A/N: Okay guys...I have some SERIOUS feels right now, you have no idea. I don't follow the comics (I have no money and I don't know where to read them online DX) but I saw what happened to Donnie in the IDW comics Issue #44 and...I gotta say I was pretty much bawling. But alas, this needed to be done because 'BURST of inspiration' came to me.

WARNING. THIS MAY CONTAIN SLIGHT SPOILERS FOR IDW COMIC, AND IT WILL CONTAIN BLOOD/GORE. And feels. You have been warned.

I OWN NOTHING.

Enjoy! But please don't kill me...

Owari

"...Life ain't always what you think it ought to be, no
Ain't even grey, but he buries his baby..."

Out of the four mutant turtle brothers, it was common knowledge that Donatello was the smart one.

He was the one who learned how to read long before his two older brothers did. He was the one who stayed up late in the night within his lab conducting experiments, though they usually managed to blow up in his face. He was the one who'd built all the vehicles, robots and air crafts that aided him and his brothers in battle after battle against the Foot Clan and the Kraang. He was the one that created the retro-mutagen to cure April's father, and ultimately the entire population of New York, though Mikey did deserve credit for that one...and better still, he was the only one who knew how to make it.

So of course someone would find out that he knew how to create the antidote sooner or later. Of course that someone had to be a mutant. Of course that mutant also had a partner that was twice his size and strength, and of course both mutants worked for their worst enemy, the Shredder.

Shredder wanted that retro mutagen more than anything. To cure 'his' daughter and turn her human again. Donnie already knew that the cure he'd created for Kirby and the other humans of New York wouldn't work on Karai due to her unique condition. But Shredder didn't know that. And even if he did, it wouldn't have stopped him from sending out two of his strongest henchmen - who also wanted the cure for themselves - to seek him out, capture him, bring him to Shredder by any means necessary, and force him to recreate the cure for him. Whatever fate awaited him after that, well, that was up to Shredder.

Donnie was supposed to be the smart one...so why hadn't he seen this coming before it was too late?

It happened after they'd returned from Dimension X...

After successfully curing all of the humans, reuniting April with her father (hopefully for good this time) and teleporting the Kraang back to their home dimension, the turtles celebrated their first major victory in three months. Despite earlier disagreements between the four brothers and the 'Mighty Mutanimals', the eight of them actually managed to pull it off together with no casualties...well, Kurtzman did get shot, but the important thing was that he was still alive. All in all, everyone was happy, and things were on their way to going back to normal.

Well, there was still one little problem. They still needed to find Karai.

Leonardo and Master Splinter both refused to give up on her. And unsurprisingly enough, Donnie, Raph, Mikey, April and Casey all felt the same. Even if they couldn't turn her back to normal, she still needed their help. They couldn't save her body, but if they could save whatever was left of her mind, that would be more than enough.

So it was as soon as things calmed down in the city, with homes being rebuilt and families being reunited, relocated, and the media all over the place updating the world about the unknown heroes that had saved them all from the oppressiveness of the Kraang, the turtles set out under the cover of night, accompanied by the Mutanimals, in search for the lost snake girl. Leonardo had proposed that they all split up in twos to cover more ground; Raph went with Pigeon Pete and took to the air (as well as to keep an eye on the bread-addicted bird), Leo went with Slash to cover the alleyways and warehouses, Mikey and Leatherhead went down into the sewers, leaving Donnie and Dr. Rockwell to scout the rooftops. Casey and April stayed with Master Splinter back in the lair to help him clear out the remaining Kraang bodies and debris from their home, but Leo kept them on standby should they need the extra help.

The purple clad turtle and the psychic monkey genius had been leaping from building to building (well, Rockwell floated with the Kraang device he had around his waist) for the better part of an hour, searching for any sign of Karai, and both were rather displeased when they found nothing, not even with the Ooze Specs that Donnie had brought with him.

It was as they took a moments rest on top of the Fortune Cookie Factory that Dr. Rockwell had a thought. "Say, Donatello," the monkey man mused as he floated beside Donnie and tapped him on the shoulder, who was busy fiddling with the Specs before he looked up at Rockwell expectantly. "I wager if we went down and scoured the streets near where you last saw her, we might have a better chance. After all, one would never stray too far from their nest now, would they?"

Donnie shook his head. "Nah, I highly doubt it," he sighed, giving up with the Specs for now as he put them back into his belt. "There's no way she'd go back to Coney Island now that Bebop and Rocksteady have been there. And if you count the number of humans around now, it wouldn't be safe there anymore."

Rockwell stared at him, raising a brow. "...I beg your pardon dear boy, but, who on earth are Bebop and Rocksteady?"

"Two new mutants that work for the Shredder," Donnie elaborated offhandedly with an exasperated roll of his eyes at the memory of the bumbling idiots who had, shockingly enough, almost killed them all. "One's a giant rhino, the other one's a warthog. Both want us dead, and both, as well as the rest of the Foot Clan, are looking for Karai just like us." Walking over to the edge of the building as he gazed down at the quiet streets down below, Donnie sighed, folding his arms over his chest. "I wouldn't be surprised if they'd managed to catch her already..." he muttered dejectedly.

Floating behind him, Rockwell regarded Donnie sympathetically as he frowned. He knew little about the young mutant girl they were looking for, other than the fact that she was Master Splinter's lost daughter from long ago, effectively making her the turtle's older sister. Though the monkey never had any brothers or sisters during his life as a human, he could understand Donatello's frustration and sadness; whether they'd been enemies in the past or not, she was still Splinter's daughter. They were still family. And Rockwell had seen the utter strength of their bond first-hand. They were always together. They always had each other's backs, no matter the odds stacked against them. And they never left anyone behind. The same went for Karai.

Despite himself, Rockwell found himself smiling as he stared at Donnie standing at the edge of the building, his frame highlighted by the lights of the city below and the moonlight above. For a team of young teenagers, these turtles were quite possibly the strongest, smartest, (aside from Rockwell himself of course) wisest and most caring individuals that he'd ever had the pleasure of meeting.

Lowering himself to the ground so that he was stood on all fours, he walked over to Donnie and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, snapping the turtle out of his reverie as he turned to look down at him in mild surprise. "Don't give up hope just yet, Donatello," he said, offering the younger genius a smile. "If you and your brothers could outwit and defeat an entire army of aliens from another dimension, and cure the population of New York using the retro-mutagen that you concocted, I'm sure that you will be able to find a way to find and cure your sister."

Donnie blinked once, his eyes widening in surprise as he stared at the monkey. Did Rockwell just compliment him? Returning the smile, Donnie nodded at the monkey scientist. "Thanks, Doctor. That...actually means quite a lot coming from you," he said earnestly.

Rockwell released his shoulder with a nod of his head, and levitated off the ground once more. "You're quite welcome, my boy," he replied, but then raised a warning finger. "But let this conversation be just between the two of us, yes?"

Donnie chuckled with a shake of his head. What was it with this guy and his pride? "Whatever you say," he grinned as he took out his T-Phone from his belt pocket. Reading the time at the top of the screen, Donnie frowned thoughtfully; it was nearly eleven o'clock at night, and they still had more ground to cover before they rendezvoused at Murakami's place in an hour. "Come on," he said, putting his phone away again as he beckoned Rockwell forwards. "We'd better get moving if we wanna cover more ground before midnight. I'll call Raph and see if he and Pigeon Pete have had any luck so far."

