Family is Forever

Bug Busters: Part 4

Aria's POV:

Once the elevator reaches the floor to Big Mama's office, we sneak into the room as Leo reveals a secret vault as Donnie pulls out his tech bo.

Donnie: "This calls for the delicate touch of a genius."

Donnie transforms the end of his bo staff into a buzzsaw and starts sawing through the vault walls.

Donnie: *yells* "We should be through in a couple of hours!"

Leo: "Or we could do this."

Leo enters the code for the vault, which turns out to be the number '1' six times, and it opens to reveal Donnie's bug slapper and the jar of oozesquitoes we collected. We manage to collect our stuff when Gus walks in with the ball Mikey threw.

Gus: "Don't start a game of fetch you can't finish."

Big Mama: "Oh, no, no, no, no, no, dears. This simply will not do."

The chair behind Big Mama's desk swivels around to reveal her sitting with a glare.

Big Mama: "If there's one rule Big Mama has-"

Leo: "Is it forgive and forget?"

Raph: "Is it don't chew on the guests' slippers?"

Mikey: "Is it no using Raph's toothbrush?"

Donnie: "Is it Ohm's law?"

Big Mama: "No!"

Big Mama shape-shifts into her spider form and wraps each of us in separate gobs of web goo.

Big Mama: "My rule is, no stealing from Big Mama."

Suddenly, the window to our right breaks to reveal Baron Draxum riding in on giant vines.

Draxum: "And my rule is, no stealing from me!"

Mikey: "Mr. Sheep to the rescue!"

Donnie: "And that's a good thing? He tried to destroy us and use Aria as a test subject last time we saw him."

Big Mama: "Scramulent to see you again, Baron Draxum, but you really must earn to use the dimbally door."

Draxum: "You must learn to use real words."

Leo: "Huh, they know each other. If only one of us had seen that coming."

Raph: "You are a poor winner, Leo."

Draxum: "Those are my property. Fetch them, my pets."

Draxum's gargoyles fly in to grab the oozesquito jar until Gus grabs them in his teeth.

Big Mama: "I need these bimbally bugs for all those tasty victims they will mutate for my Battle Nexus."

Draxum: "Those were made for something much greater than your silly Battle Nexus. They're here to eliminate the human threat forever. I will have every last one on the surface."

Draxum lunges forward with his vines to attack Big Mama, and a battle breaks out between them. Meanwhile, Raph uses the spikes on the back of his shell to cut through our web-based imprisonment.

Draxum: "To the roof! Time for us Yokai to take over the surface."

Me: "Ok, new plan. Raph & Leo, you follow Baron von Mutton Chops up to the roof. Mikey & Donnie, you're with me on taking down Cujo & Charlotte's Web."

Leo and Raph portal up to the roof while the rest of us face off against Big Mama.

Donnie: *to Big Mama* "This'll teach you to compliment my work and give me my first positive reinforcement from a parent-aged adult ever!"

The three of us hop onto Donnie's bug slapper and take down Gus, but Big Mama attaches a string of web goo to Mikey's left foot before we can escape.

Donnie: "We've only got one web left. Better make it count."

Mikey: *to Big Mama* "Let me go!"

Me: "No, Mikey, you let go."

Mikey: "Oh! Okey-dokey!"

Mikey lets go of us as we fly upwards, shoot our last web into Big Mama's face, and catch him before he can fall through the air. We reconvene with Leo and Raph at the entrance to the hotel.

Donnie: "Everyone ok?"

Raph: "We're fine, but the squitoes got away. Another failed mission."

Donnie: "Not a total failure.-*gestures to the bug slapper*-We've got this to go get them now. Oh, I am, however, out of webs. So, uh, partial failure?"

Leo: "Raph, what was that crazy power-up? You saved my life!"

Raph: "I don't know. I just knew if I didn't save your life, I'd never hear the end of it from you."

Leo: "And on a side note, Draxum created us. He told me right before he threw me off the roof, so I don't think he's very attached."

Mikey: "What? Does that men we're teenage-"

Donnie: "Mutant-"

Leo: "Ninja-"

Raph: "Sheepmen?"

As we return to the Turtle Tank, the guys roll their eyes at Raph. On the ride home, Donnie places a hand on my shoulder, as I can't stop staring out the window.

Donnie: "You ok?"

Me: "Yeah, I'm fine."

Donnie: "Nope. I know all your looks. I know your 'happy' look, your 'Mikey got stuck in the skate ramp' look..."

I let out a small laugh at that, which gets Donnie to offer a small smile.

Donnie: "And that is definitely not your 'I'm fine' look. Talk to me."

Me: "I don't know. I'm glad we're all safe and have something to help us catch the bugs now, but I'm still as clueless as I initially was about finding the truth about my past. All I know is that my father is the only biological parent I have left, and I have no idea who or where he is."

Donnie: "Well, a least you know a little more about your mom. You know her name was Eliza, you have her eyes, and supposedly her voice. Furthermore, you know where your father is on some level. You just don't have an exact location yet. We'll help you find answers, Ari. I promise."

Me: "Really?"

Leo: "We'd be pretty lousy teammates if we didn't help one of our own, especially after all you've done for us these last few years."

I smile warmly at my family.

Me: "Thanks, guys. And hey, even if we come up with squat, you guys, Splinter, and April are all the family I need."

Mikey smiles as he pulls us all into one big group hug. Yeah, they're messy, and we have our differences, but when we come together to overcome life's challenges, I know I've found my forever family. And wherever my dad is, I hope he knows I miss him as much as I believe he misses me. Until I find him, I'm happy with Splinter filling that role.

End of Episode 11