No Escape

Chapter 5

Leo was forced to his feet, a hand grabbing his shoulder and forcing him up. But his legs were like butter, so he kept falling. They placed the sack over his head again and didn't even bother with the cuffs. They knew he was too weak and hurt to do anything. As they walked down the hallway, Leo kept falling to his knees, forcing the ninjas to drag him.

As his knees were being dragged across the tile floor, all he could think about was that test, and how many more there was. If the tests were as brutal as that one, then Shredder was right. He would never see his brothers again. And as he was dragged across the floor, all he felt was the feeling of failure, like he gave up on everything, his brothers, his father, himself.

He tried to stagger to his feet, but once he stood up, his legs screamed in pain and gave way, he just ended up falling back down. Each time he fell, it hurt more and more inside, the guilt was eating him from inside out. He felt the tears fall onto the sack and stick to his skin.

He heard a door open and they made a sharp turn, then the sack was removed and he was thrown into his room. He hit the ground hard, but not hard enough to equal the hurt he was feeling in his heart.

"Your next test is tomorrow. Be ready." A ninja said.

Then the door closed and left Leo in a daunting loneliness. He felt his insides festering with the feeling of being alone. He was never alone, he always had someone to talk to. Donny... Mikey... Raph. Hearing that made his insides turn cold. He had never talked to any of his brothers like that, and what he said... Telling him that no one loved him... was the last thing that Raph would hear out of Leo's mouth.

Leo buried his face in his arms, his tiny whimpering turned into a hard cry. His mask soaked from the tears. He wished for a redo, to restart everything, to go back before that ambush the Purple Dragons set up, Leo's plan messing up and Mikey getting hurt... and Leo blaming Raph.

Leo hollered as he slammed his fist into the ground. So many regrets in one man... one monster. He deserved this, he deserved this punishment, being beaten mercilessly.

Something caught his eyes. He looked up and saw a glass of water, sitting in the middle of the room. He placed his hands flat on the floor and pushed himself up, but ended up falling. He groaned in pain, placed his hands on the floor and pulled himself closer to the water.

Once he was close enough, he reached and grabbed the warm glass of water. He didn't care, water was water. He held the water and pulled himself to the wall and leaned up against it. He lifted his arm and brought the water to his mouth, taking short and heavenly drinks.

He stopped himself, knowing that he wasn't going to get water often. Once he was satisfied, he placed the half full glass on the floor. Then leaned his head against the wall, he wondered what the next challenge was going to be. Was he going to be beaten again? Or something different? As this thought ran through his head, he unknowingly closed his eyes and drifted off into sleep.

.....

The beautiful morning sky hung high above the fields. Saki preferred the country, not the city. The city was filled with scum bags and politicians who don't know when to shut up.

The doors swung open and Karai walked in.

"My lord, the test is ready. When shall we proceed?" She asked.

Soon... warn our guest that his test will be in an hour." Saki said.

"Yes, my lord." Karai walked out of the room and walked down the hall.

Her thoughts uncertain about this whole scenario. Sure, capturing the turtle was necessary, but Karai thought the tests were a bit harsh. But hey... she didn't care. The Foot is better off without the turtles ruining everything. She turned into another hallway and stopped in front of Leonardo's door, the Foot ninja that guarded the door sprung to life and stood straight up.

"Warn the turtle that his test will be in an hour." Karai said.

The ninja nodded and Karai walked off. The ninja sighed, hating his job. He opened the door and looked at the turtle who sat up against the wall, giving the him a dirty look.

"Your test will be in an hour." The Foot ninja said.

Then he closed the door and left Leo alone. He muttered curse words under his breath, thinking about the sleepless night. The long and painful night. He couldn't get comfortable at all, his bruises throbbed painfully against his skin. The cold floor gave no warmth, the darkness gave no comfort. He swore he heard voices. He even thought he heard Raph's voice, which gave him chills.

He thought about giving the standing thing another shot. He hadn't moved at all, except for waking up lying on his side, his sore side. He moved his feet and placed them flat on the ground, pushed himself up, and managed to stay standing for more than five seconds.

He staggered to the mirror and balanced himself out, then he looked in the mirror, staring at the reflection that stared back at him. The guilt continued to eat him alive, the guilt of leaving his brothers alone, without a leader, without a brother. But Raph was more than capable of filling in as leader, Splinter would be more than happy to train Raph on becoming the new leader. Leo had faith in him, he had faith that Raph was going to be a better leader then Leo ever was.

He just wished that he could talk to Raph one more time... just to tell him how sorry he was. But he didn't foresee that happening.

He reached behind his head, untied his mask and hung it on the mirror. He felt like he had no right to wear it anymore, that he betrayed his family... his honor. And that wearing it would be an insult to himself. He looked at himself for a while, before hearing the door open. He looked in the mirror and saw three Foot ninjas walk in, one with the cuffs, one with the sack, and the other with the cattle prod.

"It's time."