Rockwell nodded, and then the two mutants hurried onwards as they continued their search.

All the while, they remained unaware that they were being watched as they bounded over the rooftops.

From where he hid in the shadows behind a water tower, the large obscured figure chuckled lowly at what he'd just overheard. "So…the purple one is the one who made that retro-mutagen stuff, eh? Well, things just got a little more interesting!"

With that, the shadow was gone again, disappearing from sight as he leapt off the building with a loud whoop of excitement.

"...so, it is the purple banded turtle who knows how to create the retro-mutagen?"

"That's right, boss. I heard it all myself, ain't no mistakin' it! His name is Donatello. All the turtles are sayin' that he's the smart one and junk."

"So, he is one you are wanting, Shredder, da?"

"...Very well. If it is true that he is the only one who knows how to cure my daughter...then I want the two of you to find him and bring him to me by any means necessary."

"Whatever you say, big man. But, uh...what if he, y'know, doesn't do it?"

"...Then beat it out of him. He will give me that retro-mutagen solution..."

"Heh heh. I have good feelings that I will be liking this mission, don't you agree Bebop?"

"Wow to the wow, brother. I was in the mood for smashing some turtle shells tonight anyways...and STOP callin' me Bebop, yo! I told you, I hate that dang name!"

He'd tried to restrain it, but the yawn managed to escape him regardless of his efforts as Donnie stretched his arms outwards until he heard bones popping. With a sigh, he then let his arms flop uselessly to his sides. Even after another hour of searching, the mutant turtle and the monkey still found no trace of Karai. And worse still, after calling up the others, they all seemed to be having the same results, which was rather unsettling. If Karai wasn't even in the sewers, one of the 'safest' places to hide from the Foot, then either something must have happened to her, or she might have left the city entirely…

Surely she wouldn't have gone that far in order to protect them all, would she? Did she really believe she was that much of a danger to her friends and family?

Shaking off those thoughts for now, Donnie sighed heavily as he rubbed his eye with the back of his hand, turning to his levitating companion with a weary expression. "Well, we might as well head on back to Murkami's then, huh Rockwell?" he suggested with a shrug as they walked over to the edge of the abandoned house they stood upon. It was almost midnight anyways, and if they were late, they would be bombarded with endless text messages from his older brother asking him where they were.

"I concur, Donatello," Rockwell relented wearily, following Donnie as he leapt down the fire escape of the old house and landed soundlessly in the alleyway below. "Still, it's rather baffling how an individual such as herself could manage to hide so well with so many on the watch for her, don't you agree?" he mused, tapping his chin thoughtfully.

"Well, she is a snake, Rockwell. Snakes are naturally good at hiding from predators or whilst hunting for prey," Donnie replied distractedly as he took out his phone and typed a message to Leo, telling him that they were on their way before the older turtle could panic. "It doesn't help that she's also a highly trained kunoichi, which is pretty much the worst combination ever for a mutant, in my opinion."

Rockwell nodded in agreement. "Yes...especially if you are the one she's hunting for," he shuddered, earning a chuckle from the younger turtle as they reached the mouth of the alleyway. Looking left and right cautiously in search for any passing humans, the two mutants then hurried across for the alleyway on the other side of the street, keeping low and silent as possible all the while.

"Perhaps, but I doubt that she'd be hungry for turtle," Donnie joked in reply as they neared the other side of the street. "We're probably too crunchy for her tastes."

"Well, I know I'd like some turtle soup right now!"

Donnie and Rockwell froze, their eyes widening as they spun around in search for the voice that echoed from the shadows surrounding them. And with an inward shiver, Donnie realized just who that voice belonged to. "Oh no," he muttered, drawing out his Bo staff and spinning it before attaining a defensive stance as Rockwell came to stand by his side. "Not them again..."

With a thundering crash, the two mutants landed on the concrete directly behind the turtle and the monkey, making them both yelp in surprise as they whirled around to face their new foes.

Rockwell had deemed he would've been prepared for what he saw, for he'd seen far worse things in his time as a mutant. But despite this, his jaw dropped and his eyes popped out of their sockets upon the sight of the colossal rhino, roaring at the top of his lungs, and the shorter, lankier warthog as it grinned maliciously down at them.

"That's right, baby!" the warthog snorted, folding his arms smugly over his chest. "You miss us, turtle freak?"

Rockwell blinked hard, scarcely believing what he was seeing. "Who in Darwin's name are these two brutes, Donatello?!" he cried, taking cautious steps back as Donatello did the same, his Bo staff clenched tightly in his fists as he stood protectively in front of the monkey.

"Remember those two mutants I told you about earlier?" he said, and then wordlessly gestured the new pair of mutants with the end of his staff.

In response, Rockwell seemed to visibly pale as he looked back up at the two mutants, who easily towered over him and Donnie both, and were undoubtedly stronger. "...oh. I see," he stammered nervously. "So these are Bebop and Rocksteady, eh?"

Bebop's snout scrunched up into a grimace as he glared at Rockwell through his darkened shades. "Why does everybody keep callin' me Bebop?! That ain't my name, dangit!" he snapped with a huff.

Beside him, Rocksteady simply rolled his eyes heavenward with a sigh and a shake of his horned head. "Just go with it, Comrade," he muttered. "We have mission to do, so let us be getting on with it then, da?"

"Whatever," Bebop grumbled in relent, throwing his hands up in the air exasperatedly. As the two of them returned their attention to Donnie and Rockwell, they were immediately standing guarded once more, ready for whatever attack the pig and the rhino sent their way.

However, nothing could have prepared the young purple clad turtle for what happened next.

Rocksteady grinned devilishly down at the turtle, pounding his right fist into the palm of his left as he took a threatening step forwards. "Word is you are one who knows how to make retro-mutagen," he chuckled darkly, watching with undisguised glee as Donnie's expression morphed from firm determination to one of shock. "We has orders to get retro-mutagen from you, one way or other," Rocksteady leered.

Gawking up at the colossal pair, Rockwell gulped anxiously. This was not good, not good at all. Somehow, they'd found out that Donnie knew how to create the cure, and though he'd never met these behemoths before, it didn't take a genius to know that if they wanted something from them (or Donnie in this case) they really meant it when they declared they would get it one way or another. And he presumed that the 'other way' involved a staggering amount of pain.

"Donatello, you've faced these heathens before, so what do we do?" he asked, turning to the purple clad turtle beside him…only to find that he'd gone deathly still as he stared at the mutants before them. His grip on his staff had weakened, and his widened mahogany eyes were a raging storm of fear, disbelief, anger…

How had they figured it out so quickly? It was no secret that he was the brains of the team, but he hadn't thought that they would've…

No. Of course they would. Why wouldn't they? Shredder wanted the retro-mutagen for Karai. Bebop, Rocksteady, and possibly every other mutant in the Foot would want that retro-mutagen as well to cure themselves. It was only a matter of time before they all realized that Donnie was the only one out of his brothers who could provide such a cure…and then they would all be after him.

It was then that Donnie realized how stupid he'd been, how overconfident he'd been. He'd thought that by making the retro-mutagen, he could help people, people who deserved it.

