A rocket designed to explode high in the air as a signal or firework.
🎆
Raphael sits with Taylor in the living room. Her cuts are bandaged or taped, her split lip cleaned up. She holds a package of frozen peas over her black eye, her head tilted back, and a pillow is pressed against her chest to cushion her cracked ribs. The family is gathered and Master Splinter brings up the head, watching Taylor closely.
"We have no way of knowing whether or not we can trust you, Taylor," Splinter says. "Save for Raphael's judgement, we have nothing."
She sighs and nods, fingers tightening around the peas. "I know."
"At least she doesn't have a tracker on her," Donatello pipes up.
Sarina nods. "We triple checked."
Leonardo sighs and looks to Master Splinter as if begging for guidance. "I don't know what to do, Sensei. Raph says that she's fine, but..."
"She is," Raphael interjects, reaching over to rest his hand on Taylor's leg.
"Maybe she could help us," Michelangelo says. "Maybe she knows more about Mutacorp now!"
"I told you, she doesn't—"
"Actually," Taylor whispers, sitting up and pulling the frozen pack off her eye. She blinks a few times. "I do have something." She becomes the centre of attention in an instant. "Before I ran, Hun got us all together. He said that tonight, they'd be getting what Mutacorp needs."
"And?" Leonardo urges.
"I ran because I knew I needed to warn you. I know where they're going to be meeting and you have to stop it," she says. "This city could fall apart if Mutacorp is allowed to keep going."
"Then we go," Raphael says. "We can do it. Tay can lead us to the spot."
"I'm in," Destiny says with a bold flap of her wings.
"No, not you," Leonardo says. "Not you and not Sarina."
"What?" both girls exclaim at once.
Leonardo purses his lips but stands strong and resolute against Destiny's unhappy glare. He moves to her, reaching out to touch her hand before faltering. Donatello scoots closer to Sarina as she watches Leonardo with wide, questioning eyes.
"It's risky. The Dragons have gotten stronger," Leonardo starts. "And...we aren't sure if we can trust Taylor yet, so I want you to stay here and man home base. Please, just this once, stay back and trust that I know what I'm doing."
Destiny frowns, her ears pulling back, but she nods. Upon seeing that Destiny is agreeing, Sarina also nods, and Leonardo lets himself relax just a little. One less conflict. Raphael looks at Taylor, but she seems focused on icing her aching eye.
"My sons," Splinter says. "I may be getting on in years, but I can still fight. I will join you and replace Destiny and Sarina's power."
Michelangelo's eyes light up. "Family mission!" he squeals.
Taylor eyes the door, a shudder rolling through her. "There isn't much time. Hun was so stressed about this deal..." She runs her hand up her arm and tries to continue, but her voice dies with a wheeze. She coughs once, gritting her teeth at the force.
"We'll stop it," Raphael promises. He brushes some hair from her eyes. "I promise."
She nods and leans against his shoulder, shutting her eyes as tears line her eyelashes again.
----------
Raphael carries Taylor on his shell while she directs them to the correct warehouse. It's large and dead quiet, but the freshly shattered windows and faint footprints in the dirt around the building let the turtles know that there are definitely people inside.
"This is the place," Taylor confirms. She slides off Raphael's shell, perching like a flamingo on her good foot. "I'll lead the way in."
Everyone else nods, weapons out and ready as they sneak up to the building. There's a side door that's been left ajar and Taylor pushes it open slowly, waiting for an alarm. Nothing sounds. A breath leaves her.
Inside, the warehouse is dusty and abandoned, but vaguely Kraang-like items lay scattered all around; canisters and wires and crates stamped with the TCRI logo. There are only a few dirty lights to give them any sort of sight in the blackness. Taylor hops between the boxes, heart pounding in her ears, and the ninjas follow her in silence.
They reach a more open space and Taylor motions for them to wait while she creeps out into the open. There should be more Dragons around, she thinks. She looks around, at the boxes, up to the windows, and all around before she tenses up and spins back to the others. Her eyes are wide, expression struck with terror.
"RUN!" she shrieks. "GO!"
There's a loud clang and the lights go out, bathing them in pitch darkness, and a large metal cage drops on top of the four brothers and their Sensei. There's a loud hiss and smoke fills the air. The second the mutants inhale it, they start to cough, limbs going weak as they collapse to their knees.
Raphael struggles to stay awake, gripping the bars as his watering eyes search the blackness for Taylor. Heavy thuds and pained grunts and the sound of his family collapsing behind him fill his ears. His body becomes too heavy for him to support and he slumps against the cage bars.
"Tay..." he calls weakly. They're hurting her. He can hear her cries, the sound of their fists.
The last thing he hears before he blacks out is Taylor's scream.
YOU ARE READING
Non-Mutation (Book Four)
Fanfiction"You're weird too, Raphael. But...I like weird." Her anger has built over the years, festering inside of her like a disease with no cure. It is dragon fire with a heat that nothing can extinguish. She sees red, the colour that has always fuelled her...
