Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Mikey couldn't remember much about what happened, but what he did know was that he wasn’t safe right now.

When Mikey woke up he found himself in a cell, a very cold and dark cell. It was pretty spacious though, could hold a good five Raph’s he’d bet. The bars looked thick but kinda far apart, if they were just a few more inches he could probably squeeze out with no problem.

Mikey took notice of his entire head thumping along with his heartbeat. He could feel a part of it boiling, like some kind of injury was recovering, but he couldn’t feel much pain other than mild soreness.

When he shifted to sit up, he felt something weighted and cold restricting his foot. His eyes immediately caught sight of a familiar glowing light blueish-green cuff on his ankle. It looked just like the cuff Big Mama had on him when he was chained to Meat Sweats. Could it be they were captured by her again?

A chain attached to the cuff draped across the floor, passing through some bars that separated his cell from the neighboring cell. The chain looked to be attached to another ankle.

Taking a closer look at the dark figure Mikey could recognized a familiar white and red mask of Big Mama's new assistant. So did that mean Big Mama was behind this? But weren’t he and his brothers just fighting against them on a- that's right!

Bits and pieces of memories began coming back to him like a puzzle. He was fighting with his brothers on a plane when he wrapped his chain around the masked enemy, but they accidentally fell out of the plane and he went with them because his hands were stuck.

But then how did he end up here? Why were they chained together? Where was that weird sticky substance that he had on his hands? And where were his brothers?

Wait- where were his brothers!? Mikey gave the place a quick sweep however there was no sign of a green limb or a spiky shell anywhere. The only other body seemed to be the masked Yokai in the neighboring cell.

“LEO!!! DONNIE!!! RAPH!!! YOU HERE!?!?” He listened for a response… but nothing.

Panic began to bubble in his chest as Mikey realized the situation this was and tears instantly started to form from the intensity of his emotions. He wasn’t alone, was he? They had to be somewhere nearby! Maybe they were still passed out in another room! Yeah, that had to be it!

In that case, he needed to find a way to communicate with them. Mikey began to push himself up and felt his leg shake under the weight.

“Sheesh, how long have I been out?” The turtle mumbled to himself and used his arms to aid in thrusting his upper body up, letting his legs naturally catch his weight. His vision was spotted for a few seconds and he wobbled from a sudden dizzy spell but was able to catch one of the cell bars to lean on until the fuzzy spectacles danced away.

It took him a few seconds until his sore body finally adjusted and as soon as it did a new nervous energy bounced around in his stomach. Mikey tried slowly walking around to calm it, keeping sure to use the bars when his legs started to feel like jelly, but the chain scraping against the ground did not help his nerves one bit. The activity was making his body feel better though at least.

This had to be some kind of dungeon, most likely Big Mama’s. But why would she chain him to her assistant? And why were they in another cell? Ugh, why was everything so confusing!?

Okay, he just needed to take things one step at a time. Shouting for his brothers didn’t work, so maybe he could try and use his Ninpo-

The door suddenly slammed open and Mikey felt his body instinctively dive into his shell. Luckily he was positioned towards the now open door and could see the newcomer walk into the room. Well, not really walk, the Yokai was sitting atop a plush silky floating pillow. It was definitely one of those fancy pillows because it had tassels hanging off the corners, just like in the movies for a royal's bed.

The first feature of the newcomer he took notice of was that they were small, maybe around dads height? Based on looks Mikey guessed this was a Yokai, a dragon Yokai to be precise. They looked very fairly similar to the dragon Yokai from Heuso’s restaurant except their head was more narrow and somewhat birdlike and there were large scales that jutted out and ran along the edges of their head with two long spikes poking down their neck.

The Yokai’s teeth looked like they could use some serious braces, both rows had sharp teeth that jutted out and the one in the front was so big it covered up their beak! The small Yokai had scales of mixed purple and brown and a thick spiky tail dropped off the pillow and onto the ground, dragging behind and creating an eerie scratching noise against the concrete.

Hanging on the Yokai’s neck was a thick white braided rope necklace with several white tassels, each tassel having its own foreign symbol. Long claws curled around a large black staff that they used to push the floating pillow like a boat.

“Ooh, sire! looks like they’re awake!” The Yokai’s voice was annoyingly high-pitched and raspy.

The door opened once more and this time a skin crawling chill swept into the room, the smell of copper rain following close behind. It felt as if the beginning of a huge storm had suddenly entered the room, like when the thunderous dark clouds were just about to loom over and it was suffocatingly humid yet the rain hadn’t made it just yet.

A very terrifying looking Yokai came in at a slow pace. Moss-colored scales covered the Yokai’s body running from head to sharp talons. A few spikes stuck out on the sides of the Yokai’s sneering face, his muzzle was narrow but not as much as the one before and two strands of black gelled hair fell from both sides like a long thin mustache. He also had a similar long thin beard that was also really gelled. Slung over his shoulder was long braided black hair that again looked shiny with gel. With the amount of gel used Mikey would have thought this guy was about to sell him a deal on loans. He must really like the stuff.

A three horned golden headpiece sat atop the Yokai’s head that matched with the silver and gold colored steel gauntlets and gold spiked shoulder set. The red hilt of a sword hung on a wide scarlet belt, in the middle of the belt was the golden figure of a twirling Chinese dragon, its snout wrinkled in aggression and five claws stretching from each of its opened palms.

The only thing that wasn’t scary on the Yokai was the beautifully decorated dark gold robe and his green tail that curled in a loop behind him, a puff of white hair settled at the end, the tip just barely dusting the floor.

The Yokai turned to Mikey and he felt the dragon's red eyes tearing right through him. There were no pupils, only two glowing blood red circles staring towards him in the dim cell room. They looked so…empty. The Yokai breathed in and Mikey swore he saw smoke puff out with the exhale. He desperately wished there was someone else in the cell he could cling to, he needed something to ground him better than just hiding in his shell.

“Hello little children” The Yokai walked in front of the cells and stood there, a plain smile on his face which made him so much creepier.

Mikey couldn’t help himself as he questioned the Yokai though. “Who are you? Why am I here? Where are my brothers? What gel are you using?”

The Yokai turned to look directly at him once again and Mikey felt an involuntary shudder run down his shell. This was definitely scarier than the average villain encounter, not exactly Shredder scary but something about him makes Mikey feel uneasy. The absence of his brothers may also have something to do with the lack of confidence but Mikey didn’t really want to admit that to himself.

“Brothers?” The big dragon turned to the smaller one, smile gone. “There were more? Why weren’t they taken as well” His tone had shifted to one of great annoyance that Mikey wasn’t a fan of, there was some kind of pit in his stomach that would sink anytime someone’s voice raised to anger or annoyance. On the bright side, they hadn’t found his brothers! But then, that meant he really was all alone here…

A heavy dread squeezed his stomach uncomfortably. His family was rarely ever separated, even when trapped they would usually end up being locked in a cage together. And now they were not only separated, but he didn’t even know where they were!

“I had no idea there were more, duì bù qǐ,” The smaller dragon said as they bowed their head

The big dragon shook his head “You can make up for it by sending a team to find them, if they are anything like this one I’m interested in having them”

Mikey didn’t like how both the Yokai looked at him, even without pupils the smile was just like Draxum’s when they first met. Like he was some kind of tool the other couldn’t wait to use later. The smaller one was drastically different, instead a look of hunger was in their eyes.

“You asked who I am, didn't you? Well I suppose since you speak English, you may refer to me as the Dragon Lord or King”

“And I’m Wick!” The smaller dragon Yokai announced with hyperactive glee before the Dragon Lord stepped in front of Wick.

“Don’t pay any attention to her. Now what else did you ask?... Ah, why you are here. Well, you’ll find out.”

Mikey shuddered again after the smaller Yokai cackled and a tongue swept across her giant teeth.

“But right now I find something else more important. I know you have it” The scary dragon Yokai- or Dragon Lord now he guessed- turned to Big Mama’s assistant in the cell beside him.

They said nothing though, just turning their head.

“You better give it to me, it would make everything so much easier wouldn’t it?” The Dragon Lord asked.

Still no answer.

The Dragon Lord unlocked the door and nonchalantly walked inside the cell, leaving the door wide open. Mikey scooted his shell to keep them in his sight. He watched nervously as the Dragon Lord grabbed the hooded Yokai by the neck and lifted them as if they weighed nothing.

They were thrown against the wall and Mikey was yanked along with them, his foot being forced out of his shell from the violent pull.

“Hey!” Mikey didn’t mean to say it so loud, but his volume rose dramatically as soon as he opened his mouth and he couldn’t stop himself.

The Dragon Lord turned towards Mikey and he immediately shoved his foot back into his shell. Even though they were separated by bars Mikey didn’t feel safe anywhere else but his shell.

He could feel his insides squirming with more panic and tried to calm himself with encouraging words.

It’s okay, I can take this guy! I beat Shredder after all! Okay well maybe that had been with the family but my mystic powers are very strong!

Mikey felt a little more confident and managed to stop his panic. Now if only that eating dread would go away.

“Wick, tell the doctor to prepare for my son's lunch then meet me back here.”

Wick smiled with glee and glanced back at Mikey which had him pulling as far into his shell as possible, for a small dragon she sure was creepy.

“Oh, and tell him to bring the torture device, seems we might need to crack this one after all” The dragon Lord said before grabbing Big Mama’s assistant and bending their arm into a horrifying angle, an echoing crack sound following quickly as hissing noises escaped from behind their mask.

Mikey closed his eyes so he wouldn’t have to watch anymore, but he could still hear the Dragon Lord’s haunting whispering.

“Your pathetic life shouldn’t be worth the pain you are about to go through.”

He heard a growl and what he could only assume was a struggle but he still didn’t look. He didn’t want to see anything else scary.

Mikey really really wished at least one of his brothers were here.

“It shall be done, my Lord!” Wick said in that scraggly high-pitched voice.

The following sounds were footsteps…then the cell door closing…then another door closing. Mikey just barely poked his head out and felt a pressure fall from himself when he realized the Yokai were finally gone. Still, he stayed inside his shell, just in case..

There was a sudden tug on his foot and Mikey’s head shot out of his shell to check what it was. Movement from across the cell brought his attention to the hooded Yokai who was currently hovering their gloved three-fingered hand over the chain, their small golden talons gone.

A tiny wisp of white colored light fell from their palm and connected to the chain in the shape of electricity, but whatever they were trying to do wasn’t working because the chain just lay limply on the ground. The light faded away and the Yokai slammed their fist to the chain.

Mikey knew he should be focused on looking for a way to escape, but he couldn’t help wondering why their mask was still on. Wouldn’t that have been taken in case it was some kind of mystic weapon or device? Then again he still had his mask, knee pads, and black wrappings. Weapons were gone obviously but that wouldn’t be a problem, he could just make more. But wait, wasn't there supposed to be a green shoulder armor piece? He could have sworn that there was something like that, maybe it was taken?

The stranger looked over at Mikey.

‘It seems we are stuck like this’ A voice suddenly said, but it didn’t actually sound like it was spoken…almost like it was-

‘I have telepathy, don’t question. We need to get out of here’ The voice in his head sounded odd, it was clear and clean with the hint of some kind of accent?

“Wow! That’s so cool!” Mikey let the rest of his limbs leave his shell and tried talking back to her telepathically, but it didn’t appear to be working because she gave no response. So he spoke aloud “Why can’t I talk back to you?”

‘You don’t have telepathic powers, so you can’t enter my mind. I can only talk to you through your mind’

Mikey pouted “I wanna talk through your mind” That would have been so cool! They could silently communicate with each other and totally talk behind the Dragon Lords' back in front of his face!

“So who are you? Like name wise I guess. My names Mikey” Might as well get to know each other if they were going to be escape buddies.

‘I am not giving you my name’

Mikey huffed, jeez what was so dangerous about giving your name? Someone is paranoid. “Fine, then I’ll just have to make up a name for you…wait what’s your gender?”

‘Female, why?’

“How about Mona Lisa?”

‘No’

“Okay,” There were many options! But which one described her…Mikey gasped “Venus De Milo!”

‘Why such odd names?’

Mikey sat up excitedly, he’s been waiting to have this conversation with someone that wasn’t April and Draxum for so long!

“Well my brothers and I were named after Renaissance artists, so me and brother Donnie did research on all the other art stuff of the Renaissance.” It had all been very interesting and boring. Most of it didn’t even stick with him, but there were a few that did.

“Mona was a painting romanticized as a mysterious seductress and there was something about a vampire accusation. And Venus was a statue that is kinda a mystery for her identity and her arms, plus there was a hard theory that she was somehow connected to Venus de Magic, the Renaissance queen of quick change!” Mikey remembered Leo ranting about Venus de Magic and how no one knew anything about her, but there were many speculations.

“Anyway, you’re kinda a mystery with your whole secret identity thing so I just thought something like them matched nicely! Unfortunately artist are reserved for fam. Would you prefer a male work of art?”

‘No thanks’

“So Vee, what's the plan?”

‘I did not agree to that name’

“It’s too late! I just chose it!” Mikey crossed his arms, a devious smile on his face. It really did fit her well, he thought.

‘Fine, just don’t bother me and keep quiet while I get us out of here.’

Mikey’s smile instantly fell into a frown. He hated being pushed away when a plan was in the works, it was a huge pet peeve of his and Raph had learned the hard way he didn’t take kindly to being pushed aside. “I can help!”

‘You’ll just get in my way’ Venus crawled over to the bars and placed her hand on the metal.

“I have powers though! I can just use my mystic chain and mystic us out of here!”

‘Mystic us out?’ The other occupant didn’t sigh or groan but her body language and tone were enough for him to know she thought what he said was absolutely ridiculous.

Mikey just ignored her and grabbed the bars to turn them into nunchucks…however, what was usually an alive and vibrating feeling of energy was...quiet. He searched inside for anything but it was like his heart was sinking into a dark empty hole where his burning mystic spirit was supposed to be.

“Oh no! WHAT HAPPENED TO MY POWERS!?”

‘Shut up! You’re going to draw their attention!’

Mikey shut his mouth before he could complain about how much worse this situation could get. So instead he just hugged his knees and rocked back and forth to try and calm himself. Without his mystic powers he was basically useless! How were they going to get out of here!?

‘I can break these bars, but you’ll need to get back as far as you can’

Mikey let himself drop to the cold concrete floor and rolled further away, still in his fetal position. Even if they managed to get out he had no mystic powers to defend them if they got caught! So what was even the point?

Venus raised her leg that was free of the chain and kicked at the bar, it seemed to bend a little under her metal shoe but not by much. She continued to kick it, creating a loud ringing noise of metal against metal.

Mikey nervously watched the door, waiting for some guards to come stomping in.

Which is exactly what happened.

Two large Yokai guards burst the door open, one a really buff looking red bull and the other a very wrinkly hairless mole. Or at least sort of hairless- the mole had long black hair poking out all over his body and wore camouflage overalls which made the scary appearance of the mole less frightening. Camo and overalls were the least scary thing.

The bull on the other hand looked terrifying, large scars enveloped all over his red furred body and his right eye glowed a buzzing yellow. The top half of his right horn had been replaced with gleaming silver metal. Only a single dark gray loincloth covered him.

The mole hit the bars of Mikey’s cell.

“Stop that! Or we’ll make sure you can’t move for the rest of your lives!”

Venus stood up in an attack-ready position, she held out her hand and gestured with her fingers for them to come.

“Oh, you want fight?” The mole asked in a broken sentence before nodding to the bull who punched his fist together and snorted.

“What kind of plan is this!?” Mikey stood up and readied himself in a defensive position. He wasn’t sure what he could do without his mystic powers, and this cramped space totally messed up his razzmatazz style!

‘Relax, you’re trained for this aren’t you? This is our only chance of escape’

Mikey seriously thought she had something better than this- and wasn’t her arm broken!?

The bull opened the door for Venus and charged her while the mole opened Mikey’s and slowly stepped in dramatically.

“Alright small turtle, just stay still so I can break your legs!” The mole quickly advanced on him and Mikey readied for the attack, however the chain on his foot suddenly pulled out from under him and he fell on his shell. The mole tried to take advantage of this moment of weakness but Mikey was quick to kick him away. Though it didn’t seem to do much because the mole quickly recovered.

“Heh, didn’t know turtles could move any faster than a snail”

“Hey! That’s a hurtful stereotype!”

Mikey’s leg unexpectedly went through the bar and his shell slammed against the metal. His foot burned with strain from being pulled by the chain.

“Yo Vee you know I’d like to keep my leg right!?” Mikey cried out to Venus who ignored him in favor of avoiding the crushing hand of the red bull.

Mikey turned his sights back to the mole who was standing over him with a big dumb cocky smile that actually looked kinda scary because of his giant sharp buck teeth.

Mikey felt a moment of slack from the chain and pulled his leg back through the bars then ducked himself into his shell for protection. He heard the mole make a displeased noise before picking up his shell and shouting

“Come out you little coward!” Mikey answered back with a blown raspberry.

It was only seconds after that he felt a spike of pain in his shell. From what he could see the mole was hitting him against the bars, but refused to leave his shell. The mole growled deeply and Mikey felt a new feeling of familiar burning on his foot as it was pulled from his shell.

‘Hey!’ Venus’s voice shouted in his head.

Mikey shot his head up to see what was going on and saw the mole Yokai was pulling him, which resulted in Venus being pulled against the bars. The bull's fist came down towards her and she barely dodged, but when his second fist came down again the mole pulled the chain so she couldn’t move and she was hit right in the chest. Both the bull and Venus cried out in pain from the attack.

A new feeling of rushed adrenaline overtook Mikey’s movements and before he could even think about what to do next his limbs shoved out of his shell, fist colliding with the mole's face. He was dropped to the ground.

Mikey got himself up as fast as he could and stumbled over to the bars just in time for Venus to shoot away, causing the bull's punch to hit the bars. The bar had been broken in half, the metal bending down so far it was partially in the ground.

Venus took advantage of the new hole to slip through to the other cell. She didn’t even give Mikey a second to react before launching at the mole and kicking him in the face, knocking him out.

‘Come on!’

She started towards the exit and Mikey was quick to follow. She slammed the door of the cell with the red bull and locked it and he immediately began smashing at the bars which were quick to bend like before. She didn’t bother locking the cell with the mole and just headed for the door.

‘Let’s go!’ She said, rushing towards the door. Mikey ran after her but he couldn’t help but think about what had just happened. How did she know there would be a bull Yokai to break the bars!?

“How did you plan all of that!?”

‘Oh, that wasn’t my plan, I was just going with an improvised plan B’

So she had no idea what she was doing!? Mikey liked her already.

Venus opened the door and waited for Mikey before closing the door and locking all three locks.

She didn’t say anything before sprinting down the hall, practically dragging Mikey behind.

“Hey wait! I can’t run with you pulling me around with this chain!”

‘First of all you seriously need to stop shouting and second, keep up’ She said before almost tripping him after turning a corner. ‘We need a place to hide, there will be many after us when that bull guy gets out’

Mikey searched around and spotted a perfect hiding spot in the corner. “I got it!” He pulled her over to a large potted plant and hid behind it.

Venus’s only response was to start dragging him away by the chain and berate him for whining about it.

‘Listen, this chain looks pretty strong and since it blocks your powers my guess is that it’s enchanted. Which means we may be stuck like this for a while, so I need you to not get us caught again’

Mikey sighed as he grudgingly got up and followed Venus along. At least he had someone with him, even if that someone was an enemy. Someone was better than no one though, even if she was working for Big Mama. However, if she hadn’t been here Mikey would probably still be in that cell hiding in his shell so he would definitely take her company with value.

It would be better if his brothers were here though, that was for sure. Mikey could only hope that he would see them soon, and then they could figure out how to deal with this Dragon Lord guy.

Hopefully they were nearby, and he would find them soon…

Chapter Text

The place they were in was damp and dreadful. The entire hallway was made of gray concrete, the occasional wires moving from one location to the other was the only variety of color to be seen. The chain scraping against the concrete didn't create a friendly ambiance to the situation either.

'Pick the chain up, it's too loud' Venus said as she picked up her end. Mikey did as instructed and felt a lot better as they walked as Venus wasn't pulling him by the foot anymore, almost tripping him with every step.

“Jeez, even Draxum’s laboratory was nicer than this,” Mikey mumbled as he passed over some large random wires traveling from one concrete wall to the other.

‘You know the Baron?’

“Yep, he was always asking my brothers to join his cause to wipe out humanity and then tried to kill us when we refused” Mikey realized how bad that sounded and quickly added, “But recently he’s changed! I found him on the streets after this whole shredder battle and helped him. Now he’s our second dad!”

‘Why? You just said he tried to kill you’

“Yeah but, he made me and my brothers, and in a way, he brought dad to us. I’m very grateful for that and wanted to repay the favor!”

‘Wait, he made you?’ Venus stopped in her fast pace, slowing down as if something was suddenly on her mind.

“Yeah, he did some freaky science stuff with Mutagen and my dad. He’s Lou Jitsu, by the way.” Mikey said with an air of cockiness.

Venus didn’t respond, instead continuing down the hall.

Well, that was very odd. Not even a reaction to Lou Jitsu being his father!? She’s had to have heard of him, she worked for Big Mama! Could it be that Lou Jitsu did not impress her? No, impossible. Lou Jitsu is the best!

Venus came to a sudden stop and held her arm about before Mikey could pass her. He was about to ask what was wrong when the sound of heavy footsteps began echoing through the halls. For a second Mikey feared they were heading towards them, but the footsteps left just as they had arrived. Mikey felt himself melt in relief and they started moving again.

But then he realized..Venus was holding out her broken arm…

“Uh, should you be doing that with your arm?” Maybe it was the other one but Mikey was pretty sure he remembered her left arm being broken.

‘It's not broken anymore, now stay quiet’

Mikey sighed. He should've expected that kind of answer. She was about as open as the Federal Reserve Bank vault.

…

They had to avoid a few more guards with a few close calls but luckily enough for them the guards were usually shouting to each other or didn’t bother stepping lightly. The language they shouted wasn’t English though, maybe Yokai language? No Yokai spoke English. Or did they? Maybe there were some that didn’t. Heuso had an accent after all.

As they were heading down what felt like the hundredth hallway, Mikey caught sight of a door that was dark red that popped out against the gray of the concrete space. It reminded him of the Red Umbrella Collection. Where the background was filled with a mix of grays, blacks, and whites and only a single umbrella was standing out in a popping red. It was kind of like graffiti in a way, color giving life to an otherwise dull background. It was very mesmerizing to look at.

The door had that same hypnotizing presence and Mikey found himself walking towards it without command of his own legs. It was as if there was a secret just dying to be found.

However, Mikey didn’t make it to the door because Venus tugged on the chain and pulled him away, towards some stairs. He grumbled in annoyance and Venus shushed him once again. Jeez, she was so mean! If it was going to be like this for the rest of the way then Mikey was going to chew through the chain.

Once they made it up to the next floor and down yet another hallway she stopped and made him stay behind her. Mikey however ignored her efforts and rose to his tiptoe so he could poke his head over her haunched form.

Just around the corner were a few Yokai guards. There were five dragon-looking guards dressed in matching outfits. They wore a black robe with a hood and a mask that covered up to their snout. Golden gauntlets laid across their lower arms, a red simplified design of a dragon's claw vibrantly staining on top, only this one had three talons instead of five like the Dragon Lord’s.

There was also a single one-legged blue, red spotted stork- or crane Mikey couldn’t tell the difference. Maybe they were the same thing.

Behind them were double metal doors that were slanted. That meant they must be underground then, doors weren’t normally slanted after all.

‘That must be the exit. Okay, we need to get the guards away from that door’

Mikey looked around to see if anything would help. It was just an empty hallway though. Even in a whisper it was pretty dangerous, and he wasn't too certain how good a dragon's sniffer was. Plus, there weren’t any more potted plants to hide behind.

They needed to make a noise somewhere else so they would investigate and leave the doors unguarded.

‘So we make a noise in one hallway, then hide, and just run to the doors before they get back’

Mikey gasped and yelled in a whisper that felt a bit too loud, “That was my idea!”

Footsteps suddenly began approaching as the guards seemed to stir from his voice.

He could practically feel the annoyance and anger radiating from Venus. She gripped his arm tightly and tried to drag him down the hallway, but Mikey pulled against her and pointed to the stairs.

“We can hide in that room,” He whispered to her, this time in the lowest volume he could manage.

‘Fine’

She followed his lead and they rushed back to the red door. The sound of the guards was close so Venus quickly opened the door and shoved him in. When she closed the door behind them Mikey turned around to look at the room and felt his heart drop at the sight before them.

Whether it was Yokai or animals, Mikey couldn’t tell. Limbs of mangled fur, scales, and skin laid out across a counter on top of blood-stained plastic. There were tails, ears, horns, and entire limbs stacked in neat piles side by side. Worse than that though was the sets of bloody jaws that looked like someone had cut off from the face of its owner. Then there were the multitudes of bottles holding various disturbing foggy-gray eyeballs and eggs inside. Clean silver equipment sat next to the counter on rolling metal trays, like the ones at a dentist's office.

Towards the left side of the room were tanks filled with beautifully colored liquid that contrasted against the horror scene beside them. Some even had sparkly smoke pouring out over the edge like some sort of witches' pot. On a table next to one of the tanks were multitudes of weird looking gold colored metal spiders with glass covered gaps on the back, as if there was supposed to be something placed inside.

The room attacked with such a suffocating smell of chemicals, rot, and vinegar that Mikey gagged. He tried to cover his mouth and hold his breath, but bile was already building in his throat and he wasn’t sure he could hold it back. Tears began filling his eyes from the horrid sight and his emotions swarmed in a panic yet froze from making coherent thoughts. For once he didn’t want to hide in his shell. He wanted to run. And yet his shaking body wouldn’t allow that.

‘Focus on the guards’

Venus’s voice took him out of his state of shock and he turned back to her. Despite her serious tone, her arms shook. Guess Venus was also disturbed by the awful place, however he couldn't discern much from her face as it was covered with that mask.

Mikey pressed his head to the door in a similar fashion as Venus, listening for the footfalls heading away. It provided a bit of distraction but his mind wouldn’t allow the images of the room to leave, it was like a small part of his brain had set up a nice cozy corner for them to stay in.

Mikey hardly noticed the absence of footsteps and jumped a little as Venus opened the door a crack to check outside. ‘It’s clear’.

They left the horrific room and raced up the stairs for the double doors, but just as they turned the corner two guards were standing in front of the doors and it was too late to hide.

“Hei!” One guard shouted and charged towards them. The guard was a gray dragon Yokai, their appearance similar to the Dragon Lord, but not as big and less spiky.

‘Diu, just our luck’ Venus moved into a defensive stance, Mikey mimicking her as the dragon Yokai advanced on them. The dragon leaped and slammed their tail over the two, but both dodged opposite of each other out of the way.

Mikey felt his balance fall from under him as Venus lifted her leg to kick the dragon, but the kick didn’t reach the target because the chain- or technically Mikey- held her back.

The dragon took advantage of this and grabbed her leg then slammed her right into the wall, Mikey squawking as he was tugged again. Okay, this chain was getting seriously annoying! How could he do anything when he was being pulled around like some puppet!?

The dragon Yokai tried stomping down on Mikey but the young turtle quickly rolled out of the way. Venus pushed herself off the wall and tried to punch the dragon but they caught her hand. Mikey acted quickly before they could make a move against Venus and swung his legs to knock the dragon's feet from under them, but to his dismay, they used their coiled tail to keep balance.

The dragon turned to him but Mikey’s attention was driven away by the sound of loud feathers slapping air. The second Yokai guard, the blue crane with red spots and a sharp shiny white beak was flying right towards them at a fast pace. Mikey screeched and tried to crawl back.

“I thought storks were friendly!”

The crane growled and jumped at Mikey and he hid in his shell, preparing for pain, but the attack never came. Venus had kicked the crane away from him. She kicked again, this time at the dragon, and managed to make contact with the dragon's stomach. She hit them right into the crane and both rolled back several feet away from them.

Another tug came to his leg and Mikey popped his head out to check on what else could possibly be happening. As it turns out, it was Venus lightly lifting her foot, as if testing something.

‘I have an idea. Stay in your shell’

Mikey reluctantly sunk his head back in. He had a sudden dreadful feeling he was about to feel a lot of pain.

Mikey felt his leg being yanked painfully hard. Fortunately, his leg was muscular enough to withstand the strain. Guess he could thank Draxum for that too.

Venus grabbed the chain and yanked it, sending Mikey’s shell sliding across the floor down the hall, in the opposite direction of their enemies. What kind of plan was-

Venus jumped into the air and did a front flip, as she did Mikey’s shell followed. She slammed her foot down, however it didn’t make contact with the two Yokai, instead, Mikey’s shell slammed over the dragon's head, effectively knocking the Yokai out.

The crane tried to attack with their talons and Venus lifted her hand. A white light flashed over the crane like a strobe light. The crane appeared disoriented and before they could gather their bearings Venus grabbed the chain and twirled around, making Mikey swing around with her. His shell slammed directly into the cranes' side, sending them right into the wall where the wall caved into a small crater.

Mikey popped out of his shell, moaning while holding his head. Man that hurt! His ankle felt like it was burning, and his body felt bruised all over. Not to mention his head was pounding worse than when Donnie would play his terrible music.

“I think I need a minute” Mikey’s been tossed against enemies before, heck Raph had a move where he was basically punched, but oh boy did it always hurt.

‘No time, let’s go’

Venus pulled Mikey up and he sluggishly followed her to the doors. She cautiously opened one door just a bit and checked their exit.

‘Looks like we still have a long way to go’

A small whine left Mikey and Venus responded by harshly shoving him through the doors.

The doors lead up to what looked like a normal house. They seemed to be in the kitchen area based on the fridge and stove surrounded by cabinets. Though oddly enough, the cabinets were all metal, the biggest one in the farthest left corner had what looked like a digital keypad lock.

Just past this was what looked like an average living room with a couch and chairs and even a TV. But most notable was the fact that this place was HUGE. The Dragon Lord must run a big business if he had a house like this. Mikey couldn’t even find a cheap place for Draxum to stay that wasn’t the size of a broom closet, which is why he’s currently living in an apartment room that wasn’t occupied…Anyway the Dragon Lord not only had what Mikey could guess was a two-story house based on the stairs in the corner of the room, but also a huge dungeon underneath!?

The cabinet did interest him the most, though. Something important had to be behind there if it had a lock! Maybe a secret passage or a portal!

Mikey sauntered over to the locked cabinet for a closer look while Venus was busy locking the doors. It looked like a simple four-digit code, although the numbers appeared to be in a foreign language. Should still be easy enough, he thought.

Mikey cracked his knuckles and turned to Venus with a confident smirk. “Don’t worry, I got this”

He began inputting the numbers into the device but to his dismay, Venus dragged him back behind the counter before he could get his last ‘1’

She poked her head out to check the surroundings. ‘Looks like everything’s clear, let’s go’

Mikey pouted as they made their way through the kitchen to the spacious living room. “Why would someone have a dungeon under their house anyway? I mean it’s comfortable but pretty impractical if you ask me” Where would you go if you were found out?

‘Maybe The Dragon Lord liked to have it nearby so he could throw in annoying individuals who wouldn’t stop talking’

Venus seemed to be getting really annoyed at this point. She must be hungry, Mikey thought, traveling air does tend to make people hungry sometimes…or was that thirst? No thirst was when you were on a boat.

Venus pulled Mikey from his thoughts by literally pulling him down. She fell into a crouch and began to make her way forwards so Mikey copied her and followed. The two made their way to a window.

Venus unlocked the window and quietly opened it up. After checking the coast was clear she slipped out first, Mikey following close behind her. They were now in what looked like a yard. The outdoor space would have been very welcoming if it wasn’t for the large beige wall standing in their way of freedom. It ran along the side of the house from front to back. Towards the front, the wall turned and attached to the house's side. And towards the back it just seemed to open up into a large backyard. Angled brown shingles lined the top of the wall, and it had to be as tall as the first floor of the house!

‘This might be a problem…’

When they got to the wall Mikey could see that it was too tall for just one of them to jump because the chain would likely stop them, so boosting wouldn’t do.

“We need to work together on this,” Mikey said.

‘Yes. Let’s hurry, a guard could show up any second now’

It started off with both trying to jump the wall, but Venus didn’t make it. So the next try was climbing, but neither could scale the smooth concrete for more than a few seconds.

‘This isn’t working and we’re running out of time. We need to find another way’

“No, we can do this! We just need to-”

“Nàr rènmen shì!” Several dragon Yokai guards dressed similarly to the one from before began charging at them from the backyard area.

‘Let’s go!’ Venus ran for the open window, almost tripping Mikey from the yank the chain gave. He hopped on one foot to keep balance and caught back up with her, but the chain was clumsily shaking back and forth between the two, causing their run to slow.

Based on the dragon's speed though, it looked like they were going to make it. That is until a shadow swooped past them and the large figure of a gargoyle landed right in front of the window.

Mikey slowed his run in preparation to fight, yet Venus didn’t let up.

‘Keep going!’

“What!?” Mikey sped up to keep up with Venus. “Are you sure!?”

Venus didn’t respond once more, only charging at the very large, very buff gargoyle. Was it even possible to be that muscular!? Venus didn’t hesitant though, so Mikey tried to go along with her confidence.

The gargoyle reached out to grab Venus, but she fell to the ground out of their reach and slid under the gargoyle's legs.

Mikey tried to follow, but the gargoyle caught on fast and managed to grab Mikey and lifted him up with one large clawed hand.

However before they could do anything more Venus kicked her leg up, launching the chain right up in between the gargoyle's legs.

The gargoyle cried out and dropped Mikey. The large body of the gargoyle started to fall towards him and he cried out, scrambling away just before he could be pinned under the swole beast.

‘Come on let’s go!’

Mikey jumped through the window after Venus and slammed the window right before one of the Hench dragons followed in, their snout slamming into the glass pane. Mikey stuck his tongue out at the dragon before catching up to Venus. They stumbled through the living room to the front door and a blue dragon in the kitchen yelled at them but they ignored the new foe in favor of barging out the front door.

Once they were outside Mikey saw the unfortunate sight that there were even more walls surrounding the front yard. However, a single large black fence stood tall from afar. Mikey felt a spark of excitement when he noticed that the gate led to a street. They were almost free!

A loud familiar sound of a snore suddenly roared beside them and Mikey turned to see a red dragon lounging on a chair, snoozing away.

Venus slammed the door closed on the blue dragon inside the house. This time Mikey predicted that she would turn into a sprint and was able to keep up with her as she dashed away from the door.

Up ahead there were two dragon guards standing in front of the gate, ready to stop them.

‘Climb it’

“Just what I was thinking. Wait- Does that mean you can read my mind!?” Mikey didn’t recall her ever mentioning mind-reading but after the past couple events he was starting to worry she might actually possess that ability.

The other didn’t respond as usual and proceeded in her charge at the gate. Mikey heard a large crash and looked back to see the wall from before had been smashed open by the buff gargoyle and the Hench dragons came pouring out the hole.

“Hooo that’s not good!” Mikey turned back to the two in front of the gate who were stomping towards them, but he and Venus managed to jump over the guards and onto the gate's bars.

They climbed to the top and when Mikey looked behind them the gargoyle was flying their way, and below them he could spot at least ten hench dragons down below, trying to get the gate open.

Mikey and Venus jumped off the gate before the gargoyle caught them and began running. Around them were rows of fancy rich-looking houses. “Wow, this place is surprisingly nice for a bad guys hideout!”

Though oddly enough the building designs seemed…different. Mikey knew New York City like the back of his hand, and these looked different, really big and spaced…Were they outside the city!?

“Where are we?” He wondered aloud as they passed another street. There was a sign up ahead that had some strange symbols on it. Maybe they were in the hidden city? Mikey took a quick look at the sky. Big and blue with swirling clouds. No, they were definitely on the surface right now…well actually. Where was the usual smell? The constant stench of food mixed with chemical fumes and dumpsters.

‘Let’s focus on finding a place to hide. I have us cloaked so don’t make too much noise’

“How are you cloaking us?” He checked behind them and saw the hench dragons not too far away, but also not directly chasing after them.

‘With my magic, now stop talking already’

“You couldn't have done that before!?” That would have been very useful when they got caught in the hallway! Or when they were cornered!

‘Well Sorry I can’t predict when we are about to be spotted, maybe if you could keep your mouth shut for more than five minutes our escape would have been ninety nine perfect less fighting! Besides it’s limited so I wanted to save it for when we did escape’

Mikey growled and turned away from his chained enemy. She was so mean! He was just asking a question! Normally he was nice to everyone but she just constantly attacked him! It wasn’t his fault some things just slipped out! It was harder to be quiet in stressful situations!

Mikey was once again pulled out of his thoughts when he was suddenly pushed into some cold sprinklers.

“Hey!-” Venus shoved her gloved hand over his mouth and pulled him into the backyard of a house.

A children's playset sat perfectly in the back. There were two blue swings that hung from a long beam and a ladder that led to a small wooden box up top which connected to a bright yellow slide.

Mikey wanted nothing more than to play on it. To his dismay though, Venus shoved him inside the small yellow slide that was just barely big enough to not squish him. Mikey wanted to complain about having to be on top but he knew she would just shoot him down, so instead he asked, “What was the sprince for? I don’t smell do I?”

‘To muddle our scent, and stop talking! they could hear you!’

Mikey grudgingly kept quiet. A warning would have been nice.

At least they escaped that horrible place. Mikey didn’t like remembering it and tried his best to block it out but the red-doored room refused to leave his mind...those poor animals, or Yokai. What monster could do such a thing? And what were those tanks for? Where even were they right now?

His head was filled with so many questions it was a miracle he could even get one to stick for more than a minute. He would have thought things would calm down after escaping, but there was just so much he didn’t understand now.

Well, there was one thing Mikey knew for sure. He really wanted his brothers right now...

Chapter Text

Mikey felt like they were inside the slide for hours. Initially, the first five or so minutes were okay, but as time passed, the loud silence was replaced with the memory of what had just happened. The dungeon, the countless bare gray hallways, that room. But even that wasn’t as bad as the feeling of his insides practically burning. His legs would continually try to move in the cramped space and it felt hotter with each passing minute.

It was getting hard to breathe.

‘Stop moving so much, it’s distracting’

“I can’t help it” Mikey whimpered. “Are they gone yet?”

‘I don’t know. But we should stay in here until dark, then find somewhere better to hide’

Mikey groaned which resulted in an elbow to his leg. They sat in silence for a few more minutes before he couldn’t take the burning anymore, he needed a distraction. “Can you just, I don’t know, talk to me? So it’s not so quiet”

‘I can’t do one-sided conversations’

“Then how about a story! I love stories!” It’s been so long since he heard a story! Raph used to try to read stories for bedtime when he and Leo couldn’t settle down for bed. However Raph couldn’t really read, so he would make up stories based off the pictures. Donnie pointed this out one day when he had gotten ahead of them and learned how to read which resulted in Raph becoming upset and not reading to them anymore.

‘Fine fine, I can tell you a story just shut up… okay it’s called Bamboo And The Turtle’

“Ooh, something that’s not the tortoise and hare!” Mikey positioned himself to something more comfortable to listen.

Venus told the story of a boy named Bamboo, the son of a Keeper. The boy wasn’t allowed to follow the parade that passed through and thus, couldn’t visit the temples. However one day the gate of his father's temple was open, so the boy snuck into the yard where a stone tortoise was kept and it awoke by his presence. The turtle asked the boy to free him from a stone tablet weighing on his shell, but the boy was hesitant because he didn’t have any friends and found the turtle to be his only friend. The turtle also wanted a companion and said that if freed, the boy could travel with him to his destination.

During the night the boy opened the gate and the turtle knocked the tablet off and they escaped. The turtle flew them away to a location called ‘The Land of The Beginning’ where the turtle met his old friends the Phoenix and the Dragon to feast in honor of the making of the world. They spent the day catching up and playing and when they had to leave, the phoenix gave the boy a feather while the dragon gave a scale, which turned gold by his touch. The turtle took the boy back home but as they were traveling the boy fell off the turtle and plummeted to the ground. When the boy woke, he was under the stone turtle and his father was dragging him out.

“So, he dreamed it all?”

‘I’m still not sure’

Mikey smiled, happy to envision this new tale to help pass whatever time they had left. “You think it’s true?”

‘Of course not, I’ve seen turtles and I can tell you they aren’t even close to being that powerful.’

“Hey!” Mikey heard a very, very faint chuckle. Her mask covered most of the sound but he heard it, and a feeling of excitement grew in him.

He poked her arm. “I think me and my bros could travel the world! Donnie could rocket boost us right to The beginning!” Mikey moved a little as he said this and almost made Venus slip down. Luckily she caught herself.

‘That’s only if the beginning exist’

“If it does we’ll be the ones to find out! I would love to make friends with a phoenix and dragon…well obviously not the ones we just encountered, but-”

‘Quiet! Someone’s coming!’

Mikey listened and heard it, small footsteps rushing towards them. The slide slightly shook as something started to mess with the structure

‘Keep still’ Venus warned.

Mikey gulped and tried to grip onto the slides' walls better, however his nerves began to grow sweat and soon enough his hands began to slip as the slide moved. The sound of stomping echoed into the slide and Mikey turned his head towards the entrance hole where two small legs poked inside.

Mikey didn’t have time to warn Venus before a small human came barreling down into him. His already slippery grip gave way to the shove and his body knocked right into Venus, who was next to lose grip of the slide. The three fell out of the yellow tunnel on top of each other onto the hard ground. Venus was quick to scramble out from the pile while Mikey only sat up and turned to the one who had pushed them out of the slide.

A child stood only inches away, staring blankly at him as if trying to figure out what he was. The kid was probably as tall as his knees, her skin neutral warm and her hair long and dark brown. Her hair was tied back in a partial ponytail, bangs freely looping her face, which showed wide, curious eyes. She wore a pink shirt with a golden crown and a matching pink skirt.

“Guwee?”

“Uuuh, yes?” Guess she was still in the gibberish stage.

‘Don’t communicate with it!’ Venus cried loudly in his mind. Her tone seemed oddly fearful…was she afraid?

“It’s only a kid Vee,” Mikey said as he stuck his hand out to the child to show her that there was nothing to fear. The little girl grabbed his hand tightly and examined it as if it were gold.

Venus only backed away until the chain pulled at their feet.

“Have you never seen a kid before?”

‘I- not a human no but just look at it!!’

Mikey turned back to the child and watched as she began tracing his fingernails in fascination. “She’s really sweet though!” He tried to reassure her.

Venus moved away even more, now pulling him away. ‘Come on we’re exposed, we need to find somewhere else to hide’

It was close to dark just like Venus wanted. Although the sun was still up, it was beginning to dip below the horizon. But Mikey supposed it would be best to stick to completely dark shadows.

He pulled his hand away from the little girl and gave her a light pat on the head.

“Seeya kid!” Wow, that was weird to say. Mikey didn’t really meet many who were younger than him. He gave a wink and followed Venus who was moving like they were already being chased again.

‘You better hope that kid doesn’t tell someone about us’

Mikey couldn’t help a giggle “What do you think is going to happen? A mob is gonna be sent for us?”

‘Exactly’

Mikey rolled his eyes “Adults would never believe a kid. Besides she couldn’t even talk”

‘What? She said turtle pretty clearly’

“How did you hear turtle?” There’s no way that the little girl said anything close to turtle.

‘Yes she did, she said Guī which means turtle’

“And how exactly do you know that?” Mikey was very skeptical. Maybe she heard wrong and just assumed that’s what the little girl had said. But that would be one big coincidence.