But in the process, he hadn't realized that he'd ultimately doomed himself…

Coming up on Rocksteady's left, Bebop wore a similar grin to his larger partner as they closed in on the two smaller mutants. "So, y'all wanna do this the easy way, or do I have to crack a skull or two?" he sneered, his large hands outstretched to make a grab for Donnie, who appeared near catatonic as he stood there, unmoving and unblinking.

Growling dangerously as the brutes drew closer to Donnie, Rockwell leapt for Rocksteady with a loud, primal cry, grabbing the rhino by the horn and throwing mad punches at his face as he screeched. As Bebop moved to drag him off the stumbling rhino's face, the power of Rockwell's psychic amplifier held him at bay despite his struggles and muffled curses as his hands closed on thin air. As the melee continued, the ape turned back to Donnie, who remained as unresponsive as before. "Donatello! Snap out of it, boy!" he yelled. "You must get out of here, now!"

Blinking rapidly at Rockwell's call, Donnie finally shook himself out of his rigid state. His mind had drawn a complete blank after what Rocksteady said, and upon seeing what Rockwell had done, and what he'd just been asked to do, he gasped. "Rockwell, no! I can't leave you here!" he cried, shaking his head adamantly as he tightened his grip on his staff, ready to jump into the fray and help the monkey mutant. "You can't handle those two alone, they'll –"

"It doesn't matter!" Rockwell shouted back, grunting with effort as he fought to keep both mutants at bay using both his mind and his body, which was quickly becoming more and more difficult as Rocksteady thrashed back and forth. "They're after you, Donatello! They want your mind, your cure. And once they have it, there's no telling what the Shredder will do with it!"

Donnie's breath hitched, his eyes widening once more as the vile realization began to sink in. Rockwell was right. Even if the retro-mutagen couldn't cure Karai, if it ever fell into Shredder's hands, he could use it on him, his brothers, and turn them into normal turtles again. He could use it on Splinter…all of their mutant friends…then they would all be powerless to stop him…

"You cannot let yourself fall into their hands, Donatello!" Rockwell cried, his mental powers weakening as Bebop slowly drew closer and closer to the bucking rhino to grab him. "Don't worry about me, worry about yourself, your family! You must go! Run, find shelter, call your brothers – just get out of here!"

Despite the desperation in Rockwell's voice, despite Donnie's own fear pulsing through his veins, he still faltered as he watched the three mutants tussle. He couldn't just leave Rockwell alone to be beaten to death by Rocksteady and Bebop. Mentally, Rockwell was far superior to the likes of those two oafs, but his physical strength would do nothing compared to theirs.

Donnie wanted to help. He wanted to stand up and fight, not run away like a mere coward. Splinter had taught him better than that. But in the end, he knew that he had no other choice.

Squeezing his eyes shut, Donnie bowed his head. "…I'm so sorry, Rockwell…" he whispered brokenly. "…thank you…"

Sheathing his staff, Donnie spun on his heel and ran, ran as fast as his legs would carry him through the dark, blessedly empty streets of the city, not daring to look behind him despite the guilt and regret raging within him.

He knew that Rockwell couldn't hold them off for much longer. He knew that as soon as they'd dealt with him, Bebop and Rocksteady would follow Donnie wherever he went. Donnie knew that they wouldn't stop until they'd either captured him, or beat him until he begged for mercy and surrendered himself to the Shredder. Or worse…use him as bait to lure his brothers out like they'd done the last time at Coney Island.

His teeth grinding together, Donnie shook his head firmly, pushing himself to his limits as he ran, faster and faster, until he could feel his legs burning from the effort. No, he couldn't call his brothers, or the Mighty Mutanimals. He couldn't risk any of them getting hurt or caught because he was too weak to defend himself.

He had to hide. He had to run.

But little did Donnie know that as he ran, calling for his brothers' aid would have done him no good at all…

"Where the hell did these things even come from anyways?!"

"Doesn't matter; just take them down before they alert more!"

With a grunt of frustration, Slash nodded down at the smaller blue clad leader backed up against his shell as he raised his mace over his head, and violently smashed at the Foot robots surrounding them both before charging into the fray with a loud roar. The two mutant turtles had been heading back to Murakami's noodle shop through a vacant alleyway after Leonardo replied to Donatello's message, but they were abruptly cut off by several, heavily armed Foot Bots that charged them without warning. The ambush had earned Leo a nasty cut to the side of his face from a short blade and Slash a growing bruise on his arm, before the turtles retaliated in the next instant with extreme force.

Neither of them knew where the robots had come from, or why they'd suddenly decided to come after them, but they decided it didn't matter as they ploughed through them like they were nothing but flies…well, heavily equipped, highly dangerous and ridiculously fast flies. As long as they either destroyed the robots or escaped the battle with their shells still intact, their speed and skill didn't matter –

"GYAH!"

His eyes flying wide open, Slash turned just in time to watch as Leo was thrown and then smacked against the wall of the alley, his shell leaving a crevice in the brickwork before he slid down and collapsed limply to the ground. Slash gasped. "Leonardo!" he cried, rushing over to the unconscious turtle's side. Worriedly looking over his prone form, he pressed a finger to the side of his neck. He sighed in relief when he found a steady pulse. He was alright, but the back of his head and his shell had taken a bit of a beating after he'd been thrown into the wall.

He glared up at the Foot Bots closing in on them, their weapons bared and ready for another assault. Slash loathed running away from a fight that he knew he could win, with a little more effort of course. But if being a leader of his own team had taught him anything, it was that when a comrade was down, there was no other option but to fall back. Besides, he had to call the others and make sure that they hadn't been jumped by the Foot either.

Snarling through his snout as he narrowed his eyes, Slash adjusted his hold on Leonardo and lifted him carefully into his arms bridal style, before bounding up the fire escape at the side of the apartment complex and hurrying away from the battle ground, the Foot Bots predictably in hot pursuit. As he dug out a smoke bomb from Leo's belt and threw it down on the ground, he silently prayed that the rest of their teams were faring better as he disappeared from sight.

However, something in the back of his mind told Slash that this attack was not at all random. It seemed all too convenient that the Foot showed up at their precise location at that precise time…

The Foot were up to something. And Slash didn't like it.

Donnie knew that Rockwell wouldn't have lasted that long against Bebop and Rocksteady. He knew it, and still felt the guilt tearing him apart on the inside at the thought of what they'd done to him, simply because he'd tried to protect him. But he'd thought that he would've had a few extra minutes to get as far away from them as possible before they eventually gave chase.

And unfortunately for Donatello, rhino's and pigs were very fast animals compared to a turtle.

"Wow to the wow! Who knew turtles were so fast!" Bebop hollered from above, where he glided along on those strange purple whips of light that Donnie actually admired, but loathed at the same time as the warthog quickly gained on him. Not far behind, Rocksteady was ploughing through cars like they were no more than tin cans as he charged after the purple clad turtle, who was already panting heavily as sweat trickled down his brow.

At Bebop's remark, Donnie rolled his eyes. "That's a grossly uneducated stereotype!" he snapped back breathlessly. He couldn't believe that he was already tiring out. He hadn't been running for that long, had he...?

"Ha! You are in no position to be making the jokes, turtle!" Rocksteady jeered, reaching out a hand to make a grab for Donnie as he drew closer and closer. "Give up now, and we go easy on you!"

Growling under his labored breath, Donnie rummaged through his belts and drew out a smoke bomb. "Fat chance!" he barked, before throwing the smoke bomb and hitting Rocksteady square in the face. The rhino let out a startled cry as he stumbled to a halt, coughing and spluttering as the smoke filled his lungs and clouded his vision.

