Race. [TMNT 2012]

043. High; Raphael

Song: Jet Black Heart - 5 Seconds of Summer

At the top of the skyscraper, the wind is as bitter and strong as ever.  I have to dig my heels into the rooftop to steady myself as I gaze at the black clouds.  I feel as if my shell is about to get ripped right off my back.  My eyes can only stay halfway open, otherwise they feel more dry than a piece of burnt paper.  The wind has quickly become my least favorite weather feature, next to snow.

   Leonardo stands beside me, examining me.  His blue eyes seem to have X-Ray vision as he scrutinizes the way I put my Turtle Gliders on.  I can feel the judgmental thoughts running through his mind, which only make me shift around awkwardly. Yet in the end, all Leonardo says is, "Ready?"

   Unable to speak, I give a nod and fix my gaze back on the horizon. Our next mission is nerve-wracking. I don't care about my well-being, but I definitely don't want my brothers to fly into those cloud-shaped death traps again. What if they suffocate? What if it starts raining and they dissolve into nothingness? I can't lose them, I just can't.

   Donatello and Michelangelo take up positions beside Leonardo. Donatello calculates the distance into the clouds with a scientific expression. On the other hand, Michelangelo bounces around on his heels, impatiently waiting to start soaring. He only pauses long enough to take a small canister from Donatello, before resuming his ecstatic buzzing.

   Donatello pushes the same type of canisters into Leonardo and my hands. "It's the neutralizing compound," he explains when I give him a confused look. "We need to spread out and cover the sky in as much as we can. Once your container is empty, get back to the rooftop as soon as possible. We don't know what those clouds could do to you if you're exposed to them for too long."

   "Right. Fan out," Leonardo orders, making a motion with his hands. My brothers and I form a straight line, each facing towards the edge of the roof. I take a deep breath as I brace myself for takeoff.

   "Good luck, guys!" April calls from behind us, her hair getting whipped in multiple directions from the wind.

   "Try not to splat on the concrete!" Casey puts in jokingly, which got him elbowed in the ribs by April.

   "Don't joke about that," Elizabetta says with a shake of her head, her legs shivering violently from her fear of heights.

   Leonardo lifts his chin, his arms out to his sides to align with his gliders. "Fly!" he commands, before jumping off the rooftop and letting the wind carry him upwards.

   With a wrenched heart, I copy him. The moment I dive into the breeze, it bounces off my gliders and carries me with the current. I fly with the drifts of wind, changing directions in order for me to climb upwards. All the while, I avoid looking down.

   Above me, my brothers are soaring around like birds. Leonardo poses like Superman, a single arm extended in a heroic pose. Donatello's eyes sparkle as he gazes at the sky around him, and Michelangelo is preoccupied by the buildings below.

   "Dudes, I can see Antonio's Pizza from here!" The orange-clad turtle exclaims gleefully, the wind making his voice circle around my head.

   Being a pessimist, I don't give two turtle tails about the feeling of flying. All I want to do is get the job done so I can go back home.

   As I ascend into the clouds, the familiar stinging sensation return to my eyes. I have to keep them squinted as I ride through the darkness. Pressing a button on the canister, large puffs of the compound begin to foam in the air. I soar around and let the substance do whatever the heck it's supposed to do.

   Eventually, my canister runs out.  Stowing the empty object into my belt, I let myself ride the wind back down to the rooftop.  Surprisingly, I reach it without much trouble.

   The moment my feet touch the roof, I break out into a coughing fit.  I double over as I hack up all the nasty clouds I inhaled.  My head starts to ache as I continue to cough, and my sides start to cramp from the lack of oxygen.

   April rushes over to me and places a hand on my shell.  "Are you ok?!" she asks anxiously, her baby blue eyes lit up with panic.

   "Yeah," I grumble hoarsely as I pull out of her reach.  My body relaxes and the coughing ceases, but my head still pounds.  Those clouds are much more dangerous than they appear.

   Just then, Leonardo and Donatello swoop down a few seconds apart.  They're cough just as much as I had, but it subsides just as quickly.  I'm relieved that they're alright.

   Leonardo scans the rooftops as he speaks.  "Now that we're all back, let's-" he pauses, making a double-take of who's around him.  "Where's Mikey?" he finally asks me.

   I cross my arms and glare at him.  "Does it look like I know?" I respond testily.  I'm not in the mood to get blamed for Michelangelo's disappearance.  Why is it always my fault?

   Leonardo frowns and turns away, gazing out at the distance.

   "What if the clouds dissolved him?" Casey guesses while laughing.  "That would be so metal!"  Elizabetta elbows him, and he quickly retraces his words.  "I meant to say tragic."

   Before I even have the chance to worry about Michelangelo, I spot his figure in the distance.  He descends down onto the roof, chewing and licking his fingertips.  His face glows with joy and he looks content.

   "Sorry, guys!  I had to stop and get a pizza," Michelangelo explains as he continues to gnaw the pizza grease off his fingers.

   I slap his shell to make him stop, and he lets out a soft yelp of protest.  Leonardo shoots me a look that warns me to stop, or else.  I obey, but only reluctantly.

   Suddenly, April brings my attention to her.  She is pointing upwards, her face paler than usual.  "Guys, look!" she gasps.

   I followed where she's gesturing to and my heart leaps in my chest.  Faintly in the distance, I can just make out raindrops.  But they aren't regular raindrops; they have a nasty purple tint to them.  They also seem to have an eerie glow about them.

   A drip lands nearby and all of us turn to stare at it.  It doesn't dissolve the roof, but it doesn't absorb into it like regular rain either.  It just forms a perfect lump of gooey water, which make my stomach curl.

   "Take cover!" Donatello shouts, startling us all out of our wits. Immediately we rush inside the skyscraper, scrambling and grasping for a hold on the ladder as we descend.

   Just as we're all safely inside, the city is overrun with purple rain.