TMNT: Beauty and Dangerous (TMNT 2k12 OC fanfic)

Chapter 11: One Step Closer

We're so close, but I almost failed today... Why am I so tired...? No, I need to keep moving...

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   The six siblings continued down the path of their quest. It has been a long and exhausting day for the Hamatos, draining each of them both physically and emotionally. That day, Raph, Mikey and Leo almost lost their lives, and by the time Alex found a way to heal them, the eldest turtle was just sitting by death's door. This was something that shook the black-and-blue masked turtle to the core. He was thankful that Leo was still alive, but if he returned to his siblings with no help, they'd be dead. Alex's pace began to slow down, but it wasn't right at the moment when the others noticed something off.

    "And then Raph totally clobbered Spider Bytez to the ground after overcoming his anger." Mikey said cheerfully, finishing on recalling one of his brothers' first missions. "And you sure nothing else happened after that?" Raph asked, cracking his knuckles with a slight smirk. The freckled turtle felt a lump form and drop from his throat, letting out a nervous chuckle. "Regardless of what happened, Raph learned a very important lesson that night," Leo spoke up as he gently pushed Raph's hands down. "Right?" the blue masked turtle asked his hotheaded brother, a slight glare in his deep blue eyes.

   "Only if the enemies are somewhat tolerable." Raph responded. With that, Leo only rolled his eyes with a small smile. "I think Alex might've mentioned something about a mutant spider shortly after the Foot transferred to New York." Karai said. "Wait, Alex was there the whole time?!" Mikey asked, his voice stunned. "I don't think he was there all along." the kunoichi replied. "At least, that's from my understanding." Karai then looked over at Alex and called out, "You remember all that, right Alex?"

    Alex only glanced over his shoulder, barely looking at Karai and his brothers, and nodded slightly before looking back down. The Turtles were able to pick up this strange behavior right at that moment. "Whoa, is he okay?" Mikey asked out loud. "He's had it rough for the past few weeks, Mikey." Leo responded. "And not to mention what happened today." Donnie added. "All of us were almost killed by that assassin."

   The five siblings all looked at their brother, who has now stopped dead on his tracks. "All of us have exhausted ourselves because of what's been going on," Leo started. "From Alex's struggles with the mind control incident, to this whole Temptress ordeal, it hasn't been all that easy for us." Alex overheard everything from his siblings. He knew that they all made a point, but that did not help settle what was going on in his head.


   "Maybe we should all find someplace to rest for the night." Donnie suggested. "I'd argue like last night, but that depends on how much further we have to go." Raph said. "Hopefully not that far," Karai added. "It's kind of weird being in another plane of existence." she finished. "I just hope whatever Alex wants us to find is worth it." Raph added, agreeing to Karai's statement. "And let's not forget what's going on back home." Leo spoke up. "The longer we stay here, the more likely we won't have a New York to go back to."

   "Jeez, thanks for that mod of confidence, Leo." Raph said sarcastically. "I wasn't trying to motivate anyone here, Raph!" Leo argued back. "Regardless..." the red masked turtle muttered to himself. The eldest turtle then let out a sigh. "We also don't have time for all this arguing." Leo added. "Let's just settle down and camp here for the night." he said. 

   "It's not safe here..." a soft voice spoke up, directing the four Turtles and Karai to Alex. The cerulean blue-eyed turtle was kneeling on the ground, keeping one hand on the lush grass. "Some of Temptress's forces are within a few yards from here." he added to the observation.

   "And that means...?" Raph asked his younger brother. Alex looked up at his red masked brother, a sense of worry coming from both mutants. "We have to keep moving until we find someplace to rest." the scarred turtle stated. "That means we'll have to be careful maneuvering around our enemies," Donnie added. "Who knows what else we'll encounter here." The other siblings all nodded in agreement and continued the trek forward.

   The Hamatos were able to use their ninja stealth to avoid whatever forces in allegiance with Temptress swarmed the area. They used the shadows to their advantage, as well as Mikey and Alex's knowledge of the dark corruptive power the evil spirit had harnessed, when it would eventually come to conflict. From the corrupted plants to possible allies of Temptress, the six were careful to not get themselves caught. They were lucky enough to get themselves out of danger once they had reached safer territory, much to their relief.


