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Stages	By : rye-chan Category: Comics > Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Views: 2032 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do NOT own TMNT OR the TMNT characters. Nor do i make any type of profit/money from them.

Chapter List
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You Weren’t There
            Everything flew passed him in a blur as he ran over the rooftops at top speed. His only focus was the movement of his body and the rush of the cool, autumn air around him. It was a rare peace that he felt and it was much needed after the way his brother had been acting lately. Raphael’s drinking, that used to be an occasional occurrence, was now becoming a regular escapade. He no longer had just a couple of beers but was downing hard liquor like it was water. Leonardo had no idea what brought on such a drastic change in his behavior but it made him very uneasy.
            The drinking was getting out of control and a few hours earlier, a fight broke out between the two. Leo was only worried for his brother’s health but Raph didn’t want to hear it. The larger turtle tried to walk away but a sudden, inexplicably strong urge to get to the bottom of the problem hit him hard and the leader pursued while yelling.
            “What are you hiding, Raph? What could possibly cause you to act like this?” Leonardo shouted and hit the nail right on the head. Raphael froze where he was, his entire body rigid and golden-yellow eyes wide. Slowly, the red-banded turtle turned to face his elder brother. His surprise at the exactly correct guess was quickly replaced with a burning rage; it was a defensive response that he had no control over.
            “You want to know the reason?” His deep voice was low, quiet…dangerous and it sent a shiver racing through Leo’s body, “IT’S YOUR FAULT!” Raphael roared before turning on his heel and darting upstairs.
            Leonardo was stunned. How was it his fault? It didn’t make any sense. The leader went through his memories trying to remember if he had done or said something to cause the drinking but he came up with nothing. How could he fix something if he didn’t have the answers? He knew his hot tempered brother would say no more on the subject. It was a lost cause. He felt an unfamiliar heaviness settle in his heart; it hurt and he didn’t understand where it came from.
            He decided to let it go for now and approach his testy brother a little later about it. Instead, the blue-banded ninja went into the dojo and began practicing a new kata. He quickly focused on the action at hand and found that rare peace that training gave him when nothing else would. He had gone through the new kata several times before someone joined him in the dojo. Leo could immediately tell who it was just by listening to the way he moved, to his footsteps that paused just inside the door. Puzzled, Leonardo stopped his practice and turned to face Raphael.
            “I…” The temperamental turtle started but hesitated, unsure of how to continue. He looked away from his waiting brother, uncertainty and nervousness radiating from him.
            “Raph.” Leo called out gently, getting the younger to face him once more, “You still have my back, right?” The question was unexpected but it returned the determined expression to the emerald ninja’s face.
            “Of course I do. I always will.” Raphael responded in a way that left no room for argument. It made his brother smile.
            “That’s good. And you’ll always be there for me, right?” The leader asked as he approached the Sai wielder.
            “Yeah, Leo, I’ll be wherever you need me.” It was clear the red-banded ninja was becoming confused by the conversation.
            “So let me be there for you. I’m here Raph. Talk to me.” Leonardo said gently, reassuringly. He hoped he would actually get somewhere this time. But it wasn’t meant to be.
            “It…you wouldn’t understand.” Raphael responded quietly and turned to leave again. This time though, Leo wasn’t going to just let him run. The leader needed an answer.
            “Raph, please, talk to me!” It was desperate and it was obvious but the blue-banded ninja didn’t care. He couldn’t bear another rift forming between them. However, it was just angering the resident hot-head.
            “Damn it Leo! Back off!” Raphael shouted furiously, “I can’t stand you butting into my business all the damn time! Shut the fuck up!” With those final words the hot-head spun around and landed a powerful punch to the leader’s cheek, slamming him back against the wall hard.
            Shock resonated between them. When hurt flashed through those amber eyes though, Raph felt his heart clench painfully. But as fast as the hurt was displayed, it vanished, disappearing behind the leader’s impenetrable emotionless mask. Leo didn’t say anything. He righted himself and then walked away to his room.
