(Y/N blinked open his eyes, vision blurry, to see stones just past his mouth.)

"Where am I? Fuzzy."

(He turned her head at the groggy voice. Familiar, but he couldn't remember the owner's name. There was a blur of green-and-red beside her. Whoever it was got to their feet, putting a hand to their head before looking down at him.)

"Y/N? Y/N, are you awake?"

Raph. Now the name came to her as his vision cleared slowly and he found himself looking up at the hothead. He groaned, gingerly getting to his feet. "Yeah, I'm awake." Everything hurt, especially his head. He felt like he'd gotten slammed by a semi-truck. "How did we...?" He let the unfinished question hang in the air.

Raph shook his head. "Can't remember."

(He blinked, looking around the room. Y/N scanned the place. A small space big enough for the two of them. Dark brick walls. Lit only by the single dim ceiling light. A silver security camera in the corner.)

"No doors or windows," she noted.

(A few bricks pulled away from the walls to create small, dark openings.)

"Huh? What?" Raph looked into one of the openings. "Hello?" The opening lit up gold to show a grate. "Aah! Hot!" He stumbled away from the opening as the other ones lit up, heating up the room.

(Y/N's ears flattened and he whined involuntarily. Heat was probably the worse thing for the two of them. His fur meant he got hot easily. As for Raph, well, the fact he was a turtle meant constant, extreme heat didn't mix well with him.)

"It's just getting hotter," Raph groaned.

Y/N's vision started to blur again. "There's no...way...out..."

(His legs gave out beneath him, sending him collapsing to the floor as everything went dark.)

https://youtu.be/0m-PZ2Toupc

Teenage Mutant Ninja Brothers

Teenage Mutant Ninja Brothers

Teenage Mutant Ninja Brothers

Heroes in the shadows

Ninja Power!

Here we go!

It's the lean, mean, ninja team

On the scene, cool teens doin' ninja things

So extreme, out the sewer, like laser beams

Get rocked with the Shell-shocked Pizza Kings

Can't stop these radical dudes

The secret of the ooze made the chosen few

Emerge from the shadows, to make their moves

The good guys win and the bad guys lose

Leonardo's the leader in blue

Does anything it takes to get his ninjas through

Donatello is a fellow, has a way with machines

Raphael has the most attitude on the team

Michelangelo, he's one of a kind, And you know just where to find him when it's party time!

Y/N, he's a roaring cat, and he'll protect what, he loves, and that's a fact!

Master Splinter taught them every single skill they need

To be one lean, mean, green, incredible team!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Brothers

Teenage Mutant Ninja Brothers

Teenage Mutant Ninja Brothers

Heroes in the shadows

Ninja Power!

-- SIX HOURS EARLIER --

"How's it going, guys?" Raph asked, the hothead in the lab with Y/N and the others, except Ethan who was topside, getting some air with Chloe. "Any luck?"

"We've been able to synthesize the neurotoxin from the brain worm based on yours and Y/N's blood sample," Timothy responded, holding a petri-dish with the toxin.

"Ooh, pretty." Mikey looked at the beaker filled with a peach-colored mixture. He went to touch it, but Shen smacked his hand away. "You think it'll work on Karai?"

"It's gotta work..." Riki muttered, tail-tip flicking anxiously. Y/N put a hand on her shoulder, though she didn't look any calmer.

Y/N: Thanks for coming by Sis.

Riki: I care about Karai, I have to be here.

"We're about to find out."

(Donnie took some of the green mixture he and Timothy had been making into a dropper. He held the dropper over the beaker and squeezed out a drop into the mixture. Everyone watched, waiting for a reaction. The chemicals began to bubble. The anticipation built as the mixture turned dark purple, foaming up and overflowing the flask, onto the table.)

(Both scientists groaned at the failed experiment, both lowering their heads.)

"You tried your best, guys, even if it totally sucked," Mikey commented.

(Y/N rolled his eyes. He knew he was just trying to be reassuring, but sometimes the way he tried to offer comfort unintentionally came across as a backhanded insult.)

He jumped, slightly startled as Timothy slammed his fists against the table. "Aah! It's useless! We're not even close! We can't do it. This brain worm is impossible!"

(Y/N stared at his brother. Timothy had a tendency to be a calm and show off some serious attitude, but he was normally fairly even tempered when it came to failed experiments. He always said he enjoyed the challenge.)

(And, admittedly, Timotyh was justified in her outburst. He and Donnie had spent so much time, so many nights in the lab, allowing themselves only the barest hours of sleep, hardly allowing themselves breaks. They'd tried so hard to come up with this cure and it had all resulted in nothing.)

Donnie dropped into his chair, throwing his hands over his eyes with a sigh. "Sensei, mother, I'm afraid there's nothing we can do." He looked up at his father and mother regretfully.

"I know how hard the two of you have tried," Sensei responded. "Some things are simply not meant to be." He turned and headed for the doors, while Shen stayed behind. 

Shen:  At least we have six wonderful sons, and a wonderful grandson." (Grabs Donnie's chin)

(Tsunade is Shen and Donnie is Naruto)

(Shen left, following Splinter while Y/N winced. He knew that was supposed to be comforting, but to Donnie and Timothy, it must have just sounded like the biggest guilt trip in the universe.)

There was a pause, and Timothy let out a tense breath, his angry expression crumbling into determination. "We can do this. I know we can. There has to be something we're missing. Some...some obvious answer we're just overlooking." he sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I don't know what else to try..."

Riki slung an arm around his shoulders. "Maybe you two just need a break. It's hard to think clearly when you're frustrated." She took Timothy's and Donnie's wrists to tug them toward the doors. "C'mon. You two aren't allowed back in here for a few hours, alright? You need to relax. The answer will come to you, I just know it."

(Neither of them resisted or protested, letting Riki lead them out of the lab and into the main room. Y/N followed them and everyone else scattered to do their own things.)

"Guys, you know how much this means to Sensei," Leo protested, following Y/N, Riki, Timothy, and Donnie into the living room.

"Leo, we're trying as hard as we can," Donnie responded.

"Well, try harder!"

(All of them blinked in surprise at his angry tone. Timothy's ears perked up and Donnie's back stiffened. Out of the corner of her eye, Y/N could see Raph, who'd been sitting on the couch, slowly put down the comic he was reading, his green eyes focused on Leo.)

Y/N: (Y/N's eyes narrowed.) You seriously did not just say that."

(Mikey muted the episode of Crognard he'd started, eyeing the group with concern. As scatterbrained as he was sometimes, even he noticed when something was going down. He knew quite well how stubborn Leo could be, how easy it was for Raph and Y/N to get involved in any argument. Not to mention that Riki was still here. She never stood for anyone insulting her family, whether intentional or not, even if the insult came from another family member. Leo's words must have felt like an undeserved slap in the face to Donnie and Timothy and Y/N knew there was no way Riki would just stay out of this.)

(Sure enough, before Donnie or Timothy could even open their mouths to get a word in, Riki's eyes flashed with undisguised fury.)

Releasing Donnie and Timothy, she stormed up to Leo, ears flat. "Try harder?? How can you say that?" she snarled. "They've been working themselves to the bone to find a way to save Karai and you're telling them to 'try harder'? What is wrong with you?! They always have to find the solution! You're leadfer, Leo! You find the answer! Or what about Raph?? Or literally anyone but Donnie and Timothy because they are exhausted, Leo, and they need a break for once, you got that? So lay the heck off already!"

(Y/N took an automatic step back at the curse, eyes widening slightly.)

"I got the answer for you!" Raph snapped back. "Karai's a lost cause!"

Riki whipped around, a snarled retort at the ready, but Mikey got there first, giving his brother a shove. "Don't say that, dude!"

(Y/N took a few more steps back as the three and Leo started arguing, Timothy and Donnie joining in a moment later. Chloe was watching with wide eyes, looking slightly uneasy at the fact everyone was yelling at each other, including the calm and level-headed members of the team.)

Donnie's phone started ringing and he broke away from the argument to answer it. "Hey, April. Um, not the best time."

Y/N's ears twitched. He was close enough to hear April's voice across the line.  "Donnie, I really have to talk to you and Timothy, alone. It's important. I need you to two meet me."

"Shizukani!" Sensei called. Y/N turned his head, startled. He hadn't heard him come out of the dojo, but it was no wonder the others' yelling had caught his attention. Everyone else immediately stopped, falling silent. 

Shen: "What is the problem here?"

"Nothing, Sensei, Mother" Donnie responded bitterly, putting his phone away. "Timothy and I need to head out. April needs us." He walked past Sensei and Shen and towards the entrance.

(Shen arched a brow, one eye twitching, but he didn't hesitate to follow after him.)

"You're needed here now, guys," Leo argued. The two younger ninjas ignored him, jumping the turnstiles. "Guys!" Leo jumped the turnstiles to follow after them, everyone else gathering at the entrance as Donnie and Timothy jumped into the stealth bike and sewer cycle, driving off down the tunnel. "Guys!"

