Chapter Text
Donnie paced back and forth in the lair, trying to make sense of what he saw. Mikey bounced up and down on a beanbag chair as he watched his older brother. “Donnie, why did we leave? We have to help them! And what was that giant power-up that Raph got?”
”Let me think, Angelo!” Donnie pinched the bridge of his snout. “We left because a: you’re my top priority. B: we didn’t stand a chance against Baron Draxum while my bug-zapper was broken. C: Nardo made it clear that he wouldn’t leave without Raph and Raph made it clear he wouldn’t leave without Baron Draxum’s say-so. D: all of the previous points, but emphasized. E—“
”But they’re our brothers, Donnie.” Mikey argued, and Donnie glanced over to see the sincerity in his sibling’s eyes. “We can’t just leave behind family like that. They’re just… hurting right now. They don’t know what ‘better’ looks like! So we have to show them!”
”Yeah well, that sheep creep is technically our creator but you won’t see me cutting him any slack.” Donnie grumbled.
”I think he could change.” Mikey defended, and Donnie face palmed.
”You can’t be serious. Wait, it’s you. Of course you’d be able to see good in someone who literally tried to kidnap us and threw his own quote-and-quote ‘child’ off a roof, he said making an excellent albeit sarcastic point.” Donnie sighed. “Look, I know you want to be optimistic about everything but this is dangerous.”
Mikey crossed his arms. “Lou Jitsu never ran away from people who needed help. And we don’t know what could’ve happened to any of them to make them that way!”
”I don’t need to know the cause if I don’t like the outcome.” Donnie drawled, and Mikey huffed.
”Well I think they all deserve a second chance.” The box turtle commented, and Donnie sighed.
”One task at a time, Miguel. Clearly Raph and Nardo are not in a good situation. Clearly it would be morally right of us to help out now that we know the truth.” Donnie frowned. “And clearly I’m still working on a plan.”
”Well could you work on it faster?” Mikey bounced in his seat. “We can’t let them stay there! Leo said that Raph’s gonna get hurt!”
Donnie began to pace faster. “Yes I know, Michael. I’m trying my best, so shush!” The soft shell frowned as he strode back and forth, mind drawn to how Raph had thrown himself off a building after Leo without a second glance. There had not been a doubt in his mind regarding fear or rationality that both of them would likely die—he just knew that he needed to protect his brother.
It reminded Donnie of how he would do the same for Mikey.
And it made him have a spark of something in his chest.
Not compassion, that was for sure. He had an emotionally-unavailable bad boy image to uphold, not to mention that he didn’t want to sympathize with villains.
But he did understand those turtles a lot better, which helped him calm down and realize that he had to at least try to help them.
”Sigh, okay Angelo. Some websites on how to help those in an abusive home-slash-relationship involves not pressuring them to change but at the same time helping them to see that what they are going through is wrong.” Donnie summarized, eyes fixed on his wrist tech. “As you mentioned they don’t know anything other than Draxum, so it would probably do them good to see how we interact, for instance.”
”Yeah! We could bring them here and introduce them to Splinter!” Mikey chirped, and Donnie face palmed.
”Yeah, not going to happen until we know for sure that they won’t betray us.” Donnie sighed at Mikey’s pout. “Look, I’m not saying that they’re bad, but Baron Draxum is and they are brainwashed to obey him. Well, Nardo isn’t, but Raph is and they have an unbreakable bond together. However, we could attempt to explain how physical violence meant to hurt or kill is absolutely unacceptable and that there is a better way. If they start to react in a positive manner, then we can move on to a plan to help them safely escape.”
”But how will they be able to see us if Draxum won’t let them?” Mikey whimpered, and Donnie hesitated.
”Nardo obviously used to run away. That’s how we first met him.” Donnie mused. “However if Draxum reached the point of wanting to unalive him then the stakes have changed. We need to be careful about how we approach this.”
”Draxum seemed really interested in Raph’s powers though…” Mikey spoke up slowly. “Wouldn’t that mean that maybe Leo is more valuable than he thought? And… I mean does that mean that we can do that too? My kusari-fundo is cool, but what if there’s more? And what about you?”
Donnie frowned. He had been thinking about that as well but preferred not to break his brain over the illogical concepts of mystic. “I do not know, Angelo, but you do make a good point that Nardo is likely being kept alive for the time being. I suggest scouting out Draxum’s lair with April before we make our next move. We can go first thing tomorrow.”
