A/N:

Hi, people! So guess who has strep throat? ...yep, me. :/ Which sucks cause I have a trip planned for this weekend, but it could be worse! I could have Ebola ;)

... Not funny? Yeah, probably not funny.

Anyway.

I updated in a week! Huzzah! :D I'm kind of playing the rest of the story by ear, so let's see how this chapter goes...

Enjoy!

- Haley

"So, what are we looking for?"

"Well, according to these star charts, the portal is set to open directly over Winter's Tower in the next 24 hours."

"So the legend is right! 3,000 years..."

"And when the portal opens, we'll lose the city to monsters within hours. Within days, the country. And within weeks...

The world."

"Careful, Raph. Don't over-work yourself."

Talk about a time crunch. Leonardo vaguely remembered Donatello and April talking about some portal opening before he left to fight with Raphael, but he was too angry to pay much attention.

Now, though? The team of ninjas had less than 24 hours to prepare to save the world. Again.

Which would be fine, if half the team wasn't injured badly enough that they probably wouldn't be able to fight.

Donnie's wrist and arm was still in bad shape, and a Bo staff typically takes both hands to wield. Michelangelo had healed pretty well; although, considering he suffered a head injury, it would be hard to tell the difference between normal Mikey and brain-damaged Mikey.

Raphael, however, was still suffering from a cracked shell. This didn't just hinder his fighting, but his movement in general. Even as Leonardo helped him practice, it was plain to see that Raph would be no use in an actual fight.

Which, of course, made a certain hot-headed turtle very, very frustrated.

Raph growled and threw his sais down on the ground. "Forget it, Leo. It ain't worth the time."

Leo sighed in defeat, moving to pick up his brother's weapons even as Raphael walked away. "We'll figure something out, Raph."

"No, we won't! I'm useless and you know it. I'm just gonna hold you guys back."

"Don't talk about yourself like that," Leo snapped. Raph shut his mouth and swallowed down whatever else he was going to say. Leo instantly back-pedaled. "I'm sorry. It's just..." He didn't have to say it. They both knew.

"I got it," Raph said quietly. "I'm gonna get some air."

Leo nodded. "Yeah, alright."

Raph was walking out when he noticed how guilty Leo looked. So, as a show of coolness, Raph reached over and clapped Leo on the shoulder. It got a smile out of the eldest brother, which is all Raphael could ask for.

Then Raph was gone...

He couldn't have realized that he wouldn't be going home again.

The rain was expected. After all, it had rained last time Raphael stood on this rooftop.

This time, though, he wasn't in his Night Watcher suit. He wasn't out of breath from being chased all over town. And he was alone.

Flashes of red and the sounds of blades rang in the back of his mind. His head began to pound; a sharp stabbing feeling ached in the front of his brain. Memories upon memories clouded his mind until it was like they were actually happening all over again, right in front of him.

Shadows were dancing. They were everywhere.

He was hallucinating. He had to be hallucinating.

Stab. Stab. Stab.

Kill him.

Kill Leo.

RAPH!

...

When Raphael opened his eyes, he was laying on the ground. Had he just passed out? Fainted like a little girl?

Well, at least no one else was there to see it.

Without even thinking, he sat up and pulled out his shell cell to dial a number. "Don? Yeah, it's me. Listen, I think somethin with that PSDT thing just happened." Mumbling. "Yeah, yeah, you know what I meant. I uh... I'm not feelin too hot." A question. "Yeah, that'd be good. Tell Leo I'm on the rooftop. He'll know what I mean... Yeah ok. Thanks." Beep. Raph looked around.

The glowing red sign gave the red-banded turtle an ominous feeling in the pit of his stomach. He couldn't tell if it was actual instinct or bad memories, but something felt wrong.

And then-

Ouch. A stinging sensation in his right shoulder. Raph barely had time to register that there was a dart in his arm before his whole world went black.

Leo led his brothers to the rooftop on which he and Raph had their fight... But the second oldest brother was nowhere to be seen.

"I don't understand," Leo muttered. "What other rooftop would he have meant?"

Mikey called Raphael's name over and over again, but there was no answer. Don scoured the area for some kind of hidden clue that would be hard to see, but he couldn't find anything either. Even Leo, who knew that rooftop better than anyone, wasn't having any luck.

"Do you think he started heading home?" The brothers met up again at the center of the building. Don looked at Leo expectantly, awaiting and answer. Leonardo shook his head. "I don't think so. Why would he tell us to come if he didn't plan on meeting us here?"

A moment of helpless silence passed between the group. Was their brother in trouble? Was he hurt somewhere? Or worse?

"I think the only thing we can do is go home and let me track his shell cell, if he still has it on him." Always the thinker, Don. Leo nodded in agreement. "Let's hurry, then."

"Not human... But clearly not the final monster."

"Yaotl won't know the difference. By time he realizes that this creature is not the thirteenth monster, it'll already be too late."