You belong to the devil

You would fit in so perfectly

From your head all the way to your feet

Yeah, the devil is all that you need

Not me

***

"I've told you time and time again- my name is Ferrall."

"I'm not stupid." 

"Then why do you insist on call me- that."

"Cause you're a Nutjob." 

"I am the most brilliant mind in all of the mafia!" 

"Not that you got much competition."

"A prodigy!"

"See, the thing about that is, I don't care."

"Enough!" Two fists slam down on the desk where he's been trying and failing to analyze the blood that he'd so rudely stolen from his current captive a third-fourth-fifth? time, and Raph raises an eye ridge from where he rests his head on his shoulder. "Anyone ever tell you, you got anger issues? Maybe you should see someone for that. Hear it helps." 

"I will not have my intellect challenged by a mutant." Nutjob hisses as he leaves his chair, the force and the wheels rolling it away from his desk. "You are here to learn your place!" 

"And you're a pretty sucky teacher." Raph cracks his neck, uncomfortable from remaining in one position for so long. "How 'bout you tell me something I don't know." 

His head spins with the motion, so he rests it against the cushioned surface, wondering why he can't be laid flat. At least then he can have the sleep that his body craves. Snore straight through this insane nerd work. 

Nutjob clenches his fists and seethes, and Raph smirks drowsily. Give him enough time and he can crack any calm exterior. He'd had enough experience messing with Leo to learn all the tricks. Aim for the insecurities and they'll start taking everything personally. So much natural skill that he doesn't even have to try. Honestly, it's too easy.

"If you don't shut up, I'm going to find a way to shut you up." 

"You do that." Raph wonders if he's going to run pouting from the room again, but he only scowls and turns back to his experiment. 

Raph has no idea what he's doing, and now he has an appreciation for Donnie's nonsensical rambles under his breath. At least he'd be able to follow along a bit, and he'd like to know what Nutjob's doing with his blood. Annoyingly enough, his captor has been less than forthcoming with any information.

...How long has he been there?

His brows furrow as he realizes that it feels like an eternity, but that can't be realistic. A couple hours, maybe? Nutjob had left and entered the room a few times, but there's no clock anywhere in the mad scientist's lab, so tracking time isn't exactly a part of the deal, even if it had occurred to him to do it. Had his brothers found Donnie? Are they okay?

As much as he hates the idea of being rescued like some pathetic damsel, he'd rather just get out of there already. Is Leo taking his sweet time with a rescue plan and his dorky ninja-stealth routine, or are they still trying to find him?

He squints at one of the circular lights. Huh. Actually. This doesn't look like the hotel's rundown-building decor. Where even is he?

He feels like he's already had this debate with himself, but his world is fuzzy around the edges and trying to remember anything is way more of a struggle than he'd signed up for. Not that he signed up for this. He just wanted to hit someone; not become a mad scientist's guinea pig.

Okay, this is some serious deja vu...

"Doc Ferrall?"

Raph turns his attention towards the door on the other end of the room as the new voice enters their space, and his eyes dilate in shock. 

"What the..."

A mutant bunny in some kind of jump suit enters the room with spiked-brass knuckles on his hands, and a blinking collar of sorts around his neck. He looks like an rougher Usagi, but his posture is more hunched and there's a permanent sneer etched on his face. He turns it on Raph, beady eyes looking him over with obvious distain, and all of Raph's instincts scream that he's trouble and absolutely not to be trusted. 

"One moment, Karl." 

The mutant- Karl? Seriously?- stops by the table with a dark look towards the oblivious scientist, and Nutjob walks over to Raph as the mutant rabbit catches him staring. The sneer turns into a disgusted grimace. "What are you looking at?"

Raph suddenly feels much more awake and much more likely to yank the whiskers off of him the second that he gets a chance. "Your ugly mug. Every heard of a shower, freakshow?" 

His snout twitches and his eyes darken, but his gaze darts from Nutjob and then to Raph, and his posture straightens, as if he's holding himself back. Raph grins. Karl's buttons are going to be so easy to smash. He'll find a use for that. 

If only for his own entertainment.

Still, Raph takes in the scraggly fur, muzzled snout, and clawed hands and feet with a skeptic disbelief. The gang hates mutants. Like, more than he hates cockroaches. Why would one be working with them? Why would one want to work with them? 