Donnie grinned triumphantly and let out a breathless laugh. Alright, so that was one down, and one to –

"Hee hee!"

Aw, crud…

Yelping in surprise, Donnie was forced to duck and roll to the other side of the street as Bebop sent down a wave of purple lasers aimed at his head, and ended up landing in a pile of trash scattered about at the mouth of an alleyway. One hit from one of those things, and Donnie would be out cold for another two hours, meaning he couldn't stick around for much longer. Scrambling out of the trash heap, Donnie then dashed through the ally, leaping over other trashcans and ducking under more laser blasts as the warthog gave chase.

"Give it up, turtle! You ain't goin' nowhere!" Bebop taunted with a haunting laugh that echoed through Donnie's ears.

But despite the taunts, despite the possibility that Bebop was right, and that he wouldn't get away no matter where he went or how fast he ran, Donnie didn't stop. He was tired, his legs and lungs were burning, begging him to stop and rest, but he kept going. He didn't look back, and he didn't dare to take out his T-Phone. Going down into the sewers was not an option either. They would undoubtedly follow him down there, and then find the lair again. So he had no choice but to keep on running. He had to protect his brothers from whatever traps those two had set for them if they ever tried to rescue him.

Leonardo had sacrificed himself to save them countless times before. Now, if he failed to escape in the very end, it would be Donnie's turn to take the fall, for their sakes…

"Can't you fly any faster, bird-brain?!"

"I-I'm tryin'! B-but you're kinda heavy for a turtle!"

"Oh, I'm sorry. Well, would you rather be a pin-cushion instead?!"

"No."

"Then hurry it up! Fly faster!"

As the over-sized pigeon mutant huffed as he towed the red clad turtle higher up into the air, trying to get as far away from the seemingly endless barrage of flying Foot Bots as possible, Raphael was sure that he'd hit his lowest possible point as a ninja. But he clung onto Pete's talons for dear life regardless of that fact as the Foot Bots picked up speed.

Normally, Raph would have stayed to fight them all off himself after they'd appeared out of nowhere…but there was the fact that Pigeon Pete couldn't really fight, and that Raph would have to protect him and fight off the robots at the same time. And though he hated to admit it, there was no way Raph could do both at once, mostly because Pigeon Pete was so unbearably ditzy. So the only course of action they could take was to retreat to the skies. But of course, Raph had forgotten that Foot Bots could fly, too.

So now, the highly trained martial artist was forced to rely on Pigeon Pete to get them both to safety. As if the night hadn't been bad enough, already.

"Hey, R-Raphael!" Pete called, yelping as he dodged the sharp projectiles that were tossed their way from behind, "Why don't you try and call the others for backup or somethin'?!"

Raph looked up at him and scowled deeply. "Are you crazy? I can't!" he snapped angrily.

"What? Why not?"

"Because if I try to get my phone, I'll slip and fall to my death, that's why!"

"Oh…right."

Raph rolled his eyes, fighting the urge to pinch the space between his brows as he shook his head in frustration. "Just keep going! We'll find a warehouse to hide in or something until they give up the chase!" he called. Pigeon Pete nodded once, before swerving sharply to the right in an attempt to throw the robots off course. To Raph's surprise, it actually worked, but not without the bird almost losing his grip on his turtle passenger as he let out a shout. "Pete!" he barked.

"Sorry, buddy!" Pete shrugged with a nervous chuckle.

Growling loudly, Raph shook his head again in exasperation. Honestly, out of all the people he could've been paired with, it had to be Pete. He would've rather been paired up with Michelangelo, the nosiest and most annoying out of all his brothers, than this useless feather brained –

Wait…speaking of brothers…

Panic began to rear its ugly head as Raph's eyes widened, and he gasped sharply in recollection. He had to contact the others right away. What if they needed help? Were they okay? Had the Foot gone after them as well?

But then again, he shouldn't worry too much. After all, Mikey was with Leatherhead, and Leo was with Slash. They were two of the most powerful mutants in New York City, hence why they made the perfect team. And with Mikey's speed and ingenuity, and with Leo's tactical mind and skill, they could surely handle a few lousy Foot Bots, right?

But what about Donnie and Dr. Rockwell? He'd never doubted that Donnie had become a strong warrior, and Rockwell's psychic powers were pretty handy, especially against robots. But there was only so much a wooden stick and a brain could do against an entire army of Robo Ninjas…

"Pete, pick up the pace!" Raph shouted urgently. "We've gotta find a safe place to call the others!"

Pigeon Pete gave Raph a salute. "Aye aye, Sir!" he said, before clumsily flapping onwards as fast as his lanky wings could carry himself and the turtle, not stopping even as the Foot Bots continued their assault.

Using the blade of his naginata to slice the chains off the door, Donnie quickly slipped inside the old, abandoned warehouse and slammed the door shut behind him, his eyes wide and wild with fear as he heaved in and out in exhaustion. His head snapped this way and that, trying to find a way to barricade the door before Bebop and Rocksteady caught up to him again. Spying several barrels of oil nearby, he hastily dragged them over and positioned them in front of the door, hoping beyond hope that they would hold them off long enough until he could figure out a way to escape.

However, in spite of the urgency and what little time he had left until they tracked him down and found him again, Donnie spared a moment to get his breath back as he doubled over, planting his hands heavily on his knees as sweat dripped down his brow. He felt so drained. He'd been running for what seemed like an eternity, and dreaded the fact that the chase was not over yet. Not only that, but terror was still running through him at the thought of being caught, being dragged to Shredder's lair and possibly tortured until he gave up the solution to the retro-mutagen…

"No, no, Donatello, focus!" Donnie scolded himself, giving himself a hard slap in the face for extra measure before straightening up. "Think. You're the smart one; figure a way to get yourself out of this mess…"

Nodding to himself once, Donnie turned to examine his surroundings. It appeared that he was inside some kind of old tool storage facility, for there were all kinds of rusted sledgehammers, axes, drills and the like littered all over the place, propped up on walls or stacked on crumbling shelves. The whole warehouse was dark, only two floors high, and was lit only by a few orange light bulbs that hung dimly from the ceiling. The walls were made of rotting wood rather than concrete, which made Donnie rather anxious; even Bebop could smash through them with ease –

"Stop that, Donnie!" he growled out loud with a shake of his head, trying to get his rapidly beating heart and his reeling mind under control as he squeezed his eyes shut and took in a deep breath.

'Breathe, be calm…you can do this. You're not going to die. You're not going to get caught. Just use your head…'

Once he deemed he'd succeeded in calming down enough to think straight, he slowly released the breath he'd been holding as he opened his eyes again, looking up to the top of the second floor in search for any means of escaping the warehouse. Maybe he could crawl through a window and –

But there weren't any windows. In fact, now that Donnie really looked at his so-called 'shelter', there seemed to be no way out other than the way he'd come in…

Donnie felt his heart drop into the pit of his belly as his brown eyes widened again in horror. There was no way out of here. He'd trapped himself. He'd just made it easier for Bebop and Rocksteady to –

"AH HA! Yo, Rocksteady! He's in here!"