‘She said it in Cantonese and I know the language’

They came up on a fence that was easily hopped over. “Okay even if she can talk, her parents won’t believe it if she tells them two giant turtles were hiding in her slide”

‘Yeah…still we should be careful’

Just after she said this they landed in a yard where two large dogs stood across from them. It only took a second for all of them to react but the charging and barking dogs sent Mikey and Venus flailing to get back over the fence, making it over just before the dogs got there.

Mikey turned to Venus who was sprawled on the ground next to him. “More careful, got it” He said shakily while giving a thumbs up.

…

Mikey wished they could travel through the sewers instead of these countless yards but with Venus chained to him, that was a no-go. He couldn’t let the enemy know where their home was!

It’s fine though, once they got into the city he could probably trick her into going to Run of the Mill Pizza and he could get Heuso to contact his family then boom! Chain gone and he would finally be reunited with his brothers.

Mikey looked down at said chain that tightly clenched his ankle. It would have ripped his skin for sure if not for his black bandages. And with the way his ankle has been treated it should be mush at this point. But that was a perk of being created to be a super soldier Mikey guessed. Though now that he focused on it, his ankle stung a pinch every time he moved to step. It would need some R&R when he got home, but for now, he just needed to get somewhere familiar.

Unless…the chain wasn’t breakable. Could it be possible? Would one of them have to fake die to get it off? Oh no, what if they were stuck like this forever!? Mikey tried to imagine life stuck to his technical enemy and let’s just say the bathroom sequence was the end point.

“Shouldn’t we get this chain off soon?”

Venus paused and seemed to think about it. ‘...We don’t have the resources to cut it right now, just focus on not getting caught again’

Mikey silently followed her but as the silence droned on he couldn’t help but ask one of the many things plaguing his mind. “So, you mentioned magic before?”

‘Yeah, I know some magic’

“What kind?” He really hoped she didn’t have the ability to read his mind.

‘I’m not giving away that information to you’

Mikey huffed and folded his arms. She really needed to relax a little. He didn’t ask any other questions, knowing she most likely wouldn’t give him a decent answer.

…

When they finally arrived in the city it wasn’t what Mikey expected at all. Things were so…different. The buildings, the people, even the amount of traffic was different! It felt..smaller! There were signs like before that had symbols his brain couldn’t even comprehend the meaning of.

“Where are we!!!”

Mikey all but screamed before Venus covered his mouth

‘I don’t know, but we mustn't attract attention!’

Venus pulled him behind some tall grass. They were just outside the city at the moment.
Mikey held himself in the fetal position and started to rock back and forth, holding in tears.

‘Okay okay! No need to panic! He was only in an unfamiliar place being chased by random Yokai while chained to his enemy and his brothers who knows where!’

Venus crouched back down to Mikey and put her hand on his shoulder.

‘I think we’re in China’

Mikey stared at Venus as his mind tried to catch up with her words.

“China” He repeated with an uncharacteristically serious tone. He had to have heard her wrong though. Maybe she meant..Hinda, or Pinea!

‘Yes..China’

Mikey reacted to this by grabbing her arms that shook under his trembling hold, looking desperately at her mask with tear-filled eyes. “That can’t be right, we can’t be that far from home!” She had to be mistaken, maybe they were just somewhere like ChinaTown! There’s no way they could be an entire continent away!

‘Listen! I don’t know how we are in China but right now we need to focus on finding a place to stay until dark!’

Mikey’s mind panicked and he began to think of a million reasons how they couldn’t possibly be so far from home. Maybe this was an illusion! Maybe the chain did this, or it could be Venus! She can still use magic so it’s possible she could be creating an illusion and was going to take him straight to Big Mama!

He shot away from Venus and pointed an accusing finger her way. “You’re just trying to turn me in to Big Mama!”

‘Are you serious!? We are on an entirely different continent!’

“That’s just what you want me to believe!”

‘We don’t have time for this!’

Mikey was about to think about his next move when Venus suddenly jumped back, causing the chain to rip his foot out from under him and send him on his shell. He tried to lift himself up immediately but was too late to react to Venus’s charging form and before Mikey could pull into his shell an aching needle-like pain struck right around his neck. However, that pain quickly fell away as his vision and mind were swept into an engulfing darkness.

_____________

Mikey awoke to a loud banging noise that pounded in his head with every strike. Ugh, did he forget to close his curtain again?

“Donnnnnie keep the noise down”

He groaned and shifted away from the noise, which thankfully stopped.

‘Finally awake?’

Mikey jumped out of bed when a strange female voice answered him instead of the usual monotone voice of his brother. He found Big Mama’s assistant sitting nearby with a whole sledgehammer in her hand. By the looks of it she had been trying to break the chain, but it seemed she had made no progress because Mikey couldn’t even spot a dent.

‘I’ve had no luck with the chain. Either it’s made of really fancy sturdy metal or it’s been enchanted with magic…Really hoping for the first one’

Mikey sat up in his bed…or actually now that he looked at it, he was on concrete. “Uh, where are we? What happened?” His memory was all over the place trying to recall the events of…how long ago was their meeting again?

‘It’s a house under construction, not somewhere we can stay long but good enough for now. And you were freaking out thinking I was going to take you to Big Mama so I knocked you out’

Oh right…well he wasn’t in Big Mama’s dungeon so that was a good sign. Maybe she was really telling the truth then..but that would mean he was thousands of miles away from his family.

Big Ma- Venus pointed to a chain by his side, probably something else she picked up from around the place along with the sledgehammer.

‘Got you a weapon’

Mikey reached over and picked up the iron nail that was next to the chain. “Little small don’t you think?”

Venus stood still for a few seconds before walking over and slapping the nail from his hand ‘Not that!’

She picked up the chain and threw it on top of the small turtle. Mikey yelped as the chain came down on him, even though it didn’t really hurt him. He unwrapped himself and stared at the chain. It wasn’t very thick, so probably wouldn’t pack much of a punch, he would need to put way more strength behind his swings then.

“How did you know I fight with a chain?” Mikey could have sworn he heard her groan but with her real vocal cords.

‘We literally fought each other before getting into this situation. In fact it was your chains that got us here in the first place!’

Mikey gasped at the accusation, “What!? How!”

‘You wrapped your chain around me and I lost my balance, don’t you remember?’

Mikey sheepishly scratched the back of his neck. “Oh right” And if he could see her eyes he would bet she just rolled them.

‘Let’s just focus on getting this chain off, or getting back home’

“I know how we can get home!” Mikey chirped as he wrapped up the chain to better hold.

‘Yeah?’

“I just need a phone, then I can call my brothers, and Leo can portal us back!”

‘...Okay, but first, what’s a phone?’

“How do you- Oh right Yokai don’t have phones! You poor thing” Mikey shook his head solemnly. She was missing out on a whole other world. “A phone is like a communication box that holds the knowledge of the universe! Plus funny videos!”

‘Fascinating, but sounds rare. How are you sure we can find a phone?’

Mikey couldn’t help but chuckle at her inexperience. This was almost exactly like they introduced Draxum to a phone.

“Almost every human has a phone, we just need to ask!”

Venus crossed her arms. ‘Do we have to get one from a human?’

“Do you have something against humans?” Maybe she had a bad experience? Mikey knew not all humans were passive towards Yokai, perhaps she met the wrong human. Did this have some kind of connection to her fear of that kid?

‘Yeah, they’re freaky looking and weird and the reason Yokai are stuck underground’

Okay, so she was basically like Draxum. “Well it’s a good thing you have me then! I’m an expert on humans”

Now where to go? Asking a random human on the street could work but street people usually ignored you. Definitely not the police. Maybe somewhere inside like a store or a restaurant. His stomach was getting restless and he hadn’t eaten dinner so his energy was low and being sluggish wouldn’t do them any good if they were to unwillingly participate in another chase.

“I know just where to go! I just need you to read the signs so I can find the right place”

‘Hold on, we need disguises if we’re going out and interacting with humans. We can’t exactly let them know about this whole situation’ She said while her arm gestured in a circleish pattern around her body.

“We could always just say we’re mascots or going to a convention. Me and my brothers do it all the time!”

‘We also need to avoid the Dragon Lord's army’

“Oh yeah…well then let’s get going!” The sooner they find clothes the sooner they can get a phone and he can finally be with his family again! Hopefully they weren’t freaking out too bad right now.

Poor New York didn’t need any more rampaging beast destroying it.

…

They left the house when the sun completely set and after a few hours of searching, found a donation bin

Yeah it wasn’t exactly ideal but they needed these clothes, all the clothes stores around were still open. So technically these donations were going to those in need!

Mikey had picked out a very worn black hoodie that smelled like it had been put through the wash at least five times in an attempt to save it from whatever stench had claimed it before. Next he got some slightly torn oversized lime green sweatpants which he had to rip one side of because the chain got in the way, which left his side exposed. Luckily his black bandages covered what skin was showing so it was fine. However because they had to be torn he had to grab a belt to tie them on, the hoodie was long enough to cover it up thankfully and he stuffed the chain in the front pocket of the hoodie. He didn’t bother with shoes because the pants covered his feet up.

Venus was pretty set when it came to clothes, well except…

“Hey, you have…” Mikey didn’t know the word but he pointed to Venus’s front. The part that was brown and…just like his front kinda, though more rounded and obviously a different color. He had thought it was just her clothes, but now that he finally got a good look, that did not look like clothing. Venus looked to where he was pointing and seemed to tense up.

‘It’s my outer shell’

Mikey gasped, stars practically jumping in his eyes “OHMIGOSH ARE YOU A TURTLE!!!”

‘No.’ She instantly shot down. ‘Turtles aren’t the only creatures with shells you know’

Mikey drooped his body and pouted “Aww” He thought he’d found another turtle Yokai. He’s met one before but that did not end well for them at all.

Venus reached up slowly and grasped her mask. She turned away from him and pulled it off then unwrapped her right arm of its black bandages. Mikey tried not to watch her and just focused on the floor, she obviously didn’t want him to see her face and he didn’t really want to get on her bad side. Well, any more than he probably already was.

‘Okay, let’s go’

Mikey turned around and saw Venus’s eyes staring back at him. The part of her face he could see had bluish green skin, more blue than green, something like cadet blue maybe? She reached her hand up to quickly fix the falling bandages on her snout, her exposed arm now in view.

Her fingers were still covered in the bandages but her elbow area was missing several strips, there he could see that same blue skin, but with multiple small black oval markings dotting around her elbow. He wasn’t able to get that good a look before it was covered when she put on a black jacket.

Maybe she was a different species then, Mikey thought. Turtles only had yellow plastrons after all.

….

Mikey had Venus direct him to a noodle shop. He tried finding a pizzeria, but there seemed to be none nearby, which was a heavy disappointment.

When they made their way into the shop, the first thing Mikey noticed was that it was completely empty. He worried for a second that it was closed, but a human standing behind a counter greeted them with a friendly smile and gestured for them to come over. But just as Mikey began to move towards the counter, Venus grabbed him by the back of his hoodie and dragged him out of the delicious smelling shop. When they got outside she practically tossed him away.

‘Why did you take us to a restaurant! We need to be looking for a phone, not food!’

“They will have a phone! I just thought we could grab a meal while we’re at it. You won’t be able to eat genuine Chinese food back home ya know?” She was worrying too much. His brothers would be here in no time once he called them! “How about this, I call my brothers first, and then when they get here we can all have a meal together!”

‘You’re very naive, you know that?’

Mikey frowned and let out a scoff. “I’m not naive, I’m just friendly, something you should try more often”

Venus’s eyes narrowed into a glare. ‘I would be more friendly if we weren’t being hunted. Besides, how do you even plan to pay for that?’

“My brother will pay for it” Mikey knew Donnie had the money to pay for a couple of meals. All he needed to do was give some puppy eyes and boom, freedom and food!

“Trust me, my brothers got us covered” Once they were here they wouldn’t have to worry one bit. The Dragon Losers henchdragons wouldn’t stand a chance!

Venus seemed to contemplate it for a few more seconds before she had a look of defeat and opened the door.

‘Fine, but it better be a meal to go’

“Yay!!!” Mikey cheered and tried to hug Venus, but she dodged him, leaving him with empty arms and a face in the door.

“Too soon?” He mumbled against the door

‘Yes’

Chapter Text

When they entered the noodle shop Mikey went straight up to a barstool seat and hopped onto the squishy padding. Venus was more hesitant and poked the seat a couple of times before sitting down herself.

A young woman with long greasy hair and tired eyes came up to the table and set down a couple menus with a warm smile. She definitely looked like she’d had a long day. Or a long week. Wait, was it the end of the week? Eh, it didn't matter anyway.

‘Could you try a little harder not to make the chain so obvious? And don’t talk to the humans with English, just try gestures for now.’

“Why?” Mikey asked without thinking. As soon as her eyes turned into a glare though, he realized the mistake and turned away quickly while putting a hand over his mouth.

‘Just get the phone’

Mikey did as told and shaped his hand as if to hold a phone and put it up to his ear.

The woman smiled again and left them for a moment, then came back with a phone in hand and handed it over. Mikey wished he could say thank you, but Venus might kill him if he opened his mouth again, so instead he nodded his head in hopes the human would take it as appreciation.

Once he looked down at the phone he found that instead of regular numbers, there were strange symbols…well he could probably assume that all the numbers were in numerical order right? He typed in Leo’s phone number because that was the only number he memorized. Raph had always chastised him for not memorizing everyone's phone numbers for emergencies, but how was he supposed to know he would get kidnapped and taken to China? Plus Leo was the only one who could get to him in a second.

After clicking on what he assumed was the call button the phone’s screen changed and the device made a low hum as the call was going through…it kept humming…and humming…until it stopped and a woman told him that the caller wasn’t available. This didn’t discourage him though because Leo didn’t have a voicemail.

Maybe Leo just didn’t see his call. He tried again

No answer.

Okay maybe he left it on silence- or maybe the numbers really were different! Mikey leaned over to Venus and held out the phone, whispering, “Do you know what numbers these are?”

She inspected the numbers before shaking her head. ‘What’s wrong?’

“Leo isn’t answering,” Mikey mumbled as he stared at the foreign keypad

Mikey tried again, but still no answer. He waited for the voice to say you could leave a voicemail and spoke in the loudest whisper he thought would pass as acceptable.

“Hey Leo, it’s Mikey. I’m in China and my mystic powers are gone, call back soon please..”

He tapped the end call button and hoped to the Hamato spirits that it would get through to his brother. However, a sense of dread began to burrow its way inside his stomach. What if…what if he doesn’t call back? What if his phone was broken? Or he lost it during the chaos on the plane?

What if his brothers weren’t able to find him?

‘Hey’ Venus’s voice took Mikey from his spiraling thoughts. ‘He answer?’

Mikey shook his head and tried swallowing the tight knot forming in his throat, but it didn’t go away. Venus’s concerned eyes fell away and a glare quickly took its place.

‘If he doesn’t answer you then we’ll have to find a way back ourselves’

“He’ll answer!” Mikey shouted a little too loud, maybe even too heatedly. He was just so anxious though. Because what if he really doesn’t answer?

The woman said something to them, and by the way of her tone, it sounded like she was asking a question. Venus’s attention spun towards her and the woman immediately backed away with a gasp, face suddenly pale as if she had just seen a ghost, her eyes darting left to right, like she was preparing for a sudden attack. Another human, an old man with a hairnet containing little actual hair, came from the kitchen to check on the woman.

“What’s going on!?” Mikey asked while looking around, hoping that there wasn’t actually a ghost anywhere.

‘I…may have accidentally talked to the human.’

Mikey crossed his arms with a disapproving face. “And you got onto me for talking”

‘The only reason I talked was because they were talking to you for talking!’

“...huh?” Mikey asked with a tilt of his head and Venus pulled a hand over her eyes.

‘It’s fine, I can work this in our favor.’

Mikey turned back to the two humans who looked like they were having a one-way conversation. Was this what he looked like when he talked to Venus? Because it was really funny to watch, especially since they were talking as if Venus was a god.

‘They said they will help with a way home.’

“Oh yeah baby! Backup plan set!” Mikey cheered with a pumped fist.

‘And we get any meal for free’

Mikey smiled and nudged her arm with his elbow. “See? Humans aren’t so bad!”

‘Only because I told them we were powerful gods that would kill them if they talked,’ Venus said before casually taking the menu.

Mikey copied the action, but upon looking at all the Chinese text he set it back down. “Uuh, you wouldn’t happen to know what any of this is, would you?”

Venus stared at her own menu for a moment before answering, ‘I’ve only seen a few of these dishes but the ingredients are different..I’m just going to order noodles’

“Noodles are good, I’ll order that too” Mikey wanted to get something different from just noodles, but he also didn’t want to waste any food he didn’t like. Noodles were the safest option- plus China was known for its noodles!

Venus held out the menu while pointing at something, then held up two fingers. The two workers bowed and said a few mystery words before the woman headed to the door and flipped what he assumed was the ‘open’ sign then quickly followed after the man into what appeared to be the kitchen area.

As they waited, Mikey stared at the phone, silent and still as it lay on the polished wood. He desperately wanted it to do something. Just a little buzz or the light coming to life on the screen with an unknown number. But..nothing was happening. His feet began to lightly kick as he waited, but he could already feel a tight bundle of energy beginning to build inside his chest. He fought against it though, not wanting to turn away and potentially miss his brother's call.

That is, until the unmistakable sound of purring caught his ear. Mikey turned to the source and walking towards him with silent footfalls yet a loud purr was a large yellow tabby cat, its glowing yellow eyes targeted on him.

Mikey felt all of his disparaging emotions fall away as the cat gave a little mewl before practically head-butting his cheek. He drew back a little to free his face of fur and gently stroked his hand across the cat's back. The cat mewled again and immediately turned around to push against his hand and a wave of joy washed over Mikey’s entire body and he couldn’t help but squeal.

“You’re so cute!!!” He cried whilst pulling the cat closer to snuggle. The cat didn’t struggle and instead pressed up against him while kneading the table.

‘Keep it over there please’ Venus said and Mikey gasped.

“You don’t like the kitty!?”

‘I’m not big on animals’

Mikey hugged the cat more and turned his head from Venus. “I can’t believe I’m chained to an animal hater”

‘I can’t believe I’m chained to a human lover’

Mikey rolled his eyes and continued to pet the cat as they waited for the food. Venus scooted her chair further away and Mikey just couldn’t understand it. How could anyone look at a creature as precious as a cat and not want to at least pat its head!? It's not like it was a completely strange animal, there were cats in the Hidden City! Maybe they didn’t look exactly the same and maybe some were Yokai themselves but they weren’t much different from topside kitties!

Maybe it was because the animal was topside. Maybe she just didn’t like anything topside, Mikey thought. Or maybe she really didn’t like animals.

She was a very big mystery, that’s for sure.

…

The aroma of steam and vegetables hit the air as the woman left the kitchen and the kitty jumped off the table when the woman spoke in a strict tone. Mikey was slightly disappointed at this but he also didn’t want the cat trying to steal his food.

She set down a tray holding two bowls between them and carefully placed the bowls in front of Mikey and Venus before laying out napkins, chopsticks, and a glass of water.

Mikey put his face over the bowl and relished in the warmth and delicious smell that rose from the food.

“This stuff smells good” Mikey felt some of his saliva drip from his mouth and quickly whipped it away with his sleeve.

‘Just because it smells good doesn’t mean it tastes good’ Venus rudely stated as she broke apart her chopsticks.

Mikey rolled his eyes at her negative attitude and picked up his own chopsticks. He’d never really eaten with chopsticks before, to be truthful, but how hard could it be?

He broke the chopsticks as carefully as he could and they snapped off the other with ease. The food was still too hot to eat though so Mikey began twiddling the chopsticks to entertain his bored mind.

After a silent minute of waiting Venus made the first move and picked a small steaming bundle of noodles. She turned away from him as he assumed she pulled down her makeshift mask to eat. Mikey took her second dip into the bowl as a sign that the noodles were ready for eating.

He tried copying the way she was holding the chopsticks, but when he tried grabbing the noodles the sticks wouldn’t bend right, so he changed his fingers' position. This time he was actually able to grab the noodles, but when he raised the sticks the noodles slipped off.

Mikey growled at the offending food and changed tactics. This time he used both hands to death grip the noodles and he managed to lift them halfway out of the bowl, but when he bit down there were no noodles, only wood.

‘Wow, I have never seen someone fail so miserably with chopsticks,’ Venus rudely commented.

Mikey whined in response and the Yokai scooted her seat and bowl closer to him. She held up her chopsticks and slowly placed them down into the bowl. He watched as she effortlessly picked up some noodles and held them up.

Mikey tried to copy what she did, but the result didn’t change. His noodles were going to get cold at this point!

‘No no’ Venus said as she reached over to his hand. ‘You have to bend your hand like this and then gently tug at the noodles to get them free’ She basically snapped his fingers into the more proper hold and despite his pained whines, he was ignored. ‘Now try’

Mikey tried again, blinking away the tears and going through every step she had shown, but once again the noodles snuck away before he could get a bite. Mikey turned to Venus to ask for more help but paused when she saw her body shaking, her hands covering her face up and he could hear the tiniest wheezy squeaks that must be coming from her.

Mikey gasped as he recognized the sound, “Are you laughing at me!!!”

Venus didn’t respond, instead, her head dropped to the table as her body continued to tremble. Mikey huffed at her and tried again with the chopsticks. He squeezed with all his might, yet still the clump of noodles avoided his mouth and he tearlessly sobbed at the delicious looking meal.

“Forget it!” Mikey cried impatiently as he picked up the warm bowl and lifted it up to his mouth. He swallowed down the hot juice and noodles until practically half of it was gone, then set it back down with a happy and satisfied sigh. “That was great!” Mikey gleefully chirped before turning to Venus. She was no longer haunched over the table, instead her posture was straight and her eyes squinted with judgment.

Before he could ask why she was looking at him like that, she picked up her own bowl and, to Mikey’s complete surprise, slurped.

Now Mikey wouldn’t say he was the best at table manners, but one rule TV parents always made clear was that it was very rude to slurp. Dad didn’t mind, however he would usually slurp himself so Mikey always assumed it was just a rule he chose to ignore, like many other hygienic activities.

When Venus set the bowl down her eyes still showed sternness, yet her mouth grew into a small hint of a smirk. ‘It’s rude not to slurp you know’

Mikey couldn’t believe it. “I’ve been taught wrong this entire time!?” Venus nodded and the young turtle didn’t waste any more time. He grabbed the bowl and slurped as much as he wanted while gobbling up all the noodles. When he set it back down the humans had a look of delight, confirming that this was indeed the right way.

Mikey quickly finished the bowl and laid against the table, his stomach complaining at the large amount of food rapidly consumed. “I’m so full” He said with a happy sigh “I wish I could make noodles that good!”

‘Full?’ Venus asked and with a teasing tone continued, ‘Guess you don’t want desert then…’

Mikey sat up from his half-dead groggily form, “DESERT!!!”

Venus waved her hand and the humans placed down two plates stacked with pink squares coated in white flakes.

‘Raspberry Snowflake cakes’

Mikey immediately took one and shoved it into his mouth with no hesitation. It was numbingly cold and he had to open his mouth so the overflowing cool air could escape. He only waited a few seconds before sinking his teeth into the cake. The cold sort of mixed into the sweet coconut flakes and sour raspberry flavor into a wonderfully delectable blend.

As soon as he finished the treat he shoved down another, this one was much easier to eat because it wasn’t as cold, however it did result in an irritating pain in his head and throat.

“Ah! Brain freeze!” Mikey cried before pushing his face against the table slamming his fist against it, willing the cold pain to go away.

‘That’s what you get for not being patient’ Venus chastised and Mikey responded with a whine.

“My mystic powers used to protect me from the cold” He pouted before looking at his plate of delicious sweets. Only…it looked like there were a lot less now…and Venus’s plate looked like it had way more…

Mikey sat up and glared at Venus “Hey!”

Venus didn’t look at him though, only casually chewing her own sweet. Or maybe it was his. ‘What?’ She asked, feigning innocence.

“You stole my cakes!” Mikey accused with his entire arm stretched out above her to dramatically point.

‘No I didn’t’

He knew this trick. Leo did it all the time! He would always use that sneaky portal sword to snatch his food right out of his hands and then act like he had it the whole time!

Mikey reached out for his sweets back but Venus smacked his hand away. He looked back at the hooded thief with sharp eyes that she returned, although he detected the hint of a struggling smile on her serious expression. Mikey would return the excitement but she had his sweets and he wasn’t about to let that slide. Luckily he’s been in this situation plenty of times before, so he knew exactly what to do…

He bit her arm.

Venus reacted like lightning and shoved his face away, this gave him just enough time to snatch the plate of treats and slide them to his side.

“Ha!” Mikey barked in victory at Venus. Said Yokai’s body then proceeded to disappear into a foggy haze. Mikey gasped as the chain moved towards him and he tried to figure out exactly where she was. However, In this moment of distraction both plates were yanked off the table and a visible Venus now held the treats a few feet away. She poured remaining cakes onto her plate then placed the empty plate on the table behind her.

Mikey left his seat and didn’t waste a second, he pounced at the plate, but she pulled it away just before he could grab it. He quickly grabbed her free arm in response and didn’t allow her much time to react before pulling her arm and sweeping his leg against her own.

Venus fell with the movement and Mikey managed to snatch the falling plate she had desperately tried not to lose. As soon as the plate was in hand he jumped back as far as the chain would allow. “Ha!” He gloated, “Looks like the sweet thief has been thwarted!” Mikey tilted the plate and opened his mouth, but just when the sweet cakes were about to slide off the dish he felt a tug at his ankle and yelped as his foot was yanked out from under him, causing his body to go into the splits. Luckily for him though, he was flexible.
Mikey decided to waste no more time and tossed a cake towards his mouth. However, the chain pulled again and the treat missed his mouth and fell to the floor. Mikey gasped at the fallen food and glared at Venus. “Shame on you!”

Venus didn’t respond and instead stood from the ground and dashed towards him. Mikey squawked and his eyes darted around the room for any help. Upon seeing a nearby chair he gained an idea and placed the plate down. He grabbed the chair and held its body out just in time for Venus to be caught between the legs. Venus’s foot then shot out and kicked the plate, sending it sliding across the floor to the other side of the room.

There was a small moment of pause as the two watched the plates' direction. As soon as it stopped though, Venus reacted and climbed over the chair, then bee-lined for the plate.
This caused the chain to pin the chair against Mikey and he was mercilessly dragged across the floor behind Venus.

The torment finally stopped as Venus made it to the plate and looked directly at him, no words were needed as the smirk on her smug face was loud enough before she sent several cakes into her criminal mouth.

Mikey growled and used all his might to shove the chair off and sit up. “You will not get away with this thief!!!” He vowed with a shaking fist.

Said Yokai casually tossed another cakes into her mouth while keeping complete eye contact. ‘I don't know what you’re talking about’ There were only about four left now.

Mikey growled. Fighting with this stupid chain was impossible! This is even worse than when Donnie gave him that padded suit!

Wait… Maybe he could use the chain to his advantage somehow! Like how Venus had just done!

Mikey stood up and felt a wave of excitement flooding his body. His stomach clenched tightly as energy built into a buzzing ball. He could hear his heartbeat pounding in his ears as he dashed over to the previously forgotten chair and threw it at Venus with hyped adrenaline.

Venus of course knocked it away. This, however, gave him just enough time to dart to the right side of her. But he didn’t go for her, instead he hopped over the long rectangular table behind Venus. She held the plate further away, probably expecting him to go after it. Instead, Mikey dove under the table. The chain pulled against him and he grabbed the edge of the table and pulled. Venus made a weird hiss noise as her ankle was ripped up and her back hit the floor with a loud thump.

Mikey’s sense of victory came and left in a flash as he realized the plate was nowhere in Venus’s grasp or on the floor. His head jerked around the room as he searched, and finally spotted the white dish dangling dangerously on the chair next to Venus.

Mikey cursed the others' quick thinking.

Venus quickly scrambled up and Mikey yelped as he was pulled back under the table. He watched as Venus reached for the plate and scampered to the top of the table. Venus turned towards him but it was too late for her to react, he pounced right on top of her and the two fell to the ground. Luckily for him, Venus broke his fall.

Mikey spotted the target and reached for it, but Venus managed to hold it away at the last second. So he practically slammed his palm into her face and tried for the plate again, However before he could get to it, for the hundredth time he was stopped. Venus shoved her leg into his plastron and kicked him away.

Mikey landed on his shell with a grunt but quickly recovered with a sweep of his legs and faced Venus in a set crouched position then lunged forward. Before he got to her though, she lifted her palm to him and Mikey’s vision was filled with white for a second before turning to a painful swirling mix of black and white.

He cried out and backed up while scrubbing his eyes but it didn’t help at all as black patterns twirled around. “That was a dirty trick!” He cried while rapidly blinking. His vision began fuzzily coming back as the static began to reveal Venus’s vague figure. “And using dirty magic is cheating!”

‘Then maybe you should give up’

Mikey growled at the cheating individual. No way he was going to give up! He never lost food to his brothers! Well okay, maybe Raph, but that was only because Raph would shove him halfway into his mouth and that was totally unfair.

“If you’re not going to play fair then neither am I!” Mikey reached into his hoodie pocket and ripped his chain out. Venus’s eyes hardened towards him and she changed her stance to defensive.

There was a pause between the two. Strong eye contact carried to the other, observant of any sign of movement.

Mikey was the first to move, his body could only contain the lively adrenaline for so long.

He launched the chain towards Venus to which the other dodged. He retracted the chain and shot again but once more the attack missed her. Mikey decided to take a different action and ran up to her while swinging the chain towards her. She blocked with her free arm, only this had been a mistake. The chain wrapped around the arm and Mikey quickly stepped back before pulling the chain. With her arm trapped in the chain, and the other holding onto the plate, Mikey took the advantage by getting closer.

She tried to back away, kick him, but he maneuvered between the attempts. When he was finally close she held the plate away again, however this didn’t matter. Mikey practically danced around her entire self, holding the chain up so it would reach above her head before jumping to the side and wrenching the chain down after it was above the arm with the plate. Both arms fell under the chain, and so did the plate. Mikey worked fast, he dropped the chain and dove for the plate, managing to just barely snatch it as he slid past Venus’s feet.

“Bet ya didn’t wish you cheated now” Mikey teased as he watched an irritated Venus struggle to release herself from the chains grasp.

He quickly picked up a cake and noticed it seemed a bit soggy and limp, but he didn’t choose to question it much. Mikey knew it was a risky decision but he held himself from eating the treat until Venus looked over, just to feel the satisfaction of winning. As soon as her head turned, he practically shoved the cake into his mouth as fast as possible.

However, the flavor was different this time. It was more sour, and a lot of it was dampened by the thawed water that had formed onto the mildly warm sweet.
Mikey swallowed it and pouted from not experiencing the delight of the previous frozen treat. “It’s warm now!”

‘Raspberry Snowflake cakes are best eaten cold’ Venus said unhelpfully and Mikey gave a long open mouthed whine. “I only got to have two!”

He droopidly stood up and set the plate down on the counter and fell into his seat with a slouch. “How could someone be so cruel!” He cried before his body sagged onto the counter.

Despite his despair though…Mikey felt happy. The adrenaline was already starting to wear off and his muscles were getting a tad bit sore from the tensed movements but there was this amazing coursing and bubbly feeling that drove away any of the choking emotions from before. It was the feeling he would get when he played basketball with his brothers. Or watch Lou Jitsu after a very stressful day. Or when he and April baked a random treat off the internet, then sat down in bed to binge movies new and old, good and so bad it was laughable.

He missed this feeling. Ever since Shredder, things around the lair had become so tense. Well..it wasn’t really their lair, it was just an abandoned subway. Sure it was cool and he loved having more space in his room and painting the outside of the subway car was fun but…it wasn’t the same. The kitchen was bigger, the game room was small, Donnie’s lab had a slightly darker shade of purple lighting and there wasn’t even a giant skate ramp!

But most of all, they were different. Raph had become so much more protective of all of them. He wasn’t just coddling Mikey anymore, he got on to Leo and Donnie for reckless behavior that he would have let slide before. Just recently he and Leo got into a fight because Leo’s first mission as leader didn’t go so well.

Donnie had become a lot more tense and reserved, obviously handling the new environment and changes the hardest, including Leo’s sudden role as leader. And sometimes he looked scared of metal. But metal was Donnie’s whole thing! And when Mikey tried to help, he was shut out…Donnie had never done that with him before.

And Leo? He’s a lot more confident since the defeat of Shredder, and constantly using his very recent leader status in the most annoying ways. Dad said that he had been thinking it over since their time in the battle Nexus and made a conclusive decision only a few weeks ago after observing their next missions. Not to mention that while Leo’s attitude hasn’t changed much, there is definitely something bothering him. What exactly was troubling him, Mikey didn’t know. But he has seen the way Leo looks at his drawing of Gram Gram over her mural so that might be one factor.

Sure it had only been two months since these problems began but...it still hurt him seeing everyone like this.

Before Mikey could think any further on the subject though, the cake stealing monster tapped on his shell. He stubbornly looked away from her and she tapped on his shell again, but he just crossed his hands and shifted away more.

She tapped harder this time, and Mikey decided to go into his shell and stick his tongue out.

‘Fine then, guess you don’t want any of’ She held out a plate stacked of new, fresh-looking cakes. ‘These’

Mikey gasped upon seeing the dish and launched out of his shell. She didn’t have to hand them to him because he snatched several and shoveled them into his mouth.

He came to regret this very fast when an even more painful brain freeze attacked.

And of course, Venus laughed at his pain.

Chapter Text

After they had settled down and finished dessert, the humans walked them back to their house. Well, it was more like an apartment really, but it was still nice and big.

The humans introduced their home, and then themselves. The woman’s name was Wang Wei, and the older man, her father, was Wang Shi, and the cat was Lao Hu. They provided the father's bed to sleep in, but Mikey thought that was rude, and Venus didn’t want to sleep in a humans bed anyway.

So instead they were offered a spare fold-up cot and the couch. Venus took the couch as she claimed it was more comfortable, which he disagreed with, but that was fine because that left him with the cot which was actually perfect! The way it dipped a little reminded him of his hammock so he found himself very attached.

‘When we get back we will need Big Mam’s help for the chain,’ Venus said after placing her mask back on.

Mikey shot up from the cot and shook his head. “Actually, I think Draxum can help” No way he was going to trust Big Mama after she tricked and attacked them so many times already. Plus, Dad had made it clear to all of them to never make a deal with her, and after the Shredder incident he didn’t ever want to give it a try.

‘We are going to Big Mama’ Venus said, as if she was in charge.

“But Big Mama is dangerous! And If you don’t recall, she tried to kill me and my family!” He argued

‘I assure you there will be no deals or tricks, promise’

Mikey looked at her, still unsure. Her mask made it difficult to tell if she was being sincere or planning something.

‘I’m useless to Big Mama like this, and she knows better than to mess with your family. It would be stupid of her to try anything’

Venus seemed confident about that statement, and he doubted that he would get anywhere in the argument, but still, trusting Big Mama in any way was a bad idea…maybe, when they got to the hidden city, he could contact Draxum or his brothers in some way. Then he can trick Venus! He would just need to stall until they got to him. “Okay, as long as there are no tricks,” He falsely agreed.

Lao hu jumped into his lap and he happily greeted the purring kitty with pets.

“So, why are you working for Big Mama anyway?” He asked curiously. Maybe the answer could help him understand why she wanted Big Mama to get the chain off instead of Draxum.

…There was silence between the two for about a few seconds. Mikey thought she wasn’t going to respond and prepared to go to bed, but then she finally answered.

‘I’m in debt.’ Her voice held no tone, but Mikey noticed the way her grip tightened on her pants, as if holding back a beast of anger.

He decided it would be best to not push the obvious tension brewing, and instead asked, “And, how come you know Chinese?”

She seemed a lot more at ease answering this question. ‘Cantonese, and my dad taught me. He knew little English, so he talked to me in his language, but I ended up learning English too.’ Her posture relaxed, and she leaned back against the couch as she continued, ‘Sometimes he would rant at some unfortunate Yokai in his language and they would have no idea what he was saying. But it was hard for him to learn English, he just couldn’t get a handle on it so most days I had to do the talking’

He knew that tone all too well. She was talking fondly, like when Dad would talk about his human life.

“I know what that’s like.” Mikey mumbled, “I had a hard time talking when I was little because I had really gapped teeth. My family hardly ever understood what I was saying. It was very frustrating back then but pretty funny now,” he giggled. “I still got a gap though, see!”

Mikey lifted his lip and leaned up towards her to which she quickly pushed him back with her foot.

‘Well at least it’s not a cracked tooth’

Mikey gasped, “You have a cracked tooth! That’s so cool can I see! Please please please!” He asked while shoving her foot down so she couldn’t keep him away.

‘I never said I had a cracked tooth, I just said it wasn’t one’ Her tone tried to be strong but it was faulty, she was definitely lying.

“Oh yeah? Then show me your teeth!” Mikey climbed onto the couch and tried to grab at her mask but she quickly snagged his wrist.

‘Do you realize how weird that sounds!?’ She shoved him off the couch, but he refused to relent and only sat back up with a big smile.

“Sounds like something someone with a cracked tooth would say,” he retorted snarkily

‘That makes no sense!’

Mikey hopped up and sauntered over to the back of the couch, to which the other moved away. “You can’t prove to me that you don’t have a cracked tooth until you show me your teeth. And since you refuse to show me, that means you do!” He said with a pointed finger.

‘Or I don’t want to show my teeth to some stranger’ She smacked his hand away.

Mikey gasped and put his hands over his heart, “Stranger!? I’m hurt Vee. We’ve been stuck together for a good…long time!” He pouted, and Venus once again looked away from him.

Mikey walked back over to the cot and plopped down, waiting for her to say anything more..but only silence.

Well, she has loosened up a bit. Maybe now would be the best time to ask for some answers. What to choose..oh! This one shouldn’t be too invasive!

“Soooo…just curious. Why is the Dragon Lord after you anyway? Have you two met?”

‘I have something he wants’ She answered conservedly, beginning to draw her legs onto the couch. Okay, she’s going on the defensive but not completely closing off. He would need to tread more carefully.

“Well I know that obviously” Mikey laid down into the cot and purposely stared at the ceiling in an attempt to hopefully ease her tension. “But what specifically?”

‘Does it really matter?’

“Well, I guess not, but I’d like to know anyway” He tilted his head back to her and offered a smile before returning to the ceiling. He truly was simply just curious about what had the Dragon Lord guy so obsessed.

‘Let’s just say I have something inside of me that holds a kind of great healing power’

“Oh, so why don’t you give them this power? Is it because he’s bad and you have a sense of moral duty not to let him have it!” Mikey asked excitedly while tucking his knuckles under his chin and staring at Venus’s upside-down figure with wide eyes.

‘No, it’s mine, I’m not letting some stranger have it. Besides, I have a very high chance of dying if it were taken’

“Oh,” Mikey deflated hearing this and rested his hands back onto his plastron. He was really hoping to find some good in her because he wanted to find something to convince his brothers she wasn’t an enemy. Fighting Venus now would be so weird…anyway back to the curious investigation!

“They had us when we were unconscious right? How come they didn’t take the power then?”

‘The power will only leave my body if I willingly let it out. They could rip open my-’ She suddenly paused for a brief second, ‘body, all they want, but my flesh would just repair.’

“That’s not a horrifying image at all,” Mikey mumbled anxiously.

She ignored him in favor of continuing, ‘Right now it won’t work for anyone else and if they accidentally destroyed the power, it would lose its…well, power. It needs a constant host to survive- at least that’s what-’ She paused again, ‘The legends say. It’s never actually happened as you can see.’

The idea of flesh reconstructing over some kind of power heavily reminded Mikey of Shredder. He shuddered at the thought. Anything that was similar to the Shredder was bad news in the wrong hands.

“I’m glad you have it then”

‘What do you mean?’

“Well you aren’t trying to take over the world, so I would say you make a good match for such a power!”

‘Even if that is true. I would do anything to go back and never gain this power’

Mikey’s smile instantly turned to a frown and he opened his mouth to ask for context but was interrupted by Wei. By her tone it sounded like she was asking a question.

‘She says we should sleep’ Venus pulled her blanket further up her body and laid down.

Mikey had a feeling that’s not what she actually said, but he decided not to say anything. This was obviously a delicate subject that should be treated carefully, lest he wants her to build a wall. So, Dr. Feelings decided to let it go…for now.

....

Sleep never came easy to Mikey, especially after Shredder, so it wasn’t a surprise to him when his mind would not rest. Although this time had less to do with the fear of a nightmare and more anticipation for a ringtone. Mikey had turned the volume all the way up and propped the phone next to his head, yet he couldn’t help but fear sleeping through a possible call from Leo.

It didn’t help that his thoughts were running wild tonight.

He recounted all the crazy events that had happened. And fantasized about his reunion with the fam. By tomorrow, he should be on his way to being back with his family, and he couldn’t wait to tell them about this wild adventure! They would be shocked for sure when they find out what he had done all by himself! Well, okay, maybe he did have a little help from Venus but that didn’t sound as impressive.

I should stop thinking and sleep. Sleep is important.

But how? He was in a new environment far away from home. Mikey remembered Donnie explaining that familiarity was important for falling asleep, but there was nothing familiar for him to hold on to.

…Well, there might be something. Mikey knew he always seemed to sleep better when in bed with his family. For some reason his mind would just..relax? The first couple of weeks after the Shredder battle, none of the family slept alone. Even April, who would sneak out of her apartment just to join them on the pile of mattresses made into one big bed in the TV room. After probably half a month though, everyone started to go back to sleeping in their own rooms, and soon enough the pile of mattresses were propped against one of the sewer tunnels to warm the place up better until Donnie could install an air conditioning unit.

The first few days sleeping alone had been terrible, Mikey remembered vividly. He hardly slept more than three hours, then ended up resting in bed all day, but not sleeping. His brothers and father offered him a place in their beds of course, however he was stubborn and denied the offer. It always made him feel like a baby, so he tried his best to suck it up and sleep alone.

It’s not like any of that mattered though because he didn’t have his brothers to sleep next to right now. Venus definitely wasn’t going to allow him to sleep next to her, even if he explained why he needed it. Even though she seemed a little more open, she was obviously still keeping her guard. Although it was nice, not being on her bad side anymore, because she was a lot more fun! And nice! Mikey honestly hadn’t expected her rude and cold personality to fall away so easily. Of course there were always more than twenty sides to a person, but he kind of expected her to stay grumpy, to keep a wall.

Maybe she just…didn’t see him as a threat? People who put up walls are usually always trying to protect themselves, and others always see him as… nonthreatening. Especially when compared to his brothers, who she has already seen. Well, guess it made things easier for him, because she definitely won’t see it coming when he tricks her!

Actually that sounded really bad…but she’ll understand when the chain is gone. Draxum is a way better option than Big Mama. There was no need to worry about deals that backfire and manipulate, just a free ankle!

And maybe they won’t have to fight anymore! She could be like Casey, except more like a frenemy since she had to work for Big Mama, but maybe they could help her with that too!

Yeah, Venus being a part of their team would be fun.

Wait, what was he trying to do again?..

Oh yeah, sleep…

....

As expected, sleep did not favor Mikey. Not fully anyway. He managed to drift into a half-asleep state but was soon awoken when his body was suddenly slamming into the floor. At first he had thought they were under attack and wildly swung his hands while yelling his attack noises, but upon seeing Venus standing over him with a snarky look he instantly knew she was the perpetrator.

So, in retaliation, he tried to trip her with his leg. Unfortunately said leg decided to be cement today because when he hit her he was pretty sure the attack hurt him more. Guess the tripping game was getting predictable..

‘Come on, we need to eat quick. Unless you want to wait another couple days or weeks for the next ship to head out to home’

Mikey sprang up and rapidly shook his head, pushing most of the grogginess away. “No way!” As much as he loved the free food and the kitty, he was ready to get home already.

