“There's an evil in your eyes.” His hand shot out and grabbed my scarred face, “It wasn’t there thirty years ago.” Of course it wasn’t. So much has changed. Our father is dead, our brothers have been relieved of vital senses. I hate the look of concern on your face. You left us. Don’t pretend that you care.
“Whats it matter to you Brainiac?” I practically hiss at him. He doesn’t deserve my love, if I had any left. He's taken aback, I can see it in his stance. I hit a nerve. Good.
“What happened to you?” Simple question, simple answer. Life. I lived thirty years that he didn’t. I'd seen people cut down, I watched a brother go blind saving my sorry shell, I helped tear our family apart.
“Thats a really stupid question for someone so smart Donatello.” I make another jab. I don’t like being interrogated. I'm set in my ways, as are our brothers. They don’t ask me about my personal life, and I don’t ask about theirs. Its the only way we can stand to be around each other.
From what I can gather, Raph is AWOL. We occasionally get a report from remaining troops about a creature that looked similar to me, or a flash of red. Raph is good, even with his missing eye. He doesn’t have an alignment anymore. He kills what he wants. Its a more sinister version of his old saying, “Fight first ask questions later.”
Leo is a different story. I only know he's become the shadow of New York. He saves those he thinks worthy, but the way of Bushido is lost to him. Its lost to all of us really, but to see our brother fall from somewhere so high hurts.
Some would argue that I’m the saddest case of all. I'd lost more than my arm. I'd lost an irreplaceable gem that nobody could replace. Innocence. I'm not a little kid anymore. I’m Mike. A hardened warrior with a hidden heart of gold, or so Id like to think.
“Whats it like?” Again with the simple questions. Was my presence shocking him? Maybe he didn’t like seeing his baby brother like this. Why did I care? He left our family, the lair, me and the others. Even after he promised he wouldn’t. He's looking at me like I’m a monstrous shadow of Mikey. Maybe hes right, but I know that the real monster here is judging me.
“Whats what like?” My voice. I don’t remember it being this deep. Maybe its just another sick way of twisting the already distorted image of Michelangelo. The onyx eyes of my brother hold shame.
“Growing up.” When did Donatello's whirlwind mind quiet? So many questions swirl in my head, but through the years I’ve learned to silence my own talkative nature. If I'd learned it sooner I might still have both arms, and Leo might still be able to see.
“Leo!? Where are you!? Leo!?” A young Michelangelo runs through a crumbling building. Blue eyes wide with fear. “Leo!?”
“Mikey!?” Leonardo claws his way through rubble. A sudden crack forces Leo to look up. A huge support beam is coming down. As it lands, a scream overpowers the crash. “Michelangelo!!”
“Leo!! Help me! Please?!” Desperation fills his cries. Leo uses the last of his strength leaping to his baby brothers aid. He's pinned. His entire left arm engulfed by the metal beam. Tears fill his still innocent eyes. Leo drops beside his brother and gently wraps his arms around him.
“Its going to be okay Mikey.” His hand gently strokes his baby brothers forehead. An action he used to do when they were kids and Mikey couldn’t sleep. His brothers tears roll onto his finger as he pulls away. Tears burn his eyes, “We're going to make it out of here.”
“Wheres Raphie?” The coward had left when things got out of control, leaving his remaining brothers to perish. He had no trouble leaving them, but he would’ve made an exception for Splinter. Bless his soul. Leo didn’t know what to do. His kid brother was trapped and crying, Raph had split, and the entire building was about to cave and kill them all.
