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Chapter Text

The world that is known as Earth...

The planet that was once full of life and beings known as humans... humans with families, lovers, pets and a life...

It wasn't perfect, but it was still wonderful...

That was until the incident...

A giant mutagen bomb, out of no specific place, hits the center of New York, causing a great explosion to erupt around most of the world. A few more have been launched onto the world, soon turning the beautiful, colorful planet into a dry wasteland. There were screams of pain, screams of fear... Screams of misery and sadness, of fear...

He can't remember much... but he can remember voices... familiar voices...

"LEO!!!"

He can't remember who that is anymore. Did he even know him at all? It doesn't matter. His memories will only fade away again. They always do.... no point in grasping onto blurred memories that will only slip away every time.

Michelangelo opens his eyes from his meditation. His eye lids flutter at the sounds of kids laughing in joy. The happiness and loving voices of his fellow people of his kingdom. The Oasis Kingdom... Michelangelo remembers finding the Oasis many years ago. Around 10 years ago? He couldn't exactly remember, but he found the Oasis before finding many stranded groups of mutants that were struggling to survive on the wasteland that once relished with more green than the Oasis ever had. Michelangelo lifts his head, looking upwards towards a cracked mirror in front of him, somehow able to see himself clearly despite the many cracks that roamed the poor mirror. The mutant turtle seemed as if he was barely in his late teens still, having no wrinkles whatsoever on his fresh lime skin - and his baby blue eyes. The only changes was his surprisingly long, ginger hair and the kimono-like outfit he wears. The colors are shades of a light blue and the wrappings are a darkened dull blue. And despite having no wrinkles, showing his true age, he still had terribly darkened eye bags, showing others that he had a worrisome lack of sleep.

At the moment, Michelangelo could only stare at himself through the cracked mirror. His eyes barely opened, seeing himself tired and drained from whatever pain he had to endure the past 10 years. His 28th birthday would be soon... just another year to suffer through alone-

"Mikey...?"

The turtle blinks, widening his eyes into their normal, roundish shape and turns his head to his bedroom door. He keeps silent as he sees his dear friend, his crush... his soon to be lover (he wishes), Casey Jones.

Even with Ice Cream Kitty and Chompy, Casey Jones made Mikey feel... like as he never lost himself to begin with. Sadly, it's just something he tells himself with how many times Casey pushes the poor turtle away because of his unnatural behavior and clingyness. The only human of the kingdom poked his head carefully through Michelangelo's doors as he continued, "The, uh... The elders are waiting for you to start the meeting in 5 minutes. You ready man?"

'-you ready man?' Psh! Casey and his odd vocabulary, Michelangelo thought. Though his heart jumps at the nickname 'Mikey'. He doesn't know why, but he felt stuck to that nickname Casey calls him ever since the human woke up from his 3 year coma. Michelangelo could only give him a soft smile as he carefully stood on his two feet. As he dusts his outfit off, he looks to Casey with his hands holding onto each other over his abdomen area, "Thank you for reminding me Casey. Tell them I'll be over in just a moment or so, I just need a little more time to prepare." The turtle stated, closing his eyes as he bows his head formally to his, hopefully, soon to be lover.

Casey could only hold in his words as his grip tightened over the doorknob. He never really enjoyed Mikey's formalities. It wasn't.... Mikey. This Mikey he's been forced to stay with was never 'his Mikey' to begin with. He knew something must have happened after the incident and during his 3 year coma, but still. 10 years and it still made his heart ache in anger and pain to see his old crush to act so formal and calm. Mikey is supposed to be out going and fun! ...Not this. Not whatever Michelangelo is... He wishes he was never in that coma at all... Maybe he could've helped save whatever was left of Mikey before he became the king of the Oasis Kingdom.

If only...

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Mira, a mutant meerkat, had met the two mutant men not too long ago, and yet they're so willing to help her find the Oasis. Especially after mentioning the Lightning God. The King of the Oasis, who was once named The Holy Chalupa. That title was soon lost after the many tales that spread through the dry lands, saying that the title had been changed into the Lightning God.

"So, tell me again-"

Mira whipped her head to the bulky mutant turtle who was driving the odd vehicle, his gruff voice immediately pulling her out of her thoughts.

"-how do we know for sure that this... 'Lightning God' is actually Mikey?"