The two began a fast pace into the kitchen area where two plates sat on the island, both containing bowls with what looked like white liquid topped with vegetables and bread. His chef's eye could tell that the vegetables were green onions..of course they could be spring onions, it was hard to tell sometimes. There were also some squares of sliced fried bread that probably came from the same bread as the little breadsticks on the side.

‘They are breakfast Congee’s with oil-fried ghosts. It’s just rice porridge and dough sticks’

Mikey took the bowl and walked over to the dining table, which was just a small round table with two chairs at opposite ends of the table. He pulled the chair out and found that there was a small pillow on it. He didn’t remember seeing pillows on the chairs. Although it could be that the pillows were placed this morning.

Mikey decided not to delve too much into that thought and instead sat down on the plush cushion. Thankfully this time the silverware given was a spoon. Mikey wasted no time and took a sip of the porridge. It was warmer than he thought, and very savory. He mostly tasted fried garlic and some kind of intense burning citrus flavor he didn’t recognize. The spice gave him a better wake up, although it was a bit of a distraction. After a couple more dips though, he came to enjoy the odd taste.

Mikey watched as Venus dipped her bread into the bowl and decided to do the same. When he did the flavor was a lot easier to take in and eating the rest was no problem at all.

“That was really good!” Mikey said after swallowing the last spoonful.

Venus’s shoulders shrugged. ‘I prefer a more fish version. Though Bao buns are the best breakfast’

“Is anything ever good enough for you?” Mikey sarcastically asked as he nibbled at his last breadstick.

‘No.’ She said straightly before placing her mask on. ‘Time to go’

Mikey sighed at the news. “I wish I could try more stuff” The food was very different, but really good. It wasn’t pizza, not even close, but it was always nice to try new things, especially from fellow chefs!

“Hey Venus, you think you could ask Wei and Shi if they can lend me a couple recipes?”

‘Sure’ She agreed and Mikey watched happily as Wei said something brightly before leaving the room. They waited in awkward silence for what seemed like at least five minutes before she returned with several papers full of indiscernible words. That didn’t matter though because he would get Donnie to translate it.

Wei carefully placed the papers in what looked like a Ziploc baggie, then the baggie was placed into a yellow tote bag. She handed the yellow bag to Mikey while Venus picked up a shiny gray tote bag from the counter.

‘Travel bags’ She explained ‘They provided us some food and drinks for later’

“Really!?” Mikey instantly jumped onto the two and pulled them together into one big hug “Quick Vee! How do I say thank you?”

‘Mm goy’ She actually answered.

“M goi!” Mikey cheerfully repeated before releasing them and hopping back over to Venus. Wei and Shi stared with wide-eyed looks before bright smiles took over and they bowed while saying foreign words.

‘They are thanking us for your gratitude and choosing them for help’

“Aww, they’re so humble!” It was so nice being treated so respectfully by humans for once. It always hurt knowing that his very existence was feared or hated by the very people that he and his brothers try so hard to protect.

‘Yeah yeah, time to go’ Venus waved her hand and Wei stumbled past them and opened the door and brisk cold air swept inside as the morning breathed into the room. Beyond the door was a sidewalk bathed in unnatural white light, while the sky itself was black.

“Is it night!?” No wonder the night felt shorter, it hadn’t even fully passed yet!

‘Of course’ Venus said before heading out the door. Mikey followed after with a groan. He supposed it was reasonable, the dark was a valuable ninja weapon after all. Or was that silence? Something about feathers? Oh well, he would be home to ask about it soon enough!

A mewl from behind had Mikey stop in his tracks and spun around. Lao hu trotted up to him and gracefully brushed against his leg. Mikey cooed and picked the cat up to bring her into a hug. “I’m going to miss you-” Lao hu managed to slip from his arms and looked at him with her big eyes.

“Sorry” He apologized and simply patted the cat's head before closing the door.

They were brought to a small white car and got into the back seat where there were a few random containers and trash that had to be moved aside.

After everyone buckled in except Venus, the vehicle started its way to their destination…

It took perhaps twenty minutes before they made it to what appeared to be a shipping dock. Shi handed them a map with marks sketching a path through said docks until ending with a large circle encasing one of the ships.

Venus informed Mikey on the way that the plan was to sneak onto one of the cargo ships that would be carrying goods back to America. It was just their luck that one of the ships would be leaving the harbor sometime this afternoon. Mikey would have preferred a fun cruise ship, but he’ll take what is given if it means he’ll be home soon.

Wei said something with hesitation to them before holding out her hand.

“What did she say?” Mikey questioned.

‘She asked if she could have her phone back’ Venus informed him without looking away from the map. ‘I say we keep it’

Oh right..the phone. Mikey took the device from his bag and stared at the silent screen. It had only been a few hours since he called, there was still a chance…

He looked back up at Wei. She was obviously trying to hold back some kind of anxiety, perhaps scared that he wouldn’t give it back. Guilt gripped him and without much else thought Mikey placed the phone into Wei’s hand. They would be home soon anyway, he reassured his mind.

Wei most likely thanked him before waving. He waved back and to his disheartment, they turned around and started to walk back towards the car. He knew it was dumb, they had only been together for what? Maybe a few hours not counting the nap? But he couldn’t help feeling an attachment to them. It was an unfortunate trait of his that never got easier to deal with.

He quickly wiped some unwanted tears and turned back to Venus who was still observing the map.

Once she found the correct path they began to make their way to the ship, keeping sure to stick to the darkest spots and hide the glow of the chain. Venus brought them to a large cargo ship that towered over by hundreds of feet, thick rope holding it from escape.

Mikey would say it’s probably the same size as the one he threw at Shredder, maybe a bit smaller though.

‘This is our ticket home’ Venus said while gesturing to the ship.

Mikey smiled, “Then what are we waiting for?” He ran over to the ropes and prepared to jump, but a stranger's voice stopped him.

“Hold it”

He turned around and saw two humans dressed in an orange construction hat and gray and orange vest heading over to them.

“Come with us quietly,” One of them said.

‘The Dragon Lord found us’ Venus stepped back and set into a fighting position.

“Nah it’s just a couple of workers” Mikey wasn’t sure how she could make the conclusion that humans that caught them for trying to sneak on a ship were Dragon Lords henchpeople.

“Surrender now and you won’t be hurt” One of the humans said.

Okay, now that definitely didn’t sound like a normal human thing to say. Or maybe they just liked being dramatic? Wait! They spoke English! “Uuh, what do we do?” Mikey quickly whispered to Venus.

‘Knock them out, these might just be scouts.’

Mikey drew out his chain and smirked “At least there’s only two!” This should be easy enough!

Unfortunately the others must have heard this and thought it was perfect timing, because three more humans came out of nowhere and started to surround them.

“Maybe they aren’t Yokai?” Mikey whispered, trying to find a positive for the situation. This was obviously heard by the five enemies because big smirks stretched across their faces before they each touched something in their hoods and revealed their dragon forms.

‘From now on, leave the talking to me.’

“But you don’t even-” Mikey didn’t get to finish his sentence before one of the Yokai charged them. They tried to attack with a knife but the duo moved out of the way and within barely even a few seconds the Yokai’s body was falling to the ground after something was thrown into their back. The poor dragon wasn’t allowed any kind of recovery as Venus shoved them off the ledge and a splash followed shortly after.

What immediately caught Mikey’s attention though, was the pair of rebars she now had in hand.

“Where did you get that?” Mikey quickly asked before turning his attention back to the Yokai. Two charged towards him, while two went for Venus, one of them being more noticeably large and buff.

‘From the unfinished structure’ Venus answered as she swung at one of her enemies.

Thank goodness, Mikey thought as he dodged a couple of swings from the Yokai’s weapons, he was worried she stole from the kind humans.

The tote bag was slowing his movements so he tossed it down before the dragon attacked with a pair of odd looking swords that were hook-shaped at the end. He evaded the swing and in a flash threw his chain over the sword and pulled. The hook prevented the chain from slipping off and Mikey used this to pull the sword in front of him, just in time to cut off the swing of a very thick and slightly curved blade.

The other hooked blade then swung for his side so Mikey released his chain from the blade and went to back up, only to accidentally knock into Venus. The blade just barely missed his side, but he didn’t have a moment of rest as Venus’s elbow sharply jabbed into his shoulder.

Venus carried on with no apology and Mikey wanted to chew her out on it but a blade jabbing his plastron shut his mouth for now. He decided it would be best not to fight so close and backed up to get away from the weapon then zipped past the dragon with the swords, snagging his chain from the blade while doing so. As soon as he was behind them he decided to use the old trick and whipped his foot out to have the chain trip the other.

It worked…but Venus fell with them.

“Sorry Vee!” Mikey called to the other. To their misfortune though, the large buff dragon managed to get past Venus’s defense and grab the chain. Mikey tried to pull the chain out of their grip, however the dragon began swinging the chain in a circular motion, causing Mikey’s ankle to pull him from the ground. He felt his body lurch as the dragon picked up speed and started to swing them around in midair.

“AAAH! IS.THIS.WHAT.MY.CHUCKS.FEEL LIKE!!!” Mikey screamed as they were spun round and round.

The dizzy swinging finally stopped and for a brief moment they flew in the air before Mikey felt his shell painfully slam against metal. His body instantly dropped to the concrete and he groaned from the pounding ache of his body.

When he looked up there were little floating pepperoni’s, he tried to grab one but they poofed away, revealing the approaching dragons.

“This isn’t working Venus!” Mikey cried as he pulled himself into a crouch “We need to work together!”

Venus turned to Mikey and gave a nod then stood up, to which he followed. The four dragons made sure to spread out just enough so there wasn’t any real opening to escape. They all held weapons, the two hook swords, the large blade, a large…club? Or maybe a mace? It kind of looked like a mace but without the spikes. The fourth held a large sword with several rings hooked into the spine.

He tried to back up for more room but found his shell bumping into the metal he had previously crashed into. As it turns out, it was a shipping container..oh how he missed his mystic powers. With them he could just grab this container and slam all the hench dragons away! Heck he could probably have taken them out with just one swing!

Suddenly, the dragon with the ringed sword slammed the weapon down, the blade sinking into crumbling concrete. Out of the cracked concrete came…bubbles? Well, foam more like it. The foam expanded rapidly and headed right for them.

‘Jump using the metal wall!’ Venus ordered before positioning herself. Mikey copied her movement, and just as the growing foam almost reached they were able to bounce off the container and over the four foes. When they landed Venus pressed into his side and held her weapons up. ‘We need to take out the big one first’

“Roger skipper!” Mikey saluted before throwing his chain towards the buff dragon. Said buff dragon grabbed hold of the chain but before they could pull, Venus attacked with her rebars. The dragon had to let go to defend against her attack and as the chain fell she snatched it by putting a rebar through one of the chains loops. She then darted to the side leaving the chain in a line across the dragon's legs.

Mikey understood what she wanted and sprinted behind the dragon. As soon as he got behind them though, Venus collided right into him and he fell back onto the painfully hard concrete.

The sound of laughter filled the air from the four dragons and Mikey couldn’t help a groan.

‘Okay no more using chains to trip’ Venus said as she rolled off of him.

“Agreed”

Venus jerked up and barely managed to smack her rebars against the wrist of the buff dragon, who had grabbed the leg chain. They cried out and dropped it, allowing Venus to grab it and jump back. Thank goodness because he didn’t know if he could survive another twister move.

Mikey got up and went to step back, but the feeling of his ankle burning had him hop forward with a cry. Behind them was an entire wall of foam. Foam!? Was foam supposed to burn you!? He followed the wall and found the dragon with the ringed sword was dragging their weapon across the ground, a building wall of foam trailing behind it.

‘Okay, I’m going to use my flash and then you attack. Once the big dragons down go for the mystic sword’

Mikey nodded back to the other and stood up. As soon as the buff dragon made a move towards them Venus shot out her hand and Mikey used his arm to cover his eyes before the blinding white could attack him. As soon as he saw the light fade he took a look and saw the dragon clearly dazed, the other three also rubbing their eyes. With this opportunity, Mikey jumped up and with an excited shout of “Hot soup!”, swung his chain down as hard as he could. The metal connected harshly against the dragon's skull and they fell with a heavy thud.

Everyone paused to see if they would get back up...the buff dragon raised their head shakily but before they could even get up Venus threw one of her rebars right into the poor souls' noggin and the dragon's face was back on concrete.

“Ooh” Mikey cringed “That won’t be a fun feeling to wake up to”

‘Focus, mystic sword’ Venus reminded and Mikey searched the three dragons for the next target. As soon as he spotted the weapon he threw his chain out at them. The dragon used their sword to deflect the chain. The dragons with the hooked swords and big blade tried attacking him but Venus blocked their path.

The dragon with the ringed sword raised the weapon high and slammed it to the ground, creating more rising foam that headed right for Mikey. The turtle quickly moved out of the way and sprung towards the dragon. They tried swiping him with the sword but he side-stepped away and swung his chain. The dragon managed to elude the attempt with a duck before striking again and Mikey hardly avoided it. The chain pulled at his foot and he backed up to give it some slack. The dragon of course moved towards him and swung again but he was too fast for that obviously heavy sword to catch.

That was it! He knew exactly what to do!

He waited for the dragon to raise the sword up again and used his faster pace to grab the sword wielding wrist of the dragon. He then shoved his shell against their body and bent down while pulling the arm, sending the dragon's weight over him and to the ground. He held onto the arm just enough to rip the handle out of the dragon's grip and tossed the heavy weapon away.

The dragon sat up with an anguished cry and Mikey followed their gaze to the sword. It now laid halfway in the wall of foam, the iron blade melting within its own conjured hot bubbles.

“Huh,” Why would a mystic weapon’s own mystic destroy it? Must be some strong mystic stuff. The wall seemed to be descending as well, the bubbles quickly popping away. They looked very pretty though. The bubbles reflected the pink stained sky with a glossy shine. He couldn’t help but stare at the beautifully mesmerizing orbs.

His gazing was interrupted though as his foot was tugged by the chain, drawing his attention back to Venus who was still fighting the two other dragons.

Oh right! Mikey took no more time waiting to help. He charged the dragon with the large blade and sent a kick that threw them back and they tumbled to the ground, almost landing in the rapidly shrinking foam.

‘You take out the mystic weapon?’ Venus asked as she countered an attack by the third dragon.

“Completely taken care of!” Mikey eagerly informed her and she jumped back to stand by him.

‘Good, I have an idea for how we can take out these three in one swing’

“Oh yeah?” He questioned.

‘Go into your shell’

Oh no. He knew what that meant. More pain to his poor shell. “Aw man, can’t we just fight them!”

‘You’ll be fine’

“Says the one who just has to swing” Mikey grumbled before reluctantly sinking into his shell.

He heard Venus shift herself, probably getting into position. The hench dragons chattered in their language, probably questioning what they were about to do.

Then he felt it, a strong strain on his ankle before his shell was scraping against the ground, then lifting up as the strain turned to a pulling burn. The outside became a blur as he went round and round and before he knew it his shell was slamming into a body..then two..three!

They went around a couple of times before his ankle was pulled once more and the pressure left his body and was back to the concrete. His shell rolled about four times before finally settling, although he was upside down.

Despite all the pain in his body and nausea, the following loud splash made it totally worth it. He slowly left his shell and a three-fingered hand was offered to his fallen form. He gladly took the help and Venus lifted him to his feet. Her kind gesture replaced a lot of his pain as thrill and delight took its place.

“Oh yeah baby! Team Venus and Mikey for the win!” He held out his hand for a high three and the other returned the gesture, albeit with a little less enthusiasm.

‘We should do that every time’

“No,” Mikey sternly said with narrowed eyes.

‘Also, your pants fell off’

Mikey gasped and looked down, his legs were indeed exposed. He reacted with a cry and quickly attempted to cover his half-nakedness.

‘It’s fine, we’ll find some more later’ Venus said as she turned and began walking away from the ship.

Mikey followed, confused. “Uh, where are we going?”

Venus didn’t answer, instead, she kneeled down and picked up the pair of hooked swords. She stood back up and gave the swords a couple of swings. ‘I like these’ She said before tossing her rebar away then walked over to the buff dragon and knelt down again.

“Care to explain your thoughts?” Mikey asked, getting tired of her doing things and not saying why. They should be getting on the ship now!

‘I’m trying to find their cloaking device, we could use them to avoid the Dragon Lord.’ She removed the hood from the dragon, revealing some black untamed hair, a pair of antlers, and big green cow-looking ears. Venus reached out and grabbed one of the ears and began messing with what looked like a round black earring with a green gem in the middle. A sigh left her covered mouth and she stood back up. ‘No good, neither of us has ears’

“Oh, too bad...well time to board!” Mikey twisted around to look at said ship, but for some reason, it was noticeably tilting to the side. “Uh, is it supposed to move?”

Venus looked back at the ship and she speed-walked to the edge, Mikey following close behind. Immediately he noticed a giant shredded gap in the ship's side, the dragons that had previously been launched into the water swimming away from the swallowing hole.

“No!” Mikey cried out. This was their way back home!

“You are not going anywhere”

Mikey turned and gasped at the sight of a large number of humans standing just a couple yards back, there had to be over twenty at least. Each wore the familiar outfit of the hench dragons from the house.

Well, except for a couple of dragons standing just across from him and Venus. One of the humans wore a noticeable magenta hood and held a plush looking golden silk cushion that a purple cat sat atop of. The cat had a white collar around its neck with a green gem in the middle.

The human that stood a little ways in front was very tall, probably the tallest one out of everyone. He wore a fancy-looking yellow robe and an odd-looking hat. It had a round base with a, maybe hairpin? Sticking right through the middle, and on each end of the pin was a red string that looped across his chest. The top of the hat reached out in a rectangle from the front and back, the front curved upwards. They were both very long though, almost as long as his forearm! From the edge of each end hung several strings with vibrant yellow beads that dripped until just above his eyebrows. Below the hat was a long black mustache and beard slick with gel…well he knew who that was.

“You know, we only want one of you,” The Dragon Lord said with a single finger raised.

“What?” Mikey asked.

“We do not really need you, orange masked turtle. I value the scale much more than keeping you” The dragon Lord explained with a poisonous soft tone. “If you were to help us and hand over your chained acquaintance, I would be happy to set you free. I can even take you back to America if you so desire.”

It was hardly noticeable, but Mikey swore he saw the purple cat say something. Also what scale? Was that the power thingy Venus was talking about? Why would a scale have magic power, that was a measuring sciency thing wasn’t it?

“Well?” The Dragon Lord asked.

Mikey leaned over to Venus and whispered “How do I say no way in Chinese?”

‘You want the mean version or the soft one?’

“Meanest you got” He smirked.

‘Pook guy ong lan gow’

“Puk gaai ong lan gau!” Mikey repeated in a shout.

The Dragon Lord's face wrinkled with rage at his words and if his eyes could burn with fury they would be dust. The anger was rolling off in waves. It felt like the roar of distant thunder from a powerful storm. His hand launched into the robe and he spat with venom, “You can be dead weight then!”

He revealed a small gun and Mikey felt electric icy fear wash over his body. He knew the dangers of a gun, but had never actually encountered one during combat.

Before he could truly process the situation though, a weight shoved him back, and he was falling. The view of the platform above became farther away before it was overtaken by a stinging glassy film.

Chapter Text

Mikey hadn’t gotten much of a breath before the water enveloped his body. He pushed against the water, his hoodie making every attempt more difficult. He was able to make it to the surface though, and give air to his begging lungs. Straightaway he tried to search for Venus but only found a cluster of bubbles popping at the surface near him. It wasn’t long before her hood broke from the water though, multiple splashes following. Her arms reached out towards the open sky, as if trying to climb the air itself.

Mikey didn’t have time to ask what to do next as the cracking sound of a gunshot sliced the silent air like lightning and the water beside him flew up. Not knowing what else to do Mikey dove under, however he found his leg being jerked at. A muffled shot grew the fear he was desperately trying to push down, but he couldn’t swim anywhere as his body was pulled by the chain. He decided to go back up to the surface, but was only able to stay up for a second before his ankle was yanked again, causing him to fall back into the water. He tried once more but only received the same result as Venus kept pulling at the chain, obviously trying to swim to who knows where.

His air supply was very little and just about every grasp for air came with salty seawater. Mikey paddled his arms through the water in an attempt to swim after Venus so he wasn’t being pulled behind, but she was just too fast.

Then, something changed. He felt himself being pulled to the side, but it wasn’t by the chain, it was the water itself. The current practically sucked him downwards until his side slammed into something dangerously sharp. He held a scream as his arm and shell were forced through the piercing object and then into darker waters. Something slammed right into his lower plastron and almost made him lose the little air he had stored left.

He looked down to see what it was that had hit him however he instead found the blurred image of the glowing chain suddenly falling in front of his face. He followed the chain up until it reached Venus’s foot.

Mikey swam in that direction in hopes she was at the surface and made it out of the water with a deep gasping for oxygen. Only this time, everything was pitch black. It was as if someone had completely turned out the lights on the world and left them in a swallowing abyss.

Mikey looked around and spotted the smallest glint of golden light peeking through a flooding metal crevice. He could see now that the sharp thing stabbing into him from before was the torn metal of the opening. He tried to check his arm because it was seriously stinging, but before he could the chain pulled him and he sank into the water once more. Thankfully the tugging didn’t last more than a few seconds and he was able to pull himself up again. This time though, the chain led up. Although the lighting from the chain was dim, Mikey could see that it was some kind of metal platform.

Mikey swam towards it and felt around. It was definitely something big and metal. He had to kick his legs hard to push himself up so he could catch the top of the platform. Once his fingers caught the edge he raised himself up. He managed to climb to the top pretty easily, but once he was there his entire body collapsed in a shaking mess. He coughed out the seawater when his lungs were finally able to get air without fear of swallowing anymore.
His body refused to do anything for the time, and Mikey was perfectly okay with that. He let his breath ease and tried his best to calm his mind. He probably stayed lying there for about a minute before finally managing to push himself up.

Once he was better Mikey decided to feel his injured arm. Surprisingly, it did not hurt as much now, only a small needle compared to the stinging from before. At least it wasn’t too bad then, Mikey thought as he pulled his hoodie off and took in another clean breath. Okay. What to do next? Chew Venus out for almost drowning him? Nah, save that for later. Maybe look around? That’s what Leo and Raph did when they were in a tight situation!

The entire place was trapped in darkness..except for the light at the opening, only that was starting to shrink as the water level rose. That was their only exit, and if it filled up then the water may block the sun's light. That would make it very hard to find the exit. Which meant they needed to go!

“Venus! We have to get out of here!” There are many ways Mikey didn’t want to die, and drowning in the dark was one of them!

But Venus didn’t answer. She didn’t even move from her spot. Maybe she didn’t hear? Mikey crawled closer, following the chain's glow to her. “Venus, this place is going to flood, we need to get out!”

‘I don’t know if I can.’ She responded stiffly.

“What? Why?” She could clearly swim good seeing as how she dragged him for the entirety of their water time.

‘I don’t like the water,’ she answered.

“Are you scared of water?” She didn’t respond to his question but the silence was enough of an answer. “It’s okay if you are,” Mikey reassured, hoping that if she was feeling embarrassed or weak, his words could help her. “It’s a very common fear! I used to be scared too, and my Dad still hates dark water!” Dad would never go swimming with them in the sewers because he didn’t like how murky the water was, and he always thought there was something in the water.

“Here” Mikey gently pressed his hand against what he assumed was her arm and followed it down to her hand which wrapped around her folded legs. He didn’t grab her hand, but instead let the back of his hand rest on top. “How about you hold on to me while we swim! That way you’ll be more safe and I won’t drown in the back!”

She didn’t respond. The feeling of a soft cold wave pushed against Mikey’s foot and he turned towards the shining opening that was dwindling fast. Anxiety began to grab at his chest from the sight. They needed to go now.

Venus’s hand suddenly grasped around his own. ‘Okay.’ She agreed.

Mikey helped pull her up and walked to the edge. “On the count of three, we jump”

‘Why are you counting?’

“Better preparation?” Was that it? Mikey didn’t actually know the reason, but it always made things easier when he needed to do something he really didn’t want to.

‘Fine.’

“One, two, three!” Mikey pushed off the metal and shouted, “Cowabunga!” before submerging back into the waters. Venus had such a death grip on his hand that Mikey kind of worried that the poor thing might lose oxygen. It didn’t help that it was his injured arm, but guess that was better than using it to swim. Mikey made his way to the surface with Venus and tugged her towards the slipping light. He felt her tug him forward as she swam ahead so he kicked his legs and used his free arm to keep up.

They made good progress, but the light was almost completely faded behind a mountain of water. Venus was going significantly faster than him but luckily she didn’t let go. Mikey really didn’t feel like choking up water again.

However just as they were only a few feet away from freedom, someone or something pulled Mikey’s body under. Venus held onto him for a fraction of a second, but before she let go the force between her hold and being pulled under strained his arm painfully. As Mikey was being taken further under the water, something grabbed his arms while scales scraped against his own as something coiled around his legs, restricting him from any movement.

‘Where’d you go!? What happened!?’

He tried to move his arms out of the grasp of the other but their grip was like iron and only tightened against his struggles. He couldn’t do anything against the attack, not even breathe. It was as if he was being ensnared by a giant snake with arms!

It’s okay- Venus will help, Mikey thought hopefully. But why is my ankle being pulled? As if she's not going toward him..

It was so dark. And cold. It felt like he wasn’t even in water anymore. Just an empty void. This feeling was..confusing. Both fear and contained adrenaline gripped him as his instincts fought to move, to find something to do. It was like he was hot, yet cold at the very same time, and there was this frustrating itchy, stinging sensation, as if his body was punishing itself for not being able to move. But there was nothing he could do. Only beg for air.

It felt like a minute had already passed. Or was that wrong? Was his mind trying to process things faster because he was in danger? Was that even a thing? Where was Venus?

Mikey wanted his brothers. His sister, his Dad. This was scary. They were always there for him when something this scary happened. But…they were miles away right now. An entire ocean away without the slightest hint of where he was. He couldn’t even reach them through the Hamato spirits- heck he couldn’t even go into the safety of his shell!

Mikey felt his throat tightening with every dry second, and his head squeezed under the pressure of the situation.

Am I going to drown?

The thought screamed in his head and forced his muscles to move, to try and fight because his lungs were burning and his heartbeat was getting louder and-

The grip suddenly pulled against him, but not in the usual way of pulling, it was more like they were trying to hang onto him. Then, he felt a pressure on his shell, something scaled and sharp at the end pushed against him as the others' grasp on him was peeled away and he was released. Mikey felt his body move automatically, his arms pulled through the water, but before he could get anywhere something grabbed his body again. However this time, the grip was more loose, and not constricting his body.

Venus? But the chain was still pulling at his foot?

Mikey didn’t really have a chance to question it more as his mouth opened forcibly, searching desperately for oxygen. He thought for sure his lungs would be filled with water, but instead his head was lifted out of the water and air swept through into his dry mouth. The cutting air left him with a dry cough and he swore he was going to hack up his lungs.

Venus grabbed his arm and tugged him through the water. He followed without a word until he felt the pull on his foot again, this time stronger. Was something grabbing their chain? He thought worriedly

‘What’s going on!?’

“I think something’s pulling the chain!” Mikey told Venus.

‘Where are you!’

“What? I’m right here!”

An accented voice that was definitely not Venus suddenly whispered beside him, “Hold your breath and do not go up unthil we reach coch- cold watkerrs”

Mikey wanted to scream, but the stranger was already pulling him under, so instead he had to take a deep breath.

He felt the sharp metal of the split opening scrape against his shell, but this time it was less painful and he slipped past more easily. The stranger let go of him and seemed to swim away as he felt their movement in the water leave.

‘What are you doing? Is this the exit?’

Mikey almost spoke, thankfully his natural instincts prevented him from doing so though. Maybe it was better he didn’t tell Venus that a stranger was currently helping them out anyway, she might try to drown them.

His arm was snatched up again and he was pulled into even colder waters. They let go and Mikey immediately swam to the surface for what felt like the hundredth time. He was seriously getting tired of being in the water.

Looking around, Mikey could see they were under some kind of deck. Instead of wood above them though, there was just concrete, and it was only a few feet in length at best. That would make…one Donnie sideways? Maybe a little less, his measuring wasn’t exactly the best. There was also faint talking. The Dragon Lord must still be around.

Venus was next to him already, probably got to the surface first. She wasn’t looking at him at all though, at least he was pretty sure she wasn’t. Her hood hid her face, but it was clear by her head's position that she was looking down at the dark water.

Mikey reached out and searched for her hand under the water. He got ahold of her wrist and she turned to face him. Mikey expected a soulless white and red mask to stare back, instead, he was met with her barely visible face. It was too dark to see any features and she didn’t stay still long enough for him to adjust to the new lighting. She grabbed back at his hand and sped down the dock's path. Mikey tried to avoid making too much noise as he kicked after her but just couldn’t keep up, leaving her to practically drag him again. It wasn’t as bad as last time though, he could actually breathe this time.

They traveled past the docks and Venus immediately took them to the grassy shore where she hurriedly crawled onto the land while Mikey dragged his tired and cold body onto the soft mushy grass and flopped down, panting yet shivering. Now that the adrenaline was wearing away his body was starting to realize how cold and terrible it felt. His injured arm wasn’t stinging anymore at least.

Mikey could see some of his black wrappings were loosely hanging, having been cut through but not able to fall away. The small opening showed red cutting into green in a short line. It went probably two inches just above his elbow. It wasn’t too deep, maybe just a bit worse than a scissor cut. Still, he needed to clean and wrap it for sure. Wasn’t river water bad for cuts too? Or was it good because of the salt? Ugh, Leo was the one who remembered that stuff!

‘Come on, we need to get somewhere hidden’

Tears welled up fast from the unspoken words. Mikey was completely exhausted. Not just physically either. His head was thumping hard as a headache attacked like a hammer. He just wanted to rest with his family. He wanted them to be here, then everything would be alright.

‘Are you okay? Your arm is hurt, what happened back there?’

Mikey tried to sit up, but his shaking body gave out before he could even get into a crouch. Tears began to dribble down his tight face and he wiped them away with his wrist. Why was he so weak? A battle like that was nothing compared to all his fights before! And why was he so cold? He knew his mystic powers always kept him warm, but did they really heat him that much?

‘Okay, okay, go into your shell and I will carry you’ Venus offered.

Mikey solemnly nodded and pulled himself into the safety of his shell. Already he could feel his mind relax as he squished into the familiar space. It was odd, his shell had always been a place that made him more comfortable despite it still being a vulnerable part of his body. It just made him safe. Like it could keep him safe from anything. It usually worked out for him anyway.

He felt arms wrap around his shell before he was lifted from the ground. His plastron was pressed against Venus’s chest, her chin was his only view above. Mikey closed his eyes and tried to pretend she was one of his brothers. It felt very similar after all. Her ‘outer shell’ was just like one of their plastrons, only it was softer because of the jacket. So he just imagined that they were going home after a fun night of playing basketball. Leo or Donnie were carrying him back..probably Leo, Donnie was less muscular than this.

Soon enough he would be dropped into his nice hammock and wrapped in a soft blanket. And in the morning he will make French toast! Maybe add some strawberries if those were still good. Wait! Banana bits for Donnie and Dad. Leo and April were the ones who liked strawberries.

Yeah..some French toast with fruit would be a great breakfast…

....

A tap on his shell woke Mikey from his happy dreaming and a voice pulled him back into reality.

‘Come on, let's see that arm’

Mikey reluctantly left his shell to the chilly outside and found that they were currently in a forested area. Venus was beside him already, her face back to being covered by her mask. She didn’t wait for him and forcefully grabbed his arm and twisted it to better see the wound to which Mikey responded in multiple “Ow’s”

‘It’s not that bad. How did it happen though?’

“When we were sucked into the gap my arm was sliced by the edge” Mikey answered before ripping his arm away.

‘Oh’ Was the only thing Venus responded with before she let out an exhale. ‘I guess I can…’ She pulled her wet jacket sleeve up and began unwrapping the bandages on her slightly shaking arm.

“You don’t have to do that,” Mikey said as he pointed to his own wrappings on his uninjured arm. “I’ve got my own”

‘Right.’ She pulled her sleeve back down and took hold of his other arm. She then took off his damp wraps and placed them over the exposed wound and tied the end in a sloppy knot.

‘So what happened back there? Why did you dive under?’

“I didn’t, something grabbed me! I think it was one of the henchdragons” It had to be right? Pretty sure there wasn’t another scaled creature out to drown them during that specific moment. “It pulled me under, but something helped me!” Now the other individual who saved him, he wasn’t sure. It couldn’t have been another henchdragon though. Or maybe it was?

‘That explains a few things’

“Yep, they helped me and you through the opening, and then vanished” Maybe they didn’t want to be caught by the Dragon Lord? Perhaps they were a spy! Or a traitor who wanted the- what was it again? Scale?

‘Well we should look out for them, there’s no telling if it's a new alley or enemy’ Venus said and Mikey nodded in agreement.

‘And..are you good now?’ Venus asked hesitantly, as if she had no idea if her words were the right ones or not. ‘You seemed to struggle with walking earlier’

“Yeah,” Mikey said before an involuntary shiver rattled his body. “I’m cold though”

‘I see. Well then let's not waste any more time, we need to find dry clothes and something to treat that’

“How are we going to get back though?” That ship was their best chance at getting back! He wanted to get back to his family before something scary happened again, he needed them!

‘For now, we just need to keep moving and get out of China.’

“How?” Mikey asked as he began fiddling with the knot. “The Dragons had human cloaks, they could be anywhere!”

‘We just have to get new clothes and hide better.’

“Where do we find that stuff?” It wasn’t like they could just find another donation bin. Those weren’t everywhere!

‘We break into someone’s place’

Mikey sighed, “Guess we have no other choice. Actually, can’t we just go back to the nice humans place?” They could probably find another way to get them back!

‘No, we don’t know how to get back to them.’

Well..okay she had a point there. Mikey hadn’t paid attention to how they got to the docks. “What transport are we going to use?”

‘Transport?’

“You know, vehicles?” Mikey explained, but Venus made no sign she recognized the word. “Like a subway, or car?”

‘Oh, is it those giant metal things with wheels that require special liquid?’

“Yeah!”

‘Do you know how to summon one? I’m not too knowledgeable about those things’

Mikey did not try to hold in any laughter from her severe lack of knowledge on vehicles. “Summon!” He snorted through the laughter. “What do you want to do then next? Find a giant bird!” He fell back with more laughter and held his stinging sides, they were already hurt from his excessive shivering and this was just making it so much worse but he couldn’t stop.

‘I wish I could leave you behind.’ Venus stood up and began walking away. Mikey scrambled to follow her while holding his burning sides. He wasn’t as cold now that he’d dried off more, and his bones had less of an ache so walking was much easier. But he was still really tired, a lot of his energy had been used fighting in the water, and probably shivering. That was how shivering worked right? Pretty sure Donnie said something about shivering taking energy. Well either way he needed to replenish his lost energy!

“Can I have a snack?”

‘You’ll have to wait. I’m sure we can find something from the humans house’

“What? We already have-” But it was at that moment that Mikey realized his bag was not actually in his hand. He quickly twisted around to see if they had accidentally left them behind, but just as he feared, there was nothing.

“We left the bags at the docks!” Mikey cried as he gripped the sides of his mask. “The money, the delicious food, the recipes!!! I really wanted to use those!” He whined.

‘No, I have that’ Venus reached into her shirt and pulled out the Ziplock baggies holding his precious recipes.

Mikey gasped “Omigosh! You saved them!!!” He snatched the baggies and hugged them against his face. “Thank you!- Wait, why did you have these?” There’s no way she could have predicted they were going to jump into the water, and he’s pretty sure she didn’t even have his bag when they jumped.

Venus immediately turned away from him. ‘I may or may not have wanted them for myself..’

Mikey gasped again, this time with betrayal in the inhale. “You were going to steal them!”

‘Yeah,’ Venus replied with blatancy. ‘I gave it back though didn’t I?’ She said with a wave of her wrist before resuming her walk.

“I guess so” Mikey grumbled as he moved up next to her. Thank goodness she decided to steal them though, he definitely wanted to make these new recipes! He needed more variety. While Mikey sometimes made the occasional curry or prawns he hadn’t honestly delved into Asian foods. Hopefully he can keep these until they get home...oh who was he kidding?

“Actually, can you hang onto this? I’m not good at keeping stuff” He lost his Kusari Fundo so many times Donnie had to put a tracker in it! Thankfully his chucks were easier to find, they were connected after all. Except now..

‘Sure’ Venus took the baggie and stuffed it back in her outfit.

“Thanks Vee!” Mikey smiled and without thinking, gave her a hug from her side which he kind of regretted because her clothes were very cold and wet. And was she shivering too? He could feel small tremors from the hug.

Venus then pushed him away and gave two small pats to his head. ‘Yeah’ Was all she said before continuing on.

A bigger smile stretched across Mikey’s face before he hopped along to her side. It was still technically a rejection, but she almost accepted his hug!

A half a step forward was still progress towards a step!

Chapter Text

Mikey came out of the room dressed in wide black pants cut and held together by a shiny black belt, black boots that were two sizes too big, and a white hoodie with a cute red chibi version of a Chinese dragon in the middle.

He strutted around the area and struck a few poses. “How do I look?”

Venus just shook her head, ‘Really? A dragon?’

“It’s cute! Besides, the henchdragons will never suspect us to be wearing dragon stuff!”

‘Fine fine, let's just get going’ She began heading for the door but Mikey quickly cut her off.

“Whoa whoa whoa,” He said with raised hands. “You’re not going out like that!”

‘What’s wrong with what I’ve got?’

“It’s fine, but you’re totally soaked and it’s raining!” Just before they got into the house a sudden downpour started. Venus hadn’t even known what it was, so Mikey had to explain why liquid was falling from the sky and he’s pretty sure he did a great job. Anyway, they were lucky to get in before the assault happened, but Venus’s clothes were still damp from the swim and they couldn’t find a hair dryer. She was clearly cold from the wet clothes, it would really be best if she changed. “You could get sick!”

‘I don’t get sick’

Okay, so she was going to be stubborn about this, that was fine, he knew how to deal with stubbornness. Honestly Mikey thought she looked fine, her style was simple, mysterious and fit her personality perfectly. He always liked when someone wore what made them the happiest, no matter how off it looked. But not everyone was thought like that..and in the human world dressing like an assassin wasn’t exactly the average getup.

“You’re also too noticeable, humans will find your outfit suspicious and if we want to travel on public transport, you need to look less…threatening. No offense”

‘I suppose you have a point.’ She agreed.

“Then it’s time for some razzmatazz!” Mikey threw his arms up in excitement before dashing back into the room with the closet of clothes.

Maybe he could match her style in a more modern way. Something like a black hoodie, since she seemed to like that color.

Mikey swept through the entire closet, however there was an unfortunate lack of any hoodies matching the desired description, and going to the other bedroom would be useless because it was a kids' room. So instead, he selected a bunch of dark colored outfits and brought them back to Venus for her to decide.

“Okay, any of these catch your eye?”

Venus tilted her head down and appeared to look at all the clothes. Though he wasn’t sure how well she could see any of them due to the mask.

She picked up a dark grey short-sleeved shirt but tossed it after discovering it was too small. She then picked up a black zip up jacket with two parallel white stripes on the arms that would fit, and held it towards him.

‘How about this?’

“It’s perfect!” Mikey cheered with clasped hands. He hadn’t been too sure about it when seeing the white stripes but thank goodness she liked it! And it fit her style pretty well!

‘Then I’ll just use this,’ she said before walking towards the bedroom.

“What about your pants?”

‘I’ll keep them on. I would have to cut them to get them off’

Oh right, the chain. Well at least half of her clothes would be dry.

Venus got dressed within a minute and came out with the new jacket on, her mask and damp clothes in hand. Replacing her mask were the black strips once again.

‘Okay, let's go’

“Uh, your face?” She couldn’t possibly believe it was a good idea to go out with that right?

‘What’s wrong with my face?’ She asked.

“Humans don’t wear black bandages on their faces like that.” He explained.

‘Well is there something humans use to cover their face?’

“Actually…” Mikey raced back into the bedroom, accidentally pulling Venus a little from his excitement. He checked the drawers, then the closet's top shelf, where he found exactly what he was looking for. Mikey grabbed the article of clothing and showed it off to Venus who had followed into the room.

“It’s a scarf! Humans wear these when it’s cold outside, or to keep debris out of their eyes.” He tossed it to the other and she caught the white scarf with ease.

She tied the scarf around her neck in a knot as if it were a mask before taking off the black bandages. Mikey immediately shook his head. “No no, there’s a specific way to put it on,” he tried explaining.

‘Does it really matter?’

“If you don’t want to draw attention then yes” He stated with a hand on his hip.

‘Fine, tie it right’

Mikey happily made his way behind her and properly wrapped it around her hood. Once finished, he bounced back and took a look at his work. The scarf wrapped around like normal, with the end draping over her shoulder. He twirled her around so she could see herself in a tall mirror at the corner of the room.

“Oh yeah, you are working it now baby!”

She pulled the scarf a little higher and nodded. ‘It is very useful. In fact you should get one of these too, unless green is a normal human skin color’

Mikey felt a wide smile grow on his face before he dashed back to the closet and found a single extra scarf, this one black. He wrapped it on and joyfully pointed to it while Venus watched.

“Now we’re matching! Like twinsies!” Mikey clapped his hands as excitement flooded through his body.

‘Let’s head out’ Venus said as she placed her damp clothes into a new bag. They already had one, but it was used for stuff like snacks, water, and medical supplies.

‘Grab the other bag’

“What about the chain?” Mikey asked. Last time they were able to avoid detection because it was night and barely anyone had been around. But now they were going to be walking out in daylight for sure and while it may be pouring out, that wasn’t going to completely cover the sight of a glowing chain.

‘Yes, right...maybe I could wrap it around my leg while you stuff it in your boot and we use our pants to cover it up, then just walk side by side.’

Mikey nodded in agreement and got to work stuffing the chain in his boot. Although all of it didn’t fit, so he had to wrap it around his leg a couple of times until his boot was a couple of inches from Venus’s shiny gold shoes.

‘Can we go now?’

“One more thinng” Mikey snatched the supply bag, took them over to the front door, and snagged an umbrella from the wall hooks. “Alright! Let's get outta here!”

They left through the front door, unlike how they originally got in. Venus wanted to break the window, but Mikey thought he could force it open, which he did.. but that ended up breaking the window anyway. Thankfully no one seemed to hear so at least they had that. He felt pretty guilty about the window, so they made a deal not to take any money if they found any.

Venus opened the door and made her way down the steps. Before following, Mikey locked the door then let it close and opened the umbrella above them.

Getting down the steps was weird. Venus would pull every time they had to take a step, which wasn’t too bothersome, but he would prefer better cooperation.

“Could you ease up a bit there? Pretend we’re in a three-legged race!”

‘Couldn't you just say be better in sync’

“Nope,” What’s the fun in that?

The two began their walk on the driveway, this time slower but with steadier steps.

‘First objective is finding a map. I know you can’t read anything, but you should still be on the lookout for one. And please, don't say anything unless you know how to speak it in some form of the Chinese language. You’ll give us away to any dragons nearby’

“You got it!” He said without thinking. Venus glared and he quickly lifted his scarf over his mouth, smiling nervously behind the fabric.

She snatched the umbrella from him and moved it away so the cover would no longer be on him. A loud scream ripped from his throat as the cold bullets dropped on his hoodie and he immediately clung onto Venus to escape it.

The evil individual beside him chortled before prying him off. Mikey wished he could steal the umbrella and run away, but with this stupid chain he couldn’t enact such revenge.

“Revenge will come,” Dr. Delicate Touch told him.