And what kind of a mutant name is Karl anyway? 

Bet anything Nutjob chose the name. Shoulda left it up to the experts. Mikey can come up with something way better.

Nutjob approaches and examines the burns. Raph cringes a bit when he makes contact, but not because there's pain. The burns are still there, but they're not as inflamed and they don't hurt anymore. He just hates the contact; the reminder that he's strapped down and completely vulnerable. He hates that. He hates this. He hates everything about this.

Nutjob scribbles down who knows what on his stupid clipboard, and then states, "Just as I thought. Accelerated healing factor. These burns should be gone by the time I'm ready for the tests. Perfect."

"Tests?" Raph repeats blearily. 

He's ignored. Rude.

"Karl, take care of the mutant. I want him fed and rested before we begin. If Raphael passes out from blood loss, that's on you." 

He can almost hear the way Karl's teeth clench as he agrees, "Yes, Ferrall." 

Raph watches as the mutant bunny approaches, and adrenaline kicks in as he becomes acutely aware of his surroundings. His posture remains slumped and his eyes don't leave the new danger, but he's already located several plausible weapons. All he has to do is get to them. 

The mutant rabbit undoes the strap around his plastron and then presses a button on the control panel that he can't see. The shackles release, and Raph falls into a unsteady crouch.

Freedom! Finally!

Time to teach some lessons of his own.

His gaze darts to the mutant reaching down to haul him to his feet and he pops up like a jack-in-the-box, punching him square in the jaw. Karl lets out a cry of fury and pain, and Raph doesn't give him a chance to recover, switching into a roundhouse kick as furry hands move up to clutch his face. The mutants goes flying, and Raph drops to one knee, a knuckle resting against the floor as he gets his bearings. 

The room is whirling way faster than it should be considering he wasn't spinning anymore, and he shakily gets to his feet, stumbling a bit.

There's something seriously wrong with him, but he doesn't have the time to really consider what that is, because the mutant bunny is getting up. He grabs the tray of equipment from beside the not-table and chucks it at the bunny, and when Karl lifts his arms to protect his face, Raph uses the distraction to dart towards the door. 

Come on- come on- ACK!

He goes down hard as a massive weight slams his shell and he instinctively tucks his head and limbs in. The new weight distribution makes his shell roll and his startled assailant flies off of him, allowing Raph the chance to pop out. Scanning his surroundings that are just a blur of colors at this point, he scrambles to his feet. He blinks rapidly, forcing his vision to sort itself out. 

The rabbit is watching him, a twisted grin on his features. "Where do you think you're going?" 

Raph slips into a defensive stance. "Far from here." 

"You don't even know where you are." 

Raph shrugs and the area where his lightning scar used to be stings. His eyes narrow, gaze momentarily darting between Karl and the door. If he can get him to move, then he has a clear shot to it. Raph readies his stance. "Doesn't matter. Now give me your best shot, freakshow." 

The grin looks straight up malicious at this point and he squats. Raph's eyes widen when jumps- launching himself forward and closing the space between them like a freakin' rocket! 

Raph's barely able to duck out of his way, slamming his shoulder into a shelf and shattering several objects on the ground around him. Owowowow, mutant bunny- cheating mutant bunny- 'course he's a superpowered mutant stupidstupidstupid-

He rises to his feet with panted breaths, not giving them a second thought as he raises his fists, refusing to give in when the exit was right there- wait, whyyy are there two bunnies now- there should not be two- three?- no, two bunnies-

Furred hands claw into his shoulders before he realizes that Karl moved and now he's picked up to be unceremoniously hurled into a wall. He lands on his plastron, trying to get his shaking hand to raise him up, only for it to slip on the smooth floor. A shadow comes over him as he wills his aching body to move, and then he's being dragged up by his arm, slammed into the hard surface behind him a second time.

He gasps when a fist meets lower plastron, the sound of metal scraping scutes. The hits increase in speed and strength, and then he hears a voice, muffled by the mix of fear and rage that has his brain pounding. The blows stop and his body can't seem to decide where it wants the majority of the pain to be coming from, so it all mixes everywhere at once. 

Raph glares at the blur of rabbit, barely conscious of a sudden pressure closing around his throat- wait, why is there a-

"Karl. Enough." A sharp voice rings out again. Oh, great, Nutjob's still here. "I still need him." 