”Leonardo, come with me.” Draxum ordered without even turning around, not even caring how the brothers had been glued to each other’s sides since Leo had been thrown off the roof. At the command Raph stiffened and pressed a bit closer against his little brother, and Leo could feel his breathing grow shallow. “Raphael, you wait here for your punishment. I trust you not to touch anything in this lab.”
”Sir, do you think me an’ Leo could stay together tonight?” Raph hesitatingly spoke up, warring emotions in his chest. “We could train tomorrow, it’s just been a long day…”
”It is not wise to wait on punishment.” Draxum snipped. “You need to learn your lesson while your mistakes are fresh in your head. Leonardo, come with me. Now. We are going to your room to discuss some new developments.”
”Um… sir?” Leo nearly grit out the word, the title sounding foreign coming from his lips. “Raph didn’t do anything except save my life. He doesn’t deserve any punishment for preserving your… experiment. Why not let him off easy…”
”You knew the consequences of defying me, Leonardo. I gave you fair warning.” Draxum turned to shoot eye daggers at Raph. “And you, Raphael, were given a direct order that you blatantly disobeyed. I trusted you, and you betrayed me. That is unacceptable.”
”Leo was about to die, Sir.” Raph clenched his jaw. “You threw him off the highest roof in the Hidden City. No one could survive that fall. You trained us as a team, and beyond that we’re brothers. Raph wasn’t about to let him die. You can’t just raise two brothers as a team and then expect them to forgo all loyalty at the drop of a hat.”
“I see you both have the same weakness.” Draxum huffed. “You both care about each other more than about obeying me—your creator. That is unacceptable, and all the more reason to separate you. Leonardo’s only saving grace is the mystic capabilities you confirmed, Raphael, but you should both know that he is on thin ice. Leonardo, as much potential as you have it is all useless if you refuse to cooperate. I will not hesitate to dispose of you if you fail me again.”
Leo stiffened slightly and could hear Raph’s angry breaths next to him. The snapper turtle spoke up first, voice dark. “Sir, I would gladly walk to the ends of the earth for you. I acknowledge that you are my creator and master and would do anything you asked of me—except for hurt Leo. You didn’t invent objects, you created life. Please… Sir you can’t just get rid of Raph’s brother like he’s some inanimate object. Raph’ll do anything for you to keep him alive.”
”That is the type of defiance that I will not stand.” Draxum snapped. “This conversation is over. Leonardo, come with me. Right now.”
Leo could feel his stomach dropping with the thought of being alone with the same yokai who had tried to murder him without a second glance, but he didn’t quite know what to do. Maybe he could convince Draxum to spare Raph and take it out on him… just a little rage baiting here and a dash of smooth talking there…
”Fine.” Leo huffed slightly in resignation and let go of Raph’s hand, hearing the snapper stifle a protective whimper and feeling him reach out at the loss of contact. He felt so pathetic right now, feeling the deep desire to just be held by his older brother while he could process all that had happened, but knew that he couldn’t break. Not here, not now, not ever. He stiffly walked over to Draxum and through the violet portal, sensing the tall yokai follow behind him. Once they were alone in Leo’s room Draxum turned on him with eyes filled with disgust.
”I’ve just about had enough of you, turtle.” The warrior alchemist’s voice dripped with hatred. “Hold out your arm.”
Every fiber of Leo’s being was raging with the last remnants of his pride, but still Leo held out his arm and allowed Draxum to shackle his wrist to the bed. The yokai squeezed the manacle until it pinched and gave a few quick tugs to secure it before nodding in satisfaction and withdrawing the shock collar. His eyes were stone cold as he barked another order. “Now bow your head and stretch out your neck. This will never come off of you again, and I will explain the new conditions.”
Leo complied with bated breath as Draxum snapped the collar around his throat, rambling angrily. “This stays on. I will adjust the location anchor per mission, but at the moment it is connected to this hotel. If you go too far out of the building then you will get shocked and your location will be sent to me. A word of advice? Don’t.”
”Ack… here ya go, Boss.” Came Huginn’s strained voice as he and Muninn entered the room, and Leo noted with surprise that they were carrying the mystic blue sword from when Donnie and Mikey first came to rescue Agent Sixty-Four. Draxum nodded and took it from them, handing it to Leo.
