Hello friends. This is one of my first stories, so I'd appreciate any feedback. I realize I'll probably be making a lot of mistakes along the way, but I'm finally trying my hand at this. I've admired the work of several authors for years, so I figured it's about time I tried to get my ideas out here. I'm not entirely sure where this story is going since it seems to be writing itself, but hopefully it turns out well. Here it goes! I don't own the turtles, but I love to put them in new situations and see what they'll do.

Leonardo often wondered how he got himself into these situations. If his brothers could see him now . . . better not to think about it. Mikey would laugh his shell off, and Raph would never let him live it down. Speaking of his brothers, where were they? They should have been here a while ago. He'd activated the tracking device on his phone as soon as the Kraang cornered him.

He grimaced and tried not to let Karai slip. Hanging from the ledge of a skyscraper, no problem. Rescuing a damsel in distress, common work. Trying not to be killed by Kraang droids while trying to hang onto a struggling kunoichi while hanging from the ledge of a skyscraper: a new experience.

"Let! Me! Go!" Karai shouted, punctuating each word with a painful blow to his forearm.

"I'm not letting you go! Haven't you seen the drop? Besides, I'm not letting you get away till I get some answers." Leonardo growled, tightened his grip on Karai's wrist, and tugged on the rope with his teeth. It seemed stable still. Time to trust the rope.

Letting go of the edge, Leonardo grit his teeth against the plunge his stomach took as they dropped a few feet. Knowing he didn't have long before the Kraang cut his lifeline, Leonardo quickly began swinging a grappling hook with his free hand and launched it toward the building next to them. Feeling the hook catch, Leo immediately secured the rope. And none too soon, since the Kraang cut the rope holding them to the skyscraper, and Leonardo felt his stomach plunge for the second time that night. He knew the landing would be painful. He hadn't been able to get an angle to land them on the roof. He'd have to settle for crashing through the window of the next building.

Just as they neared the building Leo swung Karai into the window, using her to break the glass and free up his body for a proper landing. Ignoring the slicing cuts from the broken glass, Leo tucked and rolled while simultaneously cutting the hook's rope. As he got to his feet, he duly noted that Karai had landed well and seemed to have avoided major injury from the glass.

Then Karai took off.

Seething, Leo raced to catch her. He wasn't going to let the fight end like this. He still had questions. Racing up the stairs, Leo followed Karai to the roof, but as he rounded the corner he realized he should have just let her go. It seemed the entire foot clan had come to her aid.

Backed by reinforcements, Karai smiled. "You are a fool, Leonardo. You know I'm under orders to kill you, don't you?"

"Please Karai. You don't have to do this. I know you don't want to kill me." Leo knew the bargaining was futile. Maybe she would have let him go if he had been able to confront her alone, but in front of the foot clan there was no way she'd leave him be. It'd be considered treason. Predictably Karai just smirked and shook her head.

"Fine. I won't let you do this!" Leo growled and launched himself toward her, ready for the foot ninja that moved to intercept him. Leo knew his own strength. He could handle the skill of the foot ninja on his own. It was the numbers that worried him. Not to mention that if Karai decided to join the fight, he'd really have trouble. Suddenly, resounding crash to his right halted Leonardo's charge.

Right. He'd forgotten about the Kraang. Obviously they weren't willing to let him go that easily. Taking advantage of the Foot's confusion, Leo swept the feet out from under the nearby ninja and raced for the edge of the roof. This was not a fight he could take on on his own, and he knew it. Looking back he saw that the rooftop had dissolved into an all out fight between the foot and the Kraang. Let them fight, they'd decrease the numbers to come after him, and maybe, just maybe, he'd be able to get away before they realized.

His graceful landing to the next building was shattered as Karai barreled into him. They both rolled to their feet and began circling each other. There was no hate in her eyes. "Why Karai? Why do you stay with the foot when you obviously aren't evil like them?"

Confusion plastered itself on Karai's face only to be replaced by annoyance. "Really! What do I have to do to get it through your goody little two-shoed brain that I am "evil"! Seriously! I should have killed you that first time."

"You said I was interesting!" Leo reminded her.

"Yeah, well now you bore me." With this Karai charged. Leo focused his mind and became a blur. This was natural to him. Karai and him had fought enough for him to recognize her patterns. Mid-strike he saw her reach for the blinding powder and nocked her hand aside with his forearm, following it up blow to her shoulder with the hilt of his katana. Too late he realized the blinding powder was just a distraction and her dagger embedded itself in his shoulder.

Staggering backward, Leo growled. Something felt off about the wound. Already it was burning. An amateur probably wouldn't notice the difference, but Leo knew his body well. Time for a simple distraction.

"Well if I'm going to escape, we'll have to make it look like you tried hard won't we. Shredder might punish you." Karai simply smiled in reply. Leo shook his head to clear his mind and set his face into a grim smile. Karai stared at him with an equally deadly glare before shooting towards him. Quickly, Leo sheathed one katana and threw a whole pocket full of ninja stars at Karai. Although she blocked several them, a couple found their mark and distracted her long enough for Leo throw a smoke bomb and disappear over the edge of the building into the alley below.

Karai smirked. She may have lost him in this fight, but he probably wouldn't make it far. Not with that dagger still embedded. Sad. It was one of her favorites. But then again, it wasn't hard to replace poison daggers in the foot stronghold.