Yes, yes it would. Hopefully after the chain came off, but he could improvise.

...

The two walked side by side for a while before a certain building structure caught Mikey’s gaze. The young turtle made Venus follow as he took a closer look inside and found that it was indeed what he expected, a convenience store.

“This is perfect!” He cheered before shrinking down as the other sent another one of those ‘shut up or I will strangle you’ glares.

‘Whisper to me, why this place is good for us’ She instructed, her tone sharp with frustration.

“Convenience stores usually have tourist maps” Plus he wanted to see the cool snacks they were bound to have but he thought it best to keep that to his mind which, which he was now pretty sure she wasn't able to read.

‘Okay, hopefully we can find something good then’

They made their way into the store and Mikey was slightly surprised that it looked like a convenience store he would see at home. He thought there would be at least a few differences but other than a lack of candy at the counter and multiple brands he didn’t recognize it was pretty similar, just organized differently.

Most of the products were Chinese, but there were some with English. Which meant he was correct in assuming this place was touristy, and that would mean there had to be advertising pamphlets!

For some reason he felt Venus pull away from the counter though. He unquestioningly followed as she walked into one of the aisles and stared at all the different products. There were lots of bags hanging on hooks with different chips or what looked like sausages vacuum sealed inside clear bags. Mikey took a look at the few with English subtitles.

Jellyfish head, Spicy Crab Stick, Shrimp Crackers.

Wow there was a lot of seafood. He wasn’t so much a fan of seafood. Some of the stuff looked really good though, like the little macha looking stuff at the bottom, or the hexagonal package with a panda on the side shelf.

Venus picked up a bag with some fish figures on it and, to Mikey’s absolute shock, opened up the bag.

He slapped Venus’s hand from creating more damage to the protection and she turned to him with confused eyes.

“What are you doing!” He whispered passive aggressively while looking around to see if anyone saw. One person was staring at them- this wasn’t good!

‘What? You aren’t allowed to look at the merchandise?'

“No, you can’t open the baggies until you pay!”

‘How do I know there is anything inside? What if I pay for nothing?’

Mikey quickly looked back at the human who was beginning to approach them. “I’ve never seen that happen and if it did then you’d get your money back and bad stuff would happen to the seller. Trustworthiness and all that, now go pay!” He tried shoving her towards the counter, however she kept her feet grounded.

‘We don’t have any money, remember?’

“Umm-” But Mikey wasn’t able to think of what to do next as a human tapped Venus on the shoulder rather roughly. She turned with a glare and the human returned the look before saying something Mikey of course couldn’t understand.

He pressed up against Venus and held his hand over his mouth so the human wouldn’t see as he whispered to her “What are they saying?” He really hoped it was something friendly.

‘For me to pay for the bag’

“Try asking for money”

‘No, let's grab and run’

“What!?”

Before Mikey had time to protest the ludicrous idea Venus pulled his leg as she quickly began down the aisle while plucking random items from the shelves and placing them in her clothes bag.

“Seriously Vee!” He aggressively whispered as he stumbled after her.

‘We’re already in trouble, might as well’

The human behind them spoke again, this time in a more demanding tone. Mikey nervously looked away as the tone of the human had fear sinking into his stomach. They were in so much trouble now...well, if she was doing it then..

Mikey snatched a couple yummy looking packages with what looked like cookies on the cover and a few bottles that were hopefully beverages and not sauce.

It’s been forever since he actually stole stuff from a store. Ever since April began working they had made a decision to exclusively use the money she offered them. Apparently she had been having a difficult time being motivated to take a job, which she felt was important to do for future jobs, and using them as an excuse was the perfect way for her. However, Donnie still stole stuff from the junkyard for his inventions to sell so technically it wasn’t all moral money.

They were almost to the door, but just before they were out Mikey snatched a lotto ticket for fun. Venus made it out the door and a blaring alarm began ringing out. A shout from the person behind the counter had Venus suddenly speed up into a run that had Mikey almost fall.

She stopped long enough for him to right himself before beginning a sprint once more. This time Mikey was able to mildly keep with her, although they stumbled when the other used their leg out of sync.

They couldn’t use the umbrella this time, so the biting rain assaulted them as they ran. And they had just gotten dry too!

The humans shouted after them but they were fortunately faster. Must be the mutant and Yokai DNA helping them out.

As soon as they turned the corner Venus pulled him through another set of doors and without missing a step, moved him behind a clothing rack while trying to watch the window.

“So what are we supposed to do now? About the map,” Mikey asked. The tourist map idea was out of the question now.

‘Aren’t there other places we can get a map?’

“Well..” He tried to think of other places that could have maps and of course his favorite device came to mind. “Phones! But navigating would be very hard” He didn’t know Chinese text, and Venus wasn’t so great at it either so finding the map app would be very difficult. A tourist map is a better option for them because it might have English.

‘No, we’ll use a phone, I’ll make the human do it for us, like before’

Oh right, the I am a god and will destroy you if you don’t do what I want trick.

‘So, what should I say? You said to try and find a vehicle right?’

“I don’t think we should try for a car” Mikey mumbled as he tried to think of other transport they could use. Cars would require money and they don’t have that anymore and Mikey drew a line at pickpocketing. And a bus might not get them where they want. Maybe a plane?

No, if the Dragon Lord found them he could easily do something like crash it or corner them a thousand feet in the air.

“Ugh, what can we sneak onto that won’t leave us cornered but still be fast!”

‘Do humans have trains?’

Mikey gasped while snapping his fingers “That’s it! We take a bullet train!”

‘Bullet train?’

“Yeah! They’re trains that go way faster than a normal train, and this place is known for its bullet trains!” At least he’s pretty sure they are. Japan was also known for them right? Well they would find out soon anyway.

‘Okay, so I just ask for a path to a bullet train?’

“Hmm, maybe we should get them to give us an entire route to follow. Tell them we want out of China and to give us the quickest bullet train path there is.”

Venus approved with a nod before taking a quick peek at the window. Mikey did the same and saw no one outside. So they walked to the counter where a single person greeted them with a smile.

That smile instantly dropped into a confused look, and they spoke in a more questioning tone. Mikey turned to Venus, whose placid look turned to a smile before she suddenly vanished from his sight, a weird, warped look now in her place. Did it always do that when she used the invisibility?

A small crash followed that had Mikey turning back to the human and found them pinned back against the wall, a terrified expression now covering their face.

Venus reappeared and slammed her fist on the table. The human trembled and took two shaky steps forward before bolting to the side.

‘Get them!’ Venus tried to run after the human, but Mikey hadn’t been fast enough to react. She almost fell from his lack of speed but quickly caught herself on the counter. As soon as she was up, Mikey followed in her racing footsteps after the fleeing human.

They were almost to the back of the shop before Mikey and Venus pounced on them, sending the poor human crashing to the ground. He then grabbed the humans flinging arms and pinned them as gently as he could against their back.

Venus crouched on one leg in front of the human, the other stretched out next to Mikey’s foot where the chain restricted any more length.

Seeing Venus’s silent, pointed hand movements, Mikey decided she was probably saying something along the lines of ‘Okay human, you better do what I ask or you won’t have any legs to run away on next time’

The human shook their head and shouted some words.

‘Let them go’ Venus ordered to which Mikey obliged before crouching beside her.

The human sat up and shakily pulled out their phone and began tapping on the screen. Mikey turned away from the human as they typed away to explore the room more. He paid attention to a shelf with cool jewelry and hats and busied himself with observing the different objects.

Moving from the shelf and going through all the items, Mikey noticed what looked like a back door. That must have been where the human had been trying to escape to, Mikey thought. He opened his mouth to mention it, but Venus beat him.

‘Come on’

Eh, probably not a big deal anyway.

Mikey stood up with Venus and the human and they walked to the counter where the human pulled out a small notebook from under the counter. They flipped through more than half of the pages then brought a pen down to the paper. They wrote in what Mikey assumed was Cantonese while looking at their phone.

The human was taking what Mikey assumed was more than five minutes. He used that time to look around more, but even that got boring soon. So he brought out the lotto ticket. It was pale yellow with red print. Inside the red outlined shape of a cute little doggy were beautiful red flower designs.

He scratched at a couple of the numbers but unfortunately, the human finished before he could get much further.

When Mikey took a peek at the notebook, he was surprised to see English letters below Cantonese letters on the last page.

“They know English?”

‘Some, apparently. They made a key’

“That’s great!” They should make humans do the work more often!

The human then ripped out the pages and placed them on the counter while speaking. Venus reached out to take them, but the sound of a bell and a shout had everyone turning their heads. At the door stood what looked like a cop in a pale blue uniform and a taser in hand pointed toward them.

‘Go!’ Venus shouted in his mind as she snatched up the papers.

Mikey stumbled with Venus towards the back of the store while the human shouted at them to probably stop.

As they made their way, Mikey remembered the exit door, so he grabbed Venus’s arm and directed her to the escape. She slammed into the door first and it burst open, flinging with a loud crash against the outside wall.

Mikey took a quick look back to see how close the human police was, only when he did the officer was just staring bewildered at them, not pursuing at all. It looked like she had just seen a ghost open this door instead of the- oh right invisibility.

Venus grabbed his hoodie and yanked him through the door to the sprinkling outside. A gray wall stood only a few feet away and as Mikey followed it he could gather that they were in an alley.

Venus brought out the umbrella and the two silently made their way out of the alleyway and began following the sidewalk. Mikey scanned the area nervously, watching out for any more police but saw none.

Just ahead a human was walking right toward them, so Mikey naturally moved to the side. Venus did the same, only she went the opposite way, causing the chain to stop both of them. Before either could correct this mistake, the human walked right into the chain and unfortunately fell down.

Mikey went to help the human, but Venus placed her hand out across his body to stop him.

‘We’re invisible, if you do anything they might scream and you’ll cause a scene’

Eh, that was a good point. So instead of doing that, Mikey dropped his lotto ticket in front of the person who was tending to their bruised limbs. Upon seeing the ticket, they picked it up.

Mikey turned and walked away with Venus. There was probably only five dollars on it anyway, and it’s not like he could cash it in. Although oddly enough after a few seconds, the human shouted out joyously. Must have gotten a one hundred then. Neat.

“So how far’s the train?” Mikey whispered when they weren’t in earshot of anyone. Hopefully the station wouldn’t be too much of a distance so Venus could keep up the invisibility long enough for them to make it into the train.

‘The train station is three hours away,’ Venus said, crushing Mikey’s hope.

“That far!?” He cried.

‘Shush, and yes that’s what it says,’ she confirmed.

“That’ll take forever!” Mikey lowly whined with a slouch.

Venus looked up and Mikey followed the action. Above them he could see light gray clouds traveling at a quick pace across the sky. Not a drop of rain appeared to be falling though. To test it, Mikey put his hand out, but no drops fell on his palm.

‘If we run it’ll probably only be an hour and a half. I can keep the spell up for about six more minutes but the rest of the time we will be exposed so running would benefit us’ She suggested as she put away the umbrella and Mikey whined again. She ignored him and already began unraveling the chain. Not by a lot, just enough for running.

“Can you carry me again?” He asked.

‘No, now undo the chain’ Venus said with crossed arms and a stone face.

“Aw” And here he was hoping to avoid more exercise and pretend he was with his brothers again. Oh well, at least he would be warmer.

Mikey unraveled a bit of his own section of the chain and silently wished he didn’t have these large boots anymore.

‘Ready?’

“All set!” Mikey confirmed with a thumbs up.

Venus led the charge and Mikey followed, choosing to stick behind her so they wouldn’t run into another poor pedestrian. Thankfully she was starting off with a simple jog he could easily keep pace with.

It felt weird to be running on the sidewalk instead of the rooftops. He would much rather be up there, flying across the buildings while testing a possible new bruise through various flips and mid-air twists. It was especially fun with his skateboard. Balancing dangerously on the ledge was a thrill Mikey enjoyed to a Raph level of concerning degree.

But that feeling was so addictive, and besides the worst that can happen is a sprain. He’s never broken any bones, even when he fell five stories! Having such a strong body made the stunts feel like a temptation, and how could he ever resist?

And while having a chain attached felt like it might be a hassle it would actually make things more challenging. But it was daytime and the police were out searching so they would be caught for sure. Of course running brought attention to them now, but they at least had a head start, and there was no way the police had a picture of them out to the public.

It would’ve been good practice with the chain though. They could learn to better control their movements around each other!

Maybe when they get to the next train it might be night, and they can use the rooftops! That would be so fun!

Mikey felt no exhaustion as he happily jogged after Venus, excited for the new temptation.

....

When they finally arrived at the station Mikey was absolutely winded. Venus seemed the same way if her heavy breathing was anything to go by. Luckily she agreed to resting on a bench while Mikey explained how a train station worked. Because of Venus’s lack of knowledge in human culture, she had thought there would only be one or two trains at most. Poor Venus showed absolute frustration when she discovered that was not the case.

“We could always ask for help,” Mikey had offered before, but Venus had decided to be stubborn this time. On the bright side, some of the signs had English, so he could help.

They did eventually find the train..only it was still about four hours away.

‘Let's find a place to hide while we wait. No doubt the Dragon Lord is in this area looking for us after that commotion we made’

Mikey looked around and quickly spotted a small glass elevator.

Train stations had those? He thought to himself before pointing toward it. “How bout we check up there?” Not like they would have much luck down here anyway, there wasn’t anywhere to truly hide aside from the bathrooms.

‘Yeah’

They made their way to the elevator and stepped in. Mikey pressed the up arrow, then the close door arrow, and they were going up in no time.

As the elevator pulled them to the second level, the view turned from the station to a crafted cluster of metal beams webbed together to create a foundation that Mikey assumed was for the second level. They soon came to a stop at the top which appeared to be a concrete platform. There were a few more benches, but nowhere that he could see for them to hide.

Mikey was about to walk out, but Venus tugged on his hoodie.

‘We should hide in that area with all the support beams. We just need to climb this elevator.’

Seemed dangerous, but better than standing in the open hoping not to be found he supposed. Venus pressed the down arrow and let them drop back to the first floor. There the two waited for a clear moment, and as soon as no eyes were on them Mikey pressed the up button and they quickly made their way out of the elevator and climbed up, then laid down flat on top.

As soon as the machine was taking them up they shifted into a ready crouch while holding the chain, and when the metal came up Mikey waited for her approval to jump.

‘Now!’

Mikey jumped alongside Venus and they landed easily on the metal flooring with a roll. Looking around, Mikey could guess this is where workers would go to fix any electrical problems. He could see the station below through long gaps in the metal. Well, it would be uncomfortable to lay on but at least no one usually looked up at a train station, and it worked for them because he could see the digital clock, so they were in luck!

Mikey took advantage of their new free time to look at all the snacks and drinks they had managed to snatch. He needed to regain all that lost energy anyway.

He first took out a random bag and opened it up. When Venus didn’t say anything, he continued with eating the snack.

It certainly was an odd flavor he wasn’t used to. Kind of waxy, with a hint of vanilla flavor, and it felt like a regular biscuit cookie, so perhaps a vanilla cookie? He wasn’t able to see due to the dim lighting. Definitely not as much sugar as what he’s used to, but Mikey didn’t consider that a bad thing. It actually gave more opportunity for the vanilla to flourish against his taste buds, and while the wax taste wasn’t his favorite, it wasn’t too noticeable.

Mikey ate a few more cookies while watching the people down below and keeping an eye on the clock, but as time slowly went on, he began to get bored.

“Hey Venus, I’m bored, can you tell a story again?”

‘Can’t you go for more than an hour without getting bored?'

“Uh, it has been more than an hour” He pointed out firstly “And yes, but your last story was cool and spent time well.” Honestly, sometimes he does sit and do nothing for hours in his hammock, but usually that was when nothing could satisfy his exhausted mind. Now, though..he couldn’t help but continually think about his family.

Every moment they were on his mind. He couldn’t possibly not be reminded of them, and it’s not like he didn’t want to think about them, it's just..he would feel this burning, tearing feeling inside his chest every time he was reminded of the fact that they were so far away.

‘I don’t feel like telling a story right now,’ Venus told him, interrupting his thoughts.

“Okay, can I at least pace?” He asked. Usually pacing helped time pass.

‘Here, lay down,’ she said as she patted the spot next to her.

Mikey did as told and laid down on his shell next to her but Venus shook her head.

‘No, on your other side’

He flipped around, wondering how exactly this was supposed to help him not be bored. He felt her hand touch his back and begin scratching. Instantly, Mikey felt his body crave the scratches as his mind began inserting different memories.

It’s been forever since someone scratched his shell.

Dad used to give them scratchies when they were very little. Maybe six? Could be four. He, Leo, and Raph used to ask him every day, and he would oblige most of the time while watching Lou Jitsu over and over.

When Dad started to do it less often, Raph took over and gave them scratchies, but eventually Donnie built a machine and Raph got mad and basically said he wouldn’t give them scratchies anymore. Donnie got upset by this and they avoided each other for a while until it eventually just passed over. Raph kept his word though. Maybe he would have if they had asked, but it was always too awkward.

April sometimes did it for them too because she watched turtle videos and wanted to see if they would do the happy dance. They did dance, but only because they wanted to play along in the hopes April would keep giving them scratchies. But eventually, she stopped too.

Mikey had no idea he missed them so much. Even if his hoodie was lessening the effect, Venus was pressing hard enough. It felt so relaxing, he could feel every muscle turning to butter while his brain slowly fizzled away.

Well, he may be miles from his family, but at least Venus was right here.

Chapter Text

The sky couldn’t have been more perfect.

There wasn’t a speck of colour to be seen in an endless sea of inky clouds. No rain fell on the small city, but the cold stung with a swipe of the wind. It didn’t bother Mikey though, for he was shielded in warm cotton.

Just ahead of his view were rooftops of various kinds. Slanted, flat, metal, concrete, some clear, and some with towers or vents. All mixed together in a beautiful palette of buildings.

‘Ready?’

Mikey turned to the crouched mystery beside him, a smile tugging at his lips from the inwardly said word. After sitting in a train for two hours, he could hardly even stay still now. Mikey hadn’t expected Venus to agree with roof hopping because of her desire to stay hidden. He felt thrilled that she did though.

“Been ready since yesterday,” He replied with absolute confidence.

Venus said nothing more to indicate her next move. She didn’t need to. By now Mikey knew what to expect from her.

There was no hesitation as she launched upwards, Mikey not a second behind. They fell to the next rooftop that laid just a few feet below. There was no need to roll as it wasn’t a far drop, and they did not pause in their trek to the next roof.

This time they had to jump up, not far enough to climb, just jump. Once at the top, they ran side by side before taking a bigger leap to the next building which was even to this one.

Mikey couldn’t help himself with the next jump, and as they propelled towards the next roof, he twisted his body into a flip, an excited whoop escaping. When they landed again, he looked to Venus for her reaction.

A gleam of contained eagerness shone in her eyes and before they lept to the next roof, she jumped to the concrete wall beside them and bounded off the surface, crossing overhead of him as they flew to the next building. All without even going beyond the boundaries of the chain.

Mikey picked up his speed, and Venus followed without a misstep. This time, the next building sunk lower, meaning there would be more time for flips.

Just as they were about to jump, Mikey let Venus get ahead. He then set himself into a cartwheel before turning around and flipping backwards onto Venus’s back as if she were a vault, which was surprisingly sturdy. Maybe she had a back shell too?

He launched off of her back and twisted into a spinning back flip. He landed perfectly on his feet, Venus falling beside him within a second.

‘I must say, your flipping skills are very impressive,’ Venus said before returning to a run.

Mikey soaked up the praise like a sponge and swelled with pride. “Thanks! I’m a pro acrobatic,” He said with a hint of an ego.

When jumping to the next building, no tricks were done, as it was too short of a gap.

‘Acrobatic?’ she questioned.

“It’s basically the art of dance flipping,” He explained as they hopped to the next building, this time he was able to perform a nice front flip.

‘Interesting, where did you learn this skill?’

“My phone!” Mikey exclaimed. “Though I learned some of it on my own”

It had started with his desire to get better at skateboarding. When he was younger, Mikey had a difficult time keeping up with his brothers. They would beat him at everything! Video games, lair games, hide and seek, even roughhousing! Technically, he could beat Donnie at that, but Donnie never participated in roughhousing because he was ‘above that’. That didn’t matter though, Mikey didn’t want to be third place, or even second! First was something alien to him, and he desperately craved its sweet touch.

Which is why he was determined to beat them in at least one thing. So, he chose skateboarding. In the beginning he had just constantly trained on the skate ramp, which was significantly smaller back then. Unfortunately, he couldn’t figure out how to do any cool tricks without falling or losing the board.

So he stole Donnie’s tablet, the only technology available at that time, and watched videos. Mikey can’t remember how exactly he came upon acrobatic videos, but he was completely enamored within a few watches.

He moved on to ballet after that and mixed them into his skateboarding. Within maybe a year Mikey was the best skater in the family. He could do aerial tricks, grind rails, even do an Ollie! Not to mention he got a lot stronger, and was able to beat Raph and Leo in roughhousing!

When they were finally allowed to go out, Mikey was able to take his skills to the rooftops. He had never felt more free.

It was as if he was born to dance across heights doing sweet 360 backward twisting Salto’s, Grade Jets, and many, many flic flacs. And with his mystic weapon things were taken to an entirely new level. He could copy cool Spiderman moves! Which were actually way more difficult to do when you don’t have webs. But with his recent expansion to mystic chains things will only get better. Oh the new tricks he’s still waiting to try, the impossible to everyone else was possible for him and him alone!

And the best part of it all?

He didn’t just beat his brothers now, he demolished them.

It made him so happy.

‘There’s the station,’ Venus said, crushing his current joy like a can.

Mikey stopped at the ledge of the building and spotted the station just a few building hops away.

Well, hopefully they’ll be able to jump buildings for the next stop.

...

They waited for the train on a rooftop for about an hour. Mikey tried to make small talk during the wait, but it was like talking to a wall. Venus’s responses were very simple and short, so he gave up and just watched the people below.

They snuck into the train using Venus’s invisibility spell like their last train ride. Only this time there was more struggle in finding seats. Venus did not like how many loud children were in one of the cars, so they moved a few cars down, but there was a terrible smell so they moved again. This time it was just a weird feeling Mikey got. One of the humans was staring at them. At first he was worried that they were a disguised dragon, but there was no earring.

Still, they moved again, just in case.

The car they ended up in was a lot less crowded and had really comfy-looking seats.

“We must be in first class,” Mikey whispered with excitement as his fist shook. He’s never been in first class before!

Venus immediately sat down and stole the window seat, which Mikey was very disappointed about. But the seats looked so nice he didn’t even care.

When he sat in the soft grey chair, the curved back shaped perfectly against his shell. So much better than the stiff straight chairs from the last train trip. He pulled his knees up to hug and looked over at Venus who was staring out the window. She had a fairly blank expression in her eyes, so he turned to look at the floor.

They hadn’t talked much last time, it had just been peaceful silence, the only noise being the rhythmic thumps of the speedy train.

The trolly came soon and so Mikey got himself a bag of shrimp chips. They were alright, not exactly his favorite but maybe that’s because his brain wanted the chips he’s used to having.

He offered some to Venus and she took one chip..then a big handful. Mikey placed the bag in between their seats to let her munch at them. She obviously wanted them more anyway.

The train started and Mikey closed his eyes while leaning back. It reminded him a lot of the subway.

It’s weird how everything kept reminding him of home. There were so many things he never thought about that now come up in his thoughts. The sound of the subway, the smell of burning grease, the diversity.

What was worse though, was the feelings that accompanied these thoughts. It was this sunken, squeezing feeling, like he wanted something really badly but couldn’t get it.

It felt like when he was sleeping in his new room for the first time. Only, at least then he had the knowledge his family was close by.

His family..where were they?

None of them would ever let him stray far from home for a few hours, and now he’s been gone for days. Why hadn’t they found him yet? Donnie could hack any security system he wanted, and Leo had that voice message..

Did something happen to them? They weren’t injured when he last saw them, so what could have happened?

Mikey closed his eyes and focused his memories of their last moment together, wondering silently if he may have missed something…

......

2 days ago

It was supposed to be an easy mission. Big Mama was shipping some merchandise and somehow got ahold of one of Donnie’s inventions that would apparently not be good in the hands of someone dangerous. Donnie refused to say what exactly it was though.

They had taken to mainly stopping Big Mama now, seeing as how she was the only one who was causing problems for them anymore. Every mutant foe was easy picking, but Big Mama had some tricks up her sleeve. Which would be anti-mystic devices that were for police use only and mystic items that trap, snap, and leave them unable to eat cheese for a week. A pizza lover’s worst nightmare.

Despite her continuous evil actions Mikey wanted to reform her still. She helped them when Dad was in trouble, so there had to be some good in there! But he hadn’t been given the opportunity to do anything with her yet. He had a plan cooking though. He just needed to show her that she could run her hotel business and Battle Nexus without the evilness!

Simple enough.

When they made it to the location, almost everything had already gone through the portal. So, when the guards finished putting everything through the portal and weren’t looking, they snuck into the portal.

On the other side, they found themselves in some a large narrowed room with walls covered in shiny red scales curving above as if they were in the belly of a beast. There were many crates hugging both sides of the wall, held in webs of rope. Yet there was plenty of space between the two walls of crates that would probably allow an entire car through.

When the portal disappeared, Leo was the first to speak.

“Why would Big Mama use a teleporter just to put things on transport?” The slider wondered aloud as he looked around.

“I believe this is a plane,” Donnie observed, his eyes covering on his mystic arm tech.

The room shifted, similar to a vehicle, or plane as suspected.

“Maybe it’s a Yokai plane?” Leo suggested.

“I am feeling kind of sick. Like, air sick,” Raph mumbled before shaking his head, “Let’s just get the dangerous stuff out of here so we can get ready for the trip”

Ah yes, the trip. They were finally going to April’s grandparents' farmhouse. April's grandparents had recently asked her to take care of it while they traveled on an anniversary cruise. She asked if they wanted to come too and they of course said yes.

Mikey couldn’t wait to see the chickens! He was going to hug them, and then chase them! And then hug them again as an apology.

Donnie flicked his goggles over his eyes and scanned the room. It didn’t take him long to find whatever they were looking for.

“I have located my invention,” He said, pointing to a very dangerously high stacked pile of boxes.

“Uuh, are you sure?” Leo asked

“Of course, now go retrieve it” Donnie lifted his goggled back up and stared Leo directly with a straightforward expression.

Leo responded by placing his hands on his hips. “Why don’t you get it? It’s your invention”

“Because you have a teleporting sword,” Donnie said simply.

“Fiiiine” Leo groaned. He grabbed his sword and tossed one up to the top of the boxes. His body vanished and appeared in a flash at the very top of the tower which wobbled dangerously from his weight.

“Careful!” Raph called out with worry.

“Ten bucks says it comes down,” Mikey whispered to Donnie who nodded in agreement.

“Twenty says he brings it down on purpose,” Donnie said.

“Aw man! He's totally gonna do that!” Mikey groaned, wishing he had said that instead.

Meanwhile, Leo had used his sword to pry open the box and held up what looked like a club. Half of its body was made of metal with small round bubbles.

“Is this it!?” Leo asked

Donnie made out to answer, however he paused when a sudden figure jumped Raph and pinned him to the floor. Standing atop his shell was someone cloaked in black, only their beige chest, green shoulder armor and white and red mask popped in colour.

Leo pointed down from his position on the tower and gasped, “It’s the mysterious Yokai working for Big Mama! What are you doing here!?”

The masked individual said nothing in response, instead jumping towards Donnie and Mikey.

Mikey jumped to the left while Donnie used his Bo to swat the attacker away. However, they dipped a hand into their belt pocket and pulled out something, then released powder into Donnie’s face.

Raph scrambled back to his feet and tried to jab the henchperson with his Sai while they were busy kicking a coughing Donnie, however before his fist connected, they jumped up and onto Raph’s arm. Before he could react, they kicked his plastron and launched him into some crates.

His large body broke right through the crates, and when he stood up there was some kind of yellow sticky substance clinging to his shell.

Mikey ducked over to Donnie and helped him up, but the Yokai came after him next with a kick. He managed to duck just enough so they missed. Mikey then swiped a nun chuck at them and managed to land right into their side. They were thrown away towards Raph who had recovered from the previous attack and created some clones for help.

Mikey ignored the fight though and instead tried to check on Donnie who was stumbling against his staff.

“Donnie! You okay?” Mikey asked

“I think my motor control is reversed,” He said as he suddenly took a step back.

“Uuh, that’s not good is it?” Mikey mumbled before Leo’s voice suddenly thundered above,

“TIMBER!!!”

The tower of boxes leaned over and collapsed, boxes raining down on them. Dang it! He owed Donnie money now.

Mikey whipped his weapon out and spun them above his and Donnie’s head. They ignited in mystical orange flames and any boxes that were unlucky enough to fall on them were incinerated or flung away.

“Leo!” Raph shouted with a growl, his mystic red body evaporating into pixes when the onslaught was finished.

“What? I knew you guys could handle it” Leo said in his usual confident tone.

“Next time give a better warning!” Raph said, obviously not wanting to admit Leo had a point. At least Mikey thought that's what was happening because Raph really had no reason to be upset in his opinion.

“They messed with Donnie’s motor thingy!” Mikey announced, hoping to divert their argument and bring this new problem to light.

However, their attention was shifted again from the sound of the enemy throwing random items from the wreckage of boxes. It didn’t take them long to find whatever they were looking for and a sword was in their hands soon enough. They slathered some kind of blue sludge on the blade from a tiny brown bottle they had retrieved from their pocket. Electricity then began swirling around the sword and they shot forward for Raph.

Raph blocked with his fist encased in his power however the electricity lept onto his body. He stood motionless and the other took advantage, kicking him in the face and sending him down before leaping over his body towards Leo.

Leo created a portal and slipped into it before the other could get him. He then emerged behind them and lifted his foot to kick, however they twisted around faster and grabbed his ankle. Leo yelped as they brought him off the ground and spun around a couple of times before flinging him right into a recovering Raph’s shell.

He landed upside down, right against the yellow goop that glued him and his swords to the others' shell. Leo tried to break from the substance but found it was stronger.

Raph seemed panicked by Leo’s presence and tried to turn around but only ended up going in circles while screaming, “What’s on my shell! What’s on my shell!?”

“It’s me! I’m stuck in this weird goo!” Leo answered as he kept struggling.

Mikey laughed at the two, however this was a bad decision as he was kicked by the enemy and sent flying right into the crates Raph had fallen in before, right into the yellow sticky substance. It covered his hands, plastron, and some of his chin which felt absolutely horrid.

“Ew ew ew!” Mikey cried out as he tried flinging the goop off with no luck. On the bright side though, his nun chucks were stuck to his palms.

The henchperson charged towards him, but before they could make it a giant purple rocket hit them right in the side and sent them flying away.

Mikey turned to where Donnie was previously and spotted him standing confidently while twirling his Bo.

“Do not fret brethren, for I have recovered”

“Great! So let’s take care of the henchperson and get Leo off my shell!” Raph shouted

Mikey could swear all he did was blink, and Donnie was on the floor, the henchperson on top of his armored shell. It was as if they appeared from thin air.

Raph charged with raised sai and a thunderous voice at the Yokai, but they jumped back before he could make any connection. He thrust his weapon at them again, but once more they eluded the attempt.

Mikey noticed they were closer to him, so he shot out a chain to swat the other. The Yokai somehow timed his attack and avoided it with a jump. Raph unfortunately, was not so prepared, and the weapon slapped him right across the face.

Mikey gasped and retracted his chains, watching as Raph fell to the floor while mumbling hurt gibberish. Leo tried to look around from his stuck position but the goop had him completely trapped.

“Sorry Raph!” Mikey called apologetically

The weight of the room suddenly shifted, causing everyone to fly into the wall. They were given no time to recover before it moved again, this time to the opposite end. Mikey couldn’t grasp anything and fell to the other end. His brothers got off much easier. Donnie had activated his battle shell’s flight mode, and Raph had used his mystic body to protect himself.

“Donnie! Fix the plane!” Raph ordered.

“I’m sure it’s just the pilot, but I will happily go take control!” Donnie smiled as he flew for the door at the front.

A large red hand clasped around Mikey’s flying body and he turned back to see Raph had enlarged his mystic powers to fit the entire space so he couldn’t go flying everywhere.

With this newfound balance, Mikey threw his chains out around a crate and tossed it across the room at the henchperson. They dodged easily, but Mikey did not rest with just that. He grabbed the remaining stable crates around him and chucked them one after the other.

When there were no more crates left he was not deterred and instead took to dragging his chains across the debris of the broken crates from Leo’s stunt. Broken wood, weapons, artifacts, and Yokai treasures all rocketed toward the henchperson.

This time, they couldn't dodge everything, and a few items caught their body, forcing them to flee. They bounded back and brought out what looked like a green bone. They dragged the bone across the floor, and oddly enough, it left a pink trail. Once they finished the line, they chucked the bone up, and from the pink line, a wall of pink shot up and curled around the bone like a curtail. It looked as if it were fabric, the way it curved and bent, except when the debris hit it was solid.

Mikey stopped his barrage and stared with wonder at the mystic marvel. “Wow..” He couldn’t help but let the word slip. He’s never had the pleasure to witness so many mystic items. Normally missions were on the surface, mainly because most of the fam was wanted in the Hidden City. Saving the world without any witnesses didn’t exactly do them any favors.

At least he could still walk around the place with ease. Though he hadn’t gotten to all of it yet. He would have if Raph hadn’t decided to be stubborn and force him to stay within a certain perimeter of the city and accompanied by April, who was the only other one of them who wouldn’t be arrested on the spot.

The room steadied for a few seconds, and Raph set Mikey down before throwing a red fist onto the henchperson’s barrier, breaking it into pieces.

The henchperson wasn’t there though, and before anyone could spot them, Raph suddenly screamed out, and his mystic body faded.

Mikey spotted them a few feet behind Raph, electric sword in an outward position, as if they had just thrusted it into something. Probably Raph’s mystic body, if Mikey had to guess.

Mikey prepared to attack, however, the weight moved again, and this time Mikey found his feet leaving the floor. Crates and the discarded items began tumbling across the room as gravity was turned. The box with the sticky substance fell right onto Raph and Leo, pinning the two right against the scale-covered wall.

Mikey flung his chain to grab at them before the plane’s gravity became non-existent, but he missed by just a few inches.

He was sent flying to the roof, and he only had a moment of rest before he had to propel himself away from flying boxes and weapons.

Mikey could swear he heard Donnie’s frustrated yelling in the distance, but the voice was drowned away by the loud roaring of the plane’s hatch opening. Wind took advantage of the new area and whipped around, causing Mikey’s body to fly out of his control around the plane.

“DONNIE!!!” Mikey barely heard Raph and Leo scream over the howling of the wind.

Mikey tried once more to latch onto Raph. His brother understood his attempt and when the chain was close enough, he snagged the end into his mouth.

However, Mikey spotted the henchperson trying to make their way to the front, where Donnie was bound to be, their golden claws digging into the wall to keep from flying away. Weirdly enough, Mikey could swear he saw some kind of red liquid fall from the punctures they were creating.

He shook the questioning thought away and focused back on the situation. As much as he would like Donnie to stop whatever he was trying to do, there was no way he was going to let his brother be attacked. He would probably fix it soon anyway.

So, Mikey hurled his chains at them, this time because of the limited movement, his chains successfully wrapped around them. He yanked them off the wall and they struggled in the grasp of his weapon.

To Mikey’s misfortune though, the plane tilted again, this time upward. Everything began cascading down and out of the hatch.

The henchperson was allowed no choice as gravity pulled them. Mikey tried to let go, but he completely forgot about the goop sticking his nunchukcs to his hands. The chain pulled him after the henchperson, and with a glance back at Raph he was able to witness the moment the chain slipped from his brother’s mouth, leaving him to fall.

Mikey tried to right himself, to let go of the henchperson and retract his chains so he could at least try to grab the plane somewhere else. But before he could enact any kind of further movement, the world turned off, and he was waking up in an unfamiliar place, chained to the very Yokai he had just fought only minutes ago…

....

The world appeared the same when Mikey opened his eyes. He turned to see Venus had her gaze locked outside the window, her elbow on the armrest and her fist squishing into her cheek.

Past her, Mikey could see the outside. A grey city was left behind with every second the train moved. He didn’t give it more than a few seconds of study before switching back to Venus, who had yet to pay him any mind.

Mikey wondered what Venus had thought when they had entered the plane. Was all she saw enemies? Did she use her invisibility during that battle? And what of his brothers? Did they crash? Did Donnie manage to level out the plan, but figure out he had fallen out too late?

The biggest question Mikey had, however, was what happened after he blacked out. Maybe he just couldn’t access the memory, but if he were to guess, the Dragon Lord had something to do with it.

But if he and Venus were falling out of the plane, and his brothers couldn’t get to him, then who caught them? The Dragon Lord?

But how would he know they were there, falling? Maybe it was someone else who caught them and took them to the Dragon Lord? That was probably it, just some weird unfortunate coincidence.

Ugh, this was all so confusing and things weren’t adding up!

“How come you were in that plane?” Mikey decided to ask, gaining her focus in a flash.

‘Plane?’ Venus asked.

“That place Big Mama had you in. You know, when we fought?” he explained, and a look of recognition crossed her eyes.

‘I’m not sure,’ she answered. ‘I was told I would be meeting some Yokai to grab payment. There was no mention of a plane.’

Odd. Mikey thought. But maybe she just forgot to tell the details.

He couldn’t think of any other reason, so Mikey decided to nibble on some snacks until they made it to the next stop.

He was only able to reach for the bag before Venus suddenly jerked up from her seat and stared with a hard glare behind him. Mikey followed her look and found the human from before who had been staring uncomfortably at them, standing right beside his seat. A gun with a weird blue glow and wires connecting from the barrel to a metal container on their waist was clenched in their raised hand just above Mikey, but their eyes were on Venus.

Apparently her stare was not enough to deter them, and the finger pressed the trigger.

There was a delay in the weapon, a delay that gave Venus just enough time to tackle the human and point the gun to the ceiling. It shot off, but what came out was not a bullet. Instead, on the ceiling was what Mikey could only guess was ice by the chill that swooped down from above and the clear look of the substance.

Venus ripped the gun and aimed somewhere past Mikey. He twisted around and was shocked to find several humans, maybe seven? Standing with a variety of weapons, all pointed towards them.

“Man, is a day of rest too much to ask?” Mikey grumbled to Venus.

‘When you’re on run the run? Absolutely’

Chapter Text

Venus dove behind the row of seats on the opposite side of Mikey and retrieved one of her swords. Mikey himself ducked down right in time to avoid the other humans shooting off their weapons, blasts of yellow and blue soaring into the seats and floor, sparks fizzling out as they made contact.

Were they Taser guns? He wondered. Taser guns weren’t blue or yellow though. Were these set to a specific frequency that made the electricity turn a different colour? Was that even a thing?

‘We’re cloaked, so take them out fast, follow my lead’

Mikey gave her a thumbs up in understanding. He observed as she pressed the gun's trigger and peaked past the seats. A shot flew past her, but it wasn’t close to her at all. Still, Mikey felt a pang of anxiety stab through him from the near-hit.

Venus stood up and the gun fired, a foggy blob shooting from the weapon and right onto one of the humans. Their upper body was encased in ice and they fell like a rock.

Venus’s next course of action was to throw the gun into the head of another human. Multiple shots were fired towards her, but she ducked under the seat so none hit. A small bead rolled over to Venus but she kicked it away.

The bead rolled all the way to the front of the room before erupting into a net that wrapped against the air.

Several more beads began rolling into their area and Mikey moved up onto the seats to avoid the inevitable nets. He could see Venus did the same.

‘Let's rush them. There are three on your side, two in the eighth row and one in the ninth. Ready?’

“What!? Are you crazy!” What was he supposed to do exactly? Just hope he didn’t get shot?! He didn’t even have a weapon!

‘Go!’

Venus gave him no time to further disagree with this plan as she darted into the middle aisle in a crouch. Mikey decided against hiding and followed right behind her. He moved up behind her until he was almost bumping into her, hoping that if they were shot at she would have some secret way to dispel them.

As soon as they were near the end of the aisle Venus ducked to the left, leaving Mikey out in the open.

Up ahead he could see the two humans Venus had mentioned. He lunged into the row of seats in front of the pair of humans before standing up. Their eyes swept the room, yet gave no recollection that he was there in front of them.

So, Mikey gripped the top of the seat in front of him with both hands and hoisted his body above the seat. He then promptly swung his legs out to the side and into one of the humans' heads. The force sent the human into the second human and knocked both of them to the floor.

After they were down Mikey let his body fall to the row of seats in front of him. The human in the next row unexpectedly swung a bat and Mikey quickly ducked down.

A small tug of the chain indicated the limit, so Mikey moved Venus’s way more as he avoided the random swings of the human. When the chain loosened, he checked back at Venus to find she was now more in the middle, leaving him room for an opportunity to attack.

So, when the human finished the swing and was left open, Mikey swiftly grabbed their shirt, turned around, and hurled the human away. They hit the seats like a rag doll and Mikey almost felt a hint of guilt creep up his shell. He hadn’t meant to put that much strength behind it.

Oh well, they probably deserved it anyway.

Turning to Venus, he found she had taken care of her batch of humans as well. They met in the middle and Mikey produced a large smile, hands reaching over his head in celebration.

“I can’t believe it, we finally fought without getting in each other’s way!” He brought his hands down and clasped them together, excitement flooding through his very bones. This was progress! They were actually getting better with the chain!

“If we keep this up maybe we can be in perfect sync when we fight! Like that one movie where Lou Jitsu had to fight with Xever to save-”

Venus shoved one of the guns on him with an uninterested look. He stopped his sentence and instead examined the gun. It looked like the gun from before, only there were three metal spikes poking out the muzzle, each curling towards the other around the small hole. Just like one of those diagrams of the circle of life that Donnie showed him about the frog's life cycle.

On the barrel was a thick yellow stripe that followed the length of the gun. In the middle of the barrel, were white letters that contrasted against the yellow. A set of small letters made out ‘Property of’ followed by a larger text ‘Bonesteel’.

“Bonesteel?” Mikey mumbled aloud. “Sounds like an American digger who decided to quit and become a guitarist”

‘It doesn’t sound like a name from around here, that’s for sure’

Well that was definitely odd. Why would someone from another continent be here? Hunting them specifically.

“You think the Dragon Lord is sending humans after us now?” he offered.

‘It’s a possibility’ Venus said as she examined another one of the guns.

“Sooo why’d you give me this?”

‘It’s your new weapon’

Mikey looked down at the gun while nervously pointing it toward the ground. He wasn’t used to handling such a weapon. Was there something that would happen if he held it a certain way? Could it go off if he moved it too hard?

Ugh, this was Donnie’s thing, not his!

“I’m not really used to this kind of weapon..One of them had a bat, can’t I just use that?” Mikey asked. He didn’t exactly know how to use a bat either, but it was way less intimidating than some weird Taser gun.

‘Yes, but use the blasting weapon if any long-range attacks are needed.’ She told him before turning away. ‘And gather the humans’

“You got it!” Mikey carefully slipped the gun into his hoodie pocket and walked back to the humans passed out in the row, then dragged one to the middle aisle. Venus had done the same, except she began dragging them further down the aisle to the end.

Mikey followed her lead and took his body to the end. There, Venus had set the human against the wall, so he did the same. He then repeated this process with the other two humans with Venus, and grabbed the bat along the way.

Once they had all the humans set against the wall, they decided to look at all the stuff the group carried on them.

There were three bags. Mikey opened up one and found a bunch of weird gadget stuff he typically would see in a spy movie. Or Donnie’s lab. There was also a phone with a passcode, an unopened bottle of water, which Mikey took, and some rope.