Donnie gasped, whirling around to face the entrance as the voices behind the door, both smug and haunting all at once, drew closer and closer. Then they were banging against the rotting wood and the barricade of oil barrels, pounding their fists and feet against it with all their strength, and only adding to Donnie's terror as he took several wary, shaking steps backwards.

"We are coming for you, little turtle! There is no escaping us now!" Rocksteady chanted tauntingly, striking the wooden door yet again and sending splinters flying in all directions. The door wouldn't hold for much longer. In mere moments, they would break through, and Donnie would be finished.

In all his life, Donnie had never felt so afraid as he trembled violently. He wanted to scream. He wanted to cry. He wanted to repeatedly beat himself for being such a coward for running away, and for being an overly confident buffoon for not seeing what his creation would bring him in the end. But most of all, he wanted to tell his friends, his family, just how sorry he was for letting it all end like this…without even saying goodbye…

Wait…no. He couldn't give up now. If he gave up, then what would his brothers think? What would Splinter, his father, think if he knew that his son couldn't be the immovable mountain that he'd journeyed into the Spirit Plane to become?

Donnie narrowed his eyes as he stared down at his hands, before clenching them into tight, shaking fists. There had to be a way to escape this twisted fate. There had to be!

The purple clad turtle had only moments to dart into the shadows to hide before wood went flying across the warehouse as the door finally gave way.

"AW YEAH, BOI! FEAR THE NINJA TURTLE! FLEE FROM THE MIGHTY GATOR!"

Though they were both currently in a staggering amount of danger, with no guarantee of escaping with their lives, Leatherhead couldn't restrain the grin that spread across his reptilian features at Michelangelo's usual hyperactivity as they battled fiercely against the sudden barrage of robotic ninjas that flooded the narrow sewer tunnel one by one. It mattered not how many they faced, for they were no match for Michelangelo's rapid movement and near limitless energy, or for the strength of Leatherhead's crushing jaws as he laid waste to the soulless black creatures.

However, though they were faring rather well against the robots, Leatherhead could only continue worry about the safety of their friends. Had they been ambushed as well? Were they all alright? Also, how on earth did the Foot Bots know that he and Michelangelo would be down in the sewers in the first place…?

Something was wrong. He knew it, but for the life of him, he just couldn't figure out what it was. Was it simply an attack to single them out, to take them down whilst they were presumably at their weakest? Or was this simply a part of something much bigger…?

Spitting out the head of an unfortunate Foot Bot, Leatherhead turned back to Mikey, who'd just dispatched his last bot, and was dusting his hands off in satisfaction as he beamed up at his gator companion. "Michelangelo, can you contact your brothers?" he asked, not even glancing behind him as a final Foot Bot attempted to sneak up on him, and he simply slammed it into the sewage with his tail.

Mikey's smile faltered, his big blue eyes filled with curiosity as he tilted his head to the side, an action that Leatherhead found inwardly adorable. "Why? We beat all the Foot already," he shrugged. "What's up?"

"I fear there is something amiss from this attack," Leatherhead explained gravely, his dark emerald eyes roaming around at the chaos they had created after demolishing the robots. "This could not have been a coincidence; somehow, the Foot knew that we were here."

Gone was Michelangelo's earlier jubilant expression as it quickly changed to one of apprehension. "What do you mean, buddy?" he asked, already taking out his T-Phone as he quickly dialed Leonardo's number. "You think they planned this or something?"

"I am not sure, my friend," Leatherhead replied with a shake of his head, and then frowned deeply. "But I know that something is very wrong."

Biting his lip as the phone rang, Mikey grew increasingly nervous, gripping the device tightly as he held it against his ear. It was after what happened to Leonardo during the invasion that Mikey had learned not to take the Foot Clan as lightly as he had before. If Shredder was planning something against his family, it was nothing to laugh about, not even for the happiest of the turtle brothers. And his fear only increased when no one answered as the phone kept ringing, and ringing…

"…Hello? Michelangelo?"

Mikey gasped at the voice, and wasn't sure whether to be relieved, confused, or afraid. Instead, he decided that he was all three at once as he put the phone on loud speaker, beckoning Leatherhead to come closer. "Slash? Is that you? Where's Leo? Is he okay?! Tell me he's okay!" he cried in panic, but was quickly calmed as Leatherhead placed a large, webbed hand on his shoulder.

"Jeez, Mikey, calm down!" Slash's somewhat frustrated voice replied through the speakers. "He's fine, he's coming around now. We ran into some Foot on the way back to Murakami's, but we're okay. What about you and Leatherhead?"

"We got jumped on our way back, too," Mikey said, somewhat calmer now in knowing that his big brother was alright, for the most part that is. "We're still down in the sewers. You heard anything from Raph or Donnie yet?"

"Nah, nothing yet – wait, hold on, I got another call comin' in…it's Raphael!"

"Put him on, quick!" Mikey urged as he and Leatherhead leaned in close to the phone, waiting for Raph to come through.

"…Leo? You there, bro? Hello?!"

"RAPHAEL!" Slash and Mikey cried in unison, earning a sharp yelp from the red clad turtle. Beside Mikey, Leatherhead winced in sympathy.

"A-are you guys okay?" Raph asked once his hearing recovered. "Pigeon Pete and I were ambushed by a bunch of flying Foot Bots. We managed to throw them off our tails and hide in a – Pete, stop eating all the damn bread! Ugh…did the same thing happen to all of you?"

"Yep. Us too, brother," Slash replied.

"Yeah, we all got jumped," Mikey said, sharing a dreaded look with Leatherhead in realization. Raph and Pete were attacked, and so were Leo and Slash. Leatherhead was right; this was no coincidence. The Foot were definitely planning something, obviously some sort of trap. Then again, if it was a trap, why would Shredder only send out a handful of robots rather than his top henchmen, who were far greater threats?

A cold feeling then ran through the veins of the youngest turtle as his grip on the phone tightened.

"Guys…have any of you heard from Donnie yet?"

"Yoooohooo! Little turtle! Come out come out wherever you are!" Bebop sang, his voice echoing within the seemingly empty warehouse as he and his larger, horn headed partner strolled inside the abandoned complex. Bebop lifted his nose and sniffed the air once, before grinning widely as he chuckled and snorted. "We know you're in here! Might as well come out!" he called.

Beside him, Rocksteady cracked his knuckles as he grinned, his diamond eye glistening in the dim light. "We pinky promise not to pop head like blueberry too much if turtle cooperates," he said, though his tone was mocking as his god eye scanned the barren warehouse. "All you has to do is come quietly, give us retro-mutagen, and all will be as happy ever after!"

From where he sat hidden at the other side of the large space on the bottom floor, Donnie peered over the large wooden crates at the two mutants, who were both walking in the opposite direction of where he hid. He rolled his eyes. Figures; even with the nose of a blood-hound, Bebop was still no match for ninja stealth.

Ducking back behind his shelter, Donnie closed his eyes and bowed his head low, letting out a long, quiet breath as he fought once again for control. The crumpled piece of paper that he'd managed to find buried within his belt pocket was clenched tightly in his trembling fist, and the unsent message to Leonardo was still clearly displayed on the screen…

'Okay, Donatello…you can do this. They're not all that smart, so this should work. It has to…'

He had to do this, for his family, his friends…for all of New York City should The Shredder ever rise to power. It was now or never.

After sending a prayer to whoever was listening to him in that moment, Donnie put his T-Phone back into his belt and nodded to himself as he stood up from his hiding place, his hands raised in the air. "Okay! You caught me! I give up!" he shouted from the other side of the room.

