crouched low, he knew just what to do.With his one leg and his sword gripped tightly in his hand, Leo jumped on Sagi's shoulder, and the rabbit pushed Leo up into the air......the vines came down at where he had just been......and Leo raised his sword in both hands with the tip of the blade pointed down at its target, yelling out loud on the descent:"HOOOT SOOOOUP!!!"* * *Outside in the field, it seemed as though the Shredder was slowly but surely taking the lead, until a wildly crazy new recruit joined the forces.A recruit known by her friends as Casey Jones.At first when she ran in with a loud battle cry, Raph and his family were worried she was fighting on the wrong side, but the snapper's worried brow that was creased on the top of his head disappeared when a big smile came across his face at the sight of one of the Foot soldiers - who Leo told them he had befriended - finally got her head on right and attacked the Shredder instead of them.Adding one more to the ranks was just what they needed to start a stalemate where no one side was in the lead.Until something quite dramatic happened.Mid-swing, the Shredder suddenly halted his attack to grab his chest and cried out loudly in pain, moments before Leo's blue ninpo light shone brightly from the center of his breastplate where his dark energy heart was located, along with every joint in his armor, highlighting the long sliver of a crack in the back of his helmet.Sweat beaded on April's head when she realized it was go time. With he bat out to the side, in a quite voice to hype herself up, she said the word: "Apriiil O'Neeeil," just before tossing up the last of Leo's smoke bombs in the air.With a loud *CRACK* on contact, the smoke bomb hurtled through the air straight toward the crack in the back of the Shredder's helmet.It exploded on impact, right in the center of the weak spot.Shredder was knocked ahead with an unearthly shriek of pain, and a brighter blue light shone from inside his armor.Hamato Leonardo’s inner attack combined with April's outside attack, weakening the Shredder sufficiently so that now all his armor pieces were threatening to come dislodged, with each and every one floating around a mixture of blue and purple mystical light, with the fire of his infected mystical heart showing through in his exposed chest."Now is the time to finish this!" Karai cried out to her family. "Join your Hamato powers with mine and we will end the Shredder once and for all!"Karai raised her glowing green sword up high, Splinter and his Hamato family all rallied to her side, and they all ignited their inner Hamato powers together.There was a blindingly bright flash of pure white light, and when it subsided the mystical sword Karai wielded had grown into a powerfully gigantic spear-like bisentō gripped tightly in everyone's hands.And aiding the fight, along with the living descendants of the honorable Hamato clan were their very own Hamato ancestors, each gripping the mystical weapon along with them while the Shredder cried out in pain with blue and purple light glowing from within as tried to regain control of his own powers once more.When a glowing green hand brushed against his, Splinter raised his eyes to look up and see his very own deceased mother was standing alongside of him, joining in the fight and smiling at him with a mixture of pride and joy in her eyes for her son.Tears filled Splinter's eyes at the sight, and at her prompting, the entire family cried out the 'Lou Jitsu' battle cry when she stared out saying: "HOOOT..."All together each and every one of them yelled: "SOOOUP!" at the same time the mystical weapon was thrust ahead, straight into the infected heart of the Shredder.The armor burned away like ash, to reveal a glowing green hand reaching out for them."Karai!" came the sound of a voice the brave Hamato warrior recognized. She reached back for the hand reaching out to her, crying out: "Father!" and when they grasped one another, she helped to pull him free from his bondage as the infected Shredder.The rest of the armor bubbled and melted while the Hamato ancestor know as Oroku Saki - the one who first became the Shredder when he was infected by its dark energy - hugged his daughter with tears of gratitude in his eyes.And then it was all over.A flash of light was followed by a cloud of white smoke.The Hamato ancestors - one and all - returned to their place in the mystic realm.The field fell silent, leaving only the living descendants of the Hamato Clan behind, along with their misfit ruffian family in the field covered in a dense fog-like smoke.Yolinda walked up the stairs to the field where her dad was standing, gazing around through the smoke that was clearing, wanting to make sure