            It was several hours later that the blue-banded ninja emerged and headed to the door. By that time Raphael was thoroughly sloshed on the couch, watching a motorcycle race. He was questioned about where he was going and a short reply was Raph’s answer. It was just a run, something to blow off steam when meditation didn’t work. A run to their favorite place topside. A secret they kept between themselves.
            No one was supposed to know about it. And no one did. Until he was followed. He was ambushed. He grabbed his shell cell and called Raphael but there was no answer. It went right to voicemail. He was ignored. Sudden, blinding pain erupted from the back of his head and everything went dark.
*~*~*~*
            They were out of the lair in a flash, moving faster than they ever had before. There was no talking, no second guessing, no arguing. There was no time for that. All that mattered was the destination and what they would find there. His dream, his memory was telling him something. Something he had almost forgotten about. It was a place just outside the city where a few acres of woods remained untouched. In the very center was a unique rock formation that hid a small glade with an underground cave.
            It was discovered by the two elder ninja some time ago and it became their place of solitude and peace when the usual remedies failed. It was where they went to be at peace with each other during those times when they were practically at war. Now it was a place that held the answer to a mystery Raphael wasn’t sure he wanted. It held a terrible sense of foreboding that left a dead weight in his gut and fearful, unshed tears in his golden eyes.
            Please…please! Be there, Leo! Raphael’s thoughts were desperate, pleading as he and his younger brothers continued their race to the end. For Donatello and Michelangelo it was a last hope. Donnie’s DNA tracker wouldn’t work no matter what he tried and Mikey was just lost. When Raphael came storming into the lab yelling about how he knew where their eldest brother was, neither one questioned him. It was the only lead they had and it was better than nothing. At the speed they were going, they reached the secret glade in half the time it normally would take to arrive. But it wasn’t a reassuring sight.
            The glade was about eighteen feet in circumference and it looked like a disaster struck. Every inch of it was either torn up, gouged out, covered with broken rocks and busted trees, or discolored by what should not have been there: blood. The crimson color was a macabre addition and it leant no reassurances to the three brothers looking for their eldest.
            “Over there!” Raph commanded suddenly as he pointed to the area where the rock formation was most prominent. Neither Donnie nor Mikey knew what he saw but they followed all the same. It was obvious to the younger siblings that their hot-headed brother had been to the destroyed place before…they just had no idea when or why.
            While his younger brothers stood back, Raph was tearing through the destruction. He threw busted tree limbs aside and pushed chunks of sliced rock away as he scoured around for what he was looking for. As the seconds passed he became more desperate and afraid; afraid that he had been wrong, afraid for Leo’s life. Just when he was about to give up, the fear and desperation becoming too much, he finally found it: the crevasse.
            It was obvious when he finally uncovered it that someone had made it larger. Whoever it was, had practically torn the ground apart around it until a large hole had been made. What was once a small opening barely big enough for a ninja turtle to get through was now large enough to fit three large men. That wasn’t a reassuring thought but it was a much needed lead.
            Raph ordered his brothers to get the rope and flashlight and bring it over. They did so quickly, Mikey in the lead with the flashlight shaking in his hand as he leaned over the dark opening. His baby-blue eyes were shining with tears as he and his brothers leaned in and looked at the newly lit underground cave. The sight that greeted them was a nightmare.
*~*~*~*
            You lied…you lied…you’re a liar…you said you’d be there…you said you…you…said…liar.
            He was fading. He could feel it, it was the only thing he could feel now. There was no more pain, there was no more cold. There was just loss. He lost the fight. He lost his family. And now he would lose his life. And the only thing he could think of was Raphael as he fell away into unconsciousness just before the light appeared above him.
*~*~*~*
            It was horrible. Blood was everywhere in the small cave, streaming from the body that lay still. His body was…broken. He was lying in a manner that would have made the most experienced coroner throw up on sight. That’s exactly what happened with Mikey. The orange-banded ninja choked on a heavy sob before retreating from the hole to hurl up everything he had eaten or drank until only bile was left, all the while crying his eyes out.