Instantly, Bebop and Rocksteady snapped their heads around, their faces splitting with the grins they wore as they sauntered over to the turtle. "About time you surrender, turtle," Rocksteady said. However, instead of being fearful and cowering as he had been before, they were surprised to find that his expression was firm as he glared up at them both. He didn't flinch nor tremble as they approached him, remaining as immovable as stone.

The warthog raised a brow and folded his arms over his chest as he glowered down at Donatello. "What'chu planning, turtle?" he asked sceptically. "For someone who was runnin' away like a baby five seconds ago, you sure lookin' like you got somethin' up your sleeve…uh, shell."

Donnie scoffed at the term he'd used. "I'm not planning anything," he said, before holding out the folded piece of paper to them. "Here you go."

The two mutants stared at the paper, before sharing a befuddled look as Rocksteady snatched the sheet away from Donnie and unfolded it, quickly reading through the hastily scribbled list of chemicals and laboratory equipment. Once he'd reached the bottom of the list, he glanced back at Donnie again. "What is this?" he probed.

Donnie merely folded his arms over his chest. "Like I said; I give up. You wanted the solution for the retro-mutagen, right? There it is, all in black and white," he said, freeing a hand to gesture the sheet the rhino held. "Everything you need to make it is all there for you, just as you asked. There's no need for you to capture me or torture me now that you have that. So, just take it and I'll be on my way."

Their brows furrowing in bafflement, Bebop and Rocksteady turned to each other again. Seriously? That was it? He was just going to give up and hand the recipe over to them just like that?

"Hold on just a sec, lemme see that!" Bebop said, snatching the sheet away from Rocksteady and lifting up his shades so that he could clearly read through the list. "How do we know you ain't just playin' us just so we can let you go, turtle?" he asked, noticing how Rocksteady wordlessly moved to stand behind the lanky turtle.

"First of all, my name is Donatello; got it memorized?" Donnie snapped with a growl, though inwardly he was praying over and over again for them to buy it as he became aware of Rocksteady's presence behind him. "And second, I'm the genius of the group; the only one who knows how to make the retro-mutagen. Do you really want to question me? I know what I'm doing. Now let me go, and you can both happily skip back to Shredder singing over a jolly job well done," he said humorlessly.

Adjusting his shades over his eyes once more, Bebop stroked his chin as he hummed in thought, looking the turtle in the eye, who did the same as his mahogany pair narrowed, as if he were daring the pig to disagree with him. Finally, the warthog mutant shrugged, stuffing the paper into his pocket. "Alright, fair enough Donatello," Bebop said, and Donnie had to fight the urge to sigh heavily in relief as the warthog stepped back. "You're right. We got the retro-mutagen…so we don't need you anymore."

Donnie's triumphant smile faltered. "…wait, what?"

Before Donnie knew what was happening, Rocksteady's fist slammed into the side of his head and sent him flying and crashing to the other side of the room, his shell hitting the wooden wall before he slid down to the floor.

His head pounding as she shakily climbed to his hands and knees, Donnie spat blood out onto the floor as he gawked up at Bebop and Rocksteady, who were now looming over him as they cackled. "W-Wait a sec," Donnie stammered, "I-I gave you the solution! You said you'd let me go –"

He was cut off as Rocksteady grabbed him roughly by the throat and effortlessly lifted him off the ground, despite his struggles to claw the rhino's massive hand from around his neck as he helplessly kicked his legs. Rocksteady merely laughed again. "Yes, he promised," he said lowly, cocking his head towards Bebop before throwing Donnie again, this time to the other side of the room where the shelves of tools were stacked. "But I did not!"

As Donnie shakily picked himself up from off the ground again, his eyes widened in utter horror once more as the two mutant thugs charged towards him. Bebop's earlier words rang through his ears again…

"…We got the retro-mutagen…so we don't need you anymore."

It was then that Donnie finally realized. There was no way out of this now. No matter what he did, no matter where he ran, there was only one possible outcome to all of this…

Donatello was going to die.

"There's no mistaking it! Shredder sent out those Foot Bots to distract us!" Leonardo growled as he leapt off a water tower and continued his run over the rooftops, closely followed by his two remaining brothers and the Mighty Mutanimals as they bounded from rooftop to rooftop. Though he was still rather dizzy after being slammed into a brick wall earlier, the blue clad leader refused to let that slow him down as his eyes narrowed in anger.

"But why?!" Michelangelo called, clinging onto Leatherhead's scaly back for dear life as the gator dove down to the next rooftop. "What're they distracting us from? Is it Karai?"

"Doubt it!" Raphael said, running side by side with Leonardo and keeping a close eye on his older brother should he stumble or fall due to his head injury. "If it was Karai, they would've just taken her instead of going through all that trouble to keep us apart. They're probably going after Donnie and Rockwell!"

Quirking their brows in unison, Mikey and Leatherhead shared a look. Why would the Foot go after those two alone? What did they have that the others didn't that would provoke Shredder to target them? Well, whatever it was, there was no doubt in any of their minds that it was not going to be good. And if it was true that they were after Donnie and the Dr., then it would explain why neither of them were answering their communicators after several attempts to contact them…

"Oh my god!" Slash suddenly gasped, grinding to a halt on the next building as he stared down at the street below.

The others quickly followed suit as they gazed back at Slash's frozen form. "Slash? What's wrong?" Raph asked, noticing the look in his friends' eyes and not liking it in the least. But Slash didn't hear Raphael's worried query. His mouth had gone dry, and his blood seemed to freeze within his veins at the sight of…of…

"Rockwell!" he cried, before leaping off the edge of the building and landing with a thud on the ground below. The turtles and the remaining Mutanimals quickly hurried after Slash, who was kneeling down beside the prone form of the monkey mutant in the middle of the street…

…but he was covered in blood, scars and bruises that discoloured his fur, and the others couldn't tell if he was even breathing as they gathered around, gazing down in shock at the motionless chimp. His Psychic Amplifier had been crushed, reduced to nothing and tossed to the side like garbage with its parts strewn about the sidewalk.

"Oh my god…" Raph quivered, his emerald eyes wide at the state of Rockwell's body. "Who the hell did this…?"

"Rockwell?! Rockwell, can you hear me?! Say something!" Slash called out, shaking Rockwell's shoulder as hard as he dared to in hopes of waking him up, but he remained unresponsive. As panic began to settle in, Slash desperately looked up at Leatherhead, who was just as distraught and confused as he was as he held a trembling Mikey close to his chest, not wanting the young turtle to see what had become of their primate friend. Behind Leatherhead, Pigeon Pete was near tears as he covered his face with his hands and turned away.

"Get back everybody, give me some room!" Leo snapped, pushing Raph and Slash out of the way as he knelt down beside Rockwell. Laying his head against his chest, Leo closed his eyes and listened carefully…

…there. A heartbeat.

"He's okay, he's still alive," Leo sighed in relief, which was echoed heavily by the others around him.

Slash put a hand over his heart. "Thank god," the larger turtle said, though his voice cracked at the end of his sentence, as if he were fighting back the tears as Raph put a hand on his shoulder. Leo frowned. He'd never heard him sound so broken before…and it almost reminded the blue clad turtle of himself, how he'd felt whenever he'd seen his brothers hurt or endangered in any way. It appeared that Slash was learning the burdens of leadership that Leo was forced to carry every single day of his life…and clearly, he was hating it.