everyone was ok now that her Uncle Jack was awake and, although a little worse for the wear, reassured her he would be just fine.Raphael coughed and waved the smoke away from his face. "Where's Leo?" he asked, the sound of his voice being the only thing cutting through the eerie silence in the spot that only a few seconds prior had been a raging battlefield.The smoke gradually cleared, and there in the middle of the field on one flesh-and-blood turtle leg and one glowing blue mystic leg, was their red-eared slider brother, standing back-on to them, gazing around with the markings on his body glowing.Leo rubbed his dizzy head, and his ninpo - including the leg - flickered in and out a few times like a faulty lightbulb, before going out entirely.When his mystic left leg disappeared he spun his arms around to regain his balance, but ultimately fell to the ground on his knee. Then gazed around some more for any sign of the dreaded Shredder, but at hearing his little brother's nervous voice softly ask: "Leo?" from behind him, he turned his head around to look at his family who were gazing at him, to ask the important question:"Did we win?""Aw c'mere!" Raph cried out in joy at the verification that their brother was ok. Each and every one of his turtley brothers, along with their sister and dad, rushed ahead to wrap their arms around Leo in a tight embrace the slider was eager to return.Grinning from ear to ear and hugging into his very own family who was once and for all time really truly his, Leo heartily laughed before joyfully saying: "I'll take that as a yes!"And to his delight, each and every member of his Hamato family of heroes who he loved more than life itself laughed along with him.They did it.They won.Draxum was defeated, the Shredder was no more, and they could all go home together, one big, joyous family of heroes.Leo could honestly say he had never been happier before in his entire life.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
~A Few Days After the Shredder's Defeat~A bright blue portal opened up beside a white house on a farm somewhere in California. The three rabbit yokai outside enjoying the sun raised their heads to see, to their pleasure, the turtle they knew as Leo stepping out to greet them wearing a new stylish blue prosthetic leg with a wave of his green turtle hand and a smile on his face for the little rabbit he knew as Bun-Bun."Leo!" the healed little bunny cried out in excitement, running to his friend with his arms wide open for a hug.Leo crouched down to scoop him up into his arms the second he got close enough, and squeezed him tightly - giving him an extra little squeeze in Sagi's behalf."What took you so long to come see me!? Did you bring a human trinket!?" the little white rabbit asked.Leo smiled at him, jokingly saying: "You live in the human world now Bun-Bun, do you really want one of my boring old trinkets?""You bet!" came the immediate, enthusiastic reply."Ok, if you insist."Leo reached into his pouch and took out a small item that he dropped into Bunny's waiting hands.The little rabbit's eyes sparkled when he looked down on the miniature toy turtle. One that had a red stripe over each eye, somewhat similar to the ones on Leo's face.Mariko and her husband Robert looked on with smiles, and Bunny clasped the toy tightly, promising: "I'm going to keep it forever!""Forever's a long time, squirt," Leo told him, playfully booping him on the nose.Bunny scrunched his pink little nose and then they both laughed, before his smile fell into a frown, and he fidgeted with the tiny toy in his hands, telling Leo: "Sagi died."That made Leo's smile fall, too, and he quietly said: "Yeah, I know.""I miss him," Bunny volunteered next, not looking up from the toy he was fiddling with in his hands.Leo's eyes glossed over from tears and he sadly agreed: "Yeah, me too. But he's in the mystic realm now, with your parents. Do you wanna know how I know that?""How?"Bunny looked up at Leo, tears wetting his fur, and Leo gently smiled, sharing with him:"Because sometimes when I meditate, he pops by to say hi.""He does!?"Bunny's face lit up again, although there was still the sadness showing through, and Leo told him: "He sure does. And maybe I can teach you how to meditate."
"Really!?"