   "Well, that wasn't so hard now, was it?" Raph asked out loud. Mikey then looked up, his baby blue eyes lighting up. "Hey guys, I think I see something over there!" he said joyously before running off. "Mikey, wait!" Leo called out, immediately running after his baby brothers. Donnie, Raph, Alex and Karai then followed pursuit of the two other Turtles. Mikey, as quickly as he started running, stopped dead on his tracks, almost causing the siblings behind him to run into each other and stumble. "Mikey, what the actual shell was that all about?!" Raph spat out, his voice tense. "I think I found our resting place!" the youngest turtle gleefully responded, pointing ahead of him.

    The five other Hamatos all looked over and saw a small hut just up ahead. "Is it even safe to go in there?" Karai asked her adoptive brothers. "I don't sense any threats there." Alex stated. With that, the six then proceeded to the hut, most of which are somewhat wary. Leo then gently knocked on the front door, slightly hesitant. "Hello? Is anyone in there?" he called out. After a couple minutes, the blue masked turtle was surprised to not get an answer. Raph, however, was naturally getting impatient.

   "This is just ridiculous, Leo." Raph said. "We should just let ourselves in." the hothead claimed, but he was too unsure if there really was someone inside. Leo then let out a quiet sigh and pulled the sliding door open, with the siblings all slowly entering inside. The large room was empty and quiet, but the space was more than large enough for the siblings to sleep for the night. "We should look around in case someone really is in here." Donnie said. The others all nodded in agreement and split up as they began to search around the hut.

    The Hamatos all met back in the main room after a few minutes, all of which found nothing indicating that someone is currently living in the hut. "I guess it's safe to say that we can spend the night here." Leo stated. The others all nodded in agreement and began to settle down in the main room. "You guys don't mind telling me more about your 'misadventures' now, won't you?" Karai asked as she sat down. "Not at all," Leo replied. "Now, what do you want to hear about next?"

   Mikey then looked over at Alex, who began taking off most of his gear for the night. "Alex?" he asked his older brother. The scarred turtle only looked up at his baby brother. "You feeling alright, dude?" Mikey asked with slight concern. "Yeah, I'm fine, Mikey," Alex responded. "I'm just tired, that's all." The orange masked turtle only looked down sadly upon this reply and then began to turn his gaze towards his other siblings.

   Alex looked at Mikey, recognizing his physical response and looked down sadly. "Dummy, you did it again," he thought to himself. "I really shouldn't be pushing Mikey away like this." Alex then let out a soft sigh and slowly closed his cerulean blue eyes. The others eventually noticed that their brother has immediately dozed off and kept quiet when telling their stories. Leo did take note on how Alex had isolated himself, and he can tell that something was bothering him. "I can talk to him in the morning before we head out." the leader said to himself.


   Later that night, the other five siblings had all fallen asleep. There really wasn't anything to keep the room lit, but the open windows provided some light for them to see. The Turtles had also taken off most of their gear just as the night before, with Leo, Raph, Donnie and Alex using their cloaks as pillows. The eldest turtle then woke up after hearing the sound of the door sliding shut and got himself up. Leo tiredly rubbed his eyes and looked to his right, where he had noticed that Alex and most of his stuff are gone.

    Leo then tied on his mask, stood up and quietly made his way to the front door. After pulling the door open, he looked outside to see a familiar figure sitting not far from the hut and by a nearby river. The jade green-skinned turtle carefully slid the door shut and walked over to Alex. The younger turtle was redressed in his cloak, but he was not wearing his hood up and his face was bare of his black-and-blue mask. Alex knelt close to the river, staring down at the mask in his hands, unaware that his eldest brother was now sitting beside him.

   "Alex?" Leo finally spoke up. Alex turned to face Leo, who wore a face of concern. "What are you doing out here?" the leader asked. "I couldn't sleep." Alex responded. "Well, Mikey said you went right to sleep." Leo recalled. "You sure there's nothing bothering you?" he asked. Alex then quietly sighed, not quite sure how to respond. "Leo... I'm scared..." the scarred turtle started. "I don't know what it is that's at the end of the journey, and I don't know how I can stop what Temptress started."