"...wait a sec," Mikey piped up, and they all turned to him as his face turned pale with fright. "If Rockwell is here…then what happened to Donnie?"

Leo's eyes widened, and he turned to face Raph, who mirrored his dread-filled expression. Mikey was right. Donatello had been with Rockwell the entire time…so where had he gone? Had he been taken by whoever had done this to their friend? Raphael felt his blood burn like fire at the very thought of it.

"…ugh…S-Slash…?"

All eyes widened at the sound of a strained, pain filled voice below them, and they looked down to find Rockwell finally stirring as his eyes flickered open. "Rockwell!" Leatherhead cried, releasing Mikey as he knelt down to put a gentle clawed hand over the monkey's battered head. "Are you alright, my friend? What happened to you?"

Rockwell's dark eyes were hazed, unfocused as he looked up at his friends gathered around him. Letting out a cough that rattled his entire body, he lifted up a shaking, bloody hand, which was quickly but softly grasped by Mikey as he fought to speak again. "…y-you must…h-h-help him…" he said weakly. "…t-they want him…for mutagen…"

Confused, Leonardo leaned in closer, straining to hear whatever Rockwell was trying to say. "What? Help who? What mutagen?" he asked.

However, what Rockwell said next was not at all what Leonardo wanted to hear. And it would haunt him for as long as he lived.

"…Bebop…and Rocksteady…after…D-Donatello. They want him…for mutagen cure…then…t-they'll…they'll kill him…"

It was never-ending.

They punched him, they kicked him, and they threw him into the walls and into the shelves of old tools and broken wooden crates, over and over again, and enjoying every minute of his pain. And when he refused to stay down, when he refused to let himself be beaten so easily though he knew his fate, they merely laughed at him before repeating the tormenting process anew. Now, he lay on the ground in a steadily growing pool of his own blood, his scarred, bruised body trembling as he groaned and hissed through his teeth in agony. His beloved staff, now snapped in two, was tossed to the side and well out of his reach.

Donnie coughed raggedly, more blood splattering onto the floor in the process. He wasn't sure how much more he could take. They were far too strong for him to take on alone, and certainly not in his current condition. He was unarmed, defenseless, and doomed to die by their hands…

No. No, he wasn't. He wasn't done yet!

His eyes hardening as he struggled to his hands and knees one last time, ignoring the sharp pain as he pulled at his bruised skin and broken bones, Donatello ground his teeth together as he glared up at Bebop and Rocksteady, who watched him with those same, stupidly smug grins still plastered across their faces.

He refused to die, not like this, and certainly not without putting up a proper fight. And besides, a ninja was never defenseless. His body was weak, but he still had his mind. If he couldn't beat them, he could still outwit them.

Wiping the smeared blood from off his lip as he shakily got to his feet, Donnie assumed a battle stance as the warthog and the rhino flanked him both sides, circling him like a pair of bloodthirsty hounds. "O-Okay, you freaks…come at me!" he shouted.

Bebop chuckled, cracking his knuckles readily as he stepped closer to the battered terrapin. "You still ain't giving up yet, fool? I thought you were supposed to be the smart one! Oh well, by all means then. Let's dance!" he snorted, before he and Rocksteady charged for him once more.

But Donnie was ready for them.

Waiting until the two of them were only meters away from him, Donnie gathered his remaining strength and leapt up into the air, back flipping out of the way just as the two mutants collided with each other instead, crumpling to the ground with a pained chorus of groans.

Landing unsteadily on his feet and wincing again as he landed on his bad leg, Donnie allowed himself a small victorious smile, before spinning on his heel and making a break for the door, his only means of escape now. He was almost there, almost free –

"Where're you going, twerp?!"

Before Donnie could even reach the door handle, Bebop had recovered from his collision with Rocksteady far quicker than he'd thought, and then grabbed Donnie roughly, sending the two of them crashing to the floor. Donnie struggled fiercely in Bebop's hold, but he was far too weak to do anything now; the last of his energy had been spent. He was going nowhere.

But he'd be damned if he let that stop him from trying. He couldn't die. Not here. Not now, or ever!

Picking himself off the floor as he rubbed his aching hon, Rocksteady growled. Beating the turtle up had been fun at first, but now it was time to end it. "I have enough with the games!" he snarled, reaching out and picking up a stray sledgehammer that had fallen from one of the shelves during the fight. "I am going to smash turtle, once and for all!"

"Well would ya hurry it up, Rock?! He's – grk! – squirmy!" Bebop grunted, struggling to pin Donatello to the ground as the turtle thrashed and bucked beneath him.

"Offa me, dammit!" Donnie screeched.

Rocksteady grinned, hauling the sledgehammer with him as he advanced the two of them. "On it, Comrade!"

As he continued to kick and lash out at Bebop, who's hold finally began to weaken, Donnie's eyes fell upon Rocksteady, who was fast approaching with a sledgehammer in hand…and his eyes widened as he watched, helpless, as he raised it over his head, ready to swing it down.

"No, no, what are you doing?!" Donnie cried, his horror filled eyes brimming with tears of terror as Rocksteady drew nearer. "No, wait, please don't!" he begged, just managing to slip out from Bebop's hold and stagger to his feet as he backed away, but it was no use. He was cornered. He was done for.

"NO!" Donnie shrieked, throwing his arms over his head.

The last thing Donatello saw was the rhino's wicked, murderous grin a he brought the hammer down.

CRACK!

"Hurry it up, you two! We can't let them hurt Donnie!" Leonardo shouted over his shoulder, his T-Phone gripped tightly in his hand as he, Raphael and Michelangelo tore across the rooftops, following the blinking purple light on the mapped screen.

After they'd sent the Mutanimals back to the lair to patch up Dr. Rockwell, the remaining three ninja turtles wasted no more time as they raced across the city, not stopping for a moment despite the overwhelming fear pulsing relentlessly through their bodies. Leo silently thanked the heavens above that Donnie hadn't turned is T-Phone off so they could track his signal, and even though he hadn't answered any of their calls, it brought them all a semblance of hope in knowing that wherever he was, they'd be able to find him and save him before it was too late.

"Leo! They wouldn't really kill Donnie, w-would they?!" Mikey stammered fearfully. "I mean, they need him to make the retro-mutagen, right?"

Turning his head so that he could glance back at his baby brother, Leo managed a reassuring smile as he nodded. "You're right, Mikey," he said. "They wouldn't kill him…"

"But we still gotta stop them from taking him to the Shredder!" Raph snapped, doubling his pace as he bounded over to the next rooftop. "Keep moving, guys!"

Nodding once, Mikey swallowed his fear and hurried after his older brothers, continuously telling himself that Donnie was going to be okay. Donnie was smart enough to get out of any situation. Donnie was strong enough to fend for himself. Donnie was fine. They wouldn't have a repeat of what happened to Leonardo three months ago.

Everything was going to be fine…

Nothing stirred, no one spoke.

A still, yet daunting silence had descended upon the inhabitants of the warehouse as Bebop and Rocksteady stared down at the purple clad turtle's unmoving form. At Rocksteady's side, the sledgehammer he held was drenched with dark crimson liquid that dripped down and stained the concrete floor.