The grip around his neck tightens a smidge before the hand releases, "Yes, Ferrall."

He's dropped the ground and he lets his body sag, staring at the floor as the surface seems to ripple and swim before him. He closes his eyes, swallowing down the groan that wants to escape, not about to show any more weakness than he already has. 

"Bring him here."

"You heard him. Get up." A furred foot knocks against his plastron. "Now."

Raph turns his face away in rebellion, panting as his stomach twists in a silent threat, and then the claws are digging into his abused shoulders again, and he's lurched to his feet. His body isn't the only thing that lurches, and his most recent meal decides to join the party, which earns him a disgusted cry and a swift meeting with the floor. 

He curls up on his side, trying to swallow the burning that's demanding another release, arms coming up to hold his plastron, begging it to stay in. His pulse is pounding in his brain, and he can feel the tremors across his body, a flash of cold traveling from his neck and down his back. 

There are inaudible, swirling voices nearby, and he wonders how much trouble he's going to be in when Leo finds out he's been training while sick. 

 He doesn't know how long he lays there, but the trembling slowly dies away, and maybe he dozes off, because he jerks when something makes contact with his arm. 

He doesn't know why all of his senses are on high alert, but his brain pounds with the new rush of adrenaline, and he's aware when he's being cautiously raised up, set against the wall as a bottle is shoved in his hand. His fingers instinctively close around it as he stares down at the black object, and then he raises the shaking hand, pushing aside the voice in the back of his mind that warns that it's not a good idea.

What are his brothers going to do? Poison him? 

As if.

It's thick and gooey, and he can taste a couple different fruits in the taintedly sweet concoction. Mikey must have made him a weird excuse for a smoothie. 

He's surprised there's no pizza aftertaste, but he's not arguing. He lowers it to breathe, feeling a bit better now that there's something in him. "Th-Thanks." 

"Yeah, get over yourself."

His eyes shoot open because that voice belongs to none of his brothers, and a scowling rabbit sorts himself out above him, glaring down at him as if he's the personal cause of all his problems. In a flood of memories, Raph knows where he is and where the smoothie is from, and he chucks it, heels instinctively kicking to push him further against the wall. 

Beady eyes narrow as he goes to retrieve the bottle, tossing it back at him. It rolls and bumps his feet, but Raph makes no moves to pick it up. 

"Drink. It."

A part of Raph wants to, because in all honesty that stuff was good, but he keeps his arms safely at his chest as he glares defiantly. "Make me." 

Evidently rabbits can snarl, because this one does. "It's supposed to help you, idiot. You're going to ruin yourself at this rate." 

"Good. Maybe I'll ruin your master's little tests too." Raph leans against the wall, his pulse in his brain as it rests against the cool surface. The rabbit bristles in offense, and Raph makes note of the fact he struck a nerve. Even if he can't resist physically, he's never had any issues rebelling with words. Something him and Donnie had in common. 

His stomach churns as his little brother's scared gaze and pale face appears in his mind's eye. The guys better have found you, Don. They better be on their way.

"You're not going to last five minutes in his tests." The rabbits threatens in a low tone. 

Raph isn't dumb enough to pretend it's a warning. The haunted glint slowly turns malicious, like he's slowly warming up to the idea- excited by it even. "Each one's going to be worse than the last, testing everything you got. If he doesn't get what he wants, Doc'll make you do them again. Over and over and over. And when you break, he'll tear you apart, stitch you back together, and then start all over again."

There's almost a breathless thrill in the mutant's voice, and it sends a shiver down his back. He narrows his eyes in disgust, masking the unease settling in his bones. He doesn't know what half of that means, but he knows that the rabbit believes what he's saying, and he knows that it won't bode well for him. 

He wishes he could pretend that Karl is lying, but denial isn't going serve any real purpose. 

His brothers are going to come for him eventually, and he's going to need to be ready. 

He pointedly looks away from the sociopath as he lifts the bottle, casually resuming downing the fruity concoction as Karl smirks smugly. Let the rabbit think he's won. The guys are already going to be in enough trouble breaking in here; they don't need his shell weighing them down when they get back out.

Karl shifts and Raph allows his gaze to travel back to him, watching as he grabs rope and cloth from the floor of the overturned shelf. Raph uses the wall to help steady himself as he gets into a defensive crouch, bottle gripped tightly in his hand. 