   Alex quickly balled his mask in his fist, tempted to throw it into the river. Leo quickly placed his hand over Alex, stopping him from throwing the mask away. "I'm scared too, Alex," the leader began. "And it's okay to feel that way, especially with how far you've come in this journey." he carefully lowering lowered Alex's and uncurling his brother's fingers to reveal his mask. "You've more than proved yourself to defeat Temptress," Leo added as he straightened out Alex's mask and placed it back in his brother's hand. "But what I'm worried about is that you're not learning to let it go."

   "Let what go?" Alex asked with uncertainty. "Whatever it is that's going on in your head." Leo replied, lightly poking his brother's forehead. Alex gently pushed his oldest brother's hand away, looking slightly annoyed. "I get it, Leo," he started. "You want me to let go of my past, but I can't." Alex stated. "Not when I have so many questions on who I'm supposed to be." the scarred turtle turned his gaze back down to the mask in his hands. With that, Leo let out a sigh and kept his gaze on Alex. "I think I see where a lot of this is coming from." the royal blue-eyed turtle said. Alex then met his gaze back at Leo.


   "Alex, who are you supposed to be?" Leo asked his younger brother. "I'm not sure where you're going with this, Leo." Alex responded with uncertainty. The blue masked turtle only raised a brow at his brother before asking, "Okay, then do you know who you are?" Alex then looked down at his reflection in the river and then back at his mask. "I'm your brother, Leo," the scarred turtle started. "I'm a Hamato, but I'm still figuring all that out."

    "Close enough, but I can take it." Leo said with a smile. "Alex, you are a Hamato, but I want you discover that purpose yourself rather than heavily relying on something you may be meant to do." the leader continued. "I know you have the answers you need to those questions in here." Leo finished as he pointed to Alex's chest. The younger turtle looked down at Leo's hand over his heart and gave him a sad smile. "I guess you're right." Alex said.

   Leo then nodded and looked ahead. "We should probably be at that temple of yours by tomorrow, if I'm not mistaken." he claimed. "It's real close, Leo," Alex replied. "I can just feel it somehow." The cerulean blue-eyed turtle looked up, sharing the view before him with Leo. After a moment of silence, Leo spoke up, "Maybe whatever else is at that temple has what other answers you're looking for." Alex only nodded, feeling himself get lost into the view. The leader gently nudged his brother's shoulder, snapping him out of it. "Sorry, Leo." Alex quickly shouted. "I did it again, didn't I?" he asked quietly.

   "Yeah, are you okay?" Leo asked. Alex only shrugged his shoulders. "I've been feeling kind of out of it ever since we crossed over to this Spirit Realm." he recalled. The deep blue-eyed turtle took a minute to process this information. "Maybe Donnie was onto something last night when he saw your eyes glow," he began. "My guess is that you're drawn to this place somehow." Leo hypothesized. Alex then faced Leo yet again. "That is a pretty good guess." the scarred turtle said.

   Leo nodded and let out a big yawn. "We should head back inside and sleep." he said. Alex exhaustedly nodded in agreement as he saw his brother stand back up. Leo then helped Alex back on his feet and looked at him with a wearily smile. "We still got a lot ahead of us tomorrow, and I know that you can pull through." the leader reassured. Alex nodded and followed Leo back into the hut. Both laid back down to rest, with both Leo and Alex falling right back to sleep. However, the rest that awaited the scarred turtle was anything but sweet dreams.


   Alex's cerulean blue eyes shot open and looked around. The sudden sounds of sirens and screams filled the city, which was the last place Alex expected to find himself in. "I'm back at New York...?" he asked himself. The black-and-blue masked turtle pushed himself upward and began to walk around. New York looked like it was in his vision before Temptress invaded the city. Everything was entangled with vines and the entire city looked to be deserted. Alex began to get an uneasy feeling as he walked around, and he stopped dead on his tracks when he saw a familiar figure trapped under the vines. "Oh no..." he muttered softly before bolting to the figure.