Riki growled, glaring at Leo as she jumped over the turnstiles. "This is all your fault! Why can't you understand they're doing their best?!"

"Stop it, now!" Y/N snapped, jogging through the turnstiles to shove between them. "Riki, you need to calm down, alright?"

"Me?" Riki yelped, staring at her in disbelief.

"Yes, you! You don't think straight when you get angry. Go to your room and meditate until you're calmer, okay?" Riki opened her mouth to argue, but Y/N cut her off. "Now."

(The cheetah's ears twitched as she glared irately at Y/N. The two of them had a glaring match for a couple of seconds as Riki's fists clenched. Then they loosened and some of the angry tension drained from her shoulders, her glare softening into understanding. She nodded and turned to walk away, muttering to herself under her breath, though looking slightly calmer. Y/N let out a relieved sigh and turned to face Leo.)

"Can you believe she blames me for this?" Leo started, stopping at the irritated look on Y/N's face.

Y/N: Yes, I can. Because she's right. Leo, you know Donnie and Timothy have been working day and night on Karai's cure. Why are you giving them such a hard time?"

Leo: Oh, what, you're siding with them? You're supposed to be on my side!"

Y/N: "You need to calm down and relax. I know you want to have Karai back for Master Splinter and Mother Shen, but why can't you see they're trying their hardest?"

Leo: Because it's not good enough, Y/N!"

Y/N: That's not up to you to decide, though, Leo! Can't you see how exhausted and stressed out they are? We both know they're the only ones who are able to do this kind of work and that's putting even more pressure on them!"

(He and Leo glared at each other and Y/N's tail twitched as he fought to contain her rising temper. He didn't need to be snapping at Leo right now and sparking another argument. But his hold was loosening with each passing second.)

Sighing, Y/N tried to speak calmly. "Look, Karai is Riki's sister. She wants her back as much as Master Splinter. Don't you think that'd inspire her to try as hard as she can? And Donnie and Timothy knows how much this means to Sensei, to Riki and Shen, and I. To you. He's trying just as hard as Timothy to find the solution and fix this. But there's only so much they can do, alright? Telling them to try harder when they're trying as hard as they can isn't fair to them. You wanna try being the scientist of the family, the one who's always relied on to fix problems like this? 'Cause I can tell you right now, from what I've seen of Timotyh and Donnie, you wouldn't like it."

(He turned to stalk off into the lair, jumping the turnstiles and turning toward the bedrooms. As he headed down the hallway, he heard Sensei's voice behind him.)

Splinter: My children, you cannot drive each other apart. In times like these, unity is important. Do not forget the most basic lesson. An effective team thinks as one."

(Racing through the streets, Donnie reached the alley that April had told him to go to. He opened the panels of the stealth bike and climbed out, Timothy right behind him on the sewer cycle. His ears twitched and swiveled. No sign of April. Donnie pulled out his phone to message her so she'd know they were there. Maybe she hadn't arrived yet or was hiding. Even with the Kraang gone there was still the ever-present threat of Shredder's goons or his Footbots catching one of them out in the open. Not to mention the general public... Timothy still shuddered remembering when Joan Grody nearly exposed all of them on TV and told all of New York they were a bunch of child-eaters because that was something that would earn ratings.)

"Donnie, Timothy." Looking up, Timothy saw April standing at the other end of the alley.

Timothy: (Thoughts) Where'd she come from? It's like she just materialized out of nowhere... 

(He didn't question it. April was being trained as a kunoichi; maybe she'd improved her stealth.) 

April: The Kraang are back.

(She opened the bay door she stood in front of, a familiar purplish-pink light glowing from within. This felt impossible; they'd defeated the Kraang and sent them back to Dimension X. If they'd returned, wouldn't Timothy and the others have noticed? Still, if they had really returned, this was too serious for her, Donnie, and April to deal with alone.)

"We've got to contact the others!" Donnie stated.

"There's no time," April said, her voice an urgent whisper. "They're about to get away. We got to move!" She entered the building and ran out of Timothy's line of sight.

(Timothy's eyed this with suspicion. An anxious feeling told her this wasn't how April would act. Her instincts screamed louder for her to grab his brother and bolt. But...this was April...their friend... She knew what she was doing...right?)

"April, wait!" Donnie rushed toward the bay doors after her.

(Timothy hesitated, overwhelmed with an anxious feeling telling her to leave. Logic and instinct told him to get the others on this, to get on the sewer cycle and get as far away as possible. But his heart didn't want to leave April and Donnie in danger, particularly if this could very well be as the red-head said_. If Timothy abandoned them and they got captured or worse, he'd never forgive himself.)

(Against all reason, Timothy pursued his brother and friend into the building, only to cry out in alarm upon seeing Rocksteady barreling toward him. The bay door slammed shut courtesy of Bebop. His ninja training kicked instantly into gear and in one fluid motion he drew his ninja gauntlets and flipped out of the way of the oncoming charge, narrowly avoiding being smashed into a wall.)

(Unfortunately, Razar anticipated this and he launched himself at him, claws bared. He dropped into a shoulder roll and came up on one knee, eyes scanning the room. Razar, Rocksteady and Bebop surrounded her. Not the brightest bulbs in Shredder's hench-mutant roster, but his heavy hitters. Donnie was nowhere in sight.)

"What you gonna do, man-child?" Bebop taunted, turning to stealth mode. Razar and Rocksteady circled him, occasionally feinting toward her, trying to distract her so she'd lose track of Bebop's approach.

"Just our luck, we got the weak one," Razar growled condescendingly.

"Dah," Rocksteady agreed. "He is powerless without his siblings to protect him. Even the little, stupid bunny and the girl are more of a challenge."

(They were trying to bait her into reacting and making a mistake. He was already aware that he wasn't the best or strongest fighter on the team, especially with his ninja gauntlets as his only weapons, but he was far from weak. Keeping a shuriken ready, he kept his eyes trained on the two large mutants, ears listening for the sound of anyone approaching. He was rewarded with a soft "he-he" from behind.)

(He spun around, slamming his fist into Bebop's face and hitting a vital part of his body. They sent jolts of pain through the warthog where they touched him, deactivating his cloaking device and stunning him as he was sent flying backward to lay prone on the ground. This caused a momentary distraction and Razar took the opening, rushing forward, one clawed hand raised into the air and ready to slice Timothy to ribbons.)

(Timothy flipped backward, narrowly dodging the skeletal claws. The sound of a gun cocking reached her ears. Before he could register it, he pitched forward as a rope slung around him, tightly pinning his arms to his sides. The force of the projectile bindings sent her toppling to the ground, dropping his gauntlets.)

"Surrender, little one," Lobo growled from behind him, lifting him by the collar.

(He should have known he'd been lying in wait. He'd been so focused on Razar, Rocksteady and Bebop, she'd never considered that there was another present threat.)

(Lobo carried him across the room to throw him down beside his brother, similarly bound. Timothy glared up at Tigerclaw and Lobo, spotting April approaching from behind him, leering evilly down at him and Donnie. That is, before he dissolved away, leaving Timothy staring at none other than Karai. She held a microphone-like device in her hands, possibly a voice modifier in order to mimic April's voice. Behind her were a couple of Stockman's Mousers, no doubt used to create her holographic disguise.)

Timothy: Aw, Sewer Apples, this was a trap!.

"Your pathetic feelings for O'Neil made it far too easy, Donatello," Karai gloated self-righteously. "And of course little Timothy would follow his brother anywhere."

"Oh, snap," Bebop laughed, "the turtle actually has a thing for that red-head girl?"

"Dah, I know," Rocksteady snorted. "It's like the Beauty and the Beast...except without all the dancing teacups."

"I knew you'd come if she called you," Karai continued. "Too bad that she'll never want to be more than just a friend, but that was always your lot in life, wasn't it? No one would ever love a pathetic freak like you."

"Why are you doing this?" Timothy demanded, glaring up at her. He knew that Karai was trying to bait Donnie with her poisonous words.

"Oh, no particular reason...at least not where you're concerned." Karai smirked derisively at them as she waltzed to where Donnie dropped his T-phone. "I don't particularly care about any of you. The only person I care about is Splinter. I want to see him break as he watches each of you breathe your last. And then I'll end his life."

"Listen to yourself, Karai!" Timothy yelled. "Killing Splinter will give you no satisfaction because this isn't what you want. Shredder is using a mind worm to force you into believing his delusions; you're nothing more than a living puppet to him now." Karai turned an annoyed glare on her before giving a sharp, silent nod. Rocksteady and Razar hauled Timothy up so she was standing before Karai punched him roughly in the gut. Timothy doubled over, coughing painfully as he felt the air leave his lungs.

"Leave him alone, Karai!" Donnie snapped.

"You lie just like your brothers do!" Karai snarled, wrenching Timothy's head back by his hair and holding the retractable claws of her metal handguards dangerously close to his mouth, making it crystal clear that his existence was in her hands.