He held up the rope without a word to Venus who nodded. The humans were bound together within the next minute, all effectively out like a light.

‘Shall we kill them?’ Venus asked

Mikey turned to her in shock, however a look of amusement in her eyes had him relax. Ah, she was joking.

“Nah, too much of a mess,” Mikey replied with a couple waves of his hand.

‘True’ she agreed. ‘Did you check the last bag?’

Mikey shook his head. Venus walked over to the last bag and unzipped it, however she paused upon seeing something inside.

Mikey moved closer to hover over her shoulder to see what caused her moment of hesitation. Taking up almost half of the bag’s space was a glass cage. Inside the cage were black scales and dark blue feathers pressed tightly against the walls of the confined space.

Venus pulled the container out and set it down between them. The cage had a black mesh net lid and from the top view, Mikey recognized the small narrow head of a snake.

Venus unclipped the cage’s top, and the snake immediately looked up. It opened its mouth, and Mikey expected a hiss, but instead, the sound of a chiming bell echoed out.

Venus reached down and gently took hold of the snake, assisting it out of the glass prison. She pulled its body completely out and guided it to the floor. Now that it was no longer squished, Mikey could see four sets of feathers sprouting from its scales, one pair a few inches from its head, the other at its mid-length. The wings stretched out, then folded tightly and settled against the snake's body, like bird wings.

“Whoa..” Mikey awed, crouching down to better examine the beautiful four-winged creature. “Is this a Yokai pet?”

Mikey had seen plenty before. Dragons, giant birds, that Kamoto dragon, and of course Mayhem. But he’d never seen a snake with wings that could chime like a bell before.

‘Must be.’

If that was the case then Mikey didn’t want to know what these humans had planned for it. Dad had practically drilled into their heads that they should never to be caught by humans because they could be dissected, stuffed, or experimented on by the government. He even put on a few movies about supernatural creatures running from the government to make sure they got the point.

And boy did he. Mikey was terrified of going up to the surface, let alone near a human. Even after April came along, the fear lingered. If there was a tall human nearby, he would cover behind his brothers immediately. It was probably around ten when this fear dissipated, when they began venturing to April’s place more often and without Dad's supervision. They probably went out at least one night a week, and the more they did, the more Mikey felt comfortable around other humans.

To think any of them could have ended up like this little snake, stuck in a tiny container and awaiting an unknown fate. The thought trailed his shell like an icy steam of water and he involuntarily shivered.

Venus checked the bag again and pulled out a wallet. She opened it up, and inside the pouch was coloured paper. Blue, orange, red, and a few purples were among the bundle. Venus picked one from the pile, a red one. On the paper were gorgeous red and blue designs intertwining at the edge of the paper’s colour, melting against yellow and a bolded number 100. After that, it was a plain white, with numbers and some of the colour bleeding onto it with a specific circular design. In the middle was the detailed face of a Chinese man, and beside him, another 100.

“Is that money?” Mikey knew they had some before, but he hadn’t really gotten to look at it up close.

‘Yes,’ she confirmed before stuffing the bills into her jacket. ‘Now let’s get out of here’

Venus picked up the two backpacks and began heading to the front. The snake followed behind her, almost directly on her heels.

She paused, and the snake took the opportunity to lift its head against her leg, but she hastily moved away before it could get any further.

“Awe, it likes you!” Mikey said as he scooped the Yokai up and held it out to Venus. The little creature reached out towards her, but she responded by backing up while shoving the snake’s face away.

‘I told you, I don’t like animals’

“Fine, then I’ll keep it” There’s no way Dad would say no to a snake! It wasn’t big enough to eat him, and it wouldn’t leave a big mess! Plus, Yokai pets were usually more intelligent than regular animals.

‘No way, we already have to keep ourselves hidden. We don’t need a giant bell with wings attached to us.’

Mikey turned the snake to face him and asked, “Can you be quiet while we’re on the run?”

The snake bobbed its head up and down like a nod. So it was intelligent!

“See?” Mikey looked back up with a smirk. Her eyes squinted, as if telling him to stop while he was ahead, but he dismissed the look. “So, what should we name it?”

‘Do not name it, you’ll get attached,’ Venus told him as she continued toward the front of the room.

“I’m thinking Klunk,” Mikey said, ignoring Venus.

‘Did you not hear what I just said!?’ Venus glared back at him.

“You like that name?” Mikey asked the snake, who responded with a shake of its head in disagreement.

‘See? even it doesn’t want your lame names,’ Venus said as she grabbed the contents of her bag and began placing it into the larger backpack.

Mikey huffed and settled the snake down on the seat before doing the same as Venus with his own bag. “And what would you suggest?”

‘Something better than Klunk’ She answered unhelpfully.

“What about..Peperoni!”

Venus shook her head. ‘You have the strangest names. Besides, fish meat is superior’

“How about Anchovy then?” Mikey glanced down at the serpent, who responded with a nod.

“It likes the name! Anchovy it is!”

‘When we get out of here, you are getting rid of it’ Venus tossed the bag against her back before staring at the door.

‘Has that always been closed?’ She asked while pointing to said door.

Mikey couldn’t recall when it had been closed. But then again, he was daydreaming for a good portion of the ride. “Maybe someone closed it while we weren’t looking?”

Venus pressed down against the handle, but it did not open.

‘They must have locked us in here.’

“What do we do then?” Mikey wasn’t sure if it was necessarily a bad thing they were locked in here since someone working on the train was bound to unlock it. Besides, only the people that attacked them were in here, and they were tied up.

Wait. Why are they the only ones in here? Mikey had seen one of them in another car. Could it be possible there were more on the train? And if so, how many? How could they tell an enemy from a regular civillian!?

Mikey did not get to further indulge in this thought however because Venus, without even consulting with him first, raised her leg and kicked the door, forcefully busting the glass window.

Mikey gasped at her rash action. “Someone’s ganna notice that!!!” Was she trying to get them caught!?

‘Relax, I’ve got us cloaked. It’s better if we get out of here in case they have backup somewhere else’

Mikey wasn’t exactly certain that was sound logic but he would go along with it. It was too late to back out of the idea anyway.

“How long do we have?”

‘I can keep this up for five more minutes. Plenty of time for us time find another place to sit.’

“With your pickiness I highly doubt that,” Mikey mumbled as he set Anchovy in his bag and zipped it until there was a good sized gap at the top for air. He then shrugged the bag over his shoulder. While it would be nice if he could place the entire thing on his back, his shell would make the bag look out of place, which could potentially draw unwanted attention.

Venus sent another heated look his way from his previous words, but had to quickly set her attention back to the door when the sound of steps approaching entered the small hallway.

Someone dressed in a blue uniform saw the damage to the door and gasped before turning back, presumably to get help or inform someone in a higher authority. Venus dove past the oval-shaped window with ease. Mikey of course, was right behind her. It was a good thing the window for the door was so large as it allowed him to very narrowly be able to slip past easily.

Just as thought, Venus had been too picky for seating, and they had to settle with being in the middle row between a sleeping human with a choking amount of perfume in front and a crying baby behind.

Needless to say, Venus was upset the rest of the way.

...

When they exited the train Venus cloaked them again. Which had been an excellent decision because a group of humans with earrings were mingling around the station, no doubt searching for them.

They managed to slip away after finding out when the next train would arrive and were now hiding out in some small library snuggled beside several other small buildings, discussing their next course of action.

‘Our next train is at that station. I’m not sure where any other station is or if it has the right train, so we’ll need to go back.’

“But what if they get on the train with us?” Mikey asked as he fiddled with his hands nervously. The Dragon Lord was hot on their trail at this point. If they made one wrong move, they would be attacked again, and Mikey preferred to not experience another life-threatening situation so soon.

‘We will just have to find somewhere they cannot access, but will keep us hidden’

“Oh yeah, that’ll be easy” Mikey rolled his eyes, sarcasm heavy in his tone. Trains weren’t exactly the most spacious areas to hide in.

‘What about the bathroom? We can go in cloaked, and jam the door’

Okay, maybe it could be easy.

“Yeah!” Mikey agreed before Venus covered his mouth.

‘There could be bats here!’

Mikey pushed her hand away with an easy smile. “Don’t worry, humans don’t have hush bats”

Her face shifted into a baffled expression. ‘How are humans running the top?’

“I wonder that myself sometimes” The Yokai were so much more powerful than humans. They had stronger bodies and magic! How could they have possibly been driven underground?

Venus shook her head and a new, stern look crossed her features. ‘Well since we have a plan now, it’s time to get rid of that snake’

Venus reached out for his bag but Mikey gasped and stepped back while clutching the strap set over his left shoulder tighter.

“You can’t take Anchovy!”

‘You still need to be quiet! And you’re lucky I let you keep it this long. It’s time to get rid of it!’ She reached for the bag again but once more Mikey eluded her pursuit.

“What if the humans get it again? We need to at least make sure it gets to a Yokai area!” Mikey honestly wasn’t sure there even were other Yokai areas. Sure there was the Dragon Lord, but he was in a house, not some underground hidden city. What if this poor snake had nowhere to go?

“Besides, it clearly doesn’t want to leave us,” He said, mainly basing that assumption on the snake's earlier action towards Venus.

‘It’ll be fine, wild Yokai live on the surface all the time, I’m sure it knows where to find a Yokai city better than we do’

Mikey tried to distance himself more, however Venus stepped on the chain so he couldn’t get away for more than a few pathetic inches.

“If you take it, I’ll scream!” Mikey told her, knowing she would back off at the sound of the risk.

His prediction was right as the other leaned back, a hard glare burning towards him.

‘You’re so childish!’

Mikey stuck his tongue out in response.

Her hands jerked out, fingers twitching as if it was taking all her willpower to not strangle him at the moment.

‘You know the only reason you’re standing here now is because I didn’t want to drag a corpse around with me the entire time’ She sternly stated.

Mikey laughed at her statement and swooped over beside her before getting on the tip of his toes and wrapping his arm over his shoulder. He let his weight fall on her and she went down with him to a more crouched level.

“Come on Vee, lighten up a little.” He bopped her on the nose before continuing, “You know what you need? Something fun, like aaa..” His eyes scanned the nearby area of the bookstore, trying to find something that could change the subject from Anchovy. They landed on the kid's area where a small table held several bookmarks, and in the middle was a bowl with flakes of stickers inside.

“A sticker!” Stickers always made others happy! Who didn’t love stickers?

‘A sticker? What are you, twelve?’ Venus said as she finally knocked him away.

“Wrong, thirteen.” It wasn’t much of a distance, but thirteen was the first year of a teen. Which meant he wasn’t a kid anymore! “And I’m almost fourteen, just a couple more weeks!”

Which was going to be totally awesome this time because Dad was going to celebrate with them! Plus he was going to bake a special secret recipe for dessert. It was going to be great! It had a combination of things that everyone was bound to devour!

‘You’re…thirteen.’ Venus sounded oddly less emotional with the question. Mikey chalked it up to surprise for him not being whatever age she assumed he was.

“Almost fourteen” He reminded.

‘Wow. I thought you were just an immature fifteen-year-old.’

Mikey gasped, both insulted and pleased to know he came off older than he was.

“I am very mature for my age!”

‘Your constant lack of intelligence says otherwise,’ she said while pointing a finger at him.

“I am very intelligent, I know all twenty states,” Mikey stated proudly with a hand splayed to his plastron, his confidence mainly stemming from the fact she wouldn’t even understand what that meant.

‘Great. Now if only you knew how to escape from a strange land while on the run’ She brought her hand back only to place it against her side where a human hip would normally be.

“That’s survival smarts Venus, and I’ll have you know I am a Todd scout, so I am pretty intelligent in that as well”

‘You thought hiding behind a plant was a good hiding spot’ She deadpanned.

“The plant was green, I have green skin, I would have blended,” Mikey reasoned confidently while tapping his arm.

‘What- you have a giant gray shell and orange markings!’

“My shell would have blended in with the pot” He shrugged nonchalantly, feeling certain this argument was going his way.

Venus slapped a hand over her face. ‘...You know what? I’m done talking with you.’ She returned the hand to her side before turning away and staring at the bookshelf, as if any of the text actually captivated her interest.

Not talking huh? Well, Mikey knew just how to get past that.

“You’re just saying that because you know I’m right” He crossed his arms, awaiting the victim to fall into his trap.

‘No, you’re just too-’

“I thought you were done talking to me” Mikey interrupted, a smug smile stretching so far his lips parted to show a little teeth in the expression. It was always too easy.

Venus’s focus switched back to him, eyes showcasing a fury that snapped like iron jaws at his current existence.

‘I swear I will knock you out again if you keep this up’ She brought up a fist to make a show of the threatened future action, but Mikey was not deterred.

“Keep what up? Being right?”

Venus grabbed a random book off the shelf and the hardcover swiftly made its way onto his face. After she removed the book, Mikey immediately tended to his face with a whine, tears threatening to soak his mask once more.

‘Let's get moving. We only have half an hour before the train arrives’

Mikey shook his minor pain away, the previous conversation recalling from her statement. “We’re still getting a sticker right?” He asked with shining eyes, attempting to look as innocent as possible.

‘Fine,’ she agreed while putting the book back.

“Yeah baby!” For what felt like the hundredth time- or the millionth at this point- Venus put her hand over his mouth.

‘If you behave and stay quiet,’ she warned.

He nodded and she let go before heading for the kids' section, Mikey dragging Venus behind with his eager steps. When they made it to the table, Mikey gently plucked a few stickers out to judge. A few of them were chibi fruits with little hearts, but there were also a few animals, including a dragon.

He decided on the pear and a kitty, but another large sticker caught his eye. It was a Yin Yang symbol, except the two pieces were separated. He plucked them out of the bowl and held them out to Venus.

“What do you think about this?”

Venus’s eyes locked onto the sticker and she delicately took it from him. She gazed at the small piece with a focused stare, as if it held some form of significant importance to her.

“It’s a symbol for good and bad right?” Mikey seemed to remember something about that. Like how good and bad balance each other out?

However Venus shook her head. ‘It is much more than that. The two are not simply opposites like good and bad, but rather two sides of the same thing.’ Her tone was soft, yet held pride within its boundaries. As if she were telling an achievement of the past, or passing on words of wisdom learned before.

“Uuuh” Mikey had no idea what she meant. He had always known the YingYang to be just good and evil. If they weren’t opposites, then what were they?

His confusion must have been clearly displayed because Venus tried a new method.

She pointed to the white side of the symbol while explaining, ‘You are a lot like how Yang is described.’ Her pronunciation of Yang differed from what he’d heard before. There was less emphasis on the ‘a’ portion of the word.

‘You are bright and warm, round and moving, and energetic. But not big and tall, you are neither of those.’

Mikey gawked at her rude statement and crossed his arms while his face scrunched sourly. He wasn’t small! He was of average build for his age!

She continued by pointing to the black version next, ‘Yin, on the other hand, is dark and cold, sharp and still.’

“So you,” Mikey said spitefully.

‘Yes, however you are also a part of Yin and I am part of Yang’

“Huh?” Okay, so they weren’t the same but they were?

As she explained, Venus then pointed more directly to the small black circle on the white version. ‘You are everything I described with Yang, but you also show attributes to Yin. For example, you can be calm, and when you want to be, still and sharp’

Mikey couldn’t see her lips, but her visible eyes held such a mischievous look that a face did not need to accompany them for him to know she had a wide, devious grin.

‘And of course, you are small and short’

A growl escaped his throat and the tables turned as it was him shooting a fierce glare at the other. Oh she was SO going to get whatever future him had planned now! There was no more doubt about waiting for the chain to come off. As soon as he saw an opportunity to get back at her, it was happening!

‘You get it now?’ She asked, pulling the turtle out of his ravaging thoughts.

“Yeah,” He responded in a salty mumble.

She handed him the sticker back, but Mikey placed the black part of the symbol back in her palm. “These can be our matching stickers since they describe us so well!”

‘I suppose,’ Venus technically agreed before her eyes returned to the table. Mikey followed the look and noticed a sticker that was placed in front of the bowl. A koi fish with a body that was white with black dots speckling across.

“Woah, that’s so pretty!” Mikey was kind of jealous she had found it first. It was very elegant, the two colours mixing with a sharp contrast towards each other.

Venus picked up the sticker. ‘Are you done?’ she asked, choosing not to address his response.

“Yep!” Mikey got the stickers he wanted. Well actually...

“Hold on,” He picked up a few more from the bowl, just some of the fruit and animals. “These will be great souvenirs for my family!” Mikey said cheerfully as he held up the small papers to show off.

‘Well then let's pay and leave.’ Venus said as she began the path to the front.

Mikey stepped beside her and smiled at the other. “Thanks Vee!”

Despite not actually looking his way, Venus acknowledged his words with a nod and an unexpected hum.

They purchased the stickers and Mikey gently placed all of them in his bag, careful to avoid bothering Anchovy. He was indecisive about where to place them. Did he want one on his body? Only special stickers were given that luxury. But this was a huge moment in his life, which meant these stickers were special. But then, should he take away one of his other stickers?

Well, there was an entire train ride to figure it out. Might as well not dwell on it now.

Chapter Text

The train ride to the next city had been the longest they’d been on. The bathroom tactic had been a success in hiding them on the train, although it frustrated the poor workers who tried with all their might to get the door to budge.

It also frustrated him because it was not only uncomfortable, but there weren’t even any windows to look out of! Not to mention laying on the floor made sleep difficult because of the vibrations. He wasn’t sure how long he slept but it definitely wasn’t enough.

At least they got a bathroom break with this hiding spot. Although it was incredibly awkward and Mikey almost held the bodily need for the entire ride.

Anyhow they were in Beijing now. The place used in most movies when China is ever mentioned. And boy was it different. There were a lot of tourists scrambling everywhere, trying to see the next cool architect or the special offers from stores dressed in tradition for cameras. Many signs now had English accompanying the bottom. Which came in handy because Venus couldn’t read any of the Chinese text.

One big difference Mikey noticed while walking around was that there were a lot of mopeds, scooters, and bikes. They dashed by crowds of people, maneuvering with ease around the sidewalk or in bike lanes.

It reminded him of April’s bike. The day she got it, she brought it straight to the lair. They did some reckless activities with it, such as tying a skateboard to the back or adding rockets, all of which ended up in injuries that none of them cared about.

One thing Mikey always loved was riding in the basket. He could fit inside all snug when he tucked into his shell, and then April would take him wherever. Usually, it was to pick up pizza.

Getting around New York city with a bike was tough though. Unlike the windows presented with these crowds, his home had more of what he liked to call, herds. Although, after the mutant crisis, people had been more reluctant to walk the streets. And after Shredder’s recent destructive self, people have been more willing to avoid the outside altogether. Well, that and the construction of many, many buildings.

It wasn’t so crowded here. Perhaps that was just because they weren’t in a populated area, though. Not everywhere in New York was crowded after all.

There were also a lot of parks that offered fresh flowers. It brought back memories of the parks back home, except there was no lingering scent of food in the air. Instead, it was like the usual heavy smog, only even thicker. Plus, a lot of people were doing routine exercises together.

In one of the parks, they had passed by some kids playing a game where they kicked around what looked like a feathery badminton birdie earlier. Mikey had wanted to join, but Venus stopped him, claiming they could not interact with any humans still.

Which Mikey thought was totally whack because they had later eaten at a small restaurant. At least she agreed to it though. Mikey had grown tired of the snacks they grabbed, and Venus hadn’t minded finding one small restaurant to dine at since they had money to spare. Plus, sticking around the train station was a risk.

It was pretty good. They stayed in a small courtyard area in an alley of other restaurants and cafes where very few humans were. The humans that did appear were mainly locals, as most tourists probably went to more popular spots. Although the waiter did actually speak English.

He got something called a Tudou Si, which was apparently stir-fried shredded potato with some spicing. Along with this, he got lemon chicken potstickers with ginger honey sauce and jasmine green tea. Venus got Jing Jiang Rou Si, or stir-fried pork mixed in sweet bean sauce. She also got a side of shrimp and beef dumplings with some Oolong tea.

It was an amazing meal that Mikey wished they could have more often. Venus even allowed him to have a dumpling and a small bite of her meal! And of course, he let her have some of his..though she ended up stealing an extra potsticker, the greedy food thief. He might just rename her that if he lost any more food to her gluttonous paws.

Now they were just wandering. Getting in some nice exercise while on the lookout. Though Mikey wasn’t particularly worried about that. Venus said that the dragons or humans wouldn’t stray far from the station, if at all, because that was their ticket out of China. He trusted that line of thinking.

Though he wished she would be a little more open to exploring. There were so many cool shops that offered spectacles of items! And she wouldn’t let him browse any of it!

Okay, she let him go to the outside stands, but he wanted to view everything! However Venus didn’t like going anywhere that had too many humans packing the area. And most shops were in fact, flooded with shoppers. Mikey wasn’t sure if she was claustrophobic like Raph or if she just disliked being near humans that much.

It was hard to tell with her.

Then again, humans in the city tended to shove and step on each other so maybe that was why.

There were also QR codes everywhere. Most places require online transactions to even gain access. Although they could easily slip by security, it did limit where they could go more. Mikey wished he had a phone to see what they offered.

This city was different from his New York, but there were still many similarities.

Mikey internally growled at himself for thinking so much about home still. He needed to get over this already! It was going to be a long time until they got home.

A very..very..long time.

Mikey pushed away his thoughts by fiddling with his hoodie string. He just needed to stop thinking about it. Think about something else.

He thought about Jupiter Jim movies. He replayed them over and over.

And soon enough, his thoughts for home fell away.

...

They returned to the station just five minutes before the train was to arrive. A bit of a close call, but they had taken a wrong turn somewhere and kind of got lost for a bit.

They made it though!

‘You see any dragons?’

Oh right, he was supposed to be looking out.

Mikey took a quick scan of the area and found no silver earrings or clusters of suspicious humans anywhere.

However, just as he was about to give the 'okay,' he felt a firm grip on the back of his hoodie, jerking him back.

Mikey didn’t even have time to look behind him and see who had tugged his hoodie, because Venus acted so fast. She ripped whoever’s grip off him before pushing him.

‘Run!’ was her only warning before bolting. Mikey stumbled a little but managed to catch his footing before he fell and raced beside her. The chain was loosened a little, possibly something Venus had done before they began running, but it still constantly pulled with almost every step. Venus allowed a slower pace that aided him in finding better footing against her own.

They made it out of the station, but when Mikey glanced behind him he found three humans chasing after them. Was it that Bonesteel guys people!?

Venus tugged them down the sidewalk. Mikey searched for a spot where they could hide, but nowhere looked any good.

“Can’t you cloak us!?”

‘I am!’

Mikey turned his head to look behind them again. The humans were still tailing. The cloak wasn’t working.

That’s not good.

“They still see us! What’re we gonna do!?” Being able to go invisible is basically what’s been saving them so far!

‘We just need to lose them,’ Venus said before turning them down a narrow space between some large office buildings.

Unfortunately for them, the two buildings connected, cutting off any kind of exit. Mikey turned to the beginning of the alley and found five humans instead of just three.

The group proceeded toward them and Mikey backed up while preparing a stance alongside Venus who brought out her swords.

When the group had made it halfway to them, the one in the middle suddenly jumped back.

They held up what looked like a decorative egg before clenching the item in a tan fist. The egg broke apart in their tightened grip before ghostly vines of dark blue burst from their palm and shot out. Without a moment to spare, the ghost vines swiftly seized the heads of the other four and forcefully hurled them to the ground, knocking each unconscious.

Venus immediately charged forward, but this time Mikey was unprepared for the sudden movement and did not follow. However, Venus stopped before one of them could trip, and instead fell back enough to grab his wrist, then yanked him with her.

He followed her this time, and she rushed through the opening the single human had now.

As soon as they passed, the human called out to them with a slightly accented voice,

“Wait! I want to help!”

Mikey paused at the words, but Venus kept trying to move.

“Hold on!” Mikey exclaimed as he pulled against Venus. She listened and stopped, but maintained a firm grip on him, and her body remained locked in a position that was ready to take off at any sign of danger.

Mikey turned his sight back to the human. They appeared to be an average-looking teen, their attire consisting of a simple black hoodie and pants. Their head was adorned with a beanie, strands of dark hair escaping from underneath.

“Why are you trying to help us?” Mikey asked.

Before responding, the dragon released the egg shards and they clattered to the ground, the vines evaporating.

“The Lóng Huángdì can't be allowed such power”

Mikey turned to Venus as he knew she was the one the other was talking about. She didn’t appear too interested in the conversation though, obviously itching to just ditch already. But that accent..it had a certain light rolling of tongue in some areas, like a soft Russian accent. It was familiar.

“Whose Lóng Huángdì?” He decided to start with. He hadn’t heard that name before. Was there someone else after them? How many others were after them!?

The disguised individual appeared lost in thought before they seemed to catch the right words.

“Dracon Lor?”

“Oh, the Dragon Lord?” So this was a henchdragon? They did have a beanie on, probably to conceal the cloaking earring. That wasn’t good. How were they supposed to tell regular humans from dragons then!? And what was that other name? Was it Dragon Lord in Chinese?

“Yes,” the other confirmed. “Follow me, I will help you get home”

Venus apparently didn’t like that idea, because she began tugging Mikey away again. He tried to resist her, but her grip was like iron.

“Come on Venus, this could be our chance to get home faster!”

‘Please, why would there be such a big frog hopping down the street?’

“Uh, what does that even mean?”

‘It means this is likely a trap’ She pulled him again but he still did not go with her. As much as he hated trusting a random henchdragon, Mikey did not want to lose an opportunity to get home faster.

“Why would it be a trap? They knocked out the other dragons!” He argued while pointing to said henchdragons.

‘They could just want the scale for their own purpose,’ she countered.

“Are you talking about me? Who are you ethen talking to?” The henchdragon asked, but it was left unanswered as Mikey continued the argument.

“Psh, we could take them if they tried anything” They had beaten multiple henchdragons before after all.

‘They just took out four dragons with little effort. Do you really wish to risk being captured for the small chance that we get home faster?’

Well..when she put it like that, it did seem better to just carry on as they were now. Mikey desperately wanted this to be sincere though. He knew trusting others wouldn’t always end up going right. He’s had plenty of experience with that. He just.. wanted to get home so badly though. But, she was right. Better to get home slower than never at all.

He loosened up against her as a sign he was willing to run now.

Venus unwound the chain a few more times before starting the sprint. Mikey fell in beside her quickly and they raced back to the sidewalk. The henchdragon distantly called after them.

“Wait! I helped you before remember!? In the water!”

Mikey came to a sudden stop after hearing this. However, Venus kept going, causing the chain to yank him off balance and send him tumbling backward onto his shell. He was thankfully able to move his bag in time before the impact. Venus, unable to maintain her balance, dropped forward.

Mikey shot up without an issue and waved his hands around widely before pointing at the henchdragon. “You’re the one who saved us!”

“Yes,” they answered, “Now will you follow me before we are found?” The other’s tone had now become more agitated and their brows pinched across their face.

Mikey turned to Venus who still appeared unsure.

“How can we trust you?” Mikey decided to ask as he stood up, Venus following the action.

The henchdragon groaned but raised their arms. “You can look at my body, I have no weapons. I just want to make sure the Dragon Lor does not get the power.”

Mikey approached the henchdragon, Venus more hesitant. Doing as they asked, he carefully searched their body for any concealed weapons, but came up empty-handed. Venus still kept her distance.

“All clear,” Mikey told her.

“See? Now let’s leave. Dragon Lor’s Yao are everywhere” the dragon practically growled. Despite trying to be helpful, their tone was oddly hostile.

Venus did not seem too pleased with the idea if her squinted eyes were anything to go by.

‘Are we seriously going to trust a dragon?’

“Venus! Just because some dragons are bad doesn’t mean all of them are!” His arms crossed over his chest and he gave a disapproved look, “That’s generalizing”

“Excuse me,” the dragon began, “I technically called-” the dragons words were swept away by Venus’s loud voice inside his head.

‘Just because someone says they want to help does not mean they are telling the truth! Trust me, I’ve been in a situation like this before so I know what I’m talking about.’

“Yeah, so have I! Big Mama, remember?” Twice with her, really. Did Meatsweats technically count in this as well? Maybe not, but it was still a situation where his trust was met with betrayal. Well, plus Repo and Stock boy.

‘So why do you want to trust them?’

“Because if I went through life not trusting anyone just because a few people betrayed me then I might ignore someone who could really help me!”

He thought about Draxum in that moment. How the sheep man had helped them through so much when Shredder was attacking. Granted, some of the stuff they did only led to Shredders rising, but he was still super helpful! At least Karai is finally getting the peace she deserves.

There was a moment of silence between them. Venus was keeping strong eye contact, as if she were hoping he would break under her gaze and fall behind her lead. But this situation was one Mikey knew he should fight against.

‘Give me one reason we should trust them,’ she finally said.

Okay. It wasn’t exactly a yes or no. He could definitely work with this. Finding the good in people was practically his thing! Now, what did the dragon do during their time in the water…they saved him from drowning and helped them escape. Pretty simple, but if they wanted Venus’s powers then..

Mikey snapped his fingers when he found the answer.

“If they wanted your powers then they would have let us drown! Or at least not let us go!” It seemed pretty logical to him. "Heck, why save me when my death would have meant more trouble for you to escape? Why not do what the Dragon Lord had tried to do?"

“Okay you are talking about me, I’m actually male, and we need to go now,” the dragon said, but again, was ignored.

Mikey’s words seemed to get to Venus as she didn’t respond, instead glaring at the ground. Was she still not convinced? He thought it was a pretty solid evidence.

However, when she finally looked back up, she gave a nod.

“We accept your help!” Mikey exclaimed after turning to the dragon.

“Finally. And take that cloth off” the dragon, whom Mikey was now calling good henchdragon, said while pointing to his face, “It is noticeable”

Mikey felt his face and released a gasp when he felt the familiar fabric. He had completely forgotten that wearing a ninja mask would draw attention! Or that he even had it on. He did have a bad habit of forgetting to take it off.

“Why didn’t you say anything!?” Mikey asked Venus as he tugged at the tails, undoing the knot.

‘You’re the one who knows the surface best! I thought it was normal!’ Venus placed a hand over her face. ‘No wonder we were found so easily’ She didn’t even sound angry. Just..tiredly disappointed. Like Raph.

“That’s my bad,” Mikey mumbled guiltily as he lifted his sleeve and tied the mask to his forearm.

Venus remained silent, the dragon mirroring said action. The good henchdragon left the alley and trekked down the sidewalk. Mikey followed, Venus straying behind a bit more but following, nonetheless.

...

The good henchdragon led them for about half an hour before he finally stopped and pointed to a van. The exterior was a flawless plain white, with three heavily tinted windows set on each side. One for the front seats, and two for the back. It was crammed beside a few other parallel-parked cars.

“This”

Was all he said before he opened the back door where a clean plush row of gray fabric seats awaited sitting. Mikey wasted no time scrambling in. The smell of pineapple wafted in the car and it reminded him of the Turtle Tank. Donnie loved artificial scents and would always have something staining the tank's ventilation. Pineapple was one of his top favorites.

Despite the comfort of familiarity, he felt an ache of yearning at the thought of home again. It was like his stomach was a string and it was being pulled tighter and tighter, the threat of snapping only a meager tug away. And his chest felt constricted, as if it were being squeezed and pressed by scorching hands.

Push it away

Mikey busied himself by taking his backpack off and placed it on the black, spotless carpeted floor. Anchovy poked its head out for a second before slipping back down.

Venus made her way into the vehicle with stiff movements. Like she was prepared to jet at even the smallest sign of danger.

The good henchdragon made his way into the front seat and started the car. He turned to face the back before saying,

“We go through Mongolia first, then Russia. I know someone there who can help transport you back.”

Mongolia? Mikey’s never heard of that place before. Then again, he never really had to bother with knowing other continents because it wasn’t important. At least until now. But how could he ever predict something like this happening?

“Thanks for your help!”

The good henchdragon didn’t even face him, only focusing on moving the car out of the parked spot.

“Soo, what’s your name?” He decided to ask in the hopes that the tension could lessen between them. And to distract himself from the burden of emotions inside.

“My name’s Ching, spelled with a Q, not C,”

The good henchdragon- now Qing, said it in a way that sounded rehearsed. It probably was since he would have never guessed it had a Q.

“I’m Mikey, and this is Venus, although that’s technically not her real name”

Mikey saw Qing give them a questioning look before focusing back on the road.

Mikey put his seatbelt on. Venus, however, did not. Assuming she did not know about car seatbelts, Mikey reached over to put it on. He only got halfway through before she grabbed his hand.

‘What are you doing?’

“Putting your seatbelt on.” He explained. However, the other did not release him.

‘I don’t want a strap over me. You shouldn’t use it either.’

He pulled his hand away and then raised both in surrender. “Alright”

He wasn’t about to fight her on it. Mikey and his family rarely used seatbelts anyway. Heck, they sometimes stood in the tank while on a high-speed chase. It wasn’t exactly the safest, but they could take a slam to the wall every once in a while. Not like they don’t face worse on a daily basis. Besides, she was clearly on edge.

So, he clicked the seatbelt and let the strap zip back to its original place.

Mikey turned around to inspect the back of the van. There were no extra seats, instead the entire floor was covered by a dark blue shaggy carpet. The carpet crept up the side of the van due to being to long for the interior.

The floor was covered in a haphazard arrangement of blankets and pillows. The blankets were pretty basic in colour, however the pillows scattered around were a delightful mix of textures and styles- some adorned with white and brown fluffy fur, while the others displayed intricate designs woven into the fabric.

The very back windows were tinted with pink, allowing the sun to cast delicate pink rays into the space.

Add some hanging twinkle lights and maybe a Lou Jitsu poster and he might just be able to feel at home.

Mikey shifted his gaze to the front, about to ask Qing if he could go in the back. However, two large figures standing on the semi-busy street immediately caught his eye. They were directly in the van's path.

Mikey tucked into his shell before the brakes inevitably slammed and his body was launched into the front seat before bouncing back to his previous spot. As soon as the car was at a full stop, he popped out of his shell and saw Venus rubbing her head, probably having hit it from the sudden stop.

Qing mumbled a few foreign words and Mikey decided to look out at the crossing pedestrians that had forced their sudden breaking.

There was a man with frizzy, wild brown hair. Tangled in several places on the head were strips of fabric decorated in different animal patterns. His face was smeared with dirt, as if he hadn’t washed in months. And with that hair? Mikey would bet that was the case.

From the limited view Mikey had he could see the man was dressed in a dirty brown coat, black t-shirt, and a half-green half-gold bandana around his neck.

The one beside him was much taller. They almost beat the van in height. Mikey would say they were even taller than Raph by a little. A robe of silver and grey hung loosely against their body and their head was hidden under a cone-shaped hat that looked to be made of metal.

A large white paw slammed onto the van's hood from the robed figure, massive gleaming dark grey claws barely peaking out.

The figure looked up and Mikey was met with a face full of white and black-striped fur and whiskers of a tiger. Two dangerous sharp arctic blue eyes darted between him and Qing and Venus, as if trying to choose which one of them to target first.

Mikey shifted his sight to Venus. Just so he could avoid the terrifying intense look of the figure. However, looking at her did not lessen the creeping anxiety. Her face was hardened, not calculating as it normally was. More like someone who was ready to fight or die trying.

Mikey quickly turned back and felt his breath stop as his throat suddenly tightened from the sight he was greeted with. A stiff, yet jelly-like sensation grasped his entire body and his heart pounded so harshly against his already tense chest that it was a miracle it didn’t shatter into a million pieces right then.

The eyes were now locked on him.

Chapter Text

Mikey stared back at the tiger, begging the eyes to move again. Despite his internal pleas, the stare stayed on him, not even a blink was made to take away the gaze for a split second.

Qing shifted the gears and slammed his foot on the peddle, driving the vehicle in reverse. Mikey lurched forward, but thankfully his hoodie was grasped by who he could assume was Venus. When the car came to an abrupt stop, he almost fell back, but again Venus held onto him with a firm grip. Before the vehicle moved again, Mikey quickly snatched Venus’s arm in preparation for the next jerky movement.

The dragon Yokai shifted gears again as expected and the car jumped forward before taking a sharp turn into the opposite lane, where the car began picking up speed.

Mikey snapped his head to look out the back, still keeping to Venus’s arm. His eyes fixed on the figures of the strangers, which appeared to be growing smaller. He sighed in relief upon seeing this. Thank goodness that didn’t escalate any further. He did not want to fight a massive tiger.

To their misfortune and Mikey’s horror, however, two large bird-like wings that looked as if they were made of tin foil sprouted from the tiger's back. The wings did not go through the robe, but instead appeared to hover just above their back.

The man from before jumped on the tiger before the wings whipped down and brought them off the ground. With another flap of their wings, the tiger's figure began gaining on them.

“Uh- tiger can fly! Tiger can fly!” Mikey cried out while shooting out his arm to point at the back window.

Venus unnecessarily shoved him off her and to the side then jumped over the seat before making her way to the very back of the van.

‘Hang on to something in case I fall’ She warned as she grasped the handle of the trunk.

“Wait!” Mikey cried before tumbling over the seat. After getting over, he rushed to snatch up the pile of pillows and blankets and tossed them into the seats. No way was he letting such precious soft cargo go flying away!

Mikey then latched himself to the seat's headrest and gave Venus a thumbs up. The other opened the hatch and lifted the trunk, revealing that the Tiger was only a few meters away, their eyes already locked on his form. He immediately placed his sight on Venus instead.

Venus held out her hand in a gesture that had Mikey wondering if she was trying to give the tiger a high five. A small white wisp of light pathetically trickled down. She tried again, but the result was the same.

Despite his best efforts, Mikey looked back at the tiger, but this time focused the man. In his hands now was a large crossbow. He aimed and fired a bolt right at the wheel of the van. Before it made contact however, Venus shot out her arm. When she brought it back up, the arrow was jutting out of the limb.

“Venus!” Mikey cried out.

‘I’m fine, get your blasting weapon!’ Venus ordered as she pulled the arrow out and retrieved her own gun.

Mikey dug his hands into his hoodie pocket and brought out the gun. When he looked up, the Yokai tiger's unwavering stare was still on him. Fear bore its way into his stomach along with an intense wave of pressuring weight that begged for him to hide, to sink into the safety of his shell.

And yet his body refused to actually move into the action as it normally would. Instead, he started to shake, and feel this dread. Like if he moved even an inch, then he was as good as dead.

‘Be ready!’

No control came back to him after Venus’s warning. He couldn’t even look at Venus, or tell her that he couldn’t move. His throat was locked up, the feeling of his lunch expelling threatening to climb out.

Then, unexpectedly, the tiger Yokai’s eyes finally left him. They now moved around everywhere, as if they couldn’t find him anymore..did Venus make them invisible?

Mikey felt his entire self sag in relief. His shaking calmed next, and he could move.

‘Come on!’ Venus called to him, and this time he answered by rushing to her side.

Mikey held up the gun and began fixing it to aim at the new foes. Holding it was weird, and putting his finger to the trigger was difficult due to it being a little bigger than a regular humans.

Venus took to the first shot, aimed at the tiger, who was getting too close for comfort. A streak of blue dashed from the gun's muzzle, but it missed.

Mikey pulled the trigger of his weapon next, and unfortunately missed as well. He wasn’t exactly experienced with such a weapon after all.

“You stole my guns!? Ooh you dirty little things! You’re getting punished for sure!” The man’s head twitched ever so slightly as he aggressively growled the words before aiming his newly loaded weapon. He shot near Venus but the bolt stuck into the plush carpet instead.

‘Shoot the human!’ Venus positioned herself at the edge of the van and began said action immediately, sending several shots towards the man. This time the tiger moved, maneuvering to avoid the blurs of blue, some of which hit the tiger, yet they had no reaction. Mikey moved a little closer as well, but he stayed back enough to not risk accidentally falling out.

Mikey shot with Venus, hoping that with their combination, they would at least knock the man off.

None hit, and the tiger was almost to the van. The man fired another bolt at the wheels again, and Venus caught it using her arm just like last time.

Except when she drew her arm back this time, Venus grasped her head and produced a gurgled groan.

“What's wrong!?” Did the bolt hit a nerve or something?

After hearing his question, Venus turned towards him. However, instead of providing an answer, she yelled loudly in his head, her tone fearful and aggressive, ‘Get down!’

Mikey heeded her warning and dropped himself into the carpet. Even though he was able to avoid the unforeseen attack, Mikey felt a stab to his heart when he saw a giant paw with knife-like claws swipe right where he had previously been.

Mikey instantly drew into his shell. Unfortunately he was facing directly towards the evil Yokai, and so he could only watch in horror as the tiger reached out again to attack him.

Before the claws reached the target, the man suddenly shouted, “Bad! No! Not yet!” while smacking the tiger in the neck with a clenched fist. The dangerous claws retracted along with the paw which returned to the Yokai’s side.

They did not even react to the mans harsh treatment.

The man aimed another loaded bolt at him. Before he was able to fire the weapon, however, he had to avoid his own gun being thrown at his head. The thrown weapon ended up hitting the Yokai’s wing instead. The appendage crumpled like paper against the weapon and the Yokai was only able to use their other wing to keep them from crashing on the road. They managed to get to the side of the road and slow down. The man dove off the tiger into a roll before said Yokai tumbled to the asphalt.

Venus hurriedly closed the trunk. As soon as it was shut, Mikey moved out of his shell and felt his tight posture relaxing.

“That was a close one” He mumbled.

A loud thud followed and Mikey brought his attention back to Venus who was now laying on her back against the floor. She reached out and snagged the bolt in her arm and grimaced in pain as she forcefully pulled the bolt out. The tip of the arrow was coated in a mysterious, green-glowing substance along with red.

‘It must have been..’ Venus did not finish the sentence. Her eyes flickered a few times before they stopped and she became completely slumped.

“Venus!” Mikey dashed to her side and immediately tried to pry her eyes back open, but it was a fruitless task as she was completely out.

“You both okay!?” Qing shouted from the front.

“Venus got hit by a bolt and now she won’t wake up!” Mikey cried.

“Is she the one with the scale?” He asked

“Yeah?” Mikey answered

“She should be fine then”

Mikey looked back at Venus as a tight frown grew. What if it was something mystic that cancelled out her scale though? What if she didn’t wake up for a long time, like for days! And would have happened if that man hadn’t stopped the Yokai? Would they have shredded his shell? Could they even do that? His shell was very strong, so most likely not. But it would have hurt still.

And why had he frozen up? Mikey’s fought way bigger and scarier opponents than some tiger with a staring problem. So why had he been so scared?

That fight could have gone very ugly had the tiger been able to get into the van. Would he have even tried to fight back? Or would he have just stayed motionless?

And..what would have happened if he did? His brothers weren’t there to grab him and take him to safety. They weren’t there to back him up. But Mikey couldn’t be that dependent on his brothers, could he? No. No, he’s fought without them before! But what else could it be?

His mystic powers? Wait yeah that’s it! His mystic powers! Taking out those two would have been a piece of cake with his powers! He wouldn’t be scared if he had the knowledge that his powers, specifically his Ninpō, was there to back him up.

Heck, if Mikey had his mystic powers he could have defeated the Dragon Lord by now! What did that glorified lizard have against his epic chains? Ugh, he was so useless in this state!

Mikey cast a vicious glare at the chain, silently demanding it to relinquish its hold on his powers. Instead, the chain lay limp on the floor, devoid of any movement.

He sighed from the futile attempt before standing and making his way to the back seats. There, he leaned over the seats just enough to grab a fluffy pillow and blanket. He returned to Venus and gently placed the pillow under her head, then draped the blanket over her.

