Remember. [TMNT 2012]

Chapter 19; Leonardo

Song: How's It Going To Be - Third Eye Blind

"Well, what happened?" Donatello presses.

Elizabetta wrinkles her eyebrows thoughtfully as she explains. "Well, you already know the story of the Foot Clan kidnapping my family. From there, we were put in a strange jail cell. I was separated from them. But before the latter happened, I remember some weird pink brain-shaped things hovering around the room. They were focused on a huge computer screen that read, 'Experiment Recollection Serum: Test 1'. There was a bunch of other words on the screen, but they didn't seem to be in English."

She pauses and bites her lip in disappointment. She looks guilty. "Sorry, Donnie. I know you probably want me to recall all of what the screen said, but there's no way I can when I didn't get a good look at it in the first place."

Donatello shrugs. "I'll find a way around it. I always do. Go on," he encourages her with a small smile.

Elizabetta takes a deep breath before continuing. "I was knocked out and I woke up in a laboratory. There was two men there. One of them called himself Baxter-"

"Stalkmat!" Michelangelo blurts out. "We know. That creep was the reason the building burst into flames."

I see Elizabetta's eyes light up with sudden fury. "So he's the reason my family is dead," she says with an edge in her tone. I've never seen her look so vicious. I suppress a shudder.

"He isn't the only one responsible," Donatello replies. "Shredder is undoubtedly the brains of this experiment. He most likely made a deal with the Kraang so Stockman could gain access to their machinery."

"Why didn't Dr. Stinkbutt just use his own equipment?" Raphael asks with his arms crossed. "He already has a load of scientific junk."

"Not all machinery does the same thing, Raph." Donatello sounds like a teacher speaking to a student. "Plus, the Kraang have high-tech equipment. Using it would speed up the process of whatever they're up to. And in the end, Shredder might have so much power over the Kraang that he doesn't have to hold up his end of the deal. That's what I assume, anyway."

"That's an edumacated guess!" Michelangelo comments with wide, curious eyes.

"It's called an educated guess, Mikey," Donatello sighs.

"That's what I said!"

Donatello rubs his forehead as if he is in pain, and motions to Elizabetta to finish her story.

"Stockman injected some weird liquid into me," she explains. "It was purple. And it looked a bit gooey, almost like mutagen."

Donatello's eyes flash with a hint of worry. "They must have created the serum by altering mutagen. Can you remember anything else?"

Elizabetta shakes her head. "After he injected me, I passed out. Then I woke up here."

The purple-clad turtle develops a thoughtful expression. "From the way it sounds, you were their first test subject for the injection. Do you know why?"

Elizabetta shakes her head again. "I honestly have no clue," she admits.

"Maybe they just decided she was easiest to get to." I decide to put in my two cents-worth. "They might have chosen her randomly."

"That doesn't make any sense," Donatello replies. "They must have known about her from somewhere. They would need a whole background on her in order to experiment on her. That way they would know how she'd react to it. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been safe, and there wouldn't be a point in using her."