   Alex knelt to the ground, took out his blade and began cutting through the vines. He began to feel tears well up in his cerulean blue eyes as he cut enough vines to clearly see the figure. "Donatello, no!" the black-and-blue masked turtle cried. Alex had also noticed the red marks around Donnie's olive-green neck, indicating that the vines have likely strangled him. He had frantically checked on Donnie, who was barely alive. Alex then pulled his purple masked brother out of the heaping pile of vines, lifted him onto his back and ran across the block to get him someplace safe.

   After getting his genius brother to safety, Alex ran back out to the streets and continued his frantic search for the others. "Guys?!" he called out. "Guys, where are you?!" the cerulean blue-eyed mutant screamed. Alex was met with silence after all that, and it scared him. He then sensed something nearby, and, despite it being familiar, its presence was not a friendly one. "Your siblings won't save you this time, Alexander." a female voice said from behind. Alex turned around to face Temptress, suspended in the air with vines holding her up.

   "What did you do to them, you she-demon?!" Alex barked as he unsheathed his blade. "You amuse me, Alexander," Temptress said with an evil chuckle. "But the real question what did you do to them?" she asked in a taunting matter. The turtle's cerulean blue orbs widen in shock, but he wasn't sure what the evil spirit meant. "During your little quest, you lost complete control of your powers, killing most of them in the process." Temptress explained. "That's a lie!" Alex spat out. "And besides, I found Donatello right here!" he backed away from Temptress, in complete disbelief. "You did, but he escaped just so he could use his strange devices to save your precious New York." Temptress claimed. "But it could cost him his life." she smirked villainously, pleased to see the young Alex in a fragile state.


   Alex began to feel the tears well up and quickly dried his cerulean blue eyes. "The rest of your comrades, unfortunately, weren't as lucky." Temptress said as she then snapped her fingers. Alex then noticed a massive crowd surrounding him and the evil spirit, and much to his horror, noticed a few familiar faces in the crowd. Within the brainwashed, April, Casey, Rufus and Shade all stood, their weapons drawn, glowing pale green eyes and vines seemingly wrapped around parts of their necks, torsos and arms. The blade trembled in Alex's grip, especially when he noticed one particular face missing. "Where's my father?!"

   "Your father would have been a perfect warrior within my army," Temptress began slyly. "But he wasn't willing to comply to my cause." Alex then looked behind him and saw a familiar silhouette laying just feet away from him. "No..." the black-and-blue masked turtle whispered. Alex dropped his blade, ran over and knelt beside Splinter's body. The young mutant terrapin tightly grasped his father's lifeless hand and cried softly. "This... this isn't real..." Alex wept. "Oh, but it is, Alexander." Temptress responded; an evil grin spread on her face. "And I'm about to make this nightmare feel much worse."

   With a thrust of her arm, Temptress sent a vine towards Alex, coiling it around his body. The next thing he knew, Alex was pulled away from Splinter's body and over to Temptress. The female spirit turned the turtle over to face her, prepared to have her face be the last thing he sees. "Time for my garden to flourish." she said. Alex saw the vine wrap itself more around his body, with the tip moving underneath his plastron. It touched the turtle's chest, causing him to cry out as he felt a painful sensation in his body. The vine then began to glow bright blue, the energy coursing through and towards Temptress as she continued to absorb his power. Her pale green eyes then began to glow and turn in the same cerulean blue as Alex's, staring down at the weakened turtle with confidence.

   Alex felt weaker and weaker as his power was drained from his body. Eventually, Temptress had dropped the weakened turtle back to the solid ground and stared down at him with a twisted sense of glee. Alex struggled to push himself back up and collapsed back onto the ground. He felt his eyes begin to droop and used what strength he had left to stay awake. His cheek was pressed onto the cold concrete as he felt himself slip into unconsciousness. Alex then faintly heard a familiar voice scream out his name, as if it were from a distance.


   "Alex! Alex, wake up!" Mikey's voice hollered out. Alex then opened his eyes and turned his gaze over to his baby brother, who was shaking him awake. "Mikey...?" he muttered. "Alex, are you okay?!" the orange masked turtle asked frantically. "I heard you muttering and crying, and I got so worried!" As Mikey continued to ramble, the scarred turtle pushed himself upward and proceeded to walk out of the room, much to the freckled turtle's disappointment. "You can't keep walking away from me whenever I ask what's wrong!" he screamed out, a mixture of sadness and anger in his voice. "I'm not walking out on you," Alex responded quietly. "Just follow me, and don't wake the others."