”Make a portal. Now.” The yokai ordered, and Leo blinked. Draxum growled and stepped closer. “Do not make me ask a second time. I am at my wit’s end with you and need to ensure that you are worth the effort of training in mystic powers.”
Leo gripped the sword tightly, feeling that strange yet comfortably energy flowing through him and the odachi alike at the contact. He obediently swung his sword, feeling it flicker with blue light but seeing no portal appear. Oh shell… Draxum was watching. He tried again, swinging harder, but again nothing happened.
”Are you trying to be this insufferable? Or are you just that much of a failure?” Draxum snarled. “I said to make a portal, you idiot! Do I have to spell it out for you?”
”I’m trying!” Leo huffed as he slashed his sword once more. “Come on, mystic portal! Abracadabra! Hachi machi! Bippity boppity—“
”Your chants have no effect on your mystic capabilities, Leonardo. You just appear to not be sufficiently motivated.” Draxum paused and withdrew a tiny remote from one of his pouches. “Now maybe a little shock would help…”
Leo’s breath caught in his throat as he watched Draxum’s thumb circle the black button on the front of the remote, feeling his collar buzz with pent-up energy. Leo desperately tried to make a portal to Draxum’s hand but failed again, barely having time to brace before an agonizing shock filled his body with electricity and fried his neck. The slider cried out in pain and dropped to the floor, clawing at the hot metal orb around his neck that was still pressed against his skin. Draxum frowned and pressed the button again, Leo’s arms spasming away from the collar. “Pathetic. Can’t even save your own life with your supposed powers. Perhaps Raphael will be more compliant…”
”Don’t you dare shock Raph!” Leo rasped angrily, and finally the strange energy in his body lit up at full force and travelled down his arms to enter the sword as he snatched it up off the floor, Leo barely having time to register what was happening before he fell through a portal and ended up blocking the door on shaky legs. He panted and glared at Draxum angrily, body still trembling from the electrical collar. Draxum smirked, and Leo wished that he could portal himself a thousand miles away from that expression.
”There it is. I knew that you could portal.” Draxum rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “However the fact that Raphael could do it without any prior mystic weapon shows that there must me some sort of force in your bodies without my knowledge or experimentation. It must come from Lou Jitsu, but how a cheesy action star would possess such a power is beyond me. However it also poses some… concerns.”
Leo frowned at Draxum’s gesture, glancing down to see the thick chain dangling from his wrist, portal-chopped from it’s other half still locked around his bed. The slider glanced down at his odachi in a mixture of surprise and awe before Draxum snatched it away and handed it back to Huginn and Muninn, who had been watching the whole scene unravel and seemed to have forgotten they were a part of it (a theory proved by the way they almost dropped the weapon). “That is enough for today. I have my answers, and my gargoyles will grab a better chain—one immune to mystic capabilities. Perhaps I will extend the mystical-containment components of Agent Sixty-Four’s cage to surround your room in the morning, but I have to attend to your leader first.”
Leo began to panic and he shook his head. “About that… Draxum Sir, Raph didn’t do anything wrong… you had always told us to stick together, yeah? He was just protecting his team. Besides, I’m the one who was in danger in the first place hehe so shouldn’t you punish me instead…”
”You are in no place to lecture me on how I choose to teach my own creations, Leonardo.” Draxum snipped. “You will stay here until I say so, not to mention that your nourishment will be based solely on behavior and activity. If you perform well then you will be fed, and if not then you will bite your tongue and think about your actions. I will discuss Raphael’s punishments and limitations with him.”
”Sir, don’t! Don’t hurt him because of me… I just screwed up!” Leo began to ramble, ignoring the irritated look on Draxum’s face. “Look, I should’ve died today but I didn’t because Raph unlocked new powers. That makes him more useful, yeah? Saving me and giving you more potential to work with? So in essence, him saving me actually did you a great favor. You still got the bugs anyway and can release them in New York City and—GAHH!” Leo let out a cry of pain as Draxum shocked him again, his already-weak body sending him into a twitching heap on the floor. Draxum simply stepped around him and strode to the door.
”It would do you well to learn to shut up and obey, Leonardo.” Draxum tossed over his shoulder as he walked out. “It will only harm your brother further, after all.”