Race. [TMNT 2012]

13. Heart of Fighting; Raphael

Song: Fight Inside - Red

As I wake up, I realize I am curled up in a corner of the jail cell. My whole body is chilled to the bone, and all of my joints feel stiff. It's a struggle to sit up.

My feet are completely numb. At first, I'm not sure why. Then I recall Shredder and the misery he put me through.

Suddenly, anger threatens to overtake me. I have to grit my teeth to hinder it; I will get my revenge soon, for my master and myself. But not now, not while I'm caged like some kind of wild animal.

I glance at my companions. Charlotte is staring outside of the cage, deep in thought. I nearly ask her what she's thinking of, and then I stop. It doesn't concern me; and frankly, I don't care. She's probably just running through ideas of what she can yell at me about, since that has become the going thing for us.

I turn my attention to Casey. He fiddles with his hockey mask, seeming a bit down. Once he notices that I'm awake, however, he brightens a bit.

"Raph, you're awake!" Casey exclaims. "And you look horrible," he adds with narrowed eyes.

"That's because I feel horrible," I grumble. I stand up and start kicking one of the walls, hoping to bring feeling back to my feet. It doesn't work.

"Is that really necessary?" Charlotte fixes me with a hard stare, her brown eyes tearing into my green ones.

"Yes," I growl, returning the glare. Does she have to complain about everything I do?

Charlotte doesn't continue the argument. At first, I figure she's playing some kind of 'guilt' angle. But then her words show me that isn't the case.

"Did you hear that?" she asks. Her voice carries throughout the cell, echoing into the hallways. It's an eerie kind of silence.

Casey and I look at each other as we listen. There's short pause. Then, just through the ear-piercing silence, is a quiet thud. It's faint, but it's there.

"What the heck was that?" Casey whispers.

"I don't know," I mumble. I peer through the bars of the cell. "It sounds like it's in the other room."

"Maybe Fishface is finally getting what he deserves," Casey jokes, and I smirk at the thought.

"Shut up, I can't hear what's happening!" Charlotte snaps, and we fall silent again.

A louder noise sounds, followed by screaming. The three of us exchange alarmed glances as the thumping gets closer. Soon, it's so near that the ground is shaking.

I grab onto the bars of the cage. I keep my eyes on the door waiting for, and almost dreading, what is coming next.

But there is no reason to be worried. I am pleasantly surprised when a familiar turtle shape crashes through the doorway, creating a large hole. Another recognizable figure follows, its jaws clamped around a Footbot.

I throw one of my hands through the bars, waving to get their attention. "Slash! Leatherhead!" I yell above the chaos.

The mutant turtle and alligator spin around, shocked to see us. They immediately dart toward the jail cell.

"Raphael!" Slash rasps in alarm. He swings his mace, bending the cage bars to create an opening.

Casey, Charlotte, and I only just manage to jump out of the way in time. Well, Casey and I back up; Charlotte is completely caught off-guard, and she would have gotten squashed if her twin brother didn't pull her to safety. Too bad he did. It would've been a lot nicer than listening to her whine.

"Watch it, freak!" Charlotte snarls at Slash. "This top was super expensive. I don't need a rip in it!"

I do my best to ignore her. "Slash!" I gasp again as I run out of the cell. "What are you doing here?" I question, gazing up at him in shock.

"I could ask you the same question, my friend," Slash replies gruffly, but the look on his face shows joy at our reunion.

A crash at the now-destroyed door distracts us. "But first, let's get out of here," Slash says. Then he charges through the gaping doorway as Footbots try to head us off.

I look around frantically, searching for my single sai. I spot it on a table beside Casey's hockey stick.

"Casey! Over here!" I call, tossing his weapon to him. I snatch up my lonely sai and dart after Slash and Leatherhead, ready to rip some ugly heads off.

I am slightly disappointed that Shredder isn't around. He and his henchmen must have escaped at the first sign of danger. Those cowards. They can deal a beating, but they can't take one.

I launch into battle, batting Footbot after Footbot out of the way. I can't feel my feet, so if I step on something sharp, I never even notice. The old burn scar on my leg is beginning to act up, however, making up for the numbness of my feet.

A Footbot lunges at me. I jump out of the way and it whizzes by my head. I make sure to jab its stomach as it goes by.

"Hey, careful, Raph!"

I spin around to see Casey knocking the Footbot aside. He is standing protectively in front of his sister.

"Sorry," I grumble. "Why didn't you move?" I ask a bit louder, running to his side to swat off another 'bot. Then I realize it's because of his sister. "Oh," I answer myself before he can.

"Stay here! I got this." Casey orders. He runs forward a few paces to confront three more Footbots. "What's up, tin cans? Ready to get recycled?!" He caterwauls as he begins beating them with his hockey stick.

I start as Charlotte screams from behind me. A Footbot is running at her with several different weapons extended. She stands there like a deer caught in headlights, not even trying to escape.

"Move!" I snarl, shoving her out of the way. I throw my sai at the 'bot and nail it in the face. It collapses, and I retrieve my weapon while glaring at Charlotte.

"What the heck was that?!" I snap as I stomp back to her.

Charlotte doesn't look near as remorseful as I expect. In fact, she looks nothing more than offended.

"What was I supposed to do?!" She retorts.

"Um, hit it?" I suggest sarcastically as I catch my breath.

Charlotte looks as if I asked her to cut her own arm off. "I don't fight like you! I'm a girl, in case you haven't noticed," she sniffs.

I roll my eyes. "Believe me, I noticed. Diva," I add the last word quietly.

Charlotte's eyes blaze. "What did you just call me?!"

Several feet away, Slash makes a hole in the wall for us to escape out of. As much as I want to run out and leave Charlotte behind, my ninja instincts told me not to; that Master Splinter wouldn't be pleased if I did.

   Reluctantly, I grab Charlotte's wrist and pull her towards the exit. "Come on, we're wasting time!" I growl impatiently.

   "Hey- ow!" Charlotte complains as I drag her after me. "Let go! You're hurting me!"

   She keeps shouting until we escape the building. I run after Slash, Leatherhead, and Casey until we finally escape our pursuers. We hide in an alley, and that is when I finally let go of Charlotte.

She pulls her hand away from me, throwing me a nasty look. "That was rude!"

I return the look ungracefully. "You're welcome."