"Whoa," Bebop said, finally breaking the silence as he lifted up his shades and gazed down at the turtle. "You split him in half, man…"

"Da," Rocksteady nodded once, peering over his horn at the mutant ninja. "Did not expect it to looking like that under there, eh Comrade?"

"Gross," Bebop muttered with a shudder, before pulling out the piece of paper with Donnie's scribbled handwriting on it and grinning smugly. He tapped Rocksteady on the shoulder and motioned his head towards the exit of the warehouse. "C'mon, let's get outta here and report back to the boss," he said. "We're done here anyways."

Rocksteady chuckled as he followed his partner, tossing the bloodied hammer to the side. "Da! Shredder is going to be happy for the picking of us to do special mission."

They walked out of the warehouse, laughing at their success as they disappeared into the night, leaving the warehouse and the turtle behind.

Donnie's hand twitched.

Slowly, his trembling, bloodstained hand reached into his belt pocket and pulled out his T-Phone. Though the screen was cracked, the unsent message was still there.

His vision blurring with tears, Donnie's breaths came out in weak, quiet huffs as he fought to whisper through numb lips…

"…I'm…s-sorry…I-I…l-love…you…"

His hand fell limp to the floor. Donnie stilled…

Bursting into the warehouse through the roof in a shower of splintered wood and bricks, the three turtles drew their weapons out, the enraged whites of their eyes glowing as they landed in the center of the bottom floor, ready to face the pig and the rhino head-on and save their brother…

…only to find that the warehouse was completely empty.

Blinking in surprise, the turtles sheathed their weapons and glanced around at the wooden complex. There were broken shelves and scattered tools lying about the ground, but no sign of any mutants…or Donatello.

Scowling, Raph reached out and took Leo by the shoulder. "Leo, you're sure this is the right place?" he asked, his voice low in case they really weren't alone in here. For extra measure, his other hand grasped the handle of his Sai tightly.

Taking his phone back out from his belt pocket, Leo glanced back down at the screen, where the blinking purple light hovered over the complex, and nodded. "I'm sure. This is definitely the right place," he said, his eyes lifting from the screen as he watched Mikey walk deeper into the warehouse, though his steps were light and cautious. "But, then again…there are signs of an intense struggle here…" Leo mused aloud, his brows creasing with worry as he turned back to Raphael. "Maybe he'd dropped his phone here during the fight…maybe they've already taken him back to Shredder's lair."

His expression turning grim, Raph growled. "Then let's stop wasting time already!" he barked, no longer caring if he was heard as he pounded his fist into his palm. "Let's get outta here, save Donnie, and then kick Bebop and Rocksteady's –"

Mikey's sharp cry silenced Raph as he and Leo spun around to find him standing frozen near the entrance of the warehouse, his hands shaking at his sides in terror. They hurried over to their baby brothers' side, their hands already reaching for their weapons again as they –

They stopped, grinding to a halt as they stared down in absolute horror.

Lying motionless on the floor, with the back of his shell smashed open as blood poured out from the crevice and pooled around his body, was Donatello. And mere inches away from his body, was the blood coated sledgehammer…

"DONNIE!" Raph and Mikey shrieked, falling to their knees by their brother's side as Mikey grasped his shoulder, shaking him as hard as he dared to as tears cascaded down his freckled cheeks. "Donnie! Donnie, say something! Please Donnie, don't go please don't go!"

"Donatello!" Raph cried, his hands balling into enraged, trembling fists as the tears poured from his eyes and dampened his mask. Quickly, he reached out and placed two fingers against Donnie's neck, desperately checking for a pulse, for anything that could tell him that his little brother was still alive. He checked…and checked again…and again…

His emerald eyes widened, his pupils dilated as he slowly looked up, his gaze meeting the frozen, horrified azure gaze of his older brother. Biting his lip to restrain the sob, Raph shook his head before covering his face with his hands.

Leo's breath hitched, his mouth falling open as the words became lodged in his throat. "…n-no…no, it can't…" he whispered, his voice weak and broken as tears brimmed in his eyes.

They hadn't been fast enough. They'd been too late to stop them.

Donatello was gone.

As Raph let his head fall against Donnie's destroyed carapace, unable to hold back the sobs any longer, Mikey howled helplessly, falling upon Donatello's body and clutching his limp, cold arm against his chest as the sobs wracked through him. "NOO!" he wailed. "DONNIE!"

His legs no longer able to support him, Leonardo fell to his knees, not caring if he became covered in blood as his dazed, hollow eyes stared at his brother's lifeless body, the cries and wails of despair fading into silence.

No…no, this couldn't be happening, this wasn't real. His little brother…he couldn't be gone…

Why hadn't he been fast enough to reach him in time? Why hadn't he called them for help before it was too late? Why did they do this to him? All these unanswered questions reeled through the young leader's mind…

Why…why…why?

Something beside Donnie's hand caught his eye, and Leo turned to find that Donnie's T-Phone was still on, the screen cracked and flickering, but still active. Reaching out a shaking hand, Leo grasped the phone and looked at the screen. It was an unsent message for him.

Leo read the message…and his eyes slowly widened. The phone slipped from his numbed fingers and clattered to the floor.

Slowly, Leo turned his head to stare past where Mikey sobbed against his arm and down at Donnie's face. Blood was tricking from the side of his mouth which was slightly hung open, and his eyes were closed…but he didn't look dead. He looked as though he were merely sleeping, dreaming soundly until the time came when gentle hands took him by the shoulders and woke him once more…

His shoulders shaking as he ground his teeth together, Leo finally released the tears as they rolled down his cheeks. He reached out, gently taking Donnie and cradling his upper half in his arms, using his thumb to wipe away the smeared blood and tears from off his cheeks.

"…Donatello," he whispered, before burying his face into the crook of his cold shoulder and sobbing as he cradled the back of his head, his cries joined by Raphael and Michelangelo as they gathered together, surrounding what remained of their poor brother as they held each other, not daring to let go...

'…my poor, brave little brother…'

_To Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo, or whoever ends up finding this phone.

_If you're reading this, it either means I've been captured, or I'm dead. Either way, it' imperative that you heed what I'm saying_

_Bebop and Rocksteady are after me. Somehow, Shredder found out that I created the retro-mutagen, and has sent them out to capture me, to force me to recreate the cure for him. However, I have devised a plan. Instead of surrendering myself, I gave them a list of ingredients and equipment that would synthesize the solution in hopes that they'd let me go. However, that list is a complete fake. None of those ingredients will make a retro-mutagen. All it will do is create a highly explosive chemical reaction. As if I'd ever let the retro-mutagen fall into Shredder's hands_

_I wish I'd thought about it sooner. I wish I'd seen the signs and read the warnings before it was too late. I can't change the past. But I can say that I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not being strong enough. I'm sorry for not calling for help when I knew the odds were against me. But I just didn't want to see anyone get hurt again because of my mistakes_

_I'm scared. I'm so scared. I don't even know if this plan will work. But even I know that it's too late to turn back now_

_It was me who'd made the cure. It was me who got too confident. So it's my time to pay the price for my actions_

_I'm so sorry April. I'm sorry Casey, Rockwell, all of my friends. I never meant for it to end this way. But whatever happens to me now, I will never forget any of you for as long as I live. And I hope, one day, you can find it in your hearts to forgive me_

_And to my father, my brothers…I love you. I love you all so much_

~Donatello Hamato