The rabbit stretchs the rope so it's taut, approaching with leveled glare. "These are going on you whether you like it or not. But go ahead, fight me again. I'm sure that'll go great." 

He summons new strength. "Don't think your master would like you messing me up." 

"Ferrell isn't here." He grins, twisting the rope. "Besides, I'm supposed to discipline his projects."

Projects? Plural?

 "What're you gonna do with that anyway?" He challenges, weighing his options. He's reasonably certain that mutant was on the verge of suffocating him the last time they fought, and he knows that this is a battle that he can't win. He's impulsive, not stupid.

The rabbit looks frustrated with the question. "Take you to your room. Keeping you from memorizing the route or getting any ideas." He holds up the blindfold and then the rope, and Raph blinks in surprise. "My... Room?"

"You didn't think you'd be staying in the main lab, did you?" Karl scoffs. Raph bristles, resisting the urge to pounce as he gets closer. He judges his very limited options and then decides that- as much as the idea grates on his pride- playing along is the best one he's got.  

Raph stands and the mutant pauses, warily waiting to see what he does. 

Ha. He's totally all up in his head.

Raph casually finishes the bottle, slightly disappointed when it's empty, and then tosses it to the side and holds out his arms. They're positioned like a fugitive waiting to be handcuffed, smirking with mock obedience at his scowling captor. Karl hesitates a moment more before stepping closer like he's approaching a wild animal. Raph is tempted to make a sudden motion to see if he jumps, but he remains still, innocently raising an eye ridge.

The rabbit stops in front of him and he presses his wrists together, tilting one just enough so the purposeful position isn't notable. He gets a suspicious side-eye as his hands are tied and then the mutant goes to cover his eyes. It's unnerving to be tied up and sightless, but he relaxes his arms and feels the rope loosen, and he feels better. 

He tauts it when the rabbit finishes, listening as he walks to his front and then grabs his bicep, harshly jerking him in the direction that the door sat. He stumbles over his own feet, and he's already beyond tired of standing for this treatment. 

He's a ninja, not some stubborn mutt!

Raph yanks himself free and ducks away from the hand that he knows will reach for him, taunting, "Back off, freakshow. Just cause I'm blindfolded doesn't mean my legs don't work." 

A frustrated snort and he snaps, "I'm supposed to lead you."

"Yeah, well, I'm not a ragdoll. I'm a person." Raph huffs, moving to the side when he hears the thump of a padded paw and smirking with pride at the growl, assumably because he missed his mark. "No matter what your master thinks." 

"He is not my master."

"Whatever." Raph juts his chin in the direction of his voice, "You gonna lead me? Fine. Lead me. But I can walk."

"I'm going to enjoy watching you hurt." Is the dark hiss. 

Karl grabs his arm, but it's more of a tug than a jerk this time, and Raph allows it. He grins as he's pulled from the room, letting his other senses take the lead as they travel down a hall. Their steps echo, which means this corridor is way too quiet, and the air tastes like Donnie's lab when he experiments with smoking concoctions for a few days straight. He wrinkles his beak, debating what this means as he's turned.

He steps forwards, and a foot touches air. 

The grip shoves and he falls, but he uses the momentum to duck as small as he can and flips. There's the sensation of flying through the air before he miraculously manages to land in an unsteady crouch. He almost toppled over, but he manages to catch his balance, and once he's steady, he lifts a leg to examine his surroundings. He quickly realizes that his estimation is correct, and he almost crashed down a stairway.

He lifts himself up, heart in his throat as he tries to ignore the panicking voice in the back of his mind which warns that he's about to topple down at any second-

Casual steps stomp down behind him, and Raph forces his breath to steady. "What- What are you trying to do? Kill me?"

"Was worth a try." 

Raph scowls as the furred hand grabs him and pulls him down, and he's more cautious with each step, ready for an abrupt shove down the rest of the staircase. He decides that it's about time that he gets some information, and testing tempers is always the best way to do it. 

"What's up with Nutjob anyway?" He grumbles.

"Nutjob?"

"Your master." 

"Ferrall."

"Nutjob." 

He earns a frustrated growl. It is pointy ignored. "I thought the mafia hated mutants."

"The mafia does. Ferrall finds them fascinating."