"Look into your heart," Timothy wheezed, fighting to get his breath back and feeling cheesy that he was essentially quoting Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. "You know it to be true."

Karai's face was a mask of annoyance, but then a self-satisfied smirk crossed it as she released Timothy's hair. "Then I should be the one telling you that you will be assisting in the capture of the rest of your siblings," she said, holding up Donnie's T-phone. Riki's number was selected and dialing. She brought the voice modifier to her mouth, smirking smugly in Timothy's direction. Timothy opened his mouth to protest, but Tigerclaw forced a rag over his mouth to muffle any sound he made. Donnie was making muffled protests of his own beside him, hinting that he was also gagged.

"D, what up dude? Where you been?" Riki answered enthusiastically. Karai had the phone placed on speaker so Timothy could hear her black-haired sister's voice.

"Hey, Riki," Karai answered conversationally in Donnie's voice. "Is Mikey with you?"

"Sure is, dude."

"Good. Meet me at Murakami's. He's made this special pizza gyoza that you got to try, dude." She switched the modifier to make her sound like Timothy. "Now, listen, you can't tell the others. He only has a sample for the four of us."

(Timothy's eyes widened in horror and he tried to scream, yell, warn them somehow, but Tigerclaw's hand prevented her. And what was worse was that the rag had a strong, vaguely sweet smell that was quickly making him drowsy. Chloroform. He tried to struggle, but his brain fogged over with the same disorienting numb feeling that one feels when they're about to faint. His vision started to waver as a ringing slowly filled his ears.)

"That kind of makes me feel bad... Okay, I'm over it!"

"See you soon, dude."

(Timothy heard their voices, but they sounded distorted and far away. And then, there was nothing but blackness. Karai got close to Timothy and whispered in his ear.)

Karai: (Whispered) Don't worry, when this is over, I'll be taking my mother back.

(Cut back to the lair, Mikey and Riki were in the kitchen playing a card game with Ice Cream Kitty on the table. Riki was still slightly pissed at Leo, but she'd mostly taken Y/N's advice and calmed down.)

"Alright, Ice Cream Kitty. I'll beat your Chippyshmoo with my Beebobim." Mikey threw down a card.

(The mutant cat meowed, putting down her own card.)

Riki gasped. "No fair! Where'd you get a Gallopup?"

(Ice Cream Kitty meowed, pulling the cards toward her, and judging by the tone, Riki swore that she was mocking and insulting them.)

Mikey grabbed the cat's paws, pulling them away from the cards as she hissed. "Cheater, cheater, frozen yogurt eater! Give me that card!"

Riki laughed at the two of them when her phone started to ring. Mikey and Ice Cream Kitty stopped their little fight as she answered, putting it on speakerphone. "D, what up dude? Where you been?"

"Hey, Riki. Is Mikey with you?"

"Sure is, dude." Ice Cream Kitty reached for the card and Riki swatted her paws away. The cat hissed, swiping at her.

"Good. Meet me at Murakami's. He made this special pizza gyoza that you got to try, dude."

Timothy's voice came over the line. "Now, listen, you can't tell the others. He only has a sample for the four of us."

Riki and Mikey traded looks. "That kind of makes me feel bad." Mikey bolted to his feet. "Okay, I'm over it."

Riki rolled her eyes. "See you soon, dude." She ended the call.

Leo walked into the kitchen. "Mikey, Riki, meeting in the dojo in--"

Mikey jumped off the table. "Can't. Got stuff to do, brah." He bolted out of the kitchen.

(Riki put her phone away and took off after Mikey, not bothering to acknowledge Leo Petty and childish, yes, but he seriously upset her earlier with how unfair he was being. She thought she deserved the right to be petty for a bit.)

As she ran for the turnstiles, she met Y/N heading to the kitchen. "Where you going?" the brunette asked.

"Murakami's!" Riki answered immediately. Timothy asked her not to tell, but the younger girl should've remembered she was an awful secret keeper. "Pizza gyoza, dude! Donnie and Timothy invited us!" She hopped the turnstiles, chasing Mikey out into the sewers.

(She went topside with Mikey, jumping across the rooftops and down to Murakami's shop. They pushed open the door and went inside, giving the blind chef a respectful bow in greeting.)

"Mr. Murakami, what up?" Mikey greeted.

"Greetings, Riki and Michelangelo," Murakami replied as the two approached the counter, where two plates of pizza gyoza rested. "These are for you. Each has a unique mixture of cheese and delicate flav--"

"Oh, yeah." Mikey cut him off, having already eaten the pizza gyoza. "That was awesome."

(Riki grinned, picking up one of the gyoza and eating it. Only after she swallowed and reached for another did she pick up the acrid, toxic scent that was nearly buried beneath the scents of cheese and other ingredients.)

Beside her, Mikey started coughing. "What's happening?" He staggered back, knocking over the stools and clutching his throat. He collapsed onto the floor, eyes rolling back.

"Mikey!" Riki dropped down by his side, but a second later her vision blurred and she swayed. "What--? Poison!" She slumped down beside her brother as Murakami rounded the counter.

"Do not worry, Riki. It is not poison, simply chemicals to give the two of you a nice little nap."

(His image blurred before Riki's eyes. Her thoughts felt sluggish, but she became aware that he lacked his usual scent. In fact, he lacked any scent, but that fact had been previously buried beneath the scents of Murakami that always clung to the restaurant.)

Riki: (Thoughts) A trap... We were...baited into a trap... Donnie and Timothy, what happened to them?

"Evil..." she managed to choke out, and then everything went dark.

----------

Y/N's ear twitched as she heard April's voice out in the lair. "Hey, guys. Hey, guys. Hey, guys?"

Y/N headed for the door of her bedroom and headed out into the living room to see the red-head looking around. Raph, and Leo emerged from the dojo.

"Hey, April," Y/N greeted. "Where's Donnie and Timothy?"

"Um, I don't know." The red-head shrugged. "I just got here."

"They said they were meeting you," Raph said.

April gave him a confused look. "I haven't spoken to them all day."

"That makes no sense," Y/N argued. "You called Donnie earlier. I heard your voice over the line." Her tail bristled uneasily. "Something isn't right." The sound of Leo's phone going off made her jump.

Leo picked it up off the couch and looked at the text. "It's from Mikey. He says he and Riki spotted a Kraang and trailed it back to an old warehouse on Hobard."

"What?"

"No way."

"It must be a Kraang sleeper cell," Leo said.

"Well, then let's tuck them in and say goodnight," Raph declared.

"Doesn't this whole thing seem weird?" Y/N asked, folding his arms.

"Y/N is right," Shen said, walking into the room with Splinter. "If April did not call Donatello, then who did?"

Leo nodded. "I was thinking the same thing. It could be a trap. Okay, April, you stay here."

"Stay here?" April retorted. "Forget that. I'm coming with."

"Fine. Just stay close."

"Be diligent," Sensei called as they ran out of the lair. "I sense something dire on the horizon."

(They made their way to the warehouse and snuck in through the overhead skylight. Heading along the platform above, Y/N spotted their four missing teammates tied up on the floor below.)

"Over here," she muttered to the others, pointing down at the four.

"Guys!"

"Guys, thank goodness," Donnie called. "Hurry! Get us out of here!"

They jumped down and Leo and Raph ran over. Y/N hesitated, hanging back with April. 

Y/N: (Thoughts) Something's not right... Where are their captors? If they were supposed to be bait, wouldn't they be warning us of a trap?

"Hold on, dudes," Raph said. "We got you."

(Y/N looked over at April and the red-head returned the look. He sniffed the air. The four captured mutants contained no scent, but there was a familiar metallic scent belonging to some certain irritating robots, as well as...)

"Wait, guys, don't!"

(The two boys reached the other four, only to discover they were holograms. The images quickly flickered out.)

"Well, I was expecting only Leonardo, but having you all here makes it so much easier."

(Y/N's ears twitched and swiveled at Donnie's voice echoing through the warehouse. She followed the sound to a familiar kunoichi on the platform above holding a voice changer, holograms of Donnie, Timothy, Mikey, Riki, Murakami, and April surrounding her.)

"Karai?" Y/N questioned.

"Cool, right? With just a little clever staging, I captured you all." Karai lowered the voice changer, shutting it off. "Baxter Stockman managed to hack into your T-phone signal, and then he loaned me his Mousers. It was my idea to use their holograms." Said holograms vanished as the Mousers shrieked. "Now that I have all of you, and I'll soon have your little bunny and his friend, Splinter will have no choice but to fight me for your lives."

"Free our brothers now," Raph snapped, pulling out his sais.

"I'm afraid that's not happening, Raphael," Karai responded. "My friends won't allow it."

Rocksteady burst through some crates, laughing. "Nyet." Bebop appeared on the railing, while Fishface jumped into view.

"This is gonna be fun." Razar walked out from behind some crates with a howl.