Leo could see the sadness being replaced with joy, and he looked up from the rabbit in his arms to meet eyes with his aunt, the sister of his deceased dad, and added: "If it's ok with your aunt and uncle.""Of course it's ok," Mariko kindly told him, joy overflowing her words and spilling out onto her face."It's a deal then."Leo smiled down on Bunny, and his rabbit friend stuck his hand out, agreeing: "Deal!""Uuugh," Leo playfully groaned, rolling his eyes and saying in an over-exaggerated tone: "You don't really do that stupid handshake thing, too, do you!?"Bunny giggled, keeping his hand out moreso because he got an amusing reaction from his friend than anything else, and the Hidden City raised slider acquiesced, putting him down to give him a 'proper' handshake. But just before their hands met he snapped his up like what he did with Raphael on the day they shook hands to 'seal the deal', officially making him one of their brothers, smiling down on his friend and telling him: "But don't expect this to become a habit.""Ok," Bunny replied, in between giggling, and Leo's smile softened just before he reached his hand out to shake his in return.And that was the beginning of a long friendship where the lessons one ex-slave learned from his father were passed on to another ex-slave, strengthening their bonds of friendship that Leo thought were severed the moment he left Usagi's injured brother in the care of his aunt and uncle and left through his infected portal, thinking they would never lay eyes on one another again.But sometimes this crazy thing called life takes us in directions we didn't think were possible.And sometimes even in ways that turn out for the benefit of us and those who we love.* * *~The Next Day~Leo sat in the scoundrel booth at his Tío Hueso's restaurant - that was closed for a few days to give them all time to recoup - speaking with Hueso, who was sitting across from him, with Yolinda upstairs tending to Bully's injuries; and occasionally glancing down to admire his green turtle hands that were no longer coated in Draxum's mystic black goop as of the moment his ninpo was fired up after Sagi helped free him from his mystic energy deathtrap."He'll be fine, especially with Yolinda tending to him," Hueso told his turtle friend after Leo inquired how Bully was doing. "Not that he wants to be tended to," the skeleton yokai added with a laugh.Leo laughed too, and gazed down at his green turtle hands once more, before saying with fondness: "Lindy has ways of getting what she wants.""Aye, that she does," Hueso softly agreed. He reached his bony hand out to pat one of Leo's, and the slider raised his eyes to look at the smiling face of his honorary Tío, who asked him: "What will you do now?"He withdrew his hand, Leo gave Hueso a gentle, crooked grin and told him with a mixture of joy and love directed at his family who he was living with: "The world always needs heroes."Hueso nodded his head in agreement and they both turned their heads to watch when Yolinda walked down the stairs, heading to the restaurant kitchen.Leo's eyes dilated when he rested his gaze on the fox he deeply loved and his heart skipped a beat at the sight when she raised her memorizing eyes to gently smile at him, before looking at her adoptive father who she addressed with the words: "Uncle Jack wants some tea, but he insists the water in the restaurant kitchen is best." She playfully rolled her eyes at the same time she tipped her hip to the side to rest one of her silky smooth paw-like hands on it, and said: "Even though it all comes from the same place.""Go and get him his tea then mija, before he gets up and does it for himself.""Yes papá," Yolinda softly agreed. She gave one more passing glance to the red-eared slider looking at her who she was deeply in love with, before disappearing into the kitchen to make her uncle's tea.Leo continued gazing at the door she went through and absently commented: "She really is something.""Yes, she'll make some lucky guy very happy one day," Hueso agreed, before leaning in closer to Leo when he joked: "Or some poor soul very miserable."Leo laughed, whole-heartedly agreed: "You got that right," and when he turned his head to look at his Tío, Hueso couldn't help but see the residual love radiating from his eyes that this turtle hero felt for his adoptive daughter.His bony face softened and he asked in all sincerity: "You really do love her, don't you?"Leo huffed out a tiny laugh, gazed back down on his hands, and opened his mouth to say 'Yeah,' but no words came out.Instead his smile fell and he swallowed a lump that came up in his throat.Then, with a tenseness to his voice from the tension he held in his throat, he said:"Draxum mightn't own me anymore, but I'll always be a slave in yokai society," alluding to the 'born a slave die a slave' rule on the streets."But you do not live in the Hidden City anymore, do you pepino?""No, I guess not," Leo quietly replied, without once taking his eyes off his turtle hands."Draxum lost his mystic powers, was stripped of his title and banished from the yokai world, and there are many eye witnesses among the yokai who made up the Foot Clan that testified to