            Donatello collapsed in a heap on the edge of the crevasse as he balled his eyes out yelling for Leonardo to get up, to move. He was begging, pleading but not getting any results,   “LEO!! NO!! Please, PLEASE MOVE!! MOVE LEO, PLEASE!!!!”
            There was little hesitation as Raphael grabbed the rope, tied it to the nearest tree trunk, and dropped down into the cave. Adrenaline was rushing through the large turtle as he landed on damp ground. He tried not to think about the fact that the wet ground was due to the sheer amount of blood Leo had lost, the wet ground he had no choice to step on. He rushed to his brother’s side and reached for his neck, placing his fingertips firmly but gently against the too cold flesh and searching for a pulse. Seconds ticked by and panic began rising; he couldn’t feel it.
            “No…Leo…no, please, LEO!” Raphael yelled as he bent over his older brother, tears streaming as he sobbed over the limp, cold form of his brother. Carefully, Raph pulled his motionless brother onto his lap and held him close. He buried his face in the neck that wouldn’t give him a pulse and repeatedly called out Leo’s name in a broken and despairing way. And that’s when he felt it, a weak but regularly occurring puff of air against his cheek.
            “Leo?” Raphael called out weakly as he pulled back a bit to look at his brother’s overly pale face. Golden eyes were sharp as he stared, waiting for some kind of movement no matter how small. And he got it. A slight tremble of lips. Raph could have melted and reformed ten times over from the amount of relief he felt upon seeing that slightest motion, “Donnie! Get down here now! HE’S ALIVE!”
            “Wh-what?!” Donatello choked out in shock before he realized what he had just heard, “Mikey! He’s alive, LEO’S ALIVE!!” The genius yelled as he grabbed the rope and lowered himself down into the cave, flashlight gripped tight under his arm with his bagful of medical supplies hanging from his shoulder.
            “He…REALLY?!” Michelangelo was barely able to get himself under control as he crawled back over to the crevasse but he couldn’t bring himself to look inside again. Above the cave, the youngest waited for his brothers, all of his brothers, to emerge.
*~*~*~*
            It truly was a nightmare. It was worse than any other time of their lives. Leo’s body…it was broken. Just about every bone was broken or shattered and his other wounds just made everything else worse. They had found Leonardo alive, barely. However, there was no guarantee that he would stay alive. Broken bones, stab wounds, burns from some kind of electrical weaponry, collapsed lung, blood loss, and a dangerous amount of other internal damage. It was a nightmare…but Leo was back and Raphael intended to keep it that way.
            Donatello and Raphael did what they could for their brother in the cave. Tending to his injuries was no easy task in the dark of their surroundings but that didn’t stop them. They continued on with Michelangelo checking every now and again on Leo’s state. The youngest terrapin still couldn’t bring himself to look into the cave again. He waited; his patience would have made Splinter shocked but proud even if it was anxiety that caused it. He didn’t want to lose his eldest brother. That wasn’t an option for him…it wasn’t an option for any of them.
*~*~*~*
            Almost three hours had passed before Donnie was satisfied with Leo’s bandages and splints. Then the newest problem arose: how to get Leonardo out of the cave with the smallest amount of movement possible. It was Mikey who came up with the idea. While his older brothers were tending to the unconscious and very damaged leader, Michelangelo took it upon himself to rope together a few of the thinner trees. It was a makeshift stretcher that was built strong, showing the concentration and care that was only ever seen directed toward video games or the newest prank he had planned for his brothers.
            “Guys?” Mikey called when finished with his project, still unwilling to look down.
            “What is it Mikey?” Donatello responded sounding distracted.
            “Do you have Leo patched up yet?” Not the best choice of words, given the condition his oldest brother was in. His question was received with several seconds of silence.
            “You really need to work on phrasing things.” Raphael responded flatly.
            “And yes, we are done tending his injuries. Why?” Donnie asked with a tired sigh.