Raph can't get a read on how his captor feels about that. "If he wanted an autograph, he could have just asked." 

"He wants way more than an autograph. Way more than you can even give."

"Wow. You could not be more cryptic."

"You'll find out. And if I'm lucky, by then it'll be too late." 

What is with this guy...  "That why he got you as a pet? Cause you're oh-so fascinating?"

"I am no one's pet." 

"You have a collar and you obey his whiney commands." Raph states unapologetically. "Sure sounds like a model pet to me."

Now Karl's huffy. "You don't know anything about me."

"Alright then." He tries not to smirk. Bingo. "Why do you work for Nutjob, freakshow?" 

"That is not our names."

"Better than doc and Karl. What kind of name is Karl anyway?"

"My parents gave me that name! There is nothing wrong with that name!" 

Raph feels kinda guilty for that. Didn't mean to disrespect the guy's parents. Just the guy. He shrugs as they turn and cross flat ground. "Meh. Figured Nutjob named you. You were human before rabbit?"

"I don't think I should be talking to you." 

"Says who?" Raph challenges. "Master Ferrell? You're just supposed to be a good little bunny and shove his new pet in its cage? Oh, I get it. You jealous master might get a new favorite?"

"Shut up!" 

"Don't worry, freakshow." The grip around his arm tightens. "I don't plan on being here long." 

"Well, you better plan on it." He's thrown forward and looses his balance, landing on his side and skidding across a cool, coarse floor. The rabbit's ringing voice tells him that they're no longer in the hall, and he remains still as Karl snarls, "Because what Ferrall wants, Ferrall gets. And he wants to tear you down and build you up again. And honestly? I can't wait to watch." 

The door slams shut behind him and Raph rolls his eyes. Drama queen.

He sits up, rotating and wriggling his hands under the rope and then using his teeth to catch one of the loosening strings. He locks his jaw and tugs, feeling the ropes come undone and fall on his legs. He takes off the blindfold and dismissively tosses it behind him, getting to his feet to examine his new 'room'. 

A room is a very accurate description, because that's all it is. A large, empty room.

There's a tiny circular drain in one corner of it and a round light too far above him to reach. The area is barely big enough to do wheelbarrows across, and he circles it for a few bored minutes before spotting a vent that's far too thin to fit any lifeform. The door is composed of metal that's a slightly darker grey than the walls, and there are no windows, so escape is incredibly unlikely. 

He tests the knob just in case.

Locked. Big surprise there.

He walks to the corner furthest from the door and plops down with a frustrated groan, glaring up at the dim lighting. Supposedly, he's supposed to be resting, not that he could possibly sleep after all that, but they aren't even considerate enough to give him a bed. All that time in the lab, and he doesn't even have proper living quarters ready.

Captain Ryan treated his hostages better than this, and that guy's a serious jerkaholic. 

Raph runs a hand down his face and realizes that he's maskless. His heart skips a beat in panic, because the mask is practically a part of his identity. It connects him to his brothers, and his Sensei- his father gifted him that color.

A harsh rage is upon him before he realizes it, and he cries out, slamming his fists into the ground. His breaths come out in heavy snarls, and he grinds his teeth, recalling what Sensei always said about his outbursts. Save it until he can use it.

Oh, he'll use it alright.

Once using the floor as a punching bag is off the agenda, he notes how ironic it is that after all that, a missing piece of clothe is what sets him off.

He pulls his legs to his chest, adjusting his body into a defiant bundle, all-too conscious of his lack of gear and irritated that there's no one to take his anger out on. He glares at the white blindfold on the ground, plain and absent of the scarlet that belongs to him, and then turns away, as if defying it. 

What did it matter?

It was just a stupid mask anyway. He'll get a new one when he gets out.

His grip on his legs tighten. "Come on, Leo. I can hold them off, but these psychopaths have everything but my best interests at heart. I'm serious- if they cut me open, I'm never going to let any a' you live it down. Ever."

He swallows down the nerves, sending them bouncing around in his chest. He can handle it. It's just a whack-job scientist and his incredibly violent pet bunny. He's a mutant warrior, a trained ninja, a Hamato. He's dealt with far more maniacal people, on and off world. 

He doesn't have to like it, but he can handle it.

Still...

He brings his arms up and leans his forehead against them, letting his stinging eyes close. "I'm right here, guys. Find me."