your death, are there not?"Leo let out a deep, heavy sigh and slowly nodded his head before replying: "Yeah, I suppose," but still sounding a little down despite all the positives thrown his way.He kept his eyes on his hands, let out another sigh, and sadly said: "But if Big Mama finds out I'm still alive she'll try to get her hands on me." He raised his eyes, not to look at Hueso, but rather at the kitchen door where Yolinda went through, and added: "I'll always have to keep my guard up.""As do Bully and I, but we have gotten along just fine.""Mmm," Leo merely hummed in acknowledgement, putting his eyes on a throwing star he took out, that he was currently spinning in one hand.That was until Hueso got his attention by putting his hand on top of Leo's.The shuriken stopped, Leo raised his eyes once more to gaze into Hueso's which were radiating a paternal-type love for him, and with a gentle smile on his face the ex-pirate softly told him: "You did well pepino, you got out of that life you were forced into and you are a hero like your brothers. And Yolinda is a scrappy one, she had done well all these years loving her family of ex-pirates." He patted Leo's hand and told him: "She will do just fine loving an ex-slave."Leo's face beamed with joy as a huge smile spread across his face and he happily exclaimed: "Really!?" with tears of joy in the corners of his eyes.A nod of Hueso's head was all it took to get the excited slider jumping up out of the booth and running towards the kitchen; but halfway there he skidded to a halt, spun around, and still with that big grin exclaimed: "I promise to give her a better life than the ones we had to live!""I know you will," Hueso happily replied, before raising his hands to shoo him away with the words: "Now get out of here!"Leo gave Hueso one last grin before rushing to the kitchen door and inadvertently getting Yolinda's attention with the loud *bang* he made opening it.But as soon as he went through he regained his composure, wiped that grin off his face, and quietly looked up at her while she put a kettle on the stove."What?" she asked with her eyebrows furrowed in confusion at the goofy look Leo couldn't wipe off his face.To help calm his rapidly beating heart, Leo whipped out a shuriken to fidget with and looked down on it while calmly saying: "Oh nothing, I just came in to make sure you know what you're doing."Yolinda laughed, turned on the stove, and told him in an incensed tone: "It's tea."Leo walked up to her, 'casually' spinning his shuriken while looking down at it, and said: "I just had to make sure you did it right."He stopped at the end of the counter where the stovetop was and looked up at her with his cheeky crooked grin.She opened her mouth to reply, but shut it again and stared at him when he leaned his head forward to get a better look at her tail."What!?" she asked, this time in an annoyed tone.Leo stepped ahead to stand beside her, leaned his back against the counter, and looked down on his 'fidget spinner' while calmly saying: "Oh nothing."She put a hand on her hip asked: "What is with you?" and turned to walk away to get a mug for Bully's tea. When she did so Leo looked up at the silky smooth tail he always wanted to touch since the very first time he saw her, and said: "I just couldn't help but notice that tail of your."Yolinda reached up for a mug in one of the cupboards and asked with mild annoyance: "What about my tail?"The ninja turtle spun the shuriken and told her: "I was wondering if they stopped selling your fur conditioner or something, what with how bushy it looks all the time now."He glanced up at her with a smirk, and she was smiling too but her body language and tone of voice was tense when she said: "Oh my tail's bushy now?" and walked back over, banged the mug down on the counter a little too loudly, put her hands on her hips, and opened her mouth to say something else.But Leo cut her off when he stopped the spinning shuriken, pocketed it, and looked at her from the corner of his eye with a mischievous grin on that blue-masked turtle face of his when he said: "I know a great place in the Hidden City where you could go fix..." he gestured up and down to her body and casually finished with: "All of this.""All of THIS!!?" Yolinda yelled loudly.Out in the restaurant Hueso - who heard her angry yell - shook his head with a grin, and got up when he saw the injured, bandaged Bully limping down the stairs."Come on now Jack, let's get you back in bed," the skeleton ex-pirate told his ex-first mate/chef."I gotta make sure she does it right, I don't wanna drink no crummy ol' watered down tea! And she'll burn the leaves if the water's not the right temperature!" Bully gruffly yelled in anger.In