Song: Papercut - Linkin Park

I lead the way out of the sewer tunnels. I remove a manhole cover and peer out. The stars are glittering in the sky, shedding light on the mysterious streets. A nearby streetlight flickers as if it's about to burn out. Large buildings create walls on every side, caging me in. The shaded alleys blanket secrets, but I sense no danger from them... For now.

   I scan the area carefully. When I spot no movement, I look over my shoulder at the team behind me.

   "It's clear. Follow me," I order. I pull myself expertly out of the manhole and wait for everyone else to do the same.

   Raphael and Donatello follow instantly. Casey and April are a bit slower, but not enough to make a big deal.

   I left Michelangelo at home. As soon as Elizabetta had stomped out of Donatello's lab, Michelangelo only cared about her. He tried to convince me to bring her with us, but it's much too dangerous. She doesn't know Ninjutsu at all, and I am not about to get my team in trouble for her sake again.

   I also don't want Elizabetta being left alone in the lair. I'm still not sure if she is who she claims she is, or if she's well enough to wander around the city. So, leaving Michelangelo behind is a good precaution. Though he probably won't hurt Elizabetta if it comes down to it.

   "Donnie, rooftops or sidewalk?" I ask the witty turtle.

   "Rooftops," Donatello replies without hesitation. "The sidewalks are clear now, but they won't be further along if the Kraang or Footbots are guarding the rubble."

   I nod. "To the roof, team."

   The five pursue me as I grapple my way to the top of a restaurant. I help April onto the roof, though she doesn't really need it. Then we speed along the rooftops as one.

   I can't deny the feeling of freedom as cold night air soars around me. I feel like a bird as I leap from one structure to another. My heart rate increases from the rush. My fingertips tingle with every jump I make.

   We finally reach our destination and the rush subsides. I look back at my companions and put a finger to my lips, warning them to stay quiet. I poke my head partially over the edge of the roof. What I see is possibly the worst thing I could've expected.

   Where the Kraang building once stood is taped off and surrounded. Police officers line the sidewalks. They yell things at each other from across the debris. As if that isn't annoying enough, their obnoxiously loud cars are piled in the streets, making matters worse.

   I frown and slink away from the edge, back to my team. "Bad news. The rubble is surrounded by police. There's no way we can get down there without being seen," I explain, discouraged.

   "What are we going to do?" Raphael asks. "We didn't come all this way to turn back!" he adds, almost as if he is daring me to call a retreat.

   Casey pulls out his hockey stick. "I can create a distraction," he volunteers.

   April shakes her head. "You don't need to risk getting arrested. We'll find another way," she disagrees.

   "I can hack into a burglar alarm down the road," Donatello suggests. "If I set it off, the police should be more interested in that than this pile of debris."

   Just as he finishes his last sentence, an alarm sounds faintly in the distance.

   "That was fast," I say to Donatello, impressed.

   "It wasn't me," the purple-clad turtle admits. "It must be a real burglary."

   I peek over the roof of the building again to see what's happening below. The police officers are scrambling into their cars and onto their motorcycles. Every last one of them heads toward the alarm sound.

   Then, it is silent.

   "Alright, ninjas," I say boldly. "Fall in."

   We all leap off the roof as one. We land easily and begin rummaging through the wreckage. There isn't much to see; it's mostly broken concrete and mini ash piles. But we have to make sure nothing dangerous is hiding.

   We begin a monotone process of lifting, shifting, and repeat. After only five minutes, I think I'm going to die of boredom. Then I see it. A shape of a dagger lying in between two concrete chunks.

   I push one of the obstacles to the side and retrieve the weapon. I run my fingers over the leather pouch. It's black all the way around, probably from the explosion. Unable to resist, I yank the dagger out and I'm surprised to see it's in perfect condition. The blade reflects the curious look on my face. The handle is engraved on the bottom saying, 'Game on'.

   Something grabs me by my arm. I gasp as I'm dragged behind a building several meters away. I finally jerk out of the grip; but when I spin around, I realize it's just Raphael.

   "What's wrong with you?" he demands accusingly. "We told you to hide and you didn't even look up. What is that?" He pauses and looks down at the weapon in my hands.