Tigerclaw stalked into view. "Greetings, little ones."

Lobo landed with both his sickles out. "I am so going to enjoy this."

(The mutants jumped down onto the floor below, surrounding the teens as they drew their weapons.)

"Aw, sewer apples."

"Oh, yeah!" Bebop threw a laser at Raph and the turtle dodged. "It's on like ping-pong." He turned invisible as Raph attempted to strike, Rocksteady slamming the turtle and knocking him back.

(Y/N lifted his claws and charged Razar and Lobo. He slammed into him and knocked him to the floor. Lobo tried to slice him, but he managed to dodge with a backflip and grab a chain to swing on.)

Y/N: I'm swinging on a chain!

(Spider-Man is Y/N and Lobo is Goblin)

(Lobo goes flying into some boxes while Y/N lands safe and sound. Rocksteady hit him with his hammer, knocking the wind out of him and sending him skidding across the floor. he groaned, rolling back to his feet. Razar leapt at him and he lifted her blade. claws sank his teeth into it as he struggled to push him back.)

(April swung her tessen at Fishface, hitting him several times and knocking him back. He ran at her, landing a kick to her stomach and knocking her to the floor.)

"April, there's too many of them!" Y/N called. "Get out of here! You've gotta warn Master Splinter, Chloe, and Eth--" He cut off as Rocksteady threw Leo at him. He slammed into her and they tumbled to the floor in a heap.

(April nodded, running for the exit, Fishface behind her.)

"Teenager go squishies!" Rocksteady yells, bursting through some crates to try and attack April with his sickle. April flipped out of the way and Rocksteady slammed Fishface into the wall. As the red-head kept running, she slammed into something.

Bebop laughed, turning visible. "Come on, girl. What are you gonna do?" He squealed as she slammed his fist into his snout and ran past. "Ow, my piggy nose! You hit me in my piggy nose!"

(Y/N didn't have time to cheer as Tigerclaw aimed his ice gun at him. He dodged the blasts, backflipping.)

(Spider-Man is Y/N)

April grabbed the garage door, pulling it up. She'd barely managed to open it a little when Karai dropped down and slammed her foot into her, knocking her to the floor. "If it isn't the wannabe kunoichi, always trying." Karai spun, kicking April in the head and knocking her out.

"APRIL!" Leo shouted.

(Rocksteady slammed into him and sent him flying into a metal beam, knocking him out. Y/N was still occupied with Tigerclaw and his stupid ice blaster, but he saw Raph try to run and help Leo. Bebop and Fishface slammed into Raph from either side, knocking him back. Rocksteady slammed his hammer into the turtle's head and Raph collapsed, groaning. Rocksteady laughed as he stalked toward him.)

"Leave my brother alone!" Y/N snapped, turning away from Tigerclaw and running toward Rocksteady.

(He should've known it was a rookie move to turn his back on a villain, especially one who was armed. Her ears swiveled at the click of a trigger behind her. Before she could turn, something cold and hard slammed into the back of his skull. He staggered, and a moment later, Rocksteady hit him with the force of a truck. He was sent flying into the staircase and the back of his head hit the edge of the stairs.)

(He let out a groan, somehow still conscious despite the two hard blows to his head. His vision blurred and he looked up to see Karai approaching him, an evil smirk on her lips, before everything went dark.)

-- PRESENT TIME --

(Raph groaned, pushing himself to his feet. Y/N sat up, one hand to his head.)

"Now I remember."

"Greetings, mutants." Karai's voice echoed over the intercom. "It's time for us to play a game. Each of you has been paired up and placed inside a room with a unique trap."

"That doesn't seem like your style, Karai," Y/N commented.

"Oh, we all had input," the kunoichi responded, watching the eight of them on monitors. "Isn't that right, Xever?"

"I helped design yours personally, Raphael and Y/N," Fishface responded. "Everyone loves baked turtle and kitty."

Y/N: (Snarled) "I'll bake my foot up your--"

"Raphael and Y/N, you're inside the first trap, aptly called the Hothead," Karai interrupted. "Can you figure a way out?"

(Y/N snarled and Raph kicked the wall in response.)

"Hello, Leonardo and Chloe."

(Leo opened his eyes, having been meditating in his cell.)

"Karai?"

"Welcome to the Courage Slayer."

(The two looked up as bricks shifted and a large red glow came from above. They gasped, jumping into the corner of the room.)

"To save your siblings, you'll have to face ninja blades as skilled as your own, which isn't all that formidable." A large ball lowered into the room, blades ejecting from it and starting to spin rapidly. "So I cranked up the speed to 100. Donatello and Timothy, are you smart enough to beat the Brain Boggler?"

(Donnie and Timothy were hooked up to a machine in their cell, sitting them in some sort of VR experience. In the VR, they were standing on some sort of colored tower, blocks appearing above as they started to fall, forcing the two to dodge.)

"Connect the pieces as they appear on the game grid. Make a mistake and you get zapped." One of the blocks landed on Donnie, the turtle failing and getting electrocuted. "Get zapped enough times and then you'll truly know what it feels like to be brain fried."

"Ah, yes, Karai, another excellent villain pun," Fishface commented.

Karai ignored him. "Then, we have the Flush-O-Matic." Mikey and Riki were strapped down to some sort of contraption, trying to struggle out of their bonds to no avail. "Once the tanks are full, the flush valve will open and dump mutagen all over your poor, little Michelangelo and Riki."

Mikey rolled his eyes. "First up, gross. Second, who came up with the lame name?"

"Me and Rocksteady--I mean, Steranko," Bebop corrected quickly. "Yo, that name is tight."

"Figures," Mikey scoffed. "You guys have no imagination. I mean, if I were an evil villain, I'd at least try to come up with something cool, like the Flush of Fear, the Toilet of Terror. Ooh, the Dump of Doom. Now, that's got sparkle to it."

Riki stared at him. "Really? That's your concern? Not 'Oh no, we're going to mutate a second time'?!"

"I told you that name needed some work!" Bebop snapped at Rocksteady.

"Kind of liking the Dump of Doom," the rhino responded. "Is nice."

"Good luck with this, Karai!" Y/N snapped. "You don't have Ethan and Chloe, or you would've talked to them already! And once they get here, they're gonna kick your butt for this, you know that, right? They make me young, but you know what they're capable of!"

"Oh, I might not have your son and his friend yet," Karai said smugly, "but I will soon. Where do you think Razar is right now? Baiting them into a trap."

"They won't fall for it!" Timothy yelled. "They're smarter than that!"

"They'll do anything for their precious little team, won't they?" Karai taunted. "And once I have those two locked in their trap, Splinter will come after all of you. He'll have no choice but to fight me. Good luck, mutants, and good riddance."

"Let them go, Karai!" April snapped, chained up to the wall. "You're under the control of a brain worm! Shredder's using you!"

"Lies!" Karai snapped back. "The only thing greater than watching the mutants' demise is to watch Splinter bear witness to it right before I finish him off."

(Ethan paused in the subway tunnels as his phone rang. He pulled it out to see his grandpa was calling her. Cocking an eyebrow, he clicked the answer button and placed the phone to his ear.)

"Grandpa?"

"Ethan, are you and Chloe safe?"

Ethan frowned, puzzled. "Um, yeah, heading back to the lair as we speak."

"No. Do not bother. I fear something is terribly amiss."

Ethan's ears angled back as he hit speakerphone so Chloe could hear the conversation. "Why? What's happened?"

"After an argument between your siblings earlier, Donatello and Timothy went out saying they had received a call for help from April. Riki and Michelangelo left shortly afterwards, though told no one where they were going. April arrived at the lair and announced she had not called Donatello at all. She went out with Leonardo, Raphael, and Y/N to investigate a Kraang Michelangelo and Riki had tracked."

"Slow down," Chloe said. "Mikey and Riki found a Kraang?"

Ethan shook his head slowly. "No. I think that's the point. There was no Kraang, was there?"

"I must assume not. Your siblings have been gone for hours now and I have not heard a thing from them. They will not answer their T-phones. Neither will April. Something is terribly wrong."

"Yeah," Ethan agreed. "Donnie got a call from someone posing as April and vanishes with Timothy, and then Mikey and Riki vanish too and tell the others they've found a Kraang when they haven't? Someone's going to lot of work to set an elaborate trap."

"We need to find them," Chloe said. "Can you track their T-phones?"

Ethan nodded. "Definitely. Grandpa and Grandma, stay near the cheese phone, okay? We'll call if we get any news. Chloe and I are gonna track down the others."

Shen: (On Phone)"Very well. Tread cautiously, my children."

"Always do, Sensei." Ethan hung up the call in favor of activating the tracker app on her siblings' T-phones. To her dismay, the app was off. "No luck. Whoever captured them was smart enough to either turn off or destroy their phones."

"Hello, mutants." Ethan whipped around at the familiar snarl to find Razar stalking down the subway toward them. "Looking for your siblings?"