the kitchen, Leo leaned his grinning face in closer to Yolinda's, resisting the urge to reach out and grasp her close for a kiss (just yet) and cheekily told her: "But I suppose girls like you don't bother with stuff like fur care."Her whole body tensed, her fists clenched, and that cute little muzzle threatening to curl up into one of her adorable snarls.And when she finally got her words, she let out an angry: "Girls like ME!? What is WITH you today!?""Yeah. You know what I mean," Leo replied, ignoring her second question, taking one step closer to her, looking her in the eyes with that cheeky grin she wanted to slap off his face, and playfully telling here: "Those ditzy Dark Alley chickies."Outside the kitchen, the badly injured Bully was arguing with Hueso when they both stopped at the sound of 'Scraps' very loud and very angry voice when she yelled:
"Ditzy!!!? CHICKIE!!!"
Bully nodded his head in understanding, having already had that private discussion with 'Bones' about 'Scraps' and 'Scrubs' before passing on their blessing, and Hueso patted his shoulder and went with him when he turned around to limp back upstairs so as to give them some privacy.In the kitchen Leo grinned from ear-to-ear when he saw that cute little silky smooth black muzzle curl up into the snarl he was just dying to see.And as the very angry Yolinda tried to get her words together, he leaned his face in so that it was five inches away from hers with that big grin on his face and love radiating in his dilated eyes, to tell her:"Shut up and kiss me."Her snarl fell, her whole tense body relaxed, and she blurted out a very surprised: "What!?"And that was when Leo finally did what he had been longing to do ever since he first laid eyes on the beautiful fox in front of him, by wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her close, and this time when he went in those extra five inches it was to share in a long, passionate kiss.When they finally pulled out of their very first kiss ever, Leo and Yolinda rested their foreheads together, with one of his hands behind her head, the other still around her waist, both of hers draped around his shoulders, and they smiled at each other before the red-eared slider said the words he had been wanting to say so badly for such a long time."I love you.""Yeah I know, you street thug," Yolinda replied with a playful smirk.Leo's smile grew and he told her: "Just say it, chickie.""I love you too, Leo.""Are you sure you want me? I was just a slave after all.""Shut up and kiss me again," was her tender reply, and Leo leaned his face ahead to do just that.* * *~Two Days Later~Leo was sitting in the living room in a turtle pile with his three brothers, sitting in between Mikey and his new girlfriend Yolinda, with his arm around his girl and watching a new (to him) Jupiter Jim movie; when Lindy sniffed the air with that cute little fox nose of hers and blurted out: "Poo-wie! What's that smell!?"Leo sniffed the air a couple of times, then he pointed his nose down to sniff his armpit (just in case) before shrugging one shoulder and casually replying: "I dunno."He kept his eyes glued to the screen and popped a few razzle berries into his mouth that he discreetly picked at the lush caverns earlier that day - making certain he was alone so no yokai who might recognize him would see him - but (as per the usual for her) Yolinda didn't drop it and sat up a little, sniffing the air some more.Leo didn't pay attention to it at first because he was laser-focused on the fight scene in Jupiter Jim's Last Trip to the Moon (that apparently had 59 sequels - all of which he planned on watching with his fam eventually). But then she got his attention when that cute little fox nose of hers went right up alongside his head and she sniffed his blue mask.She instantly pulled back, covered her nose with both hands, and exclaimed: "Poo! It's your mask!""What are you talking about!? My mask doesn't smell!" Leo snapped at her."Ugh, here we go again," Mikey groaned, at the same time Donnie paused the movie because they all knew what was coming next.In an incensed tone Leo pointed at the screen and ordered: "Turn it back on Donnie, we're watching the movie," with that last phrase directed at Lindy as his way of telling her to drop it.Donnie didn't turn the movie back on, as expected Yolinda did not drop it and Leo's eyes shot up into his head from frustration when she sat up, looked straight at him, and loudly complained: "Your mask stink! It's making me want to gag!""It doesn't stink, I washed it yesterday!" Leo loudly argued back.Yolinda sat back in the purple bean bag chair Donnie let her borrow, covered her nose with both hands again, and in an angry tone asked: "Didn't