   "It's a dagger," I explain. "I found it over-"

   Before I could continue, I spot two men racing down the sidewalk on the other side of the street. One is tall and thin, while the other is short and stocky. They're being pursued by three police officers on foot. They yell things like "Stop!" and "You're under arrest!", but the other men kept running.

   A police car follows them and everything is quiet again.

   "Who was that?" April asks as we come out from behind the building.

   "I have no idea," I confess, just as confused as her.

   "They could have been the burglars from the break-in down the street," Donatello points out. "They're probably the ones who set off the alarm."

   "That's the cops' problem," Raphael steps in. "Let's finish this job and go home." He is not in a good mood for some unknown reason.

   We get back to work. Lift, shift, repeat. Moving the chunks of cement sends dust into the air. The clouds of it continue to grow, earning a few sneezes from my team every couple of minutes. I fight these snotty urges by holding my breath for as long as I can.

   By the time we finish, Donatello has only collected half a container of mutagen from random puddles under the debris.

   "It's not much, but it's all that's here," Donatello sighs. "At least nothing will accidentally mutate if they stumble across this wreckage."

   Suddenly, April lets out a scream. I spin around just in time to see her in a head-lock of a Footbot. As I glance around the area, several more Footbots creep out of the shadows.

   "April!" Donatello shouts in horror.

   "Finally, something fun!" Raphael exclaims as he whips out his sais. Casey jumps to his best friend's side, glaring at the 'bots before they both launch themselves into battle.

   Donatello goes to April's aid immediately, so I'm on my own. Four Footbots race at me from different sides. Storing the dagger safely in my belt, I pull out my twin katanas and charge at one. I fake a left lunge to confuse the 'bot, and then I swing my swords from the right side. The Footbot falls to the ground, decapitated.

   Two Footbots grab onto my shoulders and try to hold me still, while the third points a taser toward me.

   "Argh!" I scream as I kick the taser away. I flip the Footbots that are holding onto me and use my katanas to knock out the third.

   I look around. Raphael and Casey seem to be doing fine as they fight in one movement. Donatello, however, is struggling to keep the Footbots off of April. And April shouting, "I can do this myself, Donnie!" isn't encouraging him.

   I race over and tackle a 'bot that is sneaking up on April. "You should be grateful for the help," I grunt to the red-head as another enemy jumps on my back. "One day, you might not have it." I roll onto my back to crush the 'bot and don't waste a second getting back to my feet.

   Donatello is in a skirmish with three Footbots at once. I sneak behind them and send some shurikens at them. Two fall down, but the remaining one turns on me. Before it can even reach me, however, Donatello takes it out with his bo-staff.

   I witness Casey yelling "Goongala!" as he destroys another Footbot. The rest of the 'bots retreat back into the shadows. Then there's silence once more.

   "Ouch," April mutters. She has blood oozing out of a scratch on her arm.

   "Are you ok?!" Donatello asks in alarm, his russet eyes wide with horror.

   "Do you need a bandage, Red?" Casey persists; and though he tries to play it cool, he looks just as freaked out as Donatello does. "I could go find one."

   "I'm fine, guys. I'll survive." April shakes her head to clear it. "But I think I should head home."

   "Don't you think I should take you back to lair and have a look at that?" Donatello questions her anxiously.

   "I'll be fine, Donnie, but thank you." April gives him a small smile. "Goodnight, guys."

   Casey follows her down the sidewalk. "I'll walk you there," he tells her.

   Once they disappear, Donatello's eye starts twitching angrily. I place a hand on his shoulder to calm him down.

   "It's not worth it. Let's go home," I say. Raphael and I lead the way, with Donatello reluctantly following us.

   On the way, a question occurs to me that I didn't think of earlier. "Why would the Foot Clan want mutagen? I thought that was the Kraang's obsession," I observe out loud.

   "I don't know," Donatello mumbles. He can't seem to care any less at the moment, and I know it's because he's thinking about a certain pair of human friends.

   I should be worried about Donatello's jealousy problem, why the Foot Clan wants mutagen, and why the dagger I found wasn't blown up.  However, they are replaced with a more pressing matter:

   I really hope Michelangelo didn't trash the lair with a dance party. Again.