"Razar," Chloe growled. "Where'd you take them?"

(Razar's only answer was to spin around and take off running down the tunnel. Ethan didn't waste a moment in bolting after him, Chloe close behind.)

"Don't let him escape!" he yelled. "He's our only chance of finding the others!"

(He picked up his pace as Razar vanished around a bend in the tunnel ahead. He heard Chloe's boots clanging against the metal of the tracks barely a step behind him. They rounded the corner to see Razar dash into an abandoned subway station, not unlike the one the lair was made out of. Ethan and Chloe halted at the turnstiles, staring into the station.)

(Ethan hadn't been able to get a clear view of the station from down the tracks, but now he was able to see the place was pitch-black, not a single light on in the whole place. Trading a wary, uncertain look with his friend, he vaulted the turnstiles. He scanned the shadows for any sign of Razar, but the whole place was pure black. He strained his bunny eyes, waiting impatiently for them to adjust to the lack of light, and took a deep inhale to try and pinpoint the dog's scent. But it was all around him, back down the tunnel in either direction and out in front of him. It seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere all at once, and it was all so fresh and strong that she couldn't lock onto a distinct location. He swiveled his ears, listening for any sound of him, but all he could pick up was the ka-thump, ka-thump, ka-thump of his and Chloe's heartbeats and their harsh, panting breaths.)

(He looked back at Chloe again before cautiously venturing deeper into the station. His eyes were beginning to adjust now. He knew that canines like Razar had excellent night vision--his father and Riki had provided enough proof to that fact. But bunnies like him could see better in dark spaces, while Chloe had her night-vision.)

(Ethan halted near the center of the station. As his eyes continued to adjust, he found he was at the edge of a pit like the one in the lair, minus the couch. He scanned the dark, looking for the telltale darker shadows that would signal Razar's location. His ears twitched at a soft sound, but when he whirled around, nothing was there. His cute twitched anxiously behind him.)

(This was why Razar had led them here. He and Chloe might have better night vision than Razar, but his fur was black, allowing him to blend easily with the shadows. Chloe's armour and Ethan's fur, though, were white and pink, and with the faint light spilling into the station from the subway tracks outside, Razar would be able to make them out easier than they could make him out. With the way his scent came from all around them, there was no pinpointing him, and as long as he stayed quiet, they couldn't hear him either. He'd led them right into a trap, and they'd fallen for it.)

(Ethan looked over at his friend. He'd hopped the turnstiles by now, but hesitated at the edge of the small semicircle of light from the subway. His ears were angled back, tail twitching, and when they locked eyes, Ethan saw that his amber ones gleamed with uncertainty.)

"Ethan, I don't like this," Chloe said, and Ethan barely held back a flinch. After the eerie stillness of the station, her friend's voice rang out loudly, even though he was speaking softly. "We should go. As long as we're here, Razar could ambush us."

(Ethan scanned the shadowed station again. Still no sign of the dog. He wanted to light a fire to shed some light, but that would certainly give away her position to Razar. As long as she kept quiet and still, there was a chance he couldn't see her. But Chloe was right; Razar was blending easily into the background, biding his time, while the two of them stood here and searched for something they couldn't see. They wouldn't get anywhere like this.)

"You're right," he agreed, keeping his voice low. It still echoed loudly in the otherwise silent room. "Even if we managed to catch Razar, it's not like he'd tell us where the others are. We should find them ourselves."

IChloe nodded, taking a step back toward the turnstiles. Ethan headed toward him, but then his relieved expression shifted to one of horror as his eyes widened, locking onto something behind him, just past his shoulder.)

LOOK OUT!"

(Ethan spun around, but his friend's warning had come too late. He caught a flash of cold, golden eyes past a muzzle that was twisted in a snarl, exposing sharp teeth and bared fangs. Long, skeletal claws were reaching out for him, and there was no time to dodge or block or do anything but take the hit.)

(Blinding pain shot through her as his claws met his shoulder, tearing easily through clothes and fur and flesh alike. The force of the blow sent him staggering backward and he tripped. His tail twitched wildly as she struggled to regain her balance, to no avail. She toppled to the floor, hearing her brother shouting words that she couldn't make out, and then suddenly her head hit the stone with a sharp, audible crack that she hated the sound of.)

(And everything went dark and silent.)

(Ethan awoke to darkness, someone's strong scent right at the end of her snout, frantic yelling, and someone shaking him. As his awareness gradually deepened, he felt cold metal beneath him.)

Ethan: (Thoughts) Why are you shaking me, dad? Shut up and let me sleep.

(Chloe did not, in fact, shut up. If anything, her voice got louder, to the point where it sounded like she was shouting in his ears. Her shaking became less gentle and more forceful, jarring Ethan's shoulder and sending a flash of pain shooting through it. He groaned.)

Ethan: (Thoughts) Not so hard, dude. I'm trying to sleep here.

"Ethan?" Chloe demanded. "Ethan? Wake up!" 

Ethan: (Thoughts) Chill, dude, I'm getting there.

"Ethan! Do you hear me? Wake up, please!"

Ethan woke up and grabbed Chloe's hands. "I'm not dead." 

(Chloe hugged Ethan with a look of relief passed over her face.)

(Killua is Ethan)

(Ethan hugged her back as both got up and noted that Chloe was out of her armour. They were in a metal room with mirrors for walls. He turned his head to look down at his shoulder. Razar's claws had torn easily through the sleeve of his shirt, allowing his an easy view of the gashes. Four long, shallow cuts stretching from his shoulder down his upper arm and to his elbow. The fur around them felt sticky, clumped and matted and stained red with blood, but the cuts themselves had already stopped bleeding, a long time ago if the fact his fur was dried and stiff was anything to go by.)

(He let out a breath of relief before looking around to take in the room. He and Chloe were in a long hall, seated on a cold metal floor. The ceiling above them was metal, too. All four walls appeared to be made of mirrors that stretched floor-to-ceiling.)

(He took a closer look at her brother. There were several new tears in his vest and pants and Ethan could see cuts through the gashes. One ear was nicked with a small cut that was still slowly leaking blood. His fur was ruffled. All in all, he looked like he'd gotten into--and lost--a fight, one that had been very one-sided.)

"What happened to you?" she asked.

"After Razar knocked you out, I tried to get past him to grab you and get the heck out of there. But, as you can see," he gestured at himself, "didn't work. He hit me with a smoke bomb with some kind of knock-out powder, because next thing I knew, everything went black, and then I was waking up here with you." He scanned the room. "Wherever 'here' is."

"Hall of mirrors. I don't get why, though. We were unconscious. Razar had us at his mercy. He could've killed us, or at least injured us worse than he did. But it was like his goal was to knock us out and take us here."

(Ethan got to his feet, immediately regretting it when he was hit with a pang of dizziness. He swayed on his feet, tail twitching to help his keep his balance. Chloe shot up and immediately steadied him.)

"You alright?"

He nodded, waiting until the dizzy spell passed to pull away from his friend. "I'm good. I think it's just that hit to the head I took."

She frowned worriedly. "Great. That's all we need, for Razar to have given you a concussion."

"I doubt I have a concussion." He rolled his eyes. "I'm not nauseous or tired. No problems thinking, no fogginess, no headache. It was a dizzy spell from getting up too quickly. That happens after you hit your head hard enough to knock you out, you know."

She narrowed his eyes. "That's no better. If you feel dizzy or off balance after getting knocked out, it means you should go to the hospital."

Ethan: If it lasts more than five minutes. You know what, no--why are we even talking about this? We need to figure out the way out of here."

Chloe sighed, shaking her head and looking around the room. She approached one of the mirrors and peered around the edges of the frames. "They're locked together so tightly there's no telling if there's an actual wall behind them."

Ethan approached to stand next to him. "Maybe they're set into the wall, not just on it. Two-way mirrors."

He gave her a look. "Why would Razar put us in a room of two-way mirrors? That makes no sense."

"Why would he put us in a room of anything?" she retorted. "What I want to know is his motives."

Ethan: "Maybe he's acting on Shred head's orders."

Chloe: "Really? Let his henchman knock us out without hurting us too badly and lock us in a hall of mirrors? Doesn't exactly seem like his style. Based on what I know about him"

Ethan: I'm spit-balling here, okay? You have any better ideas?"

She rolled her eyes. "No. But if this is a plan of Shredder's, I bet this place is designed to kill us. I doubt Shredder would want to miss that. I wonder if there are cameras somewhere." She scanned the ceiling. A long, flat stretch of metal. Sure enough, she spotted a security camera in the far corner.

Ethan's ears twitched and swiveled at a noise echoing from beneath the floor. She cocked her head, listening intently. Distantly, he could hear the grinding, whirring of blades, along with what sounded like crackling electricity and familiar screams of pain. "Is that...Donnie and Timothy? What the carrots happening down there?" 

"Greetings, Chloe and Ethan."