you go out on patrol last night?" referring to his new regular patrols of New York as a vigilante hero with his three likewise hero brothers."Yeah, so?" Leo asked in annoyance, keeping his eyes on the screen; before elbowing Mikey, telling him: "Play the movie," and popping a few more razzle berries into his mouth. But he flopped his head back against his bean bag chair and groaned loudly when Yolinda snapped: "Don't you have a backup mask or something?""Yeah, two," Leo groaned in reply without looking at her, before telling his bros: "Play the movie."Raph munched on popcorn and watched with a grin (thinking perhaps Yolinda was not his type after all, and frequently amused by her and Leo's antics) when she curtly demanded: "Put on one of your other masks!""Nooo," Leo loudly argued in return."Why not!?" Yolinda snapped in anger."Because it's not dirty!" Leo loudly yelled in anger, before complaining to Donnie in annoyance (directed at 'Scraps') "Would you play the movie already!?""Yes it is!" Yolinda yelled, her voice coming out high-pitched and squeaking on that last word.In frustration and wanting to finish watching the movie with his fam, Leo ripped off his mask by pulling it up over his head, balled it up in his hand, and snapped: "There, I took it off, happy!? Can we finish the movie now please!?"Yolinda calmed down, snuggled in beside him, and sweetly (with a condescending 'I won and you lost' undertone) said: "Yes."Leo put her arm back around her (with his mask still balled up in his hand) and when the silence continued his three brothers looked at them to make sure their argument was finally over. The slider calmly popped a few more berries into his mouth, and then the three other turtles in the room sat back, put their eyes on the projector screen, and Donnie resumed the movie.But their argument wasn't over. Yolinda had squeaked her voice in anger and Leo wanted to hear it again.The fight scene continued playing and right at the best part when JJ was about to blast the wicked moon men in the face with his atomic deatomizer, one corner of Leo's mouth went up in a sneaky grin and without warning he turned his head away from the screen to watch Yolinda's reaction when he suddenly stuffed his 'stinky' mask in her face."Ewww! Get that away from me!" Linda cutely yelled, squeaking her voice on the word 'away', and trying to push Leo's hand away from her face.Two of his three brothers groaned while Raph watched with amusement, munching away on popcorn, and Donnie paused the movie yet again while Leo's smile spread across his face and he playfully challenged: "Make me!"He leaned over to get his body closer to hers and watched her squirm around, trying unsuccessfully to snatch the blue mask out of his ninja turtle hand - the one he kept shoving close to her face and yanking away. Then he laughed from her squeaking her voice once more when she screamed: "STOP!!!"Leo had his fun, feeling satisfied with how his playful teasing got those cute squeaks out of the fox he loved (the fox he loved to pester), and he let her snatch the mask out of his hand and throw it on the floor, before wrapping both arms around her in a hug and looking at her face with love in his eyes, wanting to make sure he hadn't pushed her buttons too far and she wasn't actually mad at him.He got the reaction he was hoping for when Yolinda rolled her eyes and smiled at him before saying: "You can start the movie now," to Donnie.Leo hugged into her a little more snugly, still with that big grin on his face, his eyes sparkling with love and appreciation for her, and Donnie asked in all seriousness: "Are you sure?"Yolinda continued gazing into her boyfriend's eyes with hers likewise twinkling with love, and she told Dee: "Yeah, I'm sure.""Oookay," Donnie said skeptically, but he clicked play on the projector anyway and watched Jupiter Jim blast those nasty aliens in the face.Meanwhile Leo kept his eyes glued to the fox he loved instead of watching the movie with his family, because his mind was on something else right now. So he leaned his face in closer to Yolinda's and softly whispered in her pointed black fox ear: "You happy I took my mask off . . . chickie?"The mischievous slider got exactly the reaction he was digging for when Yolinda squeaked her voice twice when she yelled in anger: "Don't call me that, you know I don't like it!"The movie was paused again, Leo ignored his brothers groans to get off his bean bag chair and lean over Yolinda on the purple one she was sitting back in, smiling down on her, propping himself up on his arms with one hand on either side of her head to softly tell her: "You know I like it when you squeak your voice like that."That completely changed everything with