Race. [TMNT 2012]

035. Alive; Charlotte

Song: Beautiful Scars - Disciple

As I open my eyes, darkness blurs my vision.  A loud ringing sounds in my ears.  My head throbs, like I got punched with a lead brick.  My jaw aches and I put pressure on it to ease it.  It only helps a little bit.

   It takes several long heartbeats for the dizzy feeling to subside.  When it does, I am finally strong enough to sit up.  The tumult in my ears fades away, replaced with the sound of a merciless battle. It shakes me out of my nearly-unconscious thoughts and back into reality.

   "Char!"  Lucy lets out a gasp of relief as she realizes I'm awake.  Lilac accompanies her excitement by planting sloppy licks all over my face.

   I cringe and push the dog away, though it helps me come back to Earth faster.  "Hey," I mumble as I give Lucy a tiny smile.

   "I thought I lost you," Lucy pants from fear, her gray eyes red from busted blood vessels.  She had cried recently.

   I pat her back lightly to reassure her.  "You can never lose me," I promise sincerely.

   Around me, blood is being shed heavily. Footbot after Footbot is being taken down, but their opponent never gets away without a few scratches. I witness my brother get cut across the arm and stumble sideways in pain. I attempt to rise and help him, but Elizabetta does the job for me. She knocks the Footbot away from him and stomps on its head, destroying it.

   I decide to respect her a little more from now on.

   Before I can even get to my feet, My protectors catch my eye. Raphael's brothers have formed a protective oval around the once-red-clad turtle and I. They are each in hand-to-hand combat with either a mutant or 'bot. They all work as a team, like they have trained together for years for this very moment.

   My heart skips a beat as I spot the pool of blood around Raphael. "Raph," I gasps as I lean over to examine him. I notice most of his wounds are shallow and already scabbed over. However, the gash trailing across one of his biceps is a different story. Red liquid is slowly leaking out of the open flesh, contributing to the blood surrounding him. If it doesn't stop soon, Raphael is never going to wake up.

   "He won't wake up," Lucy confesses worried, biting her lip anxiously.  "His wounds are bad.  I don't know what to do."

   Panicked, my heart rate quickens and I look around frantically. Everyone is too busy with their own demons, so we're on our own. We have to do something.

   I try taking deep breaths to clear my mind. Slowly but surely, a idea begins to build itself inside my mind.

   The last time I saw bandages, I was in the dojo. Well, they're boxing wraps, but they will still do the trick. They're lying on a table right beside the punching bags. I'm much for physically fighting, so I can't defend Raphael.  But if I retrieve the boxing wraps, maybe they will stop Raphael's wound from bleeding out further. That will help him, right?

   On that note, I drag myself to my feet.  I squeeze through the teammates guarding me and dodge the enemies that maul me.  Despite my efforts, I don't escape unnoticed.

   "Char!" Lucy's voice rings above the screaming and battle cries.  "What are you doing? You can't go out there!"

   My voice works a lot better than I predict it will.  "I have to get something for Raph!" I call without looking back.

   I didn't stop running until I make it to the dojo.  It's only by pure luck that I remember where it is, considering I've only been here once.  I snag a handful of boxing wraps and sprint back to the Shredder's throne room.  I am home-bound until a rather ferocious-looking Footbot jumps out in front of me.  It's blade spin dangerously close to my face.