Ethan's head snapped up toward the camera at the familiar voice."Auntie Karai?"

"You and your other family are in rooms designed with unique traps. While your hothead and father are slowly baking, the courageous leader of your team are dodging blades. Your scientists are trying not to get brain fried, and your resident prankster and my ex-sister are about to be double mutated."

"What?" Ethan exchanged an alarmed glance with Chloe. "Karai, listen to me! You can't do this! Shredder's using you! You've gotta break his control!"

"Silence!" Karai snapped. "I'm not interested in your lies. Your trap is more complex than that of your siblings. You're trapped in an intricate version of a mirror maze, complete with two-way mirrors that you'll have to find to get through. Good luck. Oh, and watch out for the traps."

"Dis she day traps?" Chloe echoed, alarmed.

(As if on cue, a panel in one of the mirrors slid open. For a moment, nothing happened, leaving Ethan and Chloe staring at the panel and exchanging uneasy looks. Suddenly, several small, long black darts shot from the panel. The two them yelped, dodging to either side of the hall.)

"Don't let them touch you!" Ethan exclaimed

"No kidding!" Chloe retorted. "I'm in no hurry to become a pin cushion!"

"We need to do what Karai said. Find the gaps, dodge the traps. We need to locate the exit, and fast, before we trigger something worse than poison darts! C'mon!"

(He grabbed Chloe, had her jump on his back and they took off for the far end of the hall, scanning either side for a gap between the mirrors that would signal a new hallway. They didn't expect it to be easy. If the entire place was made of mirrors, how were they supposed to find the holes? As the darts stopped behind them, Ethan slowed his pace and began running his hands along the mirrors to feel for the break. He and Chloe made it all the way to the end of the hall without locating the gap. Switching sides, they walked back the way they'd come, finding nothing.)

"That's impossible!" Ethan growled. "There has to be a way through!"

"I wonder if... Ethan, maybe you were right about the two-way mirrors. Maybe one of these is two-way. If we break the glass on it, it'll provide an exit to a new hall, right?"

Ethan's ears flicked up in delight. "Good idea, Chloe! Knock on the glass."

"What?"

Ethan started making his way back down the line, tapping the mirrors as he went. " Dad once taught me that traps always have a flaw, that you just have to find it. There's no support behind two-way glass, because it has to be set directly into the wall. It sounds like a window, open and hollow and reverberating because of the open space on the other side. It's bright and sharp compared to the everyday dull, flat thud of a regular mirror."

Chloe: Ethan, where did you learn all this stuff?

Ethan: You'd be surprise what Professor Donnie and Timothy teach me when you're in school.

(A/N: If you're wondering how Ethan got this smart, it's because Donnie and Timothy are his teachers.)

On the other side of the hall, Chloe started tapping against the mirrors. "This is a lot of effort to go through in order to get through one stinking hall."

"Did you expect it to be easy?"

"No."

"Well, there ya go."

(Ethan's knuckles rapped against yet another mirror and he paused at the bright, hollow sound. He knocked again. The sound reverberated through the hall. Grinning, he pressed his face to the glass and cupped his hands around his face to block out as much light as he could. Through the glass, she didn't see her reflection, she saw a room similar to the one she was in with Chloe.)

She drew back from glass. "Chloe, over here! I got it!"

Chloe drew up to her side, staring at the mirror. It was quite a clever trick, actually. Using the fact that the two-way's glass was thicker to hide the fact the frame was thicker, concealing the fact that the mirror was set farther back than the rest.

"Now what?" Chloe asked.

"Now, we get through to the other side."

"How?"

"Like this."

(Ethan slammed his foot into the glass and it cracked upon impact. He kicked it again and the cracks widened. A few chips of glass fell. A third kick and it shattered completely, the glittering shards spilling onto the floor around their feet and on the other side.)

Chloe winced. "Isn't it supposed to be bad luck to break a mirror?"

Ethan: Old superstition. Besides, would you prefer to stay in the hall of darts?"

Chloe: "Fair point, let's do thid."

(Ethan ducked through the frame cautiously, trying to avoid the remaining shards. He hissed as one shard sliced along his tail, leaving a thin cut. Another caught his ear and nicked it. He had to twist awkwardly to avoid slamming his shoulder right into a particularly large shard. He stepped out in the new hall and took it in as Chloe came through behind him.)

"Um...did we actually go anywhere, because this looks exactly the same," he commented.

Ethan shook his head. "Subtle differences," he commented. He nodded at the floor. "It slants slightly. Come on, let's try this way for the next exit." He started down the lightly sloping hall.

(An ominous click echoed behind him the moment Chloe moved, and he turned to see a small plate beneath his foot sink slightly into the metal floor. He stood absolutely still, looking like a deer in headlights.)

"Oops."

"Run," Ethan said automatically. "Run!" Grabs Chloe and they took off down the hall.

Chloe: What? Why?"Nothing even happened!"

"Give it a sec. Pressure plates are always bad. Haven't you seen Indiana Jones!"

(Sure enough, there was more ominous clicking from behind. Ethan risked a glance over his shoulder to see a trapdoor in the ceiling fall open. A huge stone fell through the hatch and began rolling down the hall toward them.)

"Faster!" Ethan yelped. "Hurry!"

"I'm hurrying!" Chloe exclaimed. "But where are we supposed to go? The end of the hall where the stone will crush us?"

"No, I was thinking of through the next mirror gap to a new hall, actually."

"How? We don't have time to go around knocking on mirrors to find the two-way one. Giant stone behind us, in case you forgot?!"

"How could I forget, with you yelling at me about it?!" Ethan scanned the hall on either side, frantically searching for an irregularity in the wall of mirrors. He glanced back over his shoulder at the stone behind them. Then he skidded to a halt and reached inside his jacket. "Hold up. What are we doing? I got something that can help!

Chloe stopped in his tracks. "Like what?."

(Ethan pulled out a-)

Ethan: I call is the BOOMerang.

Chloe: Cool! (Ethan hands Chloe the BOOMerang.)

"Throw that when it gets close," Ethan ordered. "I'll find the gap."

Chloe: Got it.

(Ethan took off down the hallway, scanning it frantically. As he neared the end and started to think maybe the gap was back behind the stone or a two-way mirror, he spotted a break in the pattern of mirrors. Small and subtle, easy to scan over at first glance, but there. He veered toward the break and, sure enough, found a gap between the mirrors.)

"Chloe!" he called. "Come on, I got it!"

(Chloe looked back at him, strain clear on his face. She threw the BOOMerang and took off running toward Ethan, the boulder was getting closer quickly gaining speed and momentum. Ethan ducked through the gap in the mirrors and Chloe dove through after him. The stone exploded , narrowly missing Chloe. Chloe leaned against the wall, panting.)

"You good?" Ethan asked.

She nodded. "Just...give me a second. Phew! Dang, that was close!"

"Heh. No kidding." Ethan scanned the new hallway. "What do you think this one's deal is?"

"No telling until we start going."

(Her ears pricked up at a distant voice.)

"Karai, please talk to me! Karai!"

Chloe turned his head. "Is that Leo?"

"She's not gonna talk to you!"

"That was Raph. We can hear them?"

"Raph!" Leo yelled. "You can hear us?"

"Sounds like you're above me," Y/N called back.

Ethan heard Donnie scream. "Donnie!"

"Ethan?" Timothy called. "I can hear you and the others through the vents. Donnie and I--we're in some sort of trap."

"Guys, Mikey and I are on our backs!" Riki yelled, sounding more than a little panicked. "I don't know where anyone is!"

Ethan frowned. He knelt and placed her ear to the metallic floor. The sounds immediately became clearer. "I think Chloe and I are above all of you," he said. "I can hear your voices coming from the floor."

"We got to help each other," Leo stated. "Work together."

"Uh, Ethan?" She looked up at his friend, who nodded toward the ceiling. Ethan looked up to see what looked like small laser cannons had appeared along where the wall met the ceiling. "They showed up after you crouched down."

Ethan kept his eyes on the blasters as his got back to his feet. Immediately, the blasters snapped around to aim at him and Chloe and they both froze. "I think they're motion-sensitive. They only react when we move."

"How the heck do we get down this hallway, then?"

"Maybe if we go slowly we won't trigger the sensors."

(Chloe took a cautious step forward and the nearest blaster fired off a laser that narrowly missed her shoes. She yelped, jumping back. That set off several of the other blasters, forcing Chloe and Ethan to retreat back into the previous hallway to avoid getting hit.)

"Okay. Going slow doesn't work," Chloe snapped. "So, I'll ask again: how the heck do we get down that hallway?? Without getting shot, I might add."

Ethan paused. "Wait. Motion detectors aren't set to rely simply on movement to react. It depends on what the movement is doing."

"What?"

"Motion detectors are set off by changes in light and shadow levels. So, if we don't cast a shadow..."

"We won't set off the blasters. But how do we just...not cast a shadow?"

Ethan grinned. "You cast smoke."