He pressed his shell to the wall of the van and slumped down before wrapping his arms around his knees and drawing them to his chest. Cool tears slowly ran down his face, but Mikey made no effort to halt their descent.

That tight feeling was returning with vigor against his stomach and invisible water filled his lungs as a small sob attempted to burst from his throat. He held it back in fear Qing would hear and question him. He didn’t want any attention on him right now.

Mikey could handle these feelings anyway. He always does. He’s great at it! No one’s ever had to help him with his emotions, and Mikey was very proud of that fact. It meant he was independent; it meant he could handle something, and that he was mature. He can deal with the stress of being away from home and he can deal with this too!

All he had to do was take a moment to let himself cry, and he would be okay. Hopefully, they will be able to avoid more foes in the future. At least until this dumb chain is removed.

Then he could be strong, and get home, and everything would be fine again.

...

Venus woke up only a few minutes later. Mikey had expected she would be out for a few hours, but either that sleep substance was very weak stuff or Venus’s scale was just that good.

Probably the ladder, seeing as how the Dragon Lord was so desperate for it.

Mikey was feeling better for the most part and had wiped away his tears before she was able to catch his cry fest thankfully. The feelings refused to leave completely again though. He needed a distraction again. He looked to Venus.

Said Yokai rubbed her palm over her forehead. ‘Wow, that stuff kicked in fast’

“Are you okay?” Mikey questioned as he crawled over beside her.

‘Yeah. Just a little out of it still,’ she told him. ‘What about you?’

“I’m okay” Mikey said while offering his hand. She took the offer and he helped her sit up.

“So how did you manage to get those two to team up against you?” Qing asked distantly.

“No idea” Mikey shrugged. “You know them?” Mikey asked before crawling over to the back seats and crossing his arms over the middle while sitting up on his knees.

“Yes, that was Bái Hú or Héng Hú, is what most call her. She used to be one of the most well known..” He paused, as if trying to catch a certain word. “Someone who catches criminals but is not part of authorithy. You know what I mean, right?”

“Vigilante?” Mikey guessed. Although bounty hunter also fit that description.

“Maybe,” He mumbled before continuing, “She was known in many places in China, but especially the Gùgōng. It makes no sense why she would be working with that human though”

“What do you mean?” Mikey had no idea what Gùgōng meant but he assumed it was some kind of Yokai place.

“Bonesteel is a well known human that captures and sells Yāo. Bái hú would never work with someone like that.”

“Bonesteel?” Mikey began rubbing his chin. “Hmm, why does that name sound familiar?”

‘The gun,’ Venus said as she moved up beside him. Mikey turned back to find her point at his previously discarded weapon, specifically to the print that provided said name.

Mikey snapped his fingers, “Oh yeah! The humans we fought in the train!”

“You met his people?”

Mikey nodded “Yep! We thought the Dragon Lord sent them after us.”

“We would never work with a human who hunts Yāo either,” Qing retorted.

“What’s a Yāo?” He assumed they were just the name for the Dragon Lord's henchdragons but now he wasn’t so sure.

“Ah, Yāo, or some prefer Yao-gwigh, are what we are,” Qing explained.

Ah, so he meant Yokai. “Actually I’m a Mutant” Mikey corrected with a hand to his chest.

“That is?” The dragon asked

“I’m made from a substance called Ooz, homemade from my dad!”

“So you are not at all a Yāo?”

“No, we have some Yāo stuff” Draxum already explained they were made from Empyrean, the apparent origin of Yokai. There was more to his explanation but that is the the most Mikey could retain on the spot.

To think Shredder was going to use the very substance that helped create them to kill their father..it was unnerving.

“Mmm” Qing hummed.

‘Ask what powers or weapons those two have,’ Venus said before she hopped the seat to sit down.

“Why don’t you ask him?” Mikey questioned.

‘I don’t want him to know I have telepathy.’

Oh right, Venus was very paranoid and secretive. Well, maybe it would be a helpful advantage if he turned out to be bad. Plus they could pull some hilarious pranks.

“Fine” He agreed. “So, know what powers or weapons they got?”

“Well, I don’t know about Bái hú, but I heard the human steals Yāo items and uses them on his weapons.”

Mikey glanced back at the bolt with the green-tipped arrow. That must be some kind of Yokai potion then.

“Oh- hold on, I need to cloak us”

Qing told them before taking his beanie off and revealing an ear with the same kind of cloaking earring that they had found on the dragons from the docks. He proceeded to take the earring off with one hand. As soon as it was off, green twirled around his body, encasing him completely for only a second before bursting away.

Dark azure blue scales replaced skin. His nose was now long and narrow, like the Dragon Lords, but instead of having gelled facial hair, he had white catfish looking whiskers. His ears had shifted from small to large and looked more similar to Splinters. Fluffy white puffs of hair like clouds now freely stuck out over his head and elbows. Two dark green antlers, perhaps something like pine or moss, popped from the head of white.

At the very top of both antlers, were three small puncture holes. Weaving through each hole was a black string with small smooth wood beads between each hole. Below the left antler was what looked like a dark wood bracelet with a small pale green rock in the shape of a bird carved in the middle.

His clothes did not change, but there was now a small bag slung over his chest.

With swift movement, Qing let go of the wheel and opened the earring with sharp talon-like nails, then plucked the gem out. Next he dug in the bag and brought out a different green gem, which replaced the previous gem’s spot. After this, he clipped the earring onto a small piece of fabric that was midnight blue with a million stars dancing together within the limited space. He tied the piece to the rear-view mirror’s neck and tapped the earring.

Mikey watched in awe as green devoured the windows. He quickly scooted over to his window and looked outside to see what happened. The van was different looking now. Instead of white, it was black with a white scratch streak near the rear.

“Ooh, that’s so cool!” Mikey exclaimed before making his way to Venus’s side and climbed over said individual to see outside her window. There was nothing new, however, and Venus shoved him back to his spot.

“We will be driving to a store in about two hours. You pick up what you need there, then we drive for a long time. Once we get to Mongolia it will take two day’s drive, but I know a place where we can go that will take us to Russia fast. The rest should just be a day trip from there”

So basically, it will be three or four days until they can get home..well, it wasn’t super fast but guess it’s better than just taking trains and hoping.

“Got it!”

Mikey awaited for any more information from Qing, but instead the dragon stayed quiet. Assuming that he was done discussing things, Mikey looked out the window to entertain himself. Outside wasn’t too interesting though. It was just a highway, like any other. Still, it was the only entertainment he had, so Mikey just watched. He needed to keep his mind busy anyway.

...

“How much farther?” Mikey asked, bored with seeing an endless road.

“Still a hour away”

Mikey sighed and turned to his seat companion. “Hey Venus, wanna play a game?”

She did not look away from the window as she answered, ‘How can we play a game? We’re in such a small space’

“Twenty questions!”

This time she turned to him, her eyes narrowed. ‘What? Why are you questioning me?’

Mikey put his hands out and shook them along with his head, “No no, that’s the name of the game! Okay, so think about a person, place, or thing right now!”

‘Okay…’ she took a brief pause, looking away from him before refocusing her gaze. ‘Now what’

“Now, I’m going to ask you twenty questions and you need to answer all of them with a yes or no. Ready?”

‘Sure.’

And so, they played the game. The first round was challenging because Venus had thought of something from the Hidden City that Mikey would have never been able to guess. So, they made a new rule. Mikey would think about Hidden City stuff, while Venus would think of surface stuff. That way it was more fair.

They spent the rest of the ride playing the game.

....

When they arrived at the small store, most of the time was spent quickly wandering around. They were forced to move fast because Qing needed to use his cloak to go inside, as he wanted to get some supplies as well. Venus spent most of her time grabbing a bunch of random items, such as scissors or hair ties.

Mikey on the other hand, picked up some drinks. Although for some reason the waters were in crates on the floor rather than in the fridge with the other drinks, or even on a shelf. At first he thought they were just in storage but after seeing a few humans pluck out some bottles he concluded that they were in fact, available to pick up. Mikey grabbed a few interesting ones. By the looks of their shape and design, he would guess they were tea or soda.

He also got Anchovy some chicken in a bag, and some snacks from brands he recognized, like Oreo’s. Some foods looked like food he’d seen at home, but with a different name and a slightly different look. Still, he picked a few out to test if they tasted the same.

Qing got them some sunglasses, saying it would help with covering the skin on their faces.

What made this stop amazing, however, was a tool of revenge he found in the toy aisle. Water balloons. When Venus wasn’t looking, he snatched the weapon and kept it hidden among the other items.

For some reason Qing was also buying jugs of water, some bottles with unknown liquids, sponges, and a single small bucket.

Mikey assumed he was going to use it to clean something, but what was the question. The car was perfectly clean! A little too clean if you asked him. Well, except with the broach on, but why clean a cloaked vehicle?

It made no sense, but the questioning products slipped from his mind when he was being handed bags with his stuff.

...

They were back on the road again soon enough. But this time, twenty questions got boring quick. And no other game sounded fun.

So, they silently went back to window watching. Only, after a while this became frustratingly tiring as well, especially with his previous downer thoughts trying to come back. If only he had some music or his phone!

“Qiiing is there anything to do? I’m dying of boredom here!”

“Here” Qing reached over to the passenger seat and pulled up a sleek light blue tablet. He then, while hardly paying attention to the road and using his knees to steer, unlocked the device and went through it until the screen changed to have multiple boxes in a row. He handed it back and Mikey took it.

A Yokai who actually used tech? Thank goodness they agreed to go with this guy!

“My movies” Qing informed.

Mikey took a look at the screen and saw that the boxes had movie titles with the cover image. He scrolled through the movies, although most of the titles were in a different language. Surprisingly enough, he actually recognized a few of the movies.

“Uh, these have subtitles right?”

“Yeah,” he answered.

“Sweet!” Mikey was already kind of used to reading subtitles because April would bring over some movies in another language.

He handed the tablet over to Venus. “You pick first!” This was probably her first time seeing a movie after all!

Venus hesitantly pressed her finger to the screen and moved it up and down.

“Yeah that’s it, and then when you see a movie you like, just poke it!” Mikey instructed.

Venus scrolled past several movies before landing on Kung Fu Panda. Knowing that this movie definitely came in English, Mikey managed to change the language.

Since there was no place to put the tablet, and neither wanted to hold it the entire time, Mikey tied his scarf onto the passenger seat's headrest. He set the fabric like a hammock, then carefully placed the tablet on it while leaning the back against the seat.

After finishing the setup, Mikey squished up beside Venus, who kindly did not push him away. As soon as he pressed play, the movie began.

...

Throughout the entire movie, Venus was silent. Mikey tried to keep quiet as well, since he’d already watched this movie, but he couldn’t help getting excited about some parts.

Despite her lack of commentary, when Mikey gave a little glance to the other, he could see from her face that she was invested. And during the funny moments, she would hold her hand up to press against her scarf where her mouth would be.

Mikey wasn’t sure why she was trying to hide her emotions. His best guess was that it had to do with Qing.

By the end of the movie, Mikey asked if she liked it.

‘For a human creation, it was certainly decent’

Which Mikey bet meant she loved it but didn’t want to admit it. He didn’t press though, instead excited to pick a movie that he had not seen before.

The next movie Mikey picked out was kind of boring, unfortunately. Venus didn’t like it because there were human characters. Dr. Feelings really needed to talk to her about her racism. Or would it be considered speciesism? Oh well, bottom line was, she needed to stop discriminating against humans. Especially if she was going to be part of the group!

He was too tired to do that at the moment though. Right now, he just wanted to sink into this distraction and forget about where he was and who he was not with.

Mikey spent most of the movie openly pointing out flaws and making fun of the character's dumb decisions. About halfway through, Venus began joining him, and even slapped her face when the main character did something so stupid one would wonder how it ever made it to the script. The finale was spectacular though and had him weeping. Venus was not so affected by the events, or at least that’s how it looked. Hard to tell her every emotion with just her eyes showing.

It was the best travel time he’d experienced during this journey, and for once, Mikey would even say he wished for it to last a little longer than it did.

...

Qing drove for the entire night. Mikey had been concerned about him driving while sleep deprived, but Qing told him he could stand the loss of one night's sleep.

Mikey didn’t find that too hard to believe. Yokai were usually more active during the night, and since they were mostly animal-like, some took on animalistic traits, such as not needing as much sleep. Mikey knew he didn’t need as much sleep as a human, although it wasn’t by much.

He had set up some pillows against the corner of his seat and wrapped himself in a blanket. Unfortunately, Mikey could hardly get himself to sleep. He worried that the hunters would somehow find them. He kept looking out the window for any sign of tin foil wings or mad brown hair.

It was nothing but grey paths dotted with coloured cars and the occasional tunnel, though. That’s how it was for the entire night.

.

Chapter Text

The morning passed by with another small movie and some leavened baozi, or steamed buns with some kind of meat, spices, and vegetables, which they grabbed from a convenience store. By the afternoon Mikey was resting against his window, trying to catch some of that sleep he left behind during the night, when the van came to a slow stop.

Mikey opened his eyes and found they were in the driveway of a huge white building with a single large door. The primary colour of the door was orange, but there were swirling patterns of golds, blues, and pinks intertwining to make a somewhat diamond shape. The building was in the shape of a circle with a pointed top, and the outside looked to be made of fabric rather than plastic or wood.

Other than the one structure, the area was desolate. Only fields of green grass stretched on for miles, with the occasional dotting of a sheep herd or horses. Mikey wanted to go out and pet one.

“Uh, where are we?”

“One of my Ger’s. You are going to wash yourselves.” Qing said before exiting the car and walking towards the back.

“Why?” Mikey asked after opening his own door. He also grabbed the bag with Anchovy.

“Because you smell awful, it’s burning my nose. You would probably attract an Olgoi-khorkhoi with that stench” He sounded mildly joking, but mostly serious.

“A what?”

Qing opened the trunk. “A giant death worm”

‘We should ditch him and just take the van’

“Come on Vee, we do need to wash up. Besides, neither of us can drive” Mikey mumbled before slipping out of the van. Venus followed after and they walked to the trunk where Qing was taking out his supplies of water jugs and buckets.

“This house has one tub, so you will have to take turns. After, we leave”

Mikey groaned upon hearing this. “Can’t we stay for a little bit? My legs are beggin for some circulation!”

Qing appeared to contemplate the idea for a moment before answering, “Fine, you can run around for a while, but this will take time out of any stops we would have made, so don’t drink a lot”

“Ah man” And here he had gotten a bunch of cool new drinks to try. He wasn’t too hung up on it though because he could finally run around again! And go pet some animals!

Qing handed two jugs to him, then the other two to Venus, and carried two buckets filled with the sponges and what was most likely soap or shampoo.

He led them into the building and Mikey was in awe from the sight.

It wasn’t that large of a space, but it was still decently sized. The floor was made of wooden boards, but not the usual kind he would see. These were actual wooden boards, with unfilled lines between each board. A few carpets were placed in different spots on the floor, each with its own unique design.

Set up against the back wall made of what appeared to be multiple tapestry’s with different designs, were two heavily decorated drawers, their appearance similar to the doors. In front of the drawers was a small orange table with tiny square stools surrounding it.

On the left and right side of the room was a single twin-sized bed that again matched the decor. There was also a couch beside the bed on the left, and a chair next to the bed on the right. The chair did not match the usual designs though.

At the center of the room were two pillars, and one metal pipe from a small metal bin that shot up to the top of the home where the ceiling opened up in a skylight in the shape of a circle. Wood curved around the gap perfectly. Within the gap, eight more smaller beams surrounded a smaller ring in the middle, with only four going through the gap and connecting to their opposite making a plus sign.

Poking out from the curved wood were rafters similar-looking to the beams in the center. They dipped downwards until sneaking behind the tapestries.

However, through the entire gawking, Mikey did not see a bath anywhere.

“So, where are we supposed to wash?”

Qing went over to the metal bin and pulled a tin tub out from behind it. He set it down, avoiding any carpeted area, then gestured toward it.

“This,” he finally answered.

Mikey turned to Venus, who mirrored his action. Judging by the look in her eyes, it was clear that she was also displeased with the way they would be bathing.

‘He can’t be serious’

“Don’t worry, I can heat up the water,” Qing assured them before grabbing the jugs from Mikey.

“I think he is,” Mikey whispered back.

‘There’s no way’

“Uh, Qing?” Mikey took a couple more steps inside. Qing was busy pouring water into the bin and only acknowledged him with a glance.

“We don’t feel comfortable washing this way” Mikey used to feel fine with washing in a bin, but that was when he was little and Donnie and Raph hadn’t built the shower. Ever since they got a working shower he hasn’t even looked at the bathing bin. Showers were just superior. To be honest though, the real problem was the lack of privacy.

“I know it is not what you are used to, but this is the best I can get for now, and I cannot stand your smell any longer.”

“Do you have any privacy sheets?” Mikey questioned.

“No. Is that what the problem is?” Qing asked as he took off the top of the metal bin and pulled out a few purple rocks.

Mikey looked at Venus with the silent question if privacy was the issue for her as well.

‘Yes’

“Yes,” Mikey repeated.

“Me and one of you can stay outside the Ger while the other washes. Does that sound okay?”

Mikey looked at Venus again and she nodded.

“The council approves!” Mikey proclaimed with raised arms.

“What?”

“Nothing, I call first bath!” He declared while sliding over to the bin.

‘Fine.’ Venus agreed before heading back out the door.

When Qing got the tub filled halfway, he threw in a couple of the purple rocks. “Done,” he announced while placing a bucket of soapy water and a sponge next to the tub. He then left as well, closing the door until the chain stopped it.

Mikey took off his clothes, set the Anchovy bag next to the door, and hopped on into lukewarm water. He was able to scrub most of his body, only part of his shell he was unable to reach. Usually there was be a long curved brush to solve that problem. As he began washing his plastron and trying to avoid his precious stickers, Mikey was reminded that he hadn’t decided on what to do with those stickers from the library.

Should they go on his shell? But he really liked the natural look of his shell. Adding stickers would make it look weird. Maybe he could get rid of one of the stickers on his plastron? But which one? He really liked the pink one. And April had given him the thunderbolt one.

Eh, he’ll figure it out later.

After finishing his bath, Mikey was unable to find a towel, so he just planned to air dry while Venus took her bath. Qing took the tub and dumped it, then used the other two water jugs to fill it back up for Venus.

He left the house, making sure to grab the Anchovy bag along with his clothes, before heading out. When he stepped outside, he released Anchovy and stuffed his clothes into the bag.

“Why do you have a Mingshe?” Qing questioned while closing the door of the Ger. "A what?" Mikey asked, not recognizing the foreign name.

Qing pointed to Anchovy, who was staring at said dragon.

“Oh, that Bonesteel guy's people had it in a cage, so we let it free, but it wanted to stay with us,” Mikey answered while patting the little snake Yokai on the head.

Qing hummed and sat down.

“Sooo,” Mikey began as he sat down beside Qing. “Why’d you decide to help us?”

No further conversation was picked up after this. Mikey tried to create small talk with something like “What’s the Yokai city like?” Or “What made you change your mind?” but Qing boringly answered with short answers such as “It’s a big city” and “I already told you, the Dragon Lor cannot have the scales power.”

In other words, he was even worse at social communication than Venus.

Which is why most of the time was spent with awkward silence while Mikey absentmindedly plucked at blades of grass.

It only took a few more minutes for Venus to wash thankfully and when she came out she was fully clothed again, scarf and all.

"Go run. But don’t go too far.” Qing warned them.

“Yes!” Mikey cheered with a hop and untied his mask to put on. He couldn’t run around naked after all. “Come on!” He dashed away, dragging Venus behind. He did not let her have a second to try and stop him.

Racing across the field of green, Mikey relished the sensation of the soft ground beneath his bare feet. Like it had just rained and the soil was still moist. And there was so much space! Flat ground stretched on for miles with the occasional lump of a hill and a small river that carved its way through miles of land. Mikey bet he could run for hours and not be stopped by a tall building or car.

Mikey didn’t want to just run the entire time though. His focus was immediately directed to a herd of sheep in the distance that were halfway up a large hill. He raced towards the herd, however when they got close, the cluster of fluffy animals ran. He pouted while watching them flee.

‘I’m not an expert on surface animals but even I know better than to run at one’

“I haven’t even been around animals like these before,” Mikey whined. The closest he’s gotten to any kind of animal that wasn’t intelligent was the zoo. Well, okay, there was also that time with Todd in the woods but he hadn’t actually been able to interact with any of the animals. The only knowledge he had about animals was from movies.

‘Really? Are these not common?’ she asked while pointing at said herd.

Mikey shook his head. “Nope, they’re farm animals, they aren’t in the city” Well, except in a petting zoo. But he didn’t think that really counted.

‘I see. Well with most animals you need to approach slowly. Do you know if they might also require a dance?’ The sentence sounded like it should have been a joke, but her genuine tone made it clear she was serious.

“Uhh, no?” What kind of animal required a dance to approach it? Because that sounds awesome!

‘Right, I keep forgetting the surface is weird’

Actually he would say it was more boring. But that was probably because he grew up with it all.

‘Well then, let’s walk over to them, slowly’

Mikey nodded with a determined smile and they approached the herd with slow, careful steps. The sheep moved a little, but did not go running off. Every bit of movement was done with absolute care and if there was any sign the sheep felt threatened, he would stop completely, Venus following suit quickly.

As soon as he was close enough, Mikey touched the honey coat of a sheep. It felt more dry than he expected, but the wool was still pleasantly soft. The sheep turned to him for a moment, but went back to grazing when determining he was not a threat.

With a carefully controlled lowered voice, he whispered to Venus, “Feel this!” Of course, he didn’t allow Venus a response anyway and snatched her hand, bringing her to the coat.

‘Wow, it’s very soft’

Mikey always wondered what a sheep’s wool felt like. It wasn’t exactly something he had dreamed of or wanted, nor was it a once in a lifetime opportunity, but it felt nice being able to do it. Who knows if he would have ever actually pet a sheep otherwise.

They continued petting the sheep until the herd moved on, climbing further up the hill. They decided not to follow, and instead sat down to look at the scenery. It was like being in an entirely different world. Even more so than any of the cities they travelled through in China.

Instead of cars and people’s constant chatter, there was a harmonious tune of bugs singing for one another. Where concrete would lie, there was only glossy luscious green grass. The air was easier to take in, and the sky was a dull blue rather than completely hidden in a haze. The sun's heat helped to warm his scales against the chilly wind.

Most of all, it was calm. In the city, everything was wide awake and moving. There were streets that had little traffic during the night or parks that were uninhabited due to being locked up or dangerous during nighttime, but that was different. There was still people nearby in cars getting home from a closing shift, or bad people sneaking in the shadows. And can’t forget the good mutant turtles who surveyed for said bad people. There was something going on somewhere in the city. Inactivity was foreign.

Here though? It felt like time had no place. There was nothing but open space for miles, the only sign of life being animals. There were no structures clogging the view. No car engines humming smoothly while traversing traffic. Not a single comprehensible voice spoke.

It was as hypnotizing as it was scary.

Raph and Donnie would have loved how peaceful and quiet it was. And Leo would love how much space there was to run around...

The ache returned at the thought of his lost brothers and his body snapped forward, desperate to rid it. He began searching for a distraction before the feelings could once again eat away at his soul. He turned his gaze down the hill and a grin appeared on his face as a sudden idea struck him.

“Come on Venus! Let’s roll!” He exclaimed as he prepared into a crouch.

‘What are you-’

“HOT SOUP!!!” Mikey sprung up and went into his shell, then allowed gravity to pull his body down and pick up momentum against the slanted ground. He felt a pull on the chain and worried for a moment that Venus was going to stop him, but he kept rolling.

The world spun in a blur and he was increasingly becoming more nauseous, but at the same time there was a kick of excitement. He did not suffer much harm to his body during the rolling. It was more like little bumps, practically nothing.

When his body finally stopped, Mikey popped out of his shell and cheered. Then Venus slammed right into his shell and knocked him right back onto the ground while she went flying a little further.

Venus did not allow any time for recovery as she shot up and crawled over to him and gave his shoulder a punch. It wasn’t enough to truly heart but it still left a weird tingling sensation after.

He noticed her scarf was gone, but she obviously didn’t care because she was making no effort to even look around for it. This was unfortunate for Mikey because now he could see the furious scowl adorning her face.

‘WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!?’ She shouted so loudly into his head, he swore he would be deaf if he had eardrums.

“I wasn’t?” Mikey admitted with a small smile while poking two fingers together. “I just kinda..did it”

Venus gawked at him like she couldn’t understand that reasoning. Understandable, he wasn’t sure he completely understood it either. Impulses rarely do make sense after all.

With a swift motion, Venus effortlessly lifted him onto her shoulders like a sack, positioning him so he was facing behind her.

“Uh, Vee, what’re you doin?” She didn’t answer and began walking. Was she going to take him back to the van? They had hardly even been outside though! “Come on Venus! It was fun, wasn’t it!” How often would she get the opportunity to roll down a hill? Very little he would imagine!

Just as Mikey was about to start struggling, he felt a sudden weightlessness as he was launched into the air. With a sense of panic, he flailed his arms in a futile effort to catch onto something, but he was only met with air and was unable to prevent himself from descending right into frigid waters.

The moment his feet made contact with the bottom, he cringed at the squishy and repulsive sensation. It felt like sewage muck. Mikey broke his head out of the water and took a small inhale before screaming “YO! NOT COOL!!!”

Venus held a hand over her mouth while she snickered.

Mikey growled to himself and started to get up. As soon as he pressed his foot down however, it began sinking into the soft mud and he felt the urge to vomit. He was out of the water in an instant but there was soft mud on the shore and it was clinging now.

“Ew ew ew!” He kicked his feet out, attempting to get the icky mud off. Flecks flew off, some flying right onto Venus.

‘Hey! Watch it!’ She cried out while whipping a muddied sleeve across her pants.

Mikey’s panic and disgust instantly switched off as a new emotion took its place. It was one he did not know the name of, but he would like to describe it as ‘I have to be annoying now’. A smug smile reached his face and he lifted his other muddy foot.

“Oh? Stop what? This?” He flicked his foot out towards her, shooting out mud, but she managed to get out of the way before it could hit.

‘Okay you!’ Venus bent down and scooped up a large glob of mud into her hand.

Mikey put his hands up “Hang on wait time out!” He cried but she ignored him and advanced forward. Mikey tried to turn and run but his foot slipped and he fell backwards into the mud. This however, did not stop Venus and she pressed the mud right onto his plastron.

Mikey instantly retaliated by grabbing her arm so she couldn’t dodge the kick he sent to her side. The attack was successful and she fell just at the edge of the water. In a split second, she leaped away, back onto the shore next to him. However her landing was less than graceful as she slipped and fell face first into the mud.

Mikey immediately felt guilty and tried to hold in the laughter that was threatening to burst by shoving his hands over his mouth. He sat up, wanting to check on her.

“Venus are..” A snort escaped, “Are you okay-”

He was unable to keep a few giggles breaking out from his lungs. In a flash his face was slammed down into the mud, Venus’s hand on top of his head. Mikey lifted his face and wiped at it while trying to keep down the squirming knot in his throat that came because of the disgusting substance.

“Blech!” He gagged

‘You can only blame yourself for this’

Mikey whined in response. She may be completely right but that didn’t mean it was any less disgusting!

Venus stood up and offered him a hand. With gratitude, he accepted the gesture, but as soon as she pulled him up, she slipped. Her leg swept under Mikey’s own, causing them to both fall on their backs into the mud once more side by side this time.

Mikey looked at her and locked eyes with Venus. He then erupted into laughter and she quickly joined after turning away. Her laugh wasn’t like before at the restaurant when she had been trying to cover it up though, no, this time she was allowing it to carelessly fall out. And it was absolutely hilarious. It sounded more like a wheezing duck than a laugh. Just her laugh alone had Mikey cackling even more. Even when her laughs were replaced by a bout of coughing she somehow persisted and Mikey was right along with her.

Once they calmed down they left the river and decided to sit in the grass and clean up. Mikey tried getting the mud off his feet with a rock. It was when he had almost finished when an unexpected blast of heat hit his neck. Mikey jerked around and found himself face to face with a large brown furry snout. He looked up further to see two round curious chocolate eyes staring with curiosity.

It was a horse.

The animal sniffed at his head and he giggled from the weird feeling of its breath against his scales. There was a tug at his mask tails and he quickly pulled away with a yelp. The horse flinched back, but didn’t run away. Instead, its ears flickered and it huffed.

Venus moved next to him and watched the horse with careful eyes and a frown. Recognizing her unease, he decided to show Venus the horse was not a threat by reaching his hand out and allowing it to sniff him. The beautiful animal touched its nose to his hand and he began stroking its nose. It was very soft, the only disturbance being a few little bumps from its whiskers.

Venus held out her hand next, albeit with more hesitance. The wrappings around her arm were starting to fall off, showing the blue scales again. However, she either didn’t notice or didn’t care because it was left untouched.

Venus hesitantly petted the side of its snout, then paused. When the horse did not react, she appeared to gain more confidence as she started to move her hand across its face.

Mikey gradually moved his hand up and felt the horse's hair, which was a little more prickly. Or was it fur? Eh, he’s pretty sure it was hair. He then moved further up to the horse’s dark mane that swooped down its forehead. It felt closer to straight human hair but stronger and dryer, with a slightly rougher texture.

Mikey had never been able to pet a horse before. He’d only seen them marching through the streets in parades. He remembered he and his siblings were very disappointed that they couldn’t pet any of the big animals. So one day Raph tried to pretend he was a horse. He carried them all throughout the lair on all fours, then bucked them onto the couch when he was done. Or he’d pretend to die of exhaustion.

A faint smile tugged at Mikey’s lips from the sweet memory. Unfortunately, bittersweet feelings began to grow again until he felt Venus pass behind him, his attention now on her. He watched as she moved to the horse’s side and unconsciously followed.

The horse's back was such a stunning sight it swept away his previous thoughts. It looked as if someone had taken a small brown horse and carelessly sprinkled a layer of white powder on top. The colour scheme felt cozy to his sight. Like a wintry morning in a kitchen warmed by a sizzling pan. It reminded him of French toast blanketed in sweet powdery sugar. Yet, for some reason, the rich chocolaty flavor of hot cocoa settled on his tongue.

Venus ran her hand over the sleek back of the horse, a warm look beginning to grow.

‘It’s kind of weird not seeing them with a horn, but this creature is beautiful,’ she turned around. ‘This whole place is incredible,’ she smiled, marveling at the sights before her. ‘It’s like my old home’

“Where was your old home?”

She stayed quiet for a moment, though he wasn’t put off by this response. She always seemed to think before sharing any personal information.

Eventually, she answered, ‘A bay’

Mikey sputtered, “A bay!? As in a beach with water!?” Why would someone who was terrified of water live near the water!?

‘Yes. I wasn’t always scared of water.’ her gaze fell to her hands and she finally saw the loose bandage. She began fixing it with a stiff face. ‘It was peaceful like this’

Judging by the way she was talking and how she grew up with water, then that meant something very bad must have happened to cause her to fear the water. Mikey did not push for any questions though. If she wanted to tell him, she would. He felt lucky to have even received this much already.

‘We should head back’

“Okay,” Mikey agreed. He had stretched his legs enough anyway.

Unfortunately, when they returned, they were not met with kindness. Qing was livid with their muddied selves and demanded they fill the jugs back up in the river. Which might have been a good thing because they found Venus's forgotten scarf discarded by the hill. Also they discovered Qing's accent showed more when he was angry, which he found amusing.

Venus tried to convince Mikey once more that they should just knock Qing out, this time adding that they learn how to drive. Of course, he denied the plan.

They were on the road within the hour and a half. Mikey had to give his clothes to Venus because she refused to not wear anything but Qing wanted to wash the muddy clothing and let them dry in the van. So Mikey just gave her his clothes. He didn’t want to wear clothes when he didn’t have to anyway. And if he got cold, there were plenty of blankets!

Since her pants wouldn’t be coming off unless they were cut, she was forced to sit in the back. Mikey didn’t mind as much as she did and happily moved to the back with her. He put the pillows and blankets into a messy pile against the wall of the vehicle and propped the tablet against a pillow in the middle.

As Mikey rested beside Venus, he felt a lull from the gentle hum of the vehicle. The screen cast a soft glow, and the volume picked up every so often, but it was not enough to save him from gradually drifting away to sleep.

Chapter Text

`

It started suddenly, with no warning.

In the van, covered in waves of stark purple light, a towering armored figure loomed. It was a structure of curved and jagged metal claws which protruded out of its back and arms. Vibrant green veins pulsated beneath massive purple arms. Soulless neon pink eyes stared at an unseen victim.

Despite the altered appearance, Mikey immediately recognized the unmistakable appearance of Shredder.

The armor didn’t do anything. He was just standing there, shining under the purple lighting that came from who knows where.

Mikey desperately struggled to force himself to move, to run from the devilish armor. Yet his body wasn’t anywhere to be found. It was as if his body no longer existed, yet he was still there somehow. He felt like he was trapped inside an invisible bubble.

With just a mere inch of movement from Shredder's head, Mikey became certain that his life was in immediate danger. Rising dread filled the bubble, drowning him in persisting thoughts that

He was going to die.

The scene melted away as quickly as it had appeared and Mikey opened his eyes to find the same sight of the van, but no armor or purple lighting.

His heart was pounding heavily and he felt trapped despite only having a light blanket on top of him.

Mikey sat up, careful to minimize any noise. He threw the blanket off. Cold air nipped at his bare scales and he almost felt regret. At the same time, however, it was refreshing. Besides, he had his hoodie to keep himself warm enough.

Mikey laid his hands on the floor to touch the carpet and reveled in the feeling of the soft fibers brushing against his fingers. He took a deep breath, almost spilling out a cough when the chilly air filled his nostrils.

This was real. It was just a dream.

When Mikey lifted his head, his eyes immediately caught onto the form of Venus by the window. She was sitting up on her knees, her mask and scarf on her face, the red eyes locked to whatever view was beyond the glass.

“Something wrong?” Mikey whispered softly.

Despite his careful tone, Venus flinched and whipped around.

‘Can’t sleep’ was the only answer she gave before returning her gaze outside.

Mikey slowly crawled his way to the small back window beside Venus. He copied her form and looked outside. There was nothing but bubbly mounds of sand for miles. Despite the appearance, this desert was not warm. The chilling temperatures held the vehicle in an iron cold grip. Mikey craved the little warmth that fabric would bring, however he also felt like if he put anything over his body he would end up ripping it off. Everything was so..conforming right now for some reason. Plus the cold made him feel more grounded.

This was their last stop in Mongolia thankfully. Tomorrow, they will be in Russia. And then it would only be one more day. One more day before they finally make it home.

A small glint of light pulled his sight and his lungs were practically ripped away by the scene.

In the sky was something Mikey had only ever seen in desktop monitors and ads. He had thought they were exaggerated or something that the naked eye could never behold without a device.

And yet, millions of small white dots settled above them. Splashes of blue and white and flush red streaked across in a fat line. It was as if the sky had been cracked and the colours were leaking out.

Mikey slid the window to the side halfway, allowing a less tinted view of the shining clean galaxy casting above them. A light fresh breeze fell in, leaving a refreshing touch on Mikey’s scales.

‘What are you doing?’

Mikey did not respond, instead he placed his hand on Venus’s chin and forced her to look up. He then watched as she briskly took her mask off and stared with wide eyes in awe at the spectacle above.

‘What happened to the sky?’

“You've never seen stars?” Surely the Yokai have some pictures or artwork of stars?

‘I’ve never seen anything like this’.

Guess not then.

“They say that you can’t see the stars that well in the city, but I never imagined it would be this big of a difference,” Mikey sighed as he fell into a more comfortable position on the floor. Venus slowly followed, doing the same. Now all that could be seen was the galaxy above.

Mikey wished his family were here to see this. They would have loved it. Leo would probably say something about him shining brighter before saying something scientifically wrong. Donnie would correct him, then Raph would tell them to hush because he wants to enjoy the view in silence. Maybe even Splinter and April would be there. April would probably explain why it was so difficult to see stars in the city. And Dad would talk about other experiences like this time during his traveling as Lou Jitsu.

Stop thinking about them Stop thinking about them Stop thinking about them
Stop thinking abo-

‘Is it that great?’ Venus suddenly asked, interrupting his storming thoughts.

“What?” Mikey asked, unsure of what she was referring to.

‘You’re crying. Did you not notice?’

Mikey wiped his knuckle against his eyes and his brain finally processed the wetness falling down his face. He tried to stop them, but they only flowed worse.

Mikey wasn’t usually embarrassed by his tendency to cry easily. But at this moment, he could only think about how pathetic it was. Why did he have to be such a baby about this? Was he really this dependent on his family?

A small whine escaped Mikey’s throat and he quickly pulled his hood up to try and shamefully hide. He tried to hold it all back. But it burned in his throat like lava boiling in the rocky cocoon of a volcano. It only took a few seconds before an enormous unwanted sob broke free. His vocal cords were so tight he wondered if they would snap.

Venus didn’t say anything further. Instead, two arms wrapped around his self and pulled him against another body.

At first, it hurt. Powerful and vicious undefinable emotions squeezed his head so tightly he was sure it would burst. The inside of his chest felt as if it were made of heavy iron and his body was barley able to hold it up. A part of him wanted to rip away, yet despite this Mikey wrapped his arms around the other to further the hug and buried his face into fabric. Another painful sob ripped past his throat with a wave of fresh hot stinging tears.

The grasp tightened around him and a small sniffle followed. He didn’t look up though. No, Mikey didn’t dare move for fear she would pull away. Because despite the harsh feelings he craved for more.

He stayed within her embrace for a while. Though time appeared to not even matter anymore. Everything hurt. Every tear was like a knife cutting into his eyes, every sob strangled and clawed into the walls of his throat.

Slowly, however, the emotions began to dissipate. What followed, was something Mikey would describe as a gentle warmth of happiness. It was the ache in his head leaving, replaced by something light. It was his tears feeling less like they were about to rip his eyes out and more like calm streams. It was a reminder that he wasn’t alone. Something he’d been dying to feel again since separated from his family.

‘Do you want to talk about what’s wrong?’

The words were stuck inside on his tongue like sweet honey that threatened to trickle down and choke him if he didn’t swallow. A part of him wanted to risk suffocation, just so he would not interrupt this moment with his feelings. But..he wanted to talk about it. It was healthy, he knew. Dr. Feelings loved the idea. Man was it hard though.

Mikey spent maybe a minute or longer building up to finally answer. “I miss my family”

Saying it out loud hurt more than he expected. It felt like some invisible force was in his throat, threatening to stop any more words. Yet it was also a release. Like a flame dying down after raging against wood.

‘I see.’ her tone was plain. As if she wasn’t sure what to respond with. However, soon after she says, ‘I would like to hear about them if you’re okay with that.’

He sniffed up some drainage and cleared his throat a little. “Yeah.”

Mikey decided to begin with Donnie. He ranted about his brothers genius ideas and how most of them tended to blow up in their faces. He talked about the trips to junk yards where he could run around and grab whatever cool stuff he wanted. Or how Donnie would almost always allow him to help with projects when he wanted. He of course mentioned Donnie’s super cool new mystic power. It was truly a marvelous ability that fit his brother well.

It was difficult at first. That tension in his throat kept threatening to make each sentence his last. But he refused to stop. Not when every story brought more weight out of his system.

Mikey moved on to Leo. He mentioned that recently his blue masked brother had discovered the meaning of the word ‘twins’ and has applied it to him and Donnie. His genius brother denies it, which was only an invite for Leo to continue using the word just to annoy him. Mikey definitely did not leave out how annoying Leo could be sometimes. Especially when it came to competition. Which is why it always brought a smile to his face when said brother lost to him.

Finally of course, he talked about Leo’s new leadership. Mikey both did and did not mind the change. He hated how Leo was always using the new title for annoying stuff like first dibs on pizza or ordering everyone else to conveniently do most of the work in battle. But, he also loved the new freedom Leo brought to the table. His blue-masked brother has always been the one to fully believe in his abilities. Leo doesn’t hold him back like Raph sometimes did. He lets Mikey do more dangerous moves.

Which brought him to the last brother, Raph. There was not much Mikey had to say. He was dependable, strong, and responsible. He was a fun leader most of the time, and kind of scary when he got angry, which rarely happened.

Mikey would never say such a thing to his brother though. He knew how Raph felt about his much scarier appearance. Mikey wished he wouldn’t get scared. He knew Raph would never hurt him intentionally. He decided to also leave out his big brother’s outlandish coddling. He wanted to talk about fun things, not..their situation.

Venus stayed quiet the entire time. She gave no comments, only silently listening. That is, until he got to April.

“And of course there’s my sister! She-”

‘You have a sister?’ Venus suddenly interrupted. Her body seemed to stiffen with the question.

“Yeah, two. April is the human girl from the Shredder battle” He hoped she remember, but he didn’t think it was likely for her to notice a single human among the tired pile.

‘Ah, right. How is she your sister?’

“She’s our honorary sister,” He explained “She’s been with us since we were little! She’s a year older than Raph so she’s technically the oldest but when she’s not around the title goes to Raph.”

A gasp suddenly fell out as he remembered something. “Oh! Oh! She recently just upgraded her bat with this cool spell! It glows green and looks like it’s on fire! But she said it’s not fire, and that the bat was enchanted by bounce magic!”

‘Odd spell for a weapon but a good combination nonetheless’

“You should have seen it in action against the Shredder! She and Gram Gram were amazing!”

A whiplash of new emotions crashed against his previously building excitement. Venus seemed to notice, but did not pry thankfully. That was a wound still too delicate for poking.

He continued.

“April took care of us when we were really little too. She let us borrow her school books and brought us back food when Dad couldn’t get up. She also brought us clothes for winter and of course fun toys.”

Splinter would get sick a lot. Not in the usual sickness. Mikey has come to understand he was emotionally sick. Depressed. So, although it didn’t happen often, April’s scraps were sometimes all they had for an entire day, sometimes longer. At least until he got a phone, then Splinter would just order take-out and pick it up.

Well, until Raph turned thirteen. Then it was his job to pick up the food, which went from sometimes take-out to always take-out. Eventually, Raph started going to the store himself and buying different stuff because they were sick of take-out.

Mikey thrived when this happened as he was able to make the foods from the cooking channels he would put on when he wanted to sketch. Dad had taught him the basics when he first got into cooking but only if he could watch TV in the kitchen. Eventually Mikey started going to the cooking channels for recipes and advice rather than his father.

Of course, as soon as Mikey had gotten the hang of things the kitchen area became reserved for him. Everyone learned fast that when he was making something, he was to be alone. He just liked it better that way. Some days he was okay with one or two of his family sitting at a stool for small talk or getting a drink, but most days Mikey demanded his own space.

‘Are you okay?’ Venus unexpectedly asked, pulling Mikey from his flowing thoughts.

That’s right, he was supposed to be talking about April!

“Yeah, sorry. Spaced out there” He continued, “Yeah April’s the best, she even gave me my stickers!”

‘Interesting’

“Yep! I went through a lot but the ones I have now are perfect!”

Another gasp escaped as a different memory popped up. “I totally forgot about the stickers!”

As much as he hated to, Mikey slowly peeled away from Venus. She allowed him, albeit with some hesitation. He made quick work scrambling over to his bag and plucked his stickers out, being careful not to disturb Anchovy. He then returned to Venus’s side, pressing against her but not latching into another hug.

Where to put it? He definitely didn’t want it on his plastron, that would ruin the aesthetic he had going on. Maybe..

Mikey quickly got to work and peeled apart the Yang’s film first.

He lifted his hoodie up and pressed the sticker onto the portion of his body between his shell and plastron. What was that called again? Pretty sure Donnie made up a name for it because turtles didn’t have this in-between body part in real life.