Yolinda smiling up at him, blushing, and Leo's three bros stared at the cuddly couple with frowns on their faces (and a disgusted scowl on Donnie's - he was so going to have to incinerate that beanbag chair now). That was until Leo's smile stretched across his face and he softly asked the girl he loved:"I haven't shown you my stuffed unicorn yet, have I?"Yolinda giggled. "You have a stuffed unicorn?"Leo's smile grew, he leaned his face in closer to hers, and told her in a flirtatious tone: "Yeah. It's in my bedroom."Yolinda giggled again and blushed some more and the cute couple completely ignored the ruckus when Donnie jumped up, saying: "I've got some tech in my lab I need to finish working on," Mikey bolted, exclaiming: "I'll help you, Dee!" at the same time Raph nervously blurted out: "Uh, I think I hear pops calling my name!" despite the fact their ex-tv star rat dad was asleep in his bedroom.All three of them jumped up to rush out of the room before their brother started smooching with his girlfriend, leaving the two lovebirds alone.After they were gone, both Leo's and Yolinda's smile grew, and the red-eared slider leaned his face in close to hers so they could share in a passionate kiss before he planned on giving his new girlfriend a 'tour' of his bedroom.* * *~A Few Weeks Later~Bully was all better now and since he fully recovered from their fight against the Shredder - when he was badly injured protecting his beloved niece from a potentially deadly blow - he was in 'his' kitchen, cooking up a storm for the family who all got together on a Monday when the restaurant was closed, so they could enjoy a celebratory meal all together.Leo insisted on sitting in the scoundrel booth where he sat when he first came into this restaurant and his life forever changed, with Lindy cuddled up by his side, Mikey and Donnie sitting across from them, and a table pulled up to theirs where Hueso, and Bully would be sitting, and where Raph, Splinter, and April already were.Along with that wildly crazy Foot-turned-hero, Cassandra Jones, who managed to carve out a place for herself among their close knit family of heroes.At the moment Hueso was in the kitchen assisting Bully with his speciality pizzas, and everyone waiting in the dining area were chatting up a storm, with smiles all around.It wasn't long before two ex-pirates joined them, each holding an x-x-l pizza in their hands, one with human toppings and one yokai, that they plopped down on the tables before having a seat themselves."Al-right! Yokai food, finally something good for a change!" Leo exclaimed, grabbing a slice of his favorite to put on his plate, winking at his little brother and reassuring him: "Excluding chef Mikey's cuisine, of course.""You got that right, bro!" Michael enthusiastically agreed, reaching across the table for the human-type pizza."Hold up," Raph called out after everyone grabbed a slice and was about to start their meal. "We gotta eat to something!" he added with a big smile on his turtle face."How about to beating that ugly Shred-head!?" Mikey cheerfully suggested."What about to freedom?" Yolinda suggested, smiling at her ex-slave boyfriend.Leo smiled back, as was usual his eyes radiating love for her, but then he laughed out loud when Casey rose from her place, very dramatically clenching her fist in the air and exuberantly suggesting:"How about VANQUISHING our FOES," she clenched both hands in the air now, finishing with: "And CRUSHING ANY WHO OPPOSE US!!?"In response, Splinter groaned and said: "How about to getting home on time so I can watch my shows in peace?"Everyone laughed, including Casey and the turtles dad, because Splinter was just as happy to be here as the rest of them. Then Raph got a good idea when he raised his slice and suggested: "To heroes!""To heroes!" everyone cheerfully agreed."To family!" Hueso suggested next, smiling over his misfit family of ruffians and heroes."To family!" echoed the reply from all of them.Then, Leonardo Hamato gazed around at all the one he deeply and thoroughly loved - the ones he knew for a certainty loved him in return - and cheerfully suggested:"How about we eat to love?""Here here!" Bully exclaimed, pounding the table with one of his big fists as his way of saying he thought that was a great idea."Yeah! That's a good one!" Mikey happily agreed after that, before a choir of boisterous, joyfully voices all called out together:"To love!"And before taking his first bite of delicious pizza, Leo gazed around at all the smiling faces of his family surrounding him, feeling like things had finally turned out right for him, that there was no other place he'd rather be......and feeling happier than he had ever felt before in his entire life.