Chloe's eyes lit up. "Oh, yes!" 

(Ethan got out of a dozen smoke bombs and threw them in the hall-way until the whole hall was covered with them. The two of them slipped back into the hallway with the blasters, which were still aimed at where they'd been before they'd exited. Ethan took the lead, keeping a cautious eye on the blasters. At least...he was pretty sure he was in the lead. He couldn't actually see Chloe, so it was hard to tell. As he took a few steps, the blasters didn't react. He glanced down at his feet. He could still see himself perfectly fine within the confines of the smoke. But she couldn't see a shadow cast. He grinned and dared to move faster.)

(Chloe found it first. This resulted in a few moments of Marco-Polo as she tried to guide him over. They soon ducked into the new hallway. Ethan leaned against the wall, breathing deeply as he tried to regain his bearings.)

"You need a minute?"

(His ears pricked up at calls from the others.)

"Guys, Raph and I are baking in here. It's like an oven. Leo, what's the plan?" Y/N asked.

"We need some serious science-y stuff, Donnie and Timothy," Leo responded.

"Can't think. I got to focus," Donnie said back. "If I make another mistake, I'm gonna get zapped again."

"I'm about to double mutate!" Mikey shouted. "I'm scared of what I'm gonna turn into! Get me out of here!"

Ethan opened his eyes and pushed himself away from the wall. "We don't have a minute. You and I have the least dangerous trap. As long as we don't try to navigate the halls, there aren't any traps. Just mirrors. Theoretically, we could just stand around here as long as we want. Our siblings don't have that advantage. We need to find a way out of this place."

"How? It's solid metal. I don't think we can break through that. Well, I mean, maybe, but it would take some really hot fire and I don't think either of us has the device or energy for that."

"The vents. That's how we're hearing the others. We need to find the vents. Maybe we can use the shaft to get to them. We need to follow their voices. The louder they get, the closer they are. And they sound closer already." He twitched his ears. "I can hear the blades in Leo's trap more clearly. I think the vent's only a few hallways down. Come on."

Y/N: Son, I can hear you and I am so proud of how focused you are right now!

----------

Splinter and Shen sat in the dojo, meditating. The sound of the cheese phone ringing caught his attention. Splinter got up, walking to his room and opening the door. He walked over to the phone, taking off the glass covering and answering. "Moshi, moshi."

"Splinter!" April's voice came from the other end.

"April? What is wrong?"

"The others are in a trap, but so are you!"

"Hello, Splinter." Karai's voice came over the line.

Shen's eyes widened. "Miwa?"

----------

(Rocksteady patrolled the sewer tunnels, keeping watch for any sign of Splinter. After being distracted by a mouse, Splinter appeared behind the rhino, hitting his pressure points on his side and knocking him down.)

Bebop made himself visible long enough to kick Splinter, quickly hiding himself again. "So, you're the sensei rat mater supreme, huh?" He laughed. "Not so tough."

(Splinter blocked his attack as he became visible, slamming his fist into the warthog's stomach. He grabbed Bebop's arm, throwing him back as the warthog threw smoke bombs at him. Splinter easily avoided the pellets, catching the last one and throwing it at Rocksteady, letting it explode in his face.)

(With the rhino blinded, Splinter attacked Bebop, throwing him down to the floor. He jumped out of the way of Rocksteady's flamethrower, jumping off of him before grabbing his horn, slamming him into the ground.)

"Karai, he is coming. He is--" Rocksteady stopped talking when Splinter hit a pressure point on his neck, knocking him out.

(Splinter snuck into where Karai was waiting, seeing April chained up on the platform with her. He dodged Razar's snapping jaws, grabbing his arm and throwing him into a pipe, stunning him and causing him to fall back into the water.)

Karai smirked, motioning for Splinter to come closer. He jumped into the water, only for Fishface to grab his leg, pulling him down.

(Fishface surfaced, now without his breathing device, and turned himself belly-up so his gills were in the water.)

"Karai," Splinter called, standing on the platform.

She turned to face him. "Welcome, Splinter. It's been a long time."

"Do not make me fight you, my daughter."

"Never call me that!" Karai snapped. "The only way to free your pathetic family is to fight me to the bitter end." She unsheathed her blade, pointing it at him.

Splinter sighed silently, getting into a fighting stance.

"Now you will pay." Tigerclaw pulled out his gun and fired, Splinter dodging. Splinter kicked and Tigerclaw fired again, missing, while Splinter continuously punched him, making him drop his gun and back away as he blocked the attacks.

(April pulled back on her chains, tripping Tigerclaw and making him fall into the water. Lobo jumped out of the shadows and was about to attack Splinter from behind, but Shen out of nowhere blocked him with her fang claw.)

Splinter/April: Shen?!

Splinter: What are you doing here?

Shen: Miwa, is my daughter, I have to be here as well!

Lobo: You're Shen?! Master Shredder said that you were dead! 

Shen: You're master says a lot of things.

(Shen pushed Lobo off and kicked him into the water down below.)

Splinter grabbed Karai's hands as she tried to attack, stopping her from hitting him with her blade. "Miwa, listen to me. I am your father, Hamato Yoshi. 

Shen: And I am your mother, we love you and you're Saki is no father! He is a monster!

"Don't you disrespect him, you're lucky that I decided to keep you a secret!" Karai shouted, jumping back away only to run in for another attack.

----------

(Ethan and Chloe ducked hurriedly into another hallway, panting. They'd crossed four more hallways (seven if you counted the three dead ends they'd found and fifteen if you counted the eight times they'd accidentally doubled back to a hallway they'd already crossed) each with a different deadly trap that left them with little room for error. The whole time, they'd been tracking the sound of the blades from Leo's  trap. The sound was now so clear that Ethan felt they were almost in the same room.)

"We just need to get through this hall and we should find the vent," Chloe said, looking up to take in the trap.

(Ahead of them was what looked like some advanced laser security system for protecting a bank vault. Only the lasers had been replaced with spikes. As Ethan and Chloe had navigated the halls and gotten closer to what Ethan suspected was the center of the maze, the mirror walls had been replaced by metal ones. This hallway was made of stone bricks, with the spikes projecting from not only the floor and ceiling like stalagmites and stalactites in caves, but also from the walls. There was so little space between them that one wrong move could easily end up with Ethan or Chloe getting stabbed. And, even worse, they moved. Like just having spikes wasn't enough, Karai had to up the danger and the stakes. The spikes periodically retracted and shot out in a seemingly totally random pattern.)

"Holy crap, Karai went all out on this one," Chloe complained.

Ethan: "That just proves we're close to the only exit there could be. The traps got harder the further in we went, did you notice that? The darts were easy to dodge and they even stopped after a few moments. I'm sure she knew we could stop that stone using our tech. The lasers were the first real challenge, and then after that we had everything else. This is the hardest one. She must have placed the harder traps closest to the vent, to prevent us from getting to it."

"How do we get through?" Chloe asked.

Ethan let out a sigh. "We be extremely careful."

(He walked up to where the spikes began and studied where they projected, where he could safely stand without getting skewered. The spikes retracted and he waited, not wanting to risk jumping when he couldn't see them. The second they popped out, he slid between two of the spikes of the floor, twisted around one from the ceiling and ducked under a few from the walls. The spikes retracted and she froze, waiting until they popped back out to keep moving. He heard Chloe making her way through behind him.)

(It took what felt like hours but could really have only been 10 minutes to get to the end of the hall, where Ethan could clearly see a gap in the bricks that led to a plain stone room with a glint of something metallic in the floor. The vent. He'd been right. Ethan ducked under the last spike and glanced back at Chloe. He was only 30 feet from the end. He stopped to wait for her as he continued, stopping and starting as the spikes retracted and shot out. 25 feet. 20. 15. 10.)

"I'm gonna wing it," Chloe declared as the spikes retracted once again.

(Without waiting for a response, she bolted across the remaining 10 feet between him and the end of the spike grid. At the last second, the spikes shot back out and she twisted awkwardly to avoid getting pinned between two from either side. She ended up essentially face-planting on the floor. Ethan let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding and rushed forward to help her up. He could see a small cut sliced across her shoulder where the spike had managed to cut her.)

Ethan: You okay?"

Chloe: Yeah, just a small cut."

(He pulled her to his feet and they ran for the door. Ethan bolted straight for the vent in the floor. Grabbing the grate, he pulled, managing to pry it from its slot to reveal the dark shaft. He could hear the blades of the trap just below him.)

"Hang on, guys! Chloe and I made it to a vent. We're gonna come help!"

"Ethan?" Leo called. "No, no, no, bad idea! You sound right above us. If you drop in, you're gonna drop right through these blades."

Chloe knelt down beside Ethan. Or did he fall? His eyes looked weirdly glassy and he was breathing hard. "Chloe?"

"I'm finished, guys," Raph said. "I'm baked turtle."

Mikey screamed. "It's impossible, dudes! Riki and I don't even have a way out."