   Mikey nodded, sprang up onto his feet and followed Alex out of the room. The cerulean blue-eyed turtle led Mikey to a smaller room just nearby and closed the door behind him. "Mikey, I just want to apologize for shutting you out lately." Alex began. "I repressed all my emotions as of late, because I was scared of what's been happening." the turtle continued to explain, all while making sure Mikey was paying attention. "Well, are you scared now?" the baby blue-eyed turtle asked. Alex only responded with a small nod. "What is it that you're scared about?" Mikey asked curiously.

   "Last night, I had a nightmare," Alex started. "It was all of my worst fears that came to light during this mission." he added. "Which are?" Mikey asked. "Losing all of you, Temptress taking over New York, her taking my powers..." the older turtle explained. His gaze then shifted to the floor, and he held back the tears that were ready to flow. "Losing Father..." Alex choked slightly. Mikey's baby blue orbs widened in shock upon hearing Alex's nightmare. "Alex, I'm so sorry..." he said. "No, don't be, Mikey." Alex insisted. "It was just a nightmare." he added, a hint of uncertainty in the overall response.


   "Do you get those a lot? These nightmares?" Mikey asked softly. Alex then looked back at his baby brother, a sad look in his eyes. "Only when I get scared, or alone, or both." the scarred turtle replied. "I had a lot when I was in that alleyway as a kid." Alex added. "I still get them to this day, and last night was no exception." he finished. "You're scared about facing Temptress, right?" Mikey asked yet again. "Just as much as with the Shredder." Alex responded. "Yeah, she is pretty scary." Mikey said with an awkward light chuckle.

   After seeing Alex still down, Mikey deeply sighed to himself and stepped closer to him. "Alex..." he said. The older brother looked at Mikey, who then threw his arms around him. Taken by surprise of the sudden embrace, Alex stood there stunned. "It's okay to be scared of all this stuff, but you can't let your fears get to you." Mikey said solemnly. "You might think you're by yourself, but you're not, and we're all here for you." the freckled turtle reassured. With that, Alex slowly returned the embrace, shut his eyes and began to cry softly.

   Mikey then proceeded to rub Alex's shell soothingly, knowing that his older brother needed the comfort. Moments later, both brothers broke their hug. The scarred turtle sniffled and wiped away what tears were left on his face. "Thanks, Mikey. I needed that." he told his baby brother. "No problemo, my dude." Mikey said with a warm smile. "But we should start getting ready to go." he added. Alex nodded in agreement and headed back to the main room, with Mikey following behind.


   After the others had woken up, the five Turtles and Karai had geared up and proceeded out of the hut. "Alright, where to next?" Raph asked Alex. The scarred turtle looked up ahead of the path. "Just past that forest, then we'll finally be there." he explained. "Good, we don't have much ahead." Raph responded with a nod. Donnie then tapped Alex's shoulder and offered him something in his hand. "Don't forget about this." the genius brother said. Alex looked down and saw the black-and-blue mask in Donnie's olive-green hand.

   Alex then smiled and took the mask from Donnie. "Thanks, Donnie." he said. "I think I'm going to need that." Alex then tied his mask back over his face and looked ahead. "We're one step closer, guys," he assured. "We'll be back to New York before you know it." Alex then began to pace down the path, making his way towards the forest. As the siblings followed Alex, Mikey stopped and looked around. Leo paused and looked back at his baby brother. "Mikey, is something wrong?" he asked. "I get the feeling that we're being followed." Mikey replied.

   Leo took a quick glance around before facing Mikey again. "Yeah, I think so too." the leader agreed. Both brothers looked around yet again before catching up to the rest of the group. Not far from them, within the woods, a deer watched the six Hamatos leave the hut and venture back on their path. It turned to face where they're headed next and proceeded to secretly follow them. Unaware to the Hamatos, what stood between them and the temple was not going to be easy to bypass.