            “Okay, I’m sending down the stretcher.” Michelangelo answered as he carefully guided his project to the mouth of the cave.
            “Wait…the what?”   Donatello questioned, stunned.
            “The stretcher! I made one out of the busted trees up here and the extra rope we brought!” The youngest terrapin responded a bit irritably. Honestly, and his brothers called him an idiot! Raphael and Donnie wore matching expressions: totally stupefied.
            The elder two came out of their shock when they were almost hit with their little brothers rare stoke of intelligence. Donnie stood to better direct the stretcher and to keep it from swinging freely; Leonardo had enough injuries and didn’t need more bruises added by the youngest member of their family. Once the homemade stretcher was in place beside Leo, Raph and Donnie very carefully lifted the blue-banded turtle onto it.
            “Mikey, I’m coming back up to help lift Leo out so just hold on for a minute, okay?” The braniac yelled up. Once he received the affirmative response, the purple-banded turtle grabbed the single rope and climbed up.
            When Donatello was back on top, he and Michelangelo began pulling the ropes to the stretcher. Once they had Leonardo out of the cave at long last, Raphael climbed out. Both olive and sea-green terrapins wanted to return home immediately but the emerald-green turtle had one last thing to take care of.
            With a furious rage not seen in many years, Raphael tore apart the glade as he filled in the underground cave with anything he could get his powerful hands on. Trees, rocks, chunks of earth; nothing was spared as the cave and the mouth of it disappeared from view.
*~*~*~*
            The return trek home was a difficult one. The brothers had one hell of a time getting Leo through the city unseen while being extremely careful about jostling him on the stretcher. They had to keep to the outskirts as much as possible but, of course, there just had to be a major festival complete with a damn parade that evening. What was even more problematic was how they would get Leo and the stretcher down a manhole. Shockingly, it was Mikey who suggested a drainage pipe that would suit their needs and settle their worries for getting Leo back home. Finally, after hours of traveling, the boys arrived back home…together.
            They brought their leader into the medical bay where Donnie could do a more thorough examination internally. He had found numerous ruptured organs but none were severe. He did the surgery necessary to keep the internal damage under control and then once again cleaned and bandaged the eldest. The resident genius then proceeded to hook Leo up to a heart monitor, with the help of Raph inserted a breathing tube down his throat, and then an I.V. Once everything was connected to his computers, he gave Raph and Mikey the signal to get Splinter.
*~*~*~*
            Splinter had been pacing in the dojo on and off between meditating and obsessively glancing at the clock. With every second that slowly ticked by, his hopes of seeing his missing son again fell more and more. His heart ached so terribly. He hated when his family suffered and this situation was by far the worst experience any of them had ever been through.
            It was mental and emotion torture. The thoughts and images that raced through his mind were steadily becoming worse as he imagined what his three younger sons would find…if they found anything. Such thoughts and images sent his emotions on a horrifying roller coaster ride that was quickly spiraling straight down into darkness.
            Then, when he heard the front door of their lair swing open and the familiar footsteps of his three youngest sons, he thought they had returned with the eldest. However, they didn’t come to him. Michelangelo didn’t come bursting into the dojo, yelling at the top of his lungs in relieved excitement that Leo had been found before running off to be with his big brother. Donatello didn’t call for him to inform him of Leo’s condition and explain that the leader would be alright in the end. Raphael didn’t come to him in person, telling him that Leo was back in voice barely restrained with emotion and eyes brimming with relieved tears.
            Nothing happened. Splinter dropped to his hands and knees as his eyes clouded over. Tears fell quickly, silently to the floor as his elderly frame shook from no longer suppressed sobs. He could no longer reign in his pain, his intense feeling of loss. His worst nightmare finally came true. He had lost one of his sons and he no answers.
            “Sensei?” Splinter felt his heart stop as he was called and quickly stood before rushing to the dojo door. Michelangelo met him at the dojo entrance looking tired but…relieved? He couldn’t speak and waited to hear his youngest son’s next words with bated breath.
            “We found him.”
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Final Chapter coming soon!! :)
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