Ethan was focused intently now on his friend. Her hands trembled. "Chloe? Are you alright?"

He shook his head, looking dazed. "I--I don't feel too good, Ethan. Everything's fuzzy. Is the room spinning?"

Ethan eyed the gash on her shoulder and his eyes widened in realization. "The spikes! They must have been coated in poison."

(Immediately, panic sharpened his thoughts. He could smell the poison now, the same scent that had clung to the others when Karai poisoned them. This was her venom. Last time, Leo had healed everyone with his healing hands. But Leo wasn't here, so he would have to do it. He began to do the mantra that Leo taught him and he saw that his hands began to glow white. He kept saying the mantras and places his hands on the cut.)

He looked down at Chloe. The cut on her shoulder had closed without so much as a scab or a scar. There was no evidence she'd ever been cut in the first place. Her eyes were closed and she'd stopped talking. But she was breathing easier. "Chloe. Hey, wake up." He caressed her face.

Chloe: (Her eyes flutter wake up) I'm okay.

"Let's get out of here." A tremendous crash came from below them and Ethan's attention snapped back to the shaft. "Leo?Are you guys okay? What just happened?"

"I'm cool!" Leo yelled back. "Donnie just figured out everything is wired together  I broke into Raph's and Y/N's trap. You'll see for yourself if you come down here. The blades are out of action. You should be good to drop down the shaft."

(Ethan glanced at Chloe and then jumped down into the darkened ventilation shaft to join the others.)

(Cut to-)

"You can do it, Master Splinter!" April encouraged with Shen trying to help April out of her chains.

Splinter grabbed Karai's wrists as she lunged at him, making her drop her weapon. "Please, do not make me fight you."

Karai hissed at him, jumping away before changing into her serpent form. "You have no choice."

(Cut back to, Ethan knelt on the floor beside his little uncle and father who were nearly passed out from the heat, while Leo repeatedly slammed his katana into the wall. Chloe had her own katana and was doing the same beside him. The room was scorching hot from the vents all along the walls and it just kept getting hotter.)

(Leo managed to push a brick out of place and then did it to another. He shoved his katana through the gap and Ethan heard something crackle. The red glow behind the vents faded, finally allowing the room to cool down.)

(Ethan pulled Y/N onto her feet. Raph coughed, Leo helping him up as more bricks moved aside to make an opening.)

Y/N approached the gap, her ears pricking in surprise at the contraption on the other side. "What the--?"

"Guys, help us!" Riki yelped.

"Guys!" Leo sliced through their straps as the mutagen started to pour down. They quickly made their way up on top of the contraption, out of reach of the mutagen that flooded the room.

"We've got to get to Donnie and Timothy!" Leo said, looking up at the ceiling.

(Leo slammed his katana into the bricks overhead, making an opening. He pulled himself through, Ethan right on his heels. He quickly spotted her brothers, strapped to chairs with heavily-wired helmets on their heads.)

Je pulled out her sword. "I'll cut you loose."

"No!" Timothy yelled as the others came through the hole behind them. "The helmets are totally wired. If you try to free us, you'll fry us." He screamed as he was electrocuted again.

"Chillax, I got this," Mikey said. "I've got, like, 50 puzzle apps on my T-phone." He grabbed Donnie's helmet, getting zapped himself.

"I got you, Timmy!" Ethan grabbed his friend's helmet.

(Y/N and the others stood back as the two of them were electrocuted from the trap before they managed to pull the helmets free of the wires.)

"Mikey, Ethan... You're awesome!" Donnie panted, looking up at the two of them.

"Yeah..." Mikey said tiredly. "We were born with a naturally rare awesomeness." The two of them promptly fainted.

(Y/N winced, gazing down at them in concern and trying to visually assess any damage that might have resulted from freeing Donnie and Timothy. Outwardly, the two of them looked fine, but he couldn't tell for sure until he did an assessment of all of his family back at the lair. At worst, their fingers looked seriously burned, and Ethan's fur was singed, but those would heal quickly.)

"Hold still, guys," Leo ordered, using his katana blade to pry open the shackles binding Donnie and Timothy to their chairs.

(Y/N grabbed Timothy and Donnie by the shoulders and pulled them up into a tight hug.)

"Okay, you two, hug time's over!"Riki declared. Ethan and Mikey were already beginning to regain consciousness.

"Right." Leo shifted so he was supporting Timothy's weight instead. "We still need to get to April and stop Karai!"

"Best thing I've heard from you all day!" Raph said, easing himself up off the floor.

(They arrived at a platform overlooking the battle between Karai and Sensei. The Foot Kunoichi was in her mutant snake form, giving her some advantage over Sensei. But her actions were uncontrolled; she was blinded by the anger and hatred the brain worm was instilling in her.)

"We need to help him!" Raph whispered harshly.

"No," Leo barked back. "Let Sensei handle this!" Karai went sprawling against the side of the platform.

"Miwa," Sensei said, trying to reach her. Karai screamed at him and dove into the water to make a surprise attack. Sensei closed his eyes and centered his breathing, performing some hand gestures.

"He's performing the healing hands," Leo explained. "Splinter's going to use the mantras on Karai."

(With a feral screech, Karai leaped out of the water, preparing to deal Sensei a fatal bite. But he sensed her and immediately avoided the strike, landing three blows to pressure points to temporarily immobilize her. Karai slumped forward and Sensei reared back for the final blow.)

"I love you, Miwa," he whispered, lunging forward and striking two fingers against the crown of her skull.

(Karai broke free of her paralysis and coiled her body around him. He gasped in pain as Karai hissed and struck out as though about to rip out his throat, and then suddenly stopped. She arched her back with a hiss, wrapping her arms around her stomach like she was in pain. Her coils released Sensei and let him fall to the floor of the platform.)

"No!" Riki gasped in horror as she fell back against the side of the platform, losing her balance and falling toward the rapidly draining sewage below.

(Shen scrambled forward, grabbing her arm, the two of them dangling precariously over the brackish water. Shen struggled to hold on to her, to pull them both to the platform's safety. But it shifted unexpectedly and Shen lost his hold.)

(Karai fell into the water and vanished down the drain below.)

"Karai!" Riki yelled.

(Y/N and Ethan both grabbed the cheetah's shoulders, preventing her from jumping in after Karai. Below, Shen cried out his daughter's name in anguish, making a motion as though to jump in to retrieve her. April leapt forward and stopped her along with Splinter.)

"Your victory has come at a price, Yoshi-san! And the truth will be revealed to Master Shredder!" Tigerclaw snarled triumphantly, using his jetpack to hover over them, a laser gun pointed at them and ready to fire like the coward he was.

(Y/N snarled angrily, fists clenching. He was angry over everything they'd been through, furious over what they'd lost, livid that Tigerclaw was aiming to kill Sensei, Shen, and April when they no longer had the strength or the drive to fight back. Y/N threw his fang claw at the Tiger's jetpack which caused the Tiger to fall.)

"Sensei! Mother!" Raph called out.

"April!" Donnie yelled as he and the others descended to where Splinter and April were.

(Tigerclaw was a strong fighter, but even he couldn't take all of them out by himself. Instead, he laughed as he took off, leaving them to their bitter victory. They had won, they were all alive, but they'd still lost. Who knew if Karai had been able to survive being flushed down that sewer drain or if she would be able to escape it if she had survived? There were too many 'what-ifs' to count and they didn't have time to focus on 'what-ifs'.)

(Chloe pulled Ethan up onto his back so he could jump down to join the others. Splinter didn't look at them.)

"I trust that you are all unharmed?" Splinter's voice was heavy with grief.

"Sensei," Timothy began, concerned.

"What happened?" Chloe finished the question.

"She forced me into combat," Splinter explained while holding Shen close. They all lowered their heads in sorrow at the tone of finality in his voice. "But the healing hands I used on her were meant to help her...not harm her. I fear we will never see Miwa again. And now that the TigerClaw knows that Shen is alive, I fear that things will get worse before they get better."

(Y/N glanced at the others while they all registered what this loss meant. Riki's eyes looked suspiciously glassy, ears pressed flat.)

"Never give up hope," Leo stated, placing a comforting hand on Splinter's shoulder. "That was the greatest lesson you ever taught us as a kid, Sensei."

(Splinter and Shen turned at looked at him before his eyes travelled to the rest of them. They may not have had their true daughter, but he still had the rest of them...his family...his adopted sons and grandson. They all smiled reassuringly at him, knowing that with their help, maybe there was a chance Karai could be a found and able to be brought back to where she truly belonged...with them.)

Shen smiled back appreciatively as he stood and turned to them.

"Come, let us return home!" Shen said, placing a proud hand on Leo's shoulder.

[Unbeknownst to them, Karai ends up in a drain pipe and spits out the Brain Worm previously controlling her.]

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!!!

A/N: If you're wondering why I'm giving Ethan leader moments, I have a special plan for him in the future.