Whatever, he was just calling it his side. He put the Yang sticker middle of his right side, careful to make sure the larger end of the Yang with the dot was facing up. Next he placed the pear sticker below it, leaning more towards the right.

“Boom! How do I look?”

She had no hesitation in her next words.

‘Ugly, but I think that’s mostly your face’

Mikey scoffed “Excuse me? You wish you had a face this gorgeous” He said while laying a flat hand under his chin.

Venus rolled her eyes with a snort. ‘Please.’

Mikey smiled and turned to look at the stars again.

‘So..who’s the other sister? Is she a human as well?’

Oh right! Talking about family. Mikey shook his head. “Nope, she’s a fish. Her name’s Piebald. We..aren’t exactly close. She doesn’t even visit often, and she only really talks to me and Dad”

‘How come?’

Mikey went into the story of Piebald. He may have dramatized a few things here and there, but she was terrifying! Although she did seem to favor him over his brothers, even though he was still scared of her.

‘So your brother conveniently flushed Piebald and then made you guys make a vow of silence? Kind of suspicious if you ask me’

“What do you mean?”

‘Just saying, maybe your brother was jealous’ she shrugged

“Nah, I think he just didn’t want to be responsible for her flushing” Leo was a very jealous turtle but he wouldn’t resort to purposefully flushing their beloved sister down into the horrible sewers. It was just an accident!

“And finally, there’s my dads. Draxum, as you know, is kind of new. He’s a bit grumpy but he’s officially part of the family after helping us defeat Shredder!” And he would not mention Leo’s saltyness from being thrown off a roof, or Raph just in general not liking him. Nope.

“And of course there’s my other dad, who is also the great Lou Jitsu. You know who that is right?” She didn’t appear to recognize him last time.

‘Yes I know I know, he’s the greatest fighter the Battle Nexus ever had. Big Mama doesn’t shut up about how things aren’t the same anymore without him.’ She said with a tone that lacked any care.

“You don’t think Lou Jitsu is impressive!?” Everyone loved Lou Jitsu! How could she not love Lou Jitsu!

‘I can’t really like someone I hardly even know. Besides, he didn’t seem too impressive shaking in his boots in the arena’

“Uuh, what are you talking about?” He didn’t remember any tales of Lou Jitsu being a coward in the battle nexus.

‘When your brother Leo and your father came to ask Big Mama for help with the Shredder beast. Your brother practically signed your father off to the Nexus and he was scared of fighting the previous champion.’

“Hmm, that doesn’t sound like Lou Jitsu” He would have believed her if he didn’t know his father was Lou Jitsu, but there was no way his father, the glory devourer himself, would be shaking against fighting in the Battle Nexus!

‘Just ask your brother when we get back, he saw it too’

She appeared confident in her statement at first, only her expression fell. Mikey couldn’t see her face, but he could tell by her eyes and wrinkled forehead that something was bothering her.

“What’s wrong?” Mikey asked.

She did not look back at him, instead staring at the carpeted ground while saying, ‘What if your brothers are…slower at getting back than we are’

For some reason her words felt very weird. It was like she was deliberately trying to avoid saying certain things. Perhaps she was afraid of touching this subject, he assumed.

“They will be” Mikey reassured her with confidence. “My brothers are not to be underestimated, they are definitely back”

‘Yeah. You’re an annoyingly strong bunch’

Despite the uplifting words, Venus still had that look which only appeared to grow deeper. He did not pester about it though. She didn’t know his brothers like he did, so there was bound to be doubt.

Venus turned her eyes back to the stars, so Mikey did the same, letting the conversation finally come to an end. A blanket was placed over his shoulder, the other end reserved for his chained companion. Mikey happily snuggled into the fabric.

He felt..better. That tight, hot squeezing feeling was now a loose cool flow. His emotions were calm. There was still an ache, but it was dulled now.

Something touched his arm and Mikey jerked to see it was Anchovy climbing the blanket, slowly making its way towards his shoulder. The little creature slithered up past his shoulders to Venus and rested against the shoulder Mikey wasn’t occupying, but the rest of its body still laid across him.

“Hey Vee” Mikey whispered after Anchovy was finished getting comfortable.

‘Yeah?’

“You’re my best friend”

He wanted to say family. But a small part of him couldn’t. Because that small part of him believed she would think it was weird of him to already consider her as such when they had only known each other for a few days. But he would mean it!

She took care of him, and yeah that was without choice at first. But now, it felt like she had no problem with doing so. She was giving him comfort. And of course, she always gave him some good competition. And what was family if not snuggles and light-hearted fights?

‘You’re my best friend too, Shagwa”

Mikey turned to her with a questioning frown. “Shǎguā?”

She looked back at him, a devious glint in her eyes. ‘It’s a name that means stupid melon’

“Hey! That’s mean!” Mikey pouted. Venus just smiled and nudged him. “Can’t you give me a cool nickname! Like courageous cabbage or outstanding orange!”

‘Sorry, it’s too late. I just chose it’ She said before crossing her arms.

“I bet you just don’t know my name” He huffed with his own pair of crossed arms.

‘Of course I do, it was Mason’

“Not even close”

‘Ither?’

“Nope”

‘Kalvin’

“Do I even look like a Kalvin?”

‘...Ezra’

“Okay now you’re just making up whatever comes to you” How could she have already forgotten his name? He told Qing just the other day!

‘No no, I got it this time.’

“Yeah?” Mikey asked, wondering if she actually had it this time and she was just teasing him with the others.

‘Yeal’

“It’s Mikey!” He exclaimed while raising his arms in exasperation again.

‘Really? You should stick with Shǎguā, it’s much better’

Mikey let his arms drop and frowned at the rude speaking individual next to him. “Maybe I’ll just change your name to something that means mean fig”

Venus shook her head. ‘Sorry, only one nickname allowed’

“What about Vee?” Mikey challenged

‘That’s a nickname for the nickname, it doesn’t count’ Venus countered.

Okay okay, he could get behind that logic.

‘Would you rather me not call you anything?’

“No!” Mikey quickly wrapped Venus up in a side hug. Anchovy wiggled a little, but was otherwise able to meld to the new position. “Shǎguā at least sounds cool”

Venus looked up again, only she obviously wasn’t able to see anything above due to her hood. Venus raised her hand and clutched at the side of her hood, pulling back just enough so that she could see, only she didn’t let go. She stayed in a silent pause, gripping the clothing. Mikey was only a few seconds away from asking her what was wrong, but then she made her next move.

Her hood drew back all the way, revealing her head in full view. She turned to him, and reached a trembling hand over her scarf before that too was removed.

There was no hair atop her head, only scales like the rest of her body. Her skin was blueish green, the only other colouration being the speckles of black inky dots that traveled from cheek to cheek.

She had a round beak like his, only her’s was sharper and crooked. As if she had gotten a broken nose and it hadn’t healed properly. Though with her regeneration powers, he could bet that her misshapen face had been there since birth.

Venus smiled. It was a closed-lip smile, and a little awkward as one side was higher than the other, yet it felt just as welcoming.

Mikey pulled his own hood back and returned the smile tenfold. He couldn’t have been more happy in this moment. It was something so simple to do, but Mikey knew there was so much more to this than simply revealing her entire face. It was trust.

He leaned his head against her shoulder and set his gaze back to the stars once more. A comfortable silence settled in the dormant vehicle. For a moment, Mikey finally felt like he wasn’t far away from home.

His strife slipped away like water down a drain, gone from sight for the moment. The squeezing, yearning feelings were wrapped in a warm blanket, allowing a much needed break. It was warm, hot even. But not the kind that formed sweat. It was more like a fever, minus the exhaustion and horrible headache. It was like when a heatlamp bathed his scales in delightful warm rays, shielding him from the clinging cold.

Mikey closed his eyes. Over time Venus’s tense posture relaxed, and when he checked on her, her eyes were closed. He followed suit, and soon enough, for the first time since Shredder’s vicious attack, the world disappeared into a sweet dream.

Chapter Text

Hello everyone, I am sorry to say that the new chapter won't be up any time soon. I am taking a break, or going on hiatus. College is a bit more rough this time around and I just in general need some time from Rise, I've been writing for it and watching it for three years at this point and need something else to dive into for a while. But no worries! I will be back. This fic is my baby, I don't want to leave it. Rest assured however, if I one day find myself deciding I can't finish this fic I will post the summary of the end because I don't feel like leaving you in the dark. I know I know that sounds boring and stuff but it's only if I know I can't finish this. I plan to get back to writing in December or January.

In the meantime, have this scrapped idea!

This was the first draft of the nightmare scene. It was originally supposed to be Dragon Lord, but I felt like Shredder would have been haunting his nightmares more than Dragon Lord

At first everything was…blank. Just nothing
Then Mikey found himself in a cell, a very dark, cold, small cell. Across from him was a lump that wasn’t very visible, a white mask laid on the ground next to it. Venus’s mask…why did that name sound familiar? He tried to talk but nothing came out, and everything was so weird, he could see himself in the third person. A strange feeling of weightless fear consumed Mikey, where were they? How did they get here? Who was Venus?

The sound of a door unlocking caught Mikey’s attention and he turned to see a dark figure standing at the opening of his cell door. Vibrant solid red eyes shined two rays of red light over his body. Mikey tried to move, to speak, but his body stayed completely still, refusing to move. This couldn’t be happening. How had they been caught!?

Thank you for following this story so far. It means a lot to me that you are this far into this tale and I hope to provide you with a wonderful rest of the journey!

Chapter Text

Mikey stared at the target, his eyes burning slightly from the bright glow of letters and a logo. It wasn’t exactly an independent building as there were apartments attached to both sides. Shiny black fire escape stairs hovered just above the white-lettered logo “Charlotte Cafe”, below that was just a simple glass wall surrounded by bushes and a table on the outside.

“There it is!” Mikey exclaimed in the lowest tone he could manage as there were a few people below so he did not want to draw their attention. “Best coffee shop you’ll ever find this late!”

Venus stared down at the building with a lack of enthusiasm. ‘There must not be a lot of options if this is considered the best’

“Don’t worry” Mikey said as he casually waved his wrist, “It may not look grand but trust me, they make a great cupa joe”

‘I thought we were getting coffee?’ Venus questioned

“Oh, that’s just slang for coffee,” Mikey told her before sitting up, his hands shifting to his hips as he stood proud. “Ready?”

Venus stood up after her and responded with a simple nod.

The two clamored down from their perch to the sidewalk. They waited until the street was clear of pedestrians before crossing the road and Mikey alone entered the coffee shop while Venus waited outside.

The inside was not very wide, however, its length appeared to make up for that fact as the shop stretched far back, allowing for plentiful room to move about with few customers.

Their order was on the counter, ready and fresh inside a small plastic bag with two medium drinks set beside it. Mikey checked the receipt and confirmed it was theirs, then left out the door to where Venus was.

He handed Venus her drink, a lavender iced latte, and they began down the sidewalk. Neither took a sip of their drinks until they made it to a silent alleyway. The grey walls were covered in graffiti, gifted by the master artist himself and a few others.

Mikey had to fight for this spot a few times. It was very rare, but there were a few moments in the past when someone would come around and paint over his works. Or worse, they would make something that would overlap his by a few inches. It felt petty to fix it, so Mikey would just silently fume about how they could have just left it sightly unfinished because that seemed like common courtesy.

They stopped by a small round table that had its own fair share of painted coatings, his name in orange sharpie included. It was a miracle that the table had not been stolen yet. Sure, it was bolted to the ground, but Mikey assumed it would have been removed by someone eventually whether that was a thief or just some finicky renter. Especially since the pole underneath was rusting.

Yet it had been in this exact spot since Mikey had first discovered the location.

Mikey set the bag down and took out their baked goods. He had ordered them two raspberry linzer bars and a cantuccii that they agreed to split.

He set the treats on top of the bag before turning back to Venus who was waiting for him.

Mikey grabbed his drink and held it out to Venus and she tapped her cup against his before the two took their first sip.

However when Mikey finished said sip, Venus was still going.

“Uh, Vee? Maybe you shouldn’t drink that so much at once..” Mikey did not know what the effect of coffee would have on someone who’s never had it before but he bet drinking so much at once wasn’t a good idea.

Venus responded immediately and with a hint of desperation, ‘You need to stop me’

Mikey wasted no time going for the cup, however Venus slapped his hand away. He tried again but ended up with the same result. She was already down halfway.

In a moment of panic Mikey swung his leg, his foot connecting with the drink, and sent it flying out of her hands. The beverage went soaring out of the alleyway and right onto a white vehicle.

On top of the car, red and blue began to flash before the door opened.

“Uh oh,” Mikey mumbled before he felt Venus grab the sleeve of his hoodie and yank him away. As they scooped up the treats and ran for it he could hear the police officer shout,

“How dare you assault my vehicle AND ruin a perfectly good drink! You should be ashamed!”

Chapter Text

When Mikey woke up, it wasn’t from the sun's warmth basking on his face or the window’s tinted pink light glazing over his eyes. No, he woke up because he was being squeezed to death.

Tight yet trembling arms were wrapped around his entire body, pinning his arms. The only thing that was visible to him was Venus’s jacket pressing against his face.

Mikey squirmed in the grip, but it was worse than when he fought against that henchdragon underwater! At the very least he could breathe this time but it still drew a lot of anxiety up.

“Yo Venus, I'm suffocating here!” He cried desperately into her jacket.

Thankfully the other heard his muffled cry and released him. Mikey sucked in a few deep breaths before shaking out his arms to rid the bubbling anxiety. Normally he wouldn't mind a tight hug but that was more like being in quick sand then a tight embrace. When he looked back up at his friend, her face was drawn with an odd mix of guilt and fear.

“Uh, everything okay Vee?” His feelings instantly dissipated, now mimicking the emotions the other displayed.

‘Yeah.’ she answered shortly before pulling her hood back over her head.

Mikey interpreted that as everything was not okay, so he tried asking, “Would you like to talk about what may or may not be bothering you?”

Venus turned away from him in favor of looking out the window. ‘I sometimes see things and the thing I saw freaked me out. I’m used to them though, so do not worry about it’

“Right…” Mikey didn’t believe it was something he shouldn’t worry about, but he knew better than to try to convince her otherwise. He would need to wait until she was ready to talk about it. Unless it became something negatively affecting her, then Dr. Feelings would need to intervene with a good old presentation about the negative effects of bottling up.

Qing’s voice joined them “Oh good, you are awake. The trip to tha village will only be two hours, so get everything placed away because we will be leaving the van behind”

“What!?” Mikey exclaimed, “Why are we ditching the van!?”

“We cannot fit the van into the entrance of the Yāo village we are going to. And, I am out of fuel”

Mikey pouted at this terrible news before hugging a plush pillow to his face. “Can we at least keep the pillows?”

“No, but I can make more if you like them much”

Mikey gasped while clutching the pillow to his chest, “You made these!?!?”

Qing’s chest puffed, obviously proud. “Yes, I knitted all of them”

“That’s so cool!” Mikey gave all the pillows and blankets another look over, admiring the crafted designs and delicate stitchings.

‘Please, weaving is the superior way to make good quality blankets and pillows’

Mikey gasped even louder, “You weave!!!”

Qing scoffed, “Weaving is so long forgotthen”

Venus glared at Qing before turning back to Mikey. ‘Tell him that his work is trash’

“Venus! That’s not nice! Come on you two, isn’t it great that you have something in common finally!”

This was apparently the wrong thing to say because both turned and looked at him like he had just insulted fifty generations of ancestors.

Qing retorted, “Knitting is stretchy and comfy! Unlike wovens which aren’t as soft and are more restrictive”

‘Shǎguā I refuse to talk to this shǎbī. So tell him that his knits are shabby and pathetically weak, like him’

Mikey crossed his arms. He may not know what shǎbī means but based on her tone he’s pretty sure it was a mean word. “Now guys we should be getting along!”

For two creatures who didn’t say a single word to each other, these two sure know how to get on each other’s nerves. It was definitely a good thing that Venus was refusing to actually talk to Qing, otherwise they would never get anywhere.

An idea clicked in his head on how to solve this pointless argument. “I got it! Okay, when we get to the village how about you guys pick up some material! And..ummm” He quickly looked around before spotting Anchovy innocently sitting on Venus’s shoulder.

“You can make something for Anchovy! It can be the judge!” That oughta keep them from strangling each other for now.

“It? Are you referring to the Mingshe?” Qing asked before the van grumbled to life.

“Yeah, why?” Mikey asked

“The Mingshe is likely male. You can tell by its wings, males have blue wings, females have black wings and sān have yellow wings..or maybe males had the yellow wings? No, it was females that had blue wings..okay, I don remember”

“Are you male?” Mikey asked Anchovy, to which the little Mingshe responded with a nod.

It was at that moment that Venus seemed to realize the creature was on her and she snatched him off her shoulder then placed him down on the rug.

The vehicle began its journey and Mikey slid over the backseat before snatching his backpack. He gathered the remains of his snack-fest and stuffed it all into the backpack whether it was a half-eaten bag or just a wrapper.

Venus followed suit, although she was done shortly as there was only one bag of chips that she had left out.

Once finished cleaning they quietly went to watching the miles of pale sand pass by. Mikey would rather be watching a movie, however the tablet had unfortunately died and Qing did not have a portable charger. So, he had to settle for the view, which was not very special.

Hopefully time would pass by fast.
`
...

When they arrived at their destination, Mikey was met with the familiar sight of a Ger structure, although this one was smaller.

“So this is where the hidden village is?” It didn’t seem too outlandish seeing as how one of the ways into the Hidden City was a dumpster.

“Indeed,” Qing confirmed. “We just need to use the coffin”

Mikey placed his hands onto Venus’s shoulders and pushed himself up to look over her head so that he could shout at their dragon companion, “A COFFIN!?”

“Do not worry, there won’t be a dead body in it,” Qing reassured, only this did not ease Mikey’s mind much.

He strapped himself to Venus’s side now, too afraid to even walk. She didn’t push him off, however, she did not hold on to him either. “Wha-what about ghost!!!” Even with no body, there might be some spirit guarding their coffin!

“Well there is a possibility for spirits, but I do not believe human ghosts really exist,” Qing said

He trembled against Venus who responded with a weird look. ‘Why are you so scared of ghosts?’

“Ghosts are terrifying! They can phase through walls, throw stuff, and possess you!”

She rolled her eyes at his words, ‘You wouldn’t last five minutes in the Astral Plane.’

“What’s the Astral Plane?” Mikey asked

Before Venus could answer, Qing spoke up,

“The Astral Plane is a mythstic pocket dimension that us Luu can enter through special glass. And no, the human version of Astral Plane is not the same as ours”

Mikey was about to ask what Qing meant by Luu, however Venus then said, ‘That is the most disrespectful way the Astral Plane could be described,’

“What do you mean? How would you describe it?” Mikey whispered so Qing wouldn’t think the question was for him.

As Venus made her way to the Ger that Qing had already entered, she answered, ‘It’s..like a place where spirits can travel to when they need to communicate. Both alive and deceased spirits can go, and they can even live there if they wish.’

As Venus walked into the Ger, Mikey quickly asked, “Have you been to it?”

‘No, but my father has. He said that there are multiple areas you can travel to in the Astral Plane. Once, he found a really big dessert, and another time, a sea that looked as if it was filled with the galaxy.’

“Wow” Mikey whispered as he let go and watched Qing mess around a red and black chest-looking thing which he assumed was the aforementioned coffin. He shuddered and turned his attention back to Venus in an attempt to ignore the scary structure.

“So how come you never went Venus?”

‘I feared ending up in the Astral sea somehow.’

Mikey snickered and immediately received a pinch on the arm. He shook it off however, and further questioned, “You think I can go into the Astral Plane?”

‘One of the requirements is deep meditation, and you can’t keep quiet or still for more than an hour, so no’

Mikey pouted while mumbling, “Well at least I’m not scared to go,” to which he was pinched even harder. He yelped out from the pain, tears forming in his eyes, however they were blatantly ignored.

“It’s ready,” Qing said, and Mikey watched in disbelief as the dragon stepped into the coffin.

“You can’t be serious!” Mikey shifted himself so he was now hugging Venus’s whole arm, his entire body quaking from anxiety.

“Yes. This is how you enter the village”

Mikey reacted to this news by pulling his body into his shell, allowing himself to fall to the ground before yelling out, “No way- I ain’t goin!” They were definitely going to anger whatever ghost or spirit that coffin belonged to! And he was not in the mood to deal with a foe that he couldn’t hit physically! Not to mention they didn’t even have a vacuum!

Mikey felt hands grab his shell and he was lifted up, Venus’s disgruntled face now in view. He knew exactly what she was doing as his shell was placed against cold stone.

Mikey poked his head out and found Qing’s back facing him.

The dragon Yōkai picked up a stone and carefully balanced it on its side atop the edge of the front of the coffin. He then reached down the side and did something Mikey couldn’t see.

Nothing happened for a moment, then all of a sudden the coffin fell right through the floor and the arms around him went to a death squeeze even worse than the one that morning.

Mikey screamed and although it was hard to hear over his voice, he thought he heard Venus screaming as well.

They continued downward into some kind of swirling blue tunnel before falling out into a new bright open space. Mikey screamed even louder than he thought he could when he realized that they were heading straight for golden stained ground.

However just as he thought they were doomed for a crash landing, the ground suddenly lurched up and grabbed onto the boat. Now that it was closer, Mikey could see that the golden ground was actually golden water. Or at least, that’s more of an accurate description in his opinion.

The water slowly brought the coffin down and rather than the concrete tomb sinking, they crossed the gentle waves to grassy land.

Mikey immediately shoved himself out of his shell, ripped away from Venus’s tight grasp and clambered his way to land. “Warn a turtle next time will ya!?”

Qing and Venus exited the coffin and Venus walked over to Mikey’s side. The coffin withdrew into the water and sank below the waves. Guess there was no turning back…good, he did not want to go through anything like that again.

‘Are you sure you don’t want to leave him behind? We don’t need a driver anymore’

Mikey stood up and brushed his pants. “First, we don’t know how to get home and second, we don’t leave our friends behind”

‘Your friend.’ She corrected.

Mikey ignored the comment and took a look at the new area they were in and found it was not a whole lot like the Hidden City. Where there would be flat stone paths, there was dirt, and rather than torches there were green vines with white flowers that shone bright yet soft glowing lights. Every building was made of either colourful clay or stacked stones.

The biggest difference however, was how much smaller this place was. The Hidden City had miles upon miles of land, stretched so far that it was impossible to get a glimpse at the entire thing, even from the tallest building. Here however, he could see both walls on each side of the village, although he could not see the back wall as there was a hill.

Even the Yōkai’s outfits were different, and he couldn’t spot any large behemoths that were very common in the city.

All a big reminder that he was still very far from home.

Venus pulled his sleeve and he saw that Qing was walking off. He followed after the dragon, his best friend by his side.

They traveled down the street and Mikey couldn’t help but be drawn in by the new environment. There was an odd blue and green wood-looking substance that was used for doors which appeared to open without the need for hinges. All one needed to do was knock and they just floated open!

Soon enough they came upon a more market-looking place where Yōkai were selling fresh food and interesting trinkets on giant mushrooms or glass tables. There was music caressing the air, however he could not pinpoint where it was coming from.

“That stuff looks so cool! Can we look around? Please!”

Qing and Venus examined the stalls and tables before saying in perfect sync,

‘No’

“Sure”

“Sweet!” Mikey cheered before bounding over to a stall with a bunch of cool looking wooden statues of different creatures covered in various types of armor. He especially eyed the little Yōkai pets, some having their own sets of armor while others had cute little outfits.

His attention diverted as the wonderful smell of bread filled his nostrils. Mikey saw a table full of different breads and pastries and immediately zipped over, leaving Venus to continue browsing the statues.

“Hey Qing! What are these?” Mikey asked as he pointed to the breads.

“Looks like some breads and pastries.” He pointed to several of the dishes and explained them. They were apparently different from a human’s recipe due to using Yāo ingredients, so they would taste different, or as Qing said, better.

In the end Mikey got himself a couple of tea cakes which Qing paid for. He of course shared with the dragon before going back over to Venus who was now holding a small brown pouch.

“Uh, where’d you get that?” He asked while pointing to said pouch.

Venus held it out to him and answered, ‘It’s for you.’

Mikey connected his hands in front of his chest while gasping violently. He was so excited and shocked by the action that he accidentally fell back, however he made a quick recovery and immediately tackled Venus into a hug.

The other wobbled on one foot while her arms shook out to keep balance. Once she gained her balance she grabbed the back of his hoodie and tried to pry him off. He didn’t budge and she gave up, then he felt a pat on his shell.

Mikey let go and snatched the bag out of her grip, replacing it with the last tea cake. He dug inside and brought out a small wooden statue like the ones he had seen at the first stall.

It was a little black kitty with spooky dark red eyes and some kind of..round bowl? Well, it was more like half a bowl. It was a simple brown wood half-bowl which magically floated above the kitty’s back.

There was a large tag attached to its neck and Mikey carefully took it off. Surprisingly enough, the card was in English. In bold black letters it read, Bayun Ovinnik, protection and travel.

“Oh,” Qing suddenly interrupted, “A pet spirit? Poke it on the nose”

Mikey didn’t need to be told twice before he tapped the kitty’s little nose. As soon as he pressed his finger to its nose, he felt a weird sensation overcome him. It wasn’t on the inside, but rather out. Like when something scary happens and his body would shudder, only without the fear.

He wrote off the feeling as his body reacting to its mystic energy and hugged the gift to his chest. “Thank you so much Venus!”

“How did you pay for that?” Qing questioned with narrowed eyes, suspicion etched on his frown.

Venus replied with a dismissive wave before beginning to walk off. Mikey followed to her side and slung his backpack off. He zipped it open and gently placed his wonderful present inside.

Anchovy took the opportunity to jump out. Thankfully his fall was light as he used his wings to land gently. Mikey understood the little Yōkai was probably tired of being cramped and simply slid the backpack back into place, the zipper left open in case he wanted to hop back in.

They continued on their way, however Venus shoved her arm out in front of Mikey before pointing with her other hand towards a cobblestone structure with a wide opening, showing off an assortment of clothes casually floating around inside.

“Whoa! Are those mystic clothes!?” Mikey had never seen this kind of store in the Hidden City!

‘We should change, these clothes have been compromised already’

“Yeah! Another dress up party!” Mikey cheered as he shot his arms up.

‘Quiet!’ Venus scolded and Mikey let his hands fall with a slouch, ‘We may be in a Yōkai village but we are still on the run’ She reminded.

“Oh right, sorry” And in a Yōkai village there may be more of a chance that a dragon was hanging out nearby. Although from the looks of it, there were no dragons around in the area. Well, cept Qing.

The two began making their way to the store, Anchovy following.

“Where are you going?” Qing asked

“We’re going to get new clothes” Mikey answered

“Oh, well here,” He tossed a brown pouch which Mikey caught.

“Come get me when you’re done, I will look for the knit and weave supplies”

Mikey gave a salute and they made their way to the shop where they began examining the different garments. The clothes were shaped for different bodies, some were made for eight-legged creatures, some for small doll-sized ones, and a few that looked like they were made for horses.

He swiped through a few outfits before finding a long brown skirt with white symbols decorating the trim. All they needed to do is cut it for the chain and tie it up with some rope or a belt. He snatched the skirt, along with a matching red skirt with blue symbols next to it, and held them out to Venus.

“How about these? They’re long enough to cover the chain and great for combat. Plus we would look stylish”

Venus took the red one before tossing pale orange fabric over his face. He pulled it off and asked, “What’s this?”

‘A cloak. What do you think?’

Mikey held out the cloak to get a better look at it. Other than a gold circle where it clipped there were no finer details or extravagant designs from what he could see. He tossed the cloak over his shell and clipped the front, then did a little twirl, gleeful about the way it swayed behind him.

“I love it!”

Venus draped a cloak of her own onto her back, this one dark brown. The clip was silver rather than gold and that was the only real difference between the two.

‘Find something to replace your jacket then let's go,’ she said as she drew the bigger hood over her smaller one.

Mikey did the same after adjusting his scarf to fit inside and silently wondered if she knew he was wearing a hoodie, not a jacket. He didn’t bother to correct her and just followed the instructions. It took a longer search but eventually, he found a nice light puffy purple jacket and replaced the white hoodie. It was no Donnie hoodie, but it would do.

“Done!” Mikey told Venus.

After the confirmation Venus made her way to the counter. While she paid, he checked out the jewelry. There was a cool looking necklace made of smooth rocks that were on fire! Blue fire! He wanted to touch it but he could feel the heat radiating off the item and decided touching it probably wouldn’t be the best idea.

After purchasing the clothes they left the store and finished replacing their clothes. Venus ripped the skirts and used a belt she picked up from the store while Mikey used the belt he had last time. When changing her jacket however, she had turned away from him as she swapped it for a simple black winter jacket.

Mikey wondered why she did this. It wasn’t like she was shy about changing in front of others because plenty of others would be able to see her change right now. It was him she didn’t want to change in front of.

Mikey tried not to question it, but he still couldn’t help asking…why? What was it that she did not want specifically him to see? Was that a weird thing to question? Was it her outer shell? She was showing it freely before.

No, she didn’t want him to see her skin. That was what she covered up, aside from her face. But why?

Mikey became trapped in his questioning thoughts until loud music interrupted. He brought his attention back to reality and found that just ahead, some Yōkai playing instruments while several other Yōkai dressed in beautiful apparel danced to the beat.

It sounded fast, every strum coming right after the other from what Mikey could only understand as thinner or smaller versions of a guitar. Of course, he knew the two sounded very different, more like a violin, but he didn’t know the actual name of the instrument.

“Looks like the Nadaam festival is still going on,” Qing noted as he watched the crowd.

“What’s that?” Mikey asked as he observed the dancers.

“It’s a celebration of our culture and heritage,” Qing explained with a hint of pride, “Originally it came from humans, then we made our own version of it. The big festival is in Terelj, but some small towns like this celebrate by themselves.”

“That’s so cool!” Mikey began clapping along with the rhythm while tapping his foot. The music was lively and the Yōkai all had bright smiles as they danced freely to the tune.

However, Mikey’s attention was snatched away as fabric smacked him right in the face. He turned to Venus who instantly turned her head, a side glance giving away that she was awaiting his reaction.

Mikey was fast to retaliate and snagged his own cape before whipping it towards her face. She easily hopped away from the attempt. He wasn’t about to let her win this though!

Mikey danced his way into a full circle around her, swirling to every fast beat that strummed against his scales. He made sure not to get close, and just as predicted she did not move from her spot, only turning to follow his movement.

As soon as he was far enough, Mikey shot out his foot as hard as he could. The chain, which had wrapped around both feet, was ripped out from under her and although Venus did manage to catch herself with one hand, he dashed forward and slapped her with his cape. This caused her to fail her balance and she fell down on her back.

Mikey laughed at her misfortune but the other vanished, only a blurry film left behind. Mikey kept his sight on the blur and dodged her attempt at another cape slap. She stopped her movement and he could only imagine she was shocked that he was able to avoid her attack.

“That’s right baby! Mikey for the win!”

The blur went down to the chain and Venus tried to whip it from under his feet but he just caught himself on his hands before pushing his body into a handstand then jumped after the action, leaping right over her and safely to the other side. With a finishing touch, he blew a raspberry.

Venus’s spell fell away as she got up and began charging him, her face set with determination and even though he couldn't see it due to the scarf, Mikey would bet she had a grin cracked underneath. He could feel the music picking up faster and his adrenaline rushed with the beat as a cluster of giggles ran out of his mouth. He pranced right into the group of dancers and followed their style while avoiding Venus’s attempts to get revenge.

That is, until a large white-furred Yōkai accidentally got their foot caught on the chain, causing both him and Venus to flop onto the ground.

The Yōkai snarled while facing the two chained individuals. They began shouting at them, however Mikey couldn’t understand what they were saying, although he guessed that whatever they were saying wasn’t very nice. The music and dancers stopped, creating a sense of staleness in the once tasteful atmosphere.

The Yōkai they had run into was very tall, probably somewhere around Ghostbear’s build. Their fur was white like his as well, however, it was more fine-looking and rather than a polar bear face or claws, this Yōkai had pale wrinkled skin with an ape-like face and human-ish hands in white gloves.

They also wore a tight lime green suit with a red tie and draped on their shoulders was a pale yellow jacket. A black fedora with a single golden feather embroidered to the side sat on their head.

Mikey turned to Venus, her expression shifting to one of calculated sternness, her mouth set in a thin line.

Six other shaggy monkey-looking Yōkai, all of different fur colours, began to surround them. Despite the threatening faces they had on, Mikey couldn’t help but admire their strange outfits. They were all dressed in matching solid coloured suits, however the suits didn’t match their fur nor their undershirts or fedora’s. It was like each was their own version of a parasol.

The only thing that matched was their brown and red plaid tied. It was completely mismatched fashion and Donnie would call it a nightmare, but he thought it was pretty cool.

The Yōkai they tripped brought his attention back by snapping their fingers. They said something, and once again he didn’t understand at all.

“Uh, sorry? We didn’t mean to trip you! Love the style by the way, very abstract”

The Yōkai’s face turned from anger to confusion after he spoke. Okay, so clearly there was a language barrier that neither could break.

A new voice joined, also in a foreign language. To Mikey’s surprise, Qing suddenly stood in front of the large Yōkai while repeating something. The Yōkai’s features appeared to loosen up and they smiled before responding to Qing with a more relaxed demeanour.

Qing turned around to them, “Get up and follow” he told them before returning to speaking with the Yōkai.

‘Ask who this is, I won’t follow a stranger’

“Venus wants to know who this is before we follow them,” Mikey repeated for the other.

“Serebro, or as you may call him, Silver. He’s going to help us travel fast to Russia”

Chapter Text

They followed Silver into a large building made of smooth stone. It looked a lot more..put together compared to the villagers houses. The floors were draped in smooth beige carpet and while there was hardly any furniture aside from a big round table, it was still plenty spacious. On one of the walls in what looked like a kitchen area, a bunch of strange foods hung from strings attached to a long chain. Some he recognized like bananas and garlic. However Mikey did not recognize the others.

There was a single window that showed a small view of a backyard, but he couldn’t see anything more than a grey background.

“Sit,” Qing told them, bringing Mikey’s attention back. The dragon was already taking a seat at the round table, so he joined the seat beside him while Venus took the seat next to Mikey.

Mikey set his bag on the floor leaning against his chair, however Qing immediately snatched it up, brushed off the bottom, then dropped it onto his lap. Venus did the same as Mikey had which resulted in Qing standing up, walking over to her, and doing the same thing.

She put the bag back on the floor anyway, probably just to make Qing mad, which it did.

Silver began a conversation with Qing, drawing the dragon's tempered glare away. Mikey tried to make some sense of what they were discussing, however it was simply impossible. He gave up after only a minute and favored giving everything another look. There wasn't really much else to note however.

Eventually, Qing tossed a card onto the table towards Silver and announced, “Silver has agreed to let us travel” He then stood up from his seat.

Mikey raised his arms joyously as he cheered, “Whoo! Qing out here with the save!” He nudged Venus’s shoulder, “See? Now are you glad we didn’t skip out on his help?”

‘No,’ Venus replied indifferently before standing up.

Mikey rolled his eyes and followed suit.

They followed Qing to a simple yellow curtain. One of the little monkey Yōkai pushed it out of the way and revealed the backyard. Surprisingly enough, it was covered in grass that didn’t look cut, but wasn’t very tall either. There were three concrete walls surrounding them in a box, connecting to the house. It reminded him of the Dragon Lord’s lair, only the top of the wall did not have its own personal roof, it was just smooth stone.

At the back wall there was a small pond with soft clear water, rocks surrounding the edge. A few trees stood nearby, ripe green bananas perching against the bark.

There wasn’t anything else in the yard, which had Mikey feeling somewhat disappointed. He had hoped there would be something entertaining for them to do while they waited.

Alas, all they had was grass.

Silver crossed the yard to the pond and kneeled down. One of his henchmonkey’s carefully plucked a banana from the tree and tossed it to him. He caught it and gave it a look over before peeling it open.

Mikey was very confused when he watched Silver take out the banana in one bite.

“Uh, why is he snackin?”

He did not receive an answer as Qing shushed him.

Silver tossed the banana peel into the pond and the clear waters suddenly began turning green from the peel, as if its colour was bleeding. The green left the banana, leaving behind a clear banana peel.

“Wooow” Mikey couldn’t help but whisper in awe.

Silver took out a simple wooden cane with a silver curve at the end and began reaching for the peel which floated across the top, not a piece of its body under the water.

Out of nowhere, a tune began to play. It was high in tone, and sounded wavy, like something he would hear from a movie featuring karate.

Mikey searched around the yard for the tune, but didn’t see any of the monkey’s playing, so he turned to Venus. “You know where that’s coming from?”

Venus did not respond however, instead she stood stone still. A white feather floated above her head, gently dancing in a circle as if being carried by wind in a glass.

“Uh Venus? You got somethin on your head..”

Venus still did not respond, and the feather suddenly turned from white to brown. Then, she finally turned to him, but she looked…off. She had the usual tight faced look, however her eyes appeared distant, like she was in a dissociative state.

Before Mikey was able to react, Venus suddenly jumped him, tackling him to the ground. She thrust her hands over his arms, pinning them while her legs did the same across his legs, effectively trapping him. His bag had fallen to the side.

“Hey! What’s going on!?” Mikey cried out, but Venus did not respond in any way, the features of her face as distant as her eyes.

Mikey looked around to see if someone was attacking them and if that was why she had suddenly pounced. He managed to catch the moment Silver had his cane raised before it was launched, although it wasn’t at them. Instead, the music suddenly came to a halt and a cry of pain followed suit.

Venus released him, even taking a few steps back. The feather that was above her head shifted back to white and swooped down, gently landing in the grass. Venus finally had life back in her eyes, although they were shining with confusion and concern.

“Damn you overgrown monkey!” A voice had Mikey instantly snap his head away from her and to the voice in question where he could see two figures crouched on the rooftop. Bonesteel and Bái Hú.

Bonesteel was holding out a fist, a wooden flute with feathers hanging from strings in his grasp. Bái Hú was next to him, her cold eyes already on Mikey’s form and a shudder dove through his body.

“I was gonna let you go, but I see you would rather stack on a blue!”

Bonesteel began playing the flute again. Mikey turned back to Silver who snarled and spat out some words at the human. The feather from before was plucked up by some kind of invisible wind. It danced around, swerving in a graceful dance before resting at Silver’s head.

The Yeti Yōkai attempted to swipe it away, however it was a fruitless act as the feather maneuvered around each strike. It turned to brown again, and Silver’s eyes became like Venus’s had before she attacked.

The Henchmonkey’s all began some kind of rage rant. They shook their fist whilst screaming foreign words towards the two intruders.

Bonesteel’s eyes blew open wider, still playing his tune, but now his head swiveled back and forth, scanning the yard. Bái Hú’s eyes were still on Mikey, but she seemed less certain.

‘Come on!’ Venus grabbed Mikey’s arm and began pulling him and he almost stopped her because she was heading straight for the house where the two enemies were. Although Bái Hú was no longer tracking them, nor did Bonesteel acknowledge their approaching presence.

Mikey did not speak a word as he followed, hoping she knew what to do. She hopped in through the window, not a plane of broken glass to be seen. Mikey made his way in after her and she led them into the kitchen.

Venus grabbed one of the chains from the wall and handed it to Mikey. It wasn’t very long, only a few centimeters touched the floor as he held them, the food making it weigh more but it didn’t bother him.

‘You go for the human, I will take Bái Hú,’ she instructed before beginning to make her way back to the window.

“Wait!” Mikey called out, “Why are we fighting? We should run!” There was no way they could beat those two without mystic powers!

‘We can’t run. Even if we managed to find a way out of here, they will catch us in the beach land in no time. We must act now’

Well, she did have a good point. But still, if they got caught..

Mikey tried not to dwell too much on that and focused on Venus who was already back at the window, observing the fight. Mikey pushed up against her.

Outside were Bái Hú and Silver, locked in a wild battle against the henchmonkey’s and Qing. Despite their smaller size, they were very nimble and fast, allowing quick escapes from Bái Hú’s massive claws or Silver’s fisted strikes. Bonesteel was nowhere to be found, although Mikey could still hear the flute playing so he assumed the hunter was still on the rooftop.

‘Change of plans. You take Silver, I’ll take Bái Hú. Tell Qing to go for the human’

“Are you sure?” Mikey didn’t want to underestimate her but Bái Hú looked like a strong opponent.

‘Yes,’ Venus said before taking action and jumping through the window.

Venus made the first move as she pulled out her swords and swiped at Bái Hú. The tiger managed to bring her large forearm up to catch the blades before they hit her face. The swords did not appear to draw blood though.

Mikey tried to ignore Venus’s fight and focus on his own. Silver was too busy fighting off one of his henchmonkey’s on his shoulder, who was attempting to grab the feather, however it kept swooping away from their grasp.

Silver raised a fist to punch the monkey and Mikey knew it was time to act. He threw out his chain, snagging the Yeti’s fist before the punch could land. He had to put more force behind his swing due to the food but that actually helped with the chain ensnaring the opponent.

“Qing! I got this! Go for Bonesteel!” Mikey shouted and Qing followed the orders without a word.

Silver grabbed the chain with his free arm and tried to pull him closer. Rather than let that happen, Mikey let go of the chain and opted to charge at the opponent before lifting his leg and kicking at Silver’s ribs.

Silver tried to move out of the way of the attack, however one of his henchmonkey’s shoved him so that he would be hit. After Mikey’s successful hit he fell to the ground and let go of the chain.

Mikey winded the chain back to himself while Silver recovered from the fall. Before letting the yeti get his head back into the fight, Mikey launched his chain out again, this time at his feet.

The attack landed, however the results were less damaging as hoped. Silver did not go down again as intended, rather he only reacted with a shout of pain before jumping at Mikey, fist ready to pummel his shell.

Mikey avoided the attack by jumping and landed on the Yeti’s broad shoulders. Before the other could toss him off, he grabbed Silver’s hat and shoved it over his head, then jumped behind him and kicked.

Silver stumbled but he caught himself with his hands. He grabbed the hat off his head and tossed it away. Normally a look of anger would be on the opponents face from Mikey using them as a jungle gym, however Silver’s eyes were still the same blank stare.

That is, until the music came to a sudden halt and the feather turned to white, bringing Silver’s eyes back to their normal dull shine. The Yōkai immediately knelt down, a hand to the ribs Mikey had kicked.

From a distance, Mikey heard Bonesteel shout, “Charlotte!!! Ergh, I’ll turn you into a coffee table cover for that!”

Mikey looked up at the roof fight and saw a broken flute sadly rolling off the tiles. Anchovy seemed to have joined in, as the Mingshe was flying above. There was something else flying around, from the short time he was looking it appeared to be a green bird.

He turned his focus away to their fight to see how Venus was doing. It wasn’t too great based on how Bái Hú had managed to snatch away one of her swords, the blade now in the tiger's hand.

Venus dug into her hoodie pocket and pulled out two large rings, one white and the other red. She threw the white one at Bái Hú except it only bounced off the other before shooting into the sky and disappearing. Mikey would have laughed if the situation wasn’t so dire.

Mikey took the opportunity from the moment of distraction and swung his chain into the shoulder of Bái Hú. Unfortunately for him, the chain appeared to have no affect and now the tigers eyes were on him once more.

He felt another shiver run its course before dragging the chain back and swung it around in an attempt to show the scary Yōkai that he was joining the fight.

However, she did not attack him or Venus, rather, she opened her large jaws and Mikey swore his chest turned into a drum that was being violently beaten. He couldn’t move, every muscle paralyzed just like their first meeting, only this was worse. It felt like his blood had been turned to ice.

Everything became foggy as he struggled to gain control of his thoughts and body. He hardly registered Bái Hú pouncing towards him.

Before her claws could rake into his exposed self, the chain on his foot suddenly pulled, causing him to fall flat on his shell. He was pulled across the grass, further away from the deadly attack. When he was finally able to gain back control of his neck he lifted his head up to see Venus was pulling the chain.

He waited until he was by her side before standing up, his muscles finally cooperating but still stiff, yet jelly-like.

‘What was that?’

“I don’t know! All she did was open her mouth and it just made me freeze up for some reason!”

She appeared to take in the information. ‘I will make us invisible, but not for long. We may only have a minute.”

“A minute? Psh, we got this” Mikey replied, despite his inner doubt. Normally when they were cloaked in her invisibility, the advantage was clear. However this was no human or even dragon. Bái Hú was certainly a stronger opponent than any they have fought so far.

When Bái Hú was able to turn her sights back to them, her face scrunched into a snarl while her eyes appeared unable to focus on a single spot. Venus started her attack first, running towards the beast of a Yōkai with her ring ready to try again for an attack.

Unfortunately despite not being able to see them clearly, Bái Hú was still able to pinpoint Venus’s location and pounced once more, discarding Venus’s sword in favor of her second set of claws.

Venus managed to dodge away from the attack, but she was almost caught in a swipe as Bái Hú began madly clawing the air, attempting to catch any bit of flesh. Just before Bái Hú could register that she had managed to get a strike on her, Venus used the red ring against the other Yōkai’s arm.

The ring burst into flames and for once Bái Hú was the one retreating with a cry. Unfortunately, Venus got burned as well, so she just launched the ring at Bái Hú. The tiger was successfully hit in the stomach, although the flames did not catch on to her clothing.

The ring fell into the grass and before it could catch everything on fire, Bái Hú stomped on it, a trail of black smoke rising from its death bed.

Bái Hú looked up, not directly at them but she was definitely looking for them. Her ears were rotating around while her whiskers pushed out.

Mikey made sure not to move, Venus doing the same. However despite their efforts, Bái Hú charged towards them anyway.

Mikey had to jump away as one swing got close to him, Venus following his move to get away from the ravenous Yōkai who was back to widely swinging.

They couldn’t afford to get close now, so running in was out of the question. They needed to try something long distance..

‘Go into your shell’

Oh no. Again? Really? Was that the best thing she could come up with!?

Mikey clenched his chain to his chest, then looked down at his weapon as an idea formed in his head.

Mikey formed an X with his arms before holding out his chain. She appeared to understand what he was suggesting as she took her sword and hooked it into the last link.

Mikey ran back until the line became tight before giving a thumbs up. Venus ran forward a few steps before swinging her arm and pulling the chain, successfully launching him.

He shot right for Bái Hú, but rather than going into his shell for an impact, he drew his arm back before shooting it forward and struck the tiger right between those haunting blue eyes. After striking, he cheered, “Hot soup!”

Bái Hú collapsed, her eyes shutting closed and her face surprisingly relaxed now.

‘Is she down?’ Venus asked as she raced over.

“Yep!” Mikey announced before snagging Venus into a hug. “That was great! So much better than using the ankle chain!”

‘I suppose we could use a regular chain more often,’ Venus said before patting his shell then pushing him away. She focused on Qing and Bonesteel’s battle, which did not look like it was going well for either.

Qing was moving around, desperately trying to avoid the bullets from Bonesteel’s gun. Oddly enough, the weapon made no noise, every shot was only implied as Bonesteel’s body jerked back every so often.

‘Let’s go,’ Venus picked up her second sword and ran towards the battle, Mikey quickly following after. When they made it to the roof, Venus asked for a boost and Mikey put his hands together, allowing her to place her foot down before he shoved her up. She managed to catch the ledge of the roof and pulled herself up, then held out her hand. Mikey jumped and she managed to snatch his hand and pulled him up.

Bonesteel hadn’t noticed them yet, too focused on the fight with Qing. Mikey made the first move this time and raised his chain to knock the human in the back. However before he could do so, Mikey was hit with one of the henchmonkey’s body, knocking him down.

He groaned and sat up, searching for why he had been hit. When he looked across the yard, his body squeezed at the unfortunate sight of Bái Hú back up again, fiercely staring in their direction.

Bonesteel turned around, finally noticing the two behind him.

“Oh you naughty little turtle! I should rip you outta that shell of yours and give ya a spanking for trying to get me while my back was turned!” He said before laughing like a mad-man.

Mikey cringed away, his snout scrunching from that awful sentence. “You want to see me naked!? Gross!!!” He thought Bonesteel was a little crazy before but now the man just leveled up to deranged.

Bonesteel wasted no more time and pointed his weapon to Mikey. Thankfully Qing managed to grab hold of the human before he could press the trigger. Both struggled against the other and Mikey stood up to help, but his attention fell back to Bái Hú who was now on the roof going straight for him.

The henchmonkey beside him tried to run, but that only had the tigers gaze shift from Mikey to them. Bái Hú launched herself and managed to sink a claw into the henchmonkey’s leg. They screamed in pain and before Mikey could react to help, Bái Hú sunk her massive metallic fangs right through their chest, a sickening crunch raking through the air and blood poured like a waterfall.

The henchmonkey was still alive, still screaming. Mikey pushed past his increasingly clouding mind from the stressful event and threw his chain at Bái Hú’s back but it pathetically fell down her body after impact. Venus herself tried swiping at the Yōkai’s head, the tip of her sword stabbing into fur yet not going any further. Still, the tiger did not let go of her victim.

Bonesteel shouted from right behind Mikey, causing him to jump, “Bái Hú! Forget that monkey and go for the targets! And no killing yet!”

Bái Hú shoved her paw onto the crying henchmonkey’s body and pulled her jaws from their body. Her sights immediately shifted back to Mikey’s form.

He saw her charge for him and tried to run, however her beast of a body was crashing into him before he could get more than a few steps away. He thought Venus called for him, but he couldn’t distinguish anything through the fear overwhelming every sense in his body as he was crushed under fur.

‘Shǎguāi! Go into your shell!’ Venus desperately exclaimed and Mikey saw her trying to attack Bái Hú with no luck of doing anything other than a few possible scratched.

Mikey never wished more for the ability to sink into his shell and hide from the threat. Unfortunately large heavy limbs weighed down on his own, preventing him from retracting to safety. Even his head was being crushed, the concrete rough against his chin and scratching irritatingly at his scales.

He felt Bái Hú move again and was able to catch Venus falling down next to him, her body being pinned like his own. It gave his limbs more freedom, however she still had a crushing hold on his head.

“Ha!” Mikey heard Bonesteel distantly cackle, “Stand down or I’ll let my little tiger eat them!”

Mikey wasn’t able to see Qing, and the dragon said nothing to indicate he had surrendered. It wasn’t until his body was thrown away with a new pressure quickly taking its place on his shell that he saw Qing in a sitting position, his hands up.

Bonesteel had his weight over Mikey’s shell now, while Bái Hú lifted Venus up with one arm wrapped around her body, holding her in a grasp that would not allow her to move anything but her legs and head.

Mikey tried to lift up against the human on his shell, until something cold pressed against his cheek. He could only catch it at the corner of his eye, but the clear appearance of a gun’s head had him give pause about any more movement.

“Alright champs, I only want the Golden Shuriken. If you hand it over nicely, I’ll let you all go” Bonesteel used a very simple yet dramatic way of speech, with a hint of an accent…Australian? And what the heck was he going on about?

“Uh, a golden what?” Mikey asked carefully.

“Golden Shuriken, looks like a knife star. We know one a you have it. So give it. Or don’t, I love a good blood show.” He let out a giggle, though it sounded more deranged than giddy.

“What? We don’t have no gold knife star!” Mikey’s pretty sure he would have remembered them having such a unique item.

“Don’t lie to me! We know you lot have it so give it over” The metal pressed further against Mikey.

“We don’t have it!” Mikey tried again, however this clearly did not satisfy the hunter.

“Fine, tiger”

Bái Hú’s eyes shot to Bonesteel.

Mikey wasn’t sure what Bonesteel did, but Venus’s eyes started to move around more, seemingly to assess her situation and attempting to find a way out of Bái Hú’s grasp. She even started to struggle a little which Mikey did not take as a good sign.

Bái Hú lifted her free paw up, her long sharp claws slowly protruding from fur. She used them to rip Venus’s scarf down.

The tip of her claw then rested dangerously on Venus’s neck, no blood drawn but the message clear. Mikey felt the fog try to control his thoughts, perhaps attempting to protect him from the high stress situation, but he fought against it, wrangling in every piece of coherent thought that he could and trying to gain back focus.

“So, you gonna talk?” Bonesteel asked again, and Mikey desperately searched his mind for any such image of a gold shuriken, yet nothing would come up. Mikey was aware his mind wasn’t the best at remembering things, even if he really wanted to, but he begged for a miracle to happen this once. For Venus’s safety was on the line this time, not a simple groan or inconvenience.

Nothing came up. He knew he didn’t have any other weapon than his chain and the gun in his pocket. He thought about using it, but the gun to his head had Mikey hesitating more than he wanted.

Still, all weapons had been stripped from him in that dungeon place. It could be that Venus was hiding it. But then that would mean there really was nothing he could do to help.

“Nothing? Well guess if that’s what you want…”

Mikey had hoped that Bái Hú would withdraw her claws from Venus’s throat and start searching her pockets. He hoped that, because of Bonesteel’s words, they were just bluffing before.

Mikey’s hope was completely crushed as he watched those iron claws dig into blue scales, scarlet quickly following the new injury before more was spilled as the claw stretched across her entire neck.

The fog came back and it was getting harder to breathe. He shoved his hands to the ground and tried to get up, but Bonesteel kicked him back down.

‘It’s okay, I’m used to this. It doesn’t hurt,’ Venus told him in a very plain tone but her face betrayed her. He could see the pain, see every muscle fighting for freedom, see her face scrunched up and her breaths choking.

Mikey knew she could heal, of course he did. But that did not give his mind any ease. She was still hurting.

Bái Hú dropped her body onto the concrete and he couldn’t help but remember Karai’s doing the same.

And when her eyes faced him, he felt tears well up as he saw she had that look Gram Gram had given him, one that was meant to preserve comfort and tried to say ‘It’s okay’.

Mikey hated that look because it brought him nothing but despair. For him, it was her resigning herself to her fate and he didn’t want that. He wanted her to fight and cry for help, showing some sign that her life wasn’t nearing the end.

Mikey did not want to see soft eyes, he wanted to see fire and gritty persistence.

Please

Mikey begged his ancestors for their power, for his body to start glowing, for a sudden surge of his mystic energy that could blast away the opponents and stop them from hurting Venus. He grasped in desperation at anything that could resemble his powers.

There was something. A small feeling, but it was disturbed, blocked, muffled he would even say. It was there yet he couldn’t reach it, no matter how far he strained and pushed, he couldn’t get to it.

There was nothing. Her blood was pouring and he was doing nothing.

He was going to watch another die because he was still helpless and weak.

Mikey squeezed his eyes shut, both to avoid seeing her as she choked on her own blood and to concentrate better. He clawed at the rooftop despite the horrible feeling it came with and pushed through every muscle, now demanding they do something. However before he could continue his attempt, a sudden shiver swarmed his body, as if he was suddenly thrown into a freezing lake.

The body pinning him was gone in an instant, a pained scream following from above. Mikey turned his head up and saw Bonesteel being held above him by a large creature of black fur. The head of the beast moved and Bonesteel’s body was thrown off the roof.

Bái Hú released a loud roar that almost paralyzed him again. In response, a hiss penetrated the air in response, viscous and cold, demanding to back off.

Bái Hú snarled and reached down for Venus. Mikey tried to scramble up, desperate to get to her before the tiger. Before he could even take a step though, a massive dark furred figure with a brown back charged Bái Hú and jumped onto her with a raging cat’s yowl.

Mikey wasn’t given a real chance to process what was happening because Venus pushed herself up and stumbled towards her swords that had been discarded when she was captured.

“Venus!” Mikey cried as he ran towards the other. Blood was still pouring out her neck, staining the white scarf, yet she acted as if that wasn’t a fact for her.

‘I’m fine.’ She grabbed his hand and he could feel her tremors transfer onto him. Mikey held her arm, hoping it would help her stability.

“Don’t lie to me,” Mikey couldn’t help the anger in his tone as he spoke. He hated that she was trying to treat him like a child in such a dire moment. He wasn’t that stupid or naive, he could take other’s loads.

“What are we doing?” Qing asked as he pulled up to the two.

Mikey was about to answer, only before he could, something grabbed the back of his hoodie and cape and lifted him several feet in the air. He cried out while waving his arms around, hoping to slip out of his clothes. Unfortunately, he was stuck in the layers.

Mikey felt the chain pull and looked down to see Venus holding onto the middle of the chain, hanging just above the ground. Mikey quickly lifted his foot and pulled her up more. It was a good thing too, because they just passed a wall that Venus would have hit for sure.

She reached out her arm and he grabbed it, lifting her up enough so he could wrap her in a hug so she wouldn’t fall. He couldn’t search for Qing and only hoped the dragon was somehow with them. They were being carried through the village, passing on top of houses and dashing down the paved street.

There was a pause in their movement and the one holding Mikey twisted around so Mikey could now see behind them. From afar he could see Bái Hú giving chase, now running on all fours with such speed that he knew she would be on them in just a few more seconds.

However before the tiger could make it any farther, a large bird, perhaps even bigger than Bái Hú herself, launched a brown talon down onto the tiger. The bird was vibrant, many different colors singing to his sight. From the brief time he was able to watch the bird pin Bái Hú down, Mikey tried to absorb every feature, but his gaze was captured by their long peacock-like tail feathers that looked as if each held a galaxy.

They were on the move before he could observe any more, racing through the streets again before they suddenly turned and headed straight for the wall. Mikey screamed as whatever was carrying them didn’t slow down as they approached it. Thankfully rather than becoming a splat on sand, the view shifted from the wall to a field of shiny gold sand.

Mikey recognized that they were outside and let out a sigh, almost relaxing.

Whatever was carrying them did not stop for a long time. Mikey couldn’t say if it was hours or not, he was too busy processing everything that had just happened. His mind flashed back and recounted everything. Then, it of course began imagining the alternative outcomes. He squeezed onto Venus tighter when he couldn’t stop thinking about her bleeding all over the roof, pressing her fingers to her neck in an attempt to either stop the bleeding or breath.

Mikey wasn’t sure how he would feel if Venus died. He only knew her for a few days but the bond that has been created felt like they had known each other for longer. Mikey still wanted his brothers to meet her, to gain that same bond with her as he did. He wanted her to stay with their family forever. Just thinking about never being able to see such a future made him sick, a stone rolling around his stomach.

She’s here. He tried to tell himself. It did not bring much comfort.

When they finally came to a stop, Mikey was gently lowered to the ground. He immediately twisted around and came face to face with the biggest cat he’d ever seen. It had to be as tall as the turtle tank!

The cat’s fur was black as charcoal, its eyes a searing red with narrow orange pupils. It sat, watching him with a neutral expression.

“Ohmigosh!” Mikey cried out while jumping back.

“It’s okay,” Qing said as he came out from behind the cat. “This is your pet spirit”

Mikey racked his brain for the name. He knew Qing had said it before, but where? Nothing was coming up for him. “Uh, what are you talking about?”

“The cat you got today? Just before we got attacked?” Qing looked flabbergasted to how Mikey couldn’t remember. Mikey shrugged off the reaction since it was one he was used to and tried again. The memory of Venus gifting him a little cat statue soon popped in his mind and Mikey gasped. “That cat statue!”

“Yes. It sensed you were in danger,” He explained before looking back at the cat. “This one is bigger than they normally are though”

‘Probably the best gift you’ll ever receive right?’ Venus asked as she moved up beside Mikey. He instantly took the opportunity to snatch her in a hug, ignoring her comment.

Venus tried to push him away, albeit with little effort. ‘Careful, you’ll get blood on your clothes’

“I’m so glad you’re not dead!” Mikey cried out as he squeezed harder without a care about the blood. He knew the words were very brash, but he honestly couldn’t think of another way to convey to her how happy he was that she was still with him.

Mikey quickly let go and practically shoved her chin up as he attempted to get a look at her wound. However the wound was completely gone, it was as if it hadn’t even happened. Still, he knew it did. “Are you okay!? Does it still hurt!?”

Venus grabbed his arm and pulled his hand away while glaring down at him. ‘I’m fine, I have strong healing powers remember? It can’t even get infected’

“What about you?” Mikey asked instead, “How do you feel?”

‘Does it really matter if the injury is gone now? It wasn’t even that bad’

Mikey frowned at her words and looked her in the eyes. “Just because you can heal fast doesn’t mean the pain or your feelings about it are meaningless”

Venus’s entire expression seemed to change from what he said, her eyes widening as if shocked while her mouth curved into a half-smile. Venus let go of his arm and turned away. ‘I am not in pain anymore, but I would like some time to myself’ her head tilted down to look at the chain, ‘Well, as much of that as I can get’

“Okay,” Mikey agreed before turning to Qing. “So, what’s the plan for going home now?”

Qing sighed, “I’ll have to find where we are first but our chances for a fast travel are gone. It may be an added two or three days now.”

A mix of frustration and anxiety crawled around in Mikey’s stomach after hearing the news. They hadn’t exactly been super close to getting back home, but this was a setback nonetheless. Why couldn’t they just have one day of smooth sailing? One day of simple travel. Was that really so much to ask for! It felt like April’s birthday on repeat! And what was even the reason for Bonesteel and Bái Hú to attack them!?

Oh right! That shuriken thing. Mikey wondered why the two thought they had it. He didn’t remember any golden shuriken. Could it be something they had taken it from the humans on the train?

That had to be it! Mikey looked around for his backpack, but quickly remembered that he had dropped it when the fight had begun. He groaned upon realizing this. There goes all his supplies…again. It’s a good thing he put the stickers on, but now all his treats and souvenirs were gone.

“What’s wrong?” Qing asked.

“I left my bag behind,” Mikey sighed

“Was there anything important in it?” The other questioned.

“No,” Mikey shook his head. “Just some cool stuff I got from before.”

Guess he could only hope the shuriken had been in the backpack. If it was, then their journey would probably be so much easier.

“We should start moving,” Qing announced while on his phone.

Mikey moaned upon hearing this, “Man, how long are we gonna be walking?” They didn’t have the van anymore and from what he could see there was nothing except sand for miles. He wasn’t sure he could even walk for more than an hour due to the fight and intense stress.

“Walking? We have your cat,” Qing wordlessly walked over to the cat and climbed up the furry mound. The giant floating wooden platform lowered and shrank just enough for him to catch the siding and pull himself up. The platform then began returning to its size. “Mongolia is very unpopulated, so we can travel like this until we make it to Russia.”

Mikey and Venus made their way up and onto the wooden platform as well. He didn’t say anything to her and Venus made her way to the ledge on the bowl-like structure. Anchovy slithered over to her and while she did not give the Mingshe any attention, she didn’t make him go away either.

As much as he wanted to stay by Venus’s side, she had requested alone time. So, he looked out at the seemingly endless desert.

Qing spoke to the cat with words Mikey couldn’t decipher. The cat on the other hand appeared to understand and they were soon enough moving in a run. Although the wooden platform was not at all affected by the movement aside from the brush of wind.

Mikey took the downtime to close his eyes and calm his nerves from the events that occurred before. That had been way too close for his liking. He tried not to remember Venus’s face or the way her blood poured out her throat or the horrifying way her body had fell against the concrete all too similar to the scene of Gram Gram’s last moments.

He especially tried to block out that henchmonkey’s possible death. That was one thing his mind could agree on.

Still, despite his attempts of forgetting or reigning in his feelings, Mikey was wrought with stress the entire ride.

Chapter Text

They traveled with the spirit for what appeared to be an entire day. Mikey wasn’t really keeping track as he was too busy resting for the majority of their trip across Mongolia. All he knew was that at one point it was day, then night, now it was day again.

The sand eventually turned to flat ground with sparse grass, then it changed to a forest with trees rivaling the size of the cat spirit.

Mikey depended on Qing to guide them, which he seemed to be doing as he was talking to the cat.

It wasn’t long before they finally stopped.

“Okay, we will rest here and I will figure out where we go next.” He told them before looking directly to Mikey, “Your spirit should go back to its smaller form once we get off”

Mikey wordlessly nodded in understanding before standing. Venus stood up next while Anchovy leaped off the platform and glided down.

Mikey waited until Venus was next to him before climbing to the edge. He jumped off, timing it just a second after her. It was getting a lot easier to tell her movements now that they had been together so long. Mikey wondered if she was the same.

They landed on a cold forest floor. Mikey still felt a little dizzy but he ignored it. Qing hopped off next to them with a small grunt.

Just as the other had told him, the cat spirit slowly shrunk in size until it was the small statue Venus had given him not long ago. Mikey picked up the little creature and whispered “Thanks” before carefully placing it into his hoodie pocket alongside both his weapons.

As soon as he retrieved said spirit, Qing began walking off. Mikey followed after with Venus making her way to his side. He wanted to ask where they were going, but he decided Qing knew what he was doing and simply did not question the other’s directing.

Things felt different. Well, of course things felt different but he was mainly focused on how Qing was different. He was talking in a more stiff tone and the air around him was stale. Before, the dragon Yokai had a more determined attitude. He was focused yet aware when he was taking them to their next destination.

Now, it appeared he was more reclusive and uneasy, like something was bothering him. Mikey wondered if the events from before were distressful for him as well and he also hadn’t shaken it off.

Venus was oddly normal. She was walking the same and didn’t have a sign of disturbance in her mood. It was as if what happened didn’t affect her at all, which he found hard to believe. How could anyone be perfectly fine after getting their throat cut open?

“Here,” Qing said with a cut in his tone. Mikey focused on what was in front of them and found a large open space with several buildings made of wood and tin or tile roofs. With all the fences everywhere, he assumed it was a camp.

“Where are we?” Mikey asked.

“A class club,” Qing answered shortly before he began walking towards one of the buildings.

Mikey put his hood on and pulled his scarf up more. He wished he could put on his sunglasses but those were unfortunately lost to his bag. He was going to get Anchovy as well but noticed the snake slip into Venus’s clothes.

However before they could start following, Qing turned to them and simply said “Wait here” before tapping his cloaked earring and transforming to his human disguise. He then entered the building and after a few minutes later, exited with a new pair of jangly keys.

Surprisingly, they left the building and actually had to walk for a few minutes before coming up on what looked like a two-story house along with a separate garage-looking building, probably the size of two April apartments, dare he say even three!

Mikey would have thought they were at the wrong place if it weren’t for Qing passing through the porch and unlocking the front door.

They passed through the door under one of the balconies with dark polished wood and were met with several different paths. On both sides there were doors, the one to the left was closed but the right one was wide open showing what looked like a spacious yet narrow living room. Just ahead were hickory stairs tightly leading up and to the right. Just beyond the stairs and to the right were two more doors.

Qing trudged up the stairs without saying anything. Assuming they were free to do whatever, Mikey decided to explore. Venus was right on his heel without resistance, asking questions about items she didn’t recognize, such as a big speaker or hair dryer.

They found that the house was massive and full of rooms. The ground floor had a spacious yet narrow living room with a comfy couch and chairs as well as a large metal fireplace. Since it was next to the kitchen, the dining table was there as well. The kitchen itself was filled with everything one would need, dishes, a washer, even a fancy coffee maker.

There was a second relaxation room with grey walls, a couch positioned across a hung TV, a bathroom, and a king sized bed.

On the second floor Mikey counted three bedrooms each with its own bathroom even including a whole shower. There wasn’t much else aside from a couple of balconies, so they made their way back downstairs where Qing was now in the kitchen.

The familiar sound of a coffee machine whirred throughout the room as they entered. Qing was leaned against one of the counters, his posture slouched and his face dragged down by exhaustion.

“How did you get a place like this?” Mikey asked. This place looked very expensive and Qing just didn’t give off the impression he was rich.

“My family are members, they like to ski here.”

There he went again, responding with a cut throat sentence and dead tone. He wasn’t even facing them as he spoke, his eyes set on the machine that had begun pouring dark liquid into a ceramic white mug.

“Are you okay?” Mikey decided to try a head on approach. He had yet to gather what Qing’s response to emotional aid had been so he just had to attempt the easiest approach first and adapt based on the reaction.

Qing’s tail twirled, although he wasn’t sure what that meant for the dragon. “I will tell you later” He grabbed the filled mug and placed it down in another place on the counter. “Would you two like some coffee? The beans are fresh”

“You got decaf?” Mikey didn’t do great with caffeine, even if he loved coffee. It wasn’t like he got hyper as many TV shows had told him would happen. If anything he actually loses energy and felt fatigued if he drank more than half a cup. Donnie explained the reason before but it went over his head. He said a lot about stimulants and that was as much as Mikey could recall. To be fair, the speech was given while he was fatigued by said coffee.

Qing checked a few of the cabinets before shaking his head. Mikey figured as much so he wasn't disappointed.

“Also” Qing began as he rested his back against the counter, finally facing the two. “I want to wash your clothes, they stink.

“But we just got these!” Mikey exclaimed as he grabbed the edge of his cape. How could they smell bad already!?

“They smelled bad when you got them, now they smell worse, especially the blood” He said with a wrinkled nose, like he was smelling the stench at that moment. Which, he probably was.

Mikey took a sniff of his cloak but there was hardly a scent he could catch. Was Qing’s sense of smell really that good? If so he would not survive a minute in the lair, that was for sure.

“In the other upstairs bedroom the closet has a set of robes for you to use while you take a shower and I wash your clothes”

Venus leaned closer to him. ‘If I knock him out that’ll solve the problem..and a few others’

Mikey shoved his elbow into his friend before smiling innocently at Qing, “We’ll get right to it!”

“Great, just leave your clothes outside the bathroom for me to pick up”

They made their way upstairs, with a little grievance from Venus who further suggested they just lock Qing outside so he wouldn’t smell them. Mikey of course turned this down. As annoying as it was, he actually wanted to take a shower for once. Plus, it would be nice not seeing Venus’s blood stained clothes.

They grabbed the robes, which looked more like soft fluffy brown coats, and went into the bathroom. Mikey decided to go first, although Venus got redressed in the robe beforehand. She took her clothes, then his, and waited outside the door.

Mikey relished in hot water pelting his shell and slouched to get more of his shell. Donnie’s tennis ball massage had nothing on water pressure!

He probably stayed there for a minute or two, soaking in the warmth and scratching of his shell. He tuned out the world for a moment, he could hardly even hear the showers rain of bullets. It was nice, a moment of peace.

Eventually he turned the shower off and grabbed his towel to dry off. Once finished, he put the robe on and opened the door to find Venus sitting not too far away, her leg stretched out to give her more room from the chain’s limit. In her hand was his bandana, although it wasn’t the usual bright orange he knew it by, it was stained with brown all over. Must have been from the mud fight.

‘How come you wear this?’ Venus asked before Mikey could tell her the shower was ready.

“Cause I’m a ninja,” he answered with a hint of confidence in his voice. He was very proud to be a ninja after all.

‘Ninja..’ Venus seemed to test the word, although she didn’t appear to understand its meaning. He opened his mouth to explain but was interrupted as she suddenly ‘spoke’ again.

‘Ah, right, an assassin. But why orange? It is not exactly a stealthy colour’

“It’s my own personal flair,” Mikey said with a palm to his chest. “I wanted some personality. Like Lou Jitsu! Plus, orange is the best colour”

Lou Jitsu had been the inspiration for Mikey and his brothers to fight with style and express themselves, even if it was flashy. As long as they had the skill, they could get away with a bit of pazazz.

Venus hummed before following with, ‘Come to think of it, you don’t really fight like an assassin. Or keep quiet like one’

Mikey threw his towel on her head for the insult and she quickly swiped if off.

“I do a mix of ninjitsu and acrobatics with a sprinkle of ballet. Being a ninja doesn’t mean I have to follow one style.”

‘Isn’t ballet dancing?’ She questioned.

Mikey huffed and strutted out of the bathroom on his toes, “Yes, how do you think I got such sweet moves? I’m freestyle baby!”

Venus nodded in agreement ‘You do have more fluidity and better control in your movements than your brothers. Is that why?’

Mikey did a little leap from behind Venus and landed on his hands. “I’m flippin circles around them daily!”

‘Perhaps I should try mixing my fighting with activities as well. What would you recommend?’

Just to show off more, he stayed in the handstand and lifted one hand up to tap his chin. When it came to Venus he knew her style was simple. She ran into fights head on and while she sometimes came up with good ideas, they were usually not thought out too far.

Granted, she had power behind her attacks making strategy less needed. She especially liked kicks. She was kinda like Raph, only he used his fist more.

Of course, that’s what he’s observed recently. Before she got the swords she mainly used magic or those claws, so she was probably best experienced with close combat. If that was true..

“Kickboxing if you haven’t. Maybe a bit of wrestling too?” He wasn’t sure if wrestling would be her style necessarily but who knows. “Oh! And soccer, definitely. If you want more fluid hip movement I recommend some hip hop dance”

‘Yeah I have no idea what any of that meant”

Mikey groaned and slapped his forehead. “Do you even watch sports?”

Venus moved her legs up and wrapped her arms around them while staring at the bathroom.

‘Me and my dad used to watch figure skating. We went to every show. I also played table tennis for a while, but those are the only sports I bothered with.’

Well, at least she had a life. Mikey worried for a second there. Well..he was still pretty concerned for Venus. She didn’t appear affected by the events that happened with the hunters, but Mikey knew better than to chalk such behavior to being okay.

It was always great when his family listened to his advice and talked things out but sometimes they would still let things build up. It was pretty easy to spot the signs for him now though. Raph was more prone to yelling, talking to himself, and destroying useless objects.

Donnie would become more irritated with everything and isolate himself, which wasn’t exactly a one hundred percent accurate assessment. When he wasn’t making anything he would just listen to music or watch videos. It was his way of de-stressing but sometimes it would get him stuck in an unproductive loop, and Donnie hated being unproductive. He also tended to scratch himself if he didn’t have a good enough distraction.

April was similar to him in this area, although unlike him she was more likely to start gorging on unhealthy snacks to cope.

Leo was the one he couldn’t read as well. His brother was an expert at hiding emotions, though to be fair he was also good about taking care of himself. Still, that fact was also a fault as he would believe he can take on anything and would be stubborn and embarrassed when he can’t. The only time Mikey knew he really needed help was when he would wordlessly come into his room and snuggle up.

And of course dad would just..shut down.

But he hadn’t been around Venus long enough to know signs like those. She wasn’t scratching, being extra cuddly or aversive. She was acting completely normal despite what happened. But how? Mikey thought that he would definitely need some special care if he got his throat sliced open.

Perhaps it was time to let Dr. Feelings have a little chat with Venus. Test her, try and open those locked cabinets. He didn’t want to be pushy, but she seemed way more open then when they had their first real conversation in those humans home. Besides, what kind of friend would he be if he ignored the possibility of her suffering through something alone?

Mikey didn’t try to psyche himself up before saying it, he just dove right in as he sat down beside her. “Hey Vee, are you okay?”

Venu’s face twisted into surprise when he asked before she turned away to look back at his bandana again. ‘Yes, why?’

“Well..what happened was a lot right?” Mikey tested carefully.

‘No, I told you, I’m used to it. I used to get injuries like that all the time in the Nexus and turf wars. I’d be dead a hundred times over if not for the scale.’

Mikey felt immense concern about how casually Venus was telling him she’s basically used to getting hurt.

‘It’s really not any different from you. You get hurt fighting too.’

Okay, she had him there. Perhaps he was being..oh no, was he being a worried overprotective mother hen right now!?!? How did this happen!? Was it because Venus was a face he wasn’t used to seeing fight? How could he be such a hypocrite!?

But also..was this how Raph felt all the time? Because he was seeing why his older brother could be a bit..distressed about him getting hurt.

Still, Mikey knew what it was like on the receiving end and it wasn’t great either. Venus wasn’t a baby who needed to be coddled and shied away from danger. She clearly had a handle on it like he did..actually, she was probably above him on that ladder. Along with his brother’s.

‘What about you? You’ve seemed stressed.’

Mikey felt a shock ripple through him. He was not expecting the conversation to be turned on him.

“A little, yeah,” he admitted while messing with his hands. “I’ll be okay though”

‘You sure?’ Venus asked.

“Yeah,” Mikey affirmed, not looking up from his hands. “I just need some time is all”

‘Let’s watch stuff again,’ Venus suggested before standing up and handing him his bandana.

“Yeah,” Mikey agreed as he took the worn fabric and began messing with it as she had. A distraction and bonding time would do nicely for recovery from yesterday’s events.

...

After Venus finally took her shower they left the bathroom and made their way downstairs. They handed their clothes off to Qing before Mikey brought them into the kitchen where he hoped to find some food so they could snack while they watched movies. Unfortunately, all those pretty cabinets were empty like his heart upon seeing them.

They left the kitchen to the narrow resting area and Mikey turned on the TV. It wasn’t difficult to figure out as the remote looked fairly similar to April’s. It wasn’t too useful however, as everything was in Russian. Still, having chattery foreign-spoken noises was better than a stale silence. He flipped the channels, trying to find something interesting before stopping when what appeared to be a live concert popped up.

Mikey decided to stay on it, which was a good choice because not only was the music good, Venus had become very invested. She even started tapping her foot along with the rhythm.

They were suffering through an ad when a load of warm clothes were thrown carelessly onto their laps. A light scent wafted from the clothes and Mikey picked up his hood to get a better sniff.

Citrus. He wasn’t too fond of the scent but it worked.

Mikey shuffled through the clothes to find his bandana and put it on. When he did, he couldn’t help but gasp as the fabric softly brushed against his scales. “It’s so soft!” Qing must have used some good soap because this thing hadn’t felt soft in months!

Venus on the other hand, was less receptive. ‘Why does everything smell so..food’

Mikey giggled at her failed sentence. “It’s from the soap used to wash them”

‘It’s giving me a headache’

Mikey put a hand on her shoulder followed by a little pat.

“Don’t worry, it should wear off in a couple hours, it always does”

Qing walked in front of the couch and took in a deep breath, then sighed.

“Now that’s what I’m talking about. Honestly I was worried your natural stink would be too much but I put enough”

Venus suddenly dumped her clothes onto Mikey’s lap before shooting up. She then calmly made her way over to Qing, not a speck of emotion to be seen on her face. Qing acknowledged her with a bit of confusion but otherwise said nothing for the moment.

Then, Venus suddenly lifted his arm, and violently bit down like a feral meerkat.

Qing screeched while shoving at her face, yet it seemed hopeless as she was locked on tight.

“Help! Get her off me!!!” He cried while trying to pry her jaws open with no luck. He didn’t seem in much pain, but still, this required the big guns.

Mikey cracked his knuckles and shook his head before an odd smile graced his lips.

“Don’t worry, Doctor Delicate Touch will handle this” He assured, standing still for a moment to create that sense of unexpectancy.

He then, at the top of his, screamed.

“GET A GRIP ON YO-SELF!!!”

After shouting Mikey grabbed her waist and managed to rip her away from Qing, leaving behind a wet spot over his sleeve from escaped saliva. Venus stayed limp in his grasp, not putting up any kind of fight.

‘Wow, I did not know you had that in you. Kinda impressed honestly, you should do it more often.’

Mikey proudly smiled at her admiration. “When your the youngest of five you gotta learn to get their attention and assert dominance”

Venus chuckled at his remark and finally gathered her footing again, pushing him away.

“Why would you bite me!” Qing exclaimed as he tenderly held his arm, the sleeve rolled up to show..nothing, not even imprints of bite marks. He was definitely exaggerating.

Venus shrugged in response, as if the reason was obvious.

Qing turned to Mikey, repeatedly asking, “Why would she bite me!”

Mikey decided to play along and copied her shrug. Qing groaned with frustration from the lack of response and turned away, leaving the room but not before giving them the stink eye over his shoulder as he closed the door.

Mikey and Venus both laughed before going back to listening to the concert in peace.

...

They spent the next few hours flipping through movies and TV shows before Qing came back claiming lunch was outside. They decided to change before going out, and when they exited the back of the house they found Qing tending to a green fire with odd purple meat cooking in a skillet over it. Surrounding the fire were three fancy white lawn chairs. Two were set next to each other while the other was on the opposite side of the fire.

Mikey and Venus sat down in their chairs, although Mikey wasn’t too sure how he felt eating purple meat. His thoughts must have been on his face as well because Qing said,

“What? I cooked this with my friends all the time.”

“Right, I’m just not used to Yokai food.” Mikey explained.

“You will like” Qing said as he plucked a random spice bottle from the ground, alongside several other bottles and plates. He gently shook it over the meat, sprinkling small green flakes on top. “Unless you don’t have taste, which I would not be surprised if one of you doesn’t,” he specifically pointed a look at Venus before continuing to tend to the food.

Mikey quickly turned to Venus, who already had a rock in her hand. He slowly pushed her hand down and shook his head. She rolled her eyes before dropping the rock and they both sat back in their chairs innocently.

Qing finished up the meat and handed them a plate before sitting down and starting on his meal with no chatter.

Mikey was fine with this. He liked listening to the crackling fire mixed with an occasional chatter of wildlife. It was a comfortable silence, no undertones of the odd energy that had been hung in the air like a nasty smelling candle. Not enough to choke on but still uncomfortable.

“So, where are you from?” Qing asked, breaking the peaceful silence.

“New York,” Mikey answered casually.

Qing’s face shifted to one absolutely flabbergasted after Mikey said this. “WHAT!?” he practically shouted while sitting up. “That’s so far! How did you end up all the way in China!?”

Mikey didn’t think it was all that strange. Yokai had plenty of ways to get across countries easily, like portals or cloaking broaches.

Still, he decided to tell the horrible tale.

“Me and my brothers snuck into a plane that was carrying a very dangerous item we needed to retrieve. But during our fight with Venus, my brother Donnie took control of the plane and accidentally opened the hatch where me and Venus fell out. I’m not sure what happened after that, everything is just blank.”

‘You got hit by a box,’ Venus said, finally filling in that missing piece of the puzzle.

“You were fighting?” Qing asked, turning his attention to Venus.

There was a moment of silence as Mikey waited for her to answer until realizing she couldn’t. Or rather, wouldn’t.

“Yeah, we were enemies before,” Mikey explained before turning the conversation to the other. “What about you? Why were you working for the Dragon Lord? And why help us?”

He knew the other had explained vaguely that the Dragon Lord couldn’t have them, but that did not really explain why he turned on his boss.

Qing sat up more, though his gaze fell away from them and instead to the fire. His neutral expression twisted to a frown and his face tightened with stress.

“He went too far.” There was a small pause before he continued, his tone as stiff as his posture as he told the story.

“He came to me the day you were found.”

...

Qing lay across a bed of dark blue sheets, a tablet propped on a pillow in front of him. His claws dove into a bowl of strange green chip-like food with worms before a few pieces were stuffed into his mouth.

He was waiting. His Lord had spoken about a spy in the New York Underground City possibly spotting the one with the Red Dragons Scale and had sent the Hǎijūn Shàoxiào to set a trap for the individual.

Qing was skeptical. They had been getting these ‘sightings’ for years now since the last discovery and none had turned up true thus far. And of course, his Lord took every single one seriously. He wasn’t criticizing his Lord, no. But to take such extreme measures every time even a whisper of a rumor appeared? It just felt like a waste of resources and time for every false sighting.

Qing wasn’t sure why the other was so obsessed with the power anyway. Sure it had great potential, but they lost it around two years ago. Normally they would move on and find a new powerful artifact. Yet the Dragon Lord insisted the scale was the thing that would restore the Yao Lung race back to the top.

Just as Qing reached for a warm mug on his nightstand, the door burst open. Qing jumped up, attempting to look as professional as he could, which was a losing case with the sight of his sloppy bed underneath.

Though his visitor did not seem the least bothered. The Dragon Lord himself stood at the doorway, a grin gleaming on his lips.

“We found it” was all he said before suddenly turning and leaving. Nothing needed to be said as Qing was jumping out of bed and rushing to catch up with his Lord.

The larger dragon continued as he turned a corner. “The scale of the Dragon King has been found. It resides in the body of a creature that is both Yao, animal, and human, and yet is its own species!”

His Lord turned, excitement gleaming across his features. “Dr. Queasy says that the one without the scale shows to have extreme mystic powers. He has even taken some of their DNA and created a special formula that will enhance the body and mystic power levels.”

They stopped outside a door painted an odd stark red. He knew some of the doors were coloured, but had never been inside the red one before.

A short mouse Yao approached them with two gas masks in his bandaged hands. The Yao’s fur was snow white, however patches of pink interrupted random spots. A consequence of some dangerous experiments gone wrong. A dead pink tail trailed behind, almost brown as dirt and grime made home to its skin.

Then there were his eyes, a haunting red behind goggles of a gas mask of his own.

Dr. Queasy.

Qing felt uneasy seeing the scientist. He had thankfully not encountered the other farther than seeing him on a few missions or just simply crossing paths in the house.

Qing did not like how he always smelled of blood and chemicals. Wick at least had the decency to try covering such scents with a bath, but the Doctor just allowed himself to be drenched in the acrid smells.

Qing graciously took the mask offered to him and put it on as soon as he could. It was heavy against his face but he made no complaint as he was finally freed of the stench.

Dr. Queasy opened the door and as soon as he walked inside Qing wished he could somehow wake up.

There were body parts. Not just any body parts, Yao bodies. His Lord and the doctor were talking, but Qing couldn’t process a word said, his mind was already in a dizzy spell, like he had been dumped into an icy lake and was sinking into the muck at the bottom.

His throat tightened as his stomach lurched up, ready to expel his very insides at the sights around him. He could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest, as if it was also trying to desperately escape the sight.

His thoughts were hardly strung back together as a hand fell on his shoulder. He turned to see his Lord staring with a look of unease himself.

“I apologize for the..unruly sight. I asked Wick to clean and clearly she hasn’t.”

He pulled Qing over to a table where several gold spider-like globes sat, one filled with green liquid. His Lord picked up the filled one and held it in front of Qing.

“This is the serum. If you inject it into yourself, it will temporarily give you the power I described.”

Qing did not move, did not say anything. He couldn’t work his mouth to move and he was sure if he said even a word then he would surely throw up.

His Lord set the item down but did not let go of his shoulder. “Once these are done and I have the scale I will perfect the hive mind and we can finally have our land back”

Qing still did not respond, his mind too busy struggling to stay conscious.

“I will be meeting the creatures soon. Unfortunately getting the scale will take time. It can only be given willingly, and I doubt the creature will just give it up.”

The grip on his shoulder tightened. “I have even decided you can be the one to have the other creatures soul, so you will be even more powerful than everyone else”

Qing could hardly even register the Lord’s cheerful words, but when they did he felt that it was becoming more difficult to inhale fresh air. There was no way the Lord expected him to do that. It was a practice that went far beyond sick. A banned practice from the few who could use it because even their race felt disgusted by possessing such a power.

Eating a creature's soul was far beyond the lengths Qing was willing to go for anything.

The Lord turned Qing to face him, his smile gone with a serious look. “In the meantime, stay upstairs. You can use the TV in one of the guest rooms. The living room one in off limits for the moment”

So you won’t hear the screams. Qing wondered if that was the hidden context to what the Lord was saying.

Seeing Qing still unresponsive, the Lord sighed and lifted his hand from his shoulder. “I see you are not happy with this room. Do not worry, once we have the surface this will never happen again.”

The Lord’s hand pressed against his back and guided him back out the room.

“Take some time my son.”

Son. The title normally brought a joyous feeling to his pride. It was rare to be considered a son among the rank, an honor, and a privilege few would ever touch.

Now? It felt like he was being choked.