She heard sounds of a machine moving, turning her head to the turtle like robot, who claims he was once a organic being like the turtle driving, though his body shape remained the same like his previous body was. The robotic turtle turned over to his brother, "Who else did we know have lightning powers and calls himself 'The Holy Chalupa', Raph? It has to be him! Mikey is most likely alive!" The cyborg turtle exclaimed with joy, his hopes high as he internally prays that his baby brother has managed to survive the Mutagen Incident. If he was in his original, organic body, he knew he'd have tears of relief fall from his eyes. Unfortunately, his mechanical body does not allow him to do so.

The turtle, known as Raph - full name Raphael - merely sighed in disappointment. As much as he wanted to let the wave of relief and happiness wash over his body, he knew he couldn't let his guard down. This place has been nothing but a hellish wasteland. Not that he doubts his baby brother's skills, it's just hard to belive that any of them could survive the planet that once thrived in greenery and areas that used to have people, like... actual humans.

"Don't get your hopes too high Don. As much as I want to believe it too, we aren't too sure if Mikey even survived the incident to begin with." With those words, the robotic turtle's - Donatello, nicknamed Donnie or Don - antennas in the shape of his old mask tails drooped down. His head lowered down with a saddened whirr, making his eyes stare at his metalic lap, knowing that his older brother speaks of nothing, but the truth. Raphael and Donatello have been the only two survivors of the Hamato family that had survived the incident. Leo... Gone. Mikey... Some probability of being alive. Karai... Gone. Casey... Gone. April.... Oh, April....

If only....

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Chapter Text

The turtles were minding their own business, doing their own activities. Their own hobbies. Leo was meditating in front of the altar, to which Splinter kept in the dojo for years to come. Raph was sitting in front of the TV for Chompy to watch to keep him entertained for the time being. Donnie was sitting on the bean bag besides Raph, checking for any alerts or news that would have been put up on any websites about 'teenage mutant ninja turtles saving the world from alien bugs', or anything similar to the title. Mikey was resting in his bed, fast asleep and sleeping peacefully.

It had only been four days since he saved the world from Lord Dregg and the Utrom from Newtralizer. After using a great amounts of power to destroy the two aliens and the ship itself, he has been nothing but drained. In all honesty, the older brothers are more worried than they appear to be. They seem relaxed and relived that their baby brother is still alive, but concerned by the fact he'd been in his room in the past four days. Worse of all... there was no Mikey to prank them. Truth be told, Mikey had been sleeping the past four days.

At first, the brothers were scared, freaking out even and calling their friends to come and help. April, Casey and Karai came down to see what was happening, just doing their best to keep each of the three calm as they figure out what's wrong with Mikey. Luckily, April managed to calm Donnie down enough for him to figure it out without overthinking. After some time, Donnie explained the cause and that the youngest Hamato would be asleep for quite some time to regain his energy after using it against the evil alien duo. To this, tension was released, but concern and fear haven't whatever. Just clinging onto them with each day that passes with Mikey keeping in bed, unmoving.

The only thing they could do was give Mikey an IV and give him nutrients while he sleeps. At least he wouldn't be hungry or thirsty as much while he rests.

In the kitchen, inside the very freezer, Ice Cream Kitty has started scratching the freezer door, aching to see her owner. Mikey quickly went to see her after he and his brother's came back to have a pizza celebration. The mutant ice cream cat was thrilled to hear that her owner had lightning powers, just meowing in joy - happy to hear that her owner came back in one piece.

Although now....

The youngest Hamato brother would've been in the kitchen by now, nearly finishing lunch, and she knows because of the turtle having a certain schedule for daily meals. Ice Cream Kitty hears no sounds of pots and pans hitting each other, no sounds of the fridge or cabinets opening, no sounds of food being chopped or water being boiled. What made it worse was that there was no sound of humming or singing of the sorts while the fresh aroma of food floods the kitchen. ICK continues to scratch, meowing louder in worry. To this, the eldest brother opens his eyes, breaking out from his meditation. Leo, being the closest to the kitchen, looks behind him to double check his hearing for a moment.

Once he confirmed the sounds he hears is Mikey's pet ice cream cat, he sighs and stands onto his feet. He makes his way to the kitchen, opening the freezer carefully as ICK was now reaching her chili, ice cream paws onto the terrapins face. Just seeing how sad and worried the cat seemed gave him an aching feeling... and not the good kind. After grabbing a bowl and placing the mutant ice cream into it, he heads out to see his two younger brothers in the living room. "Hey guys. What are you two doing?," he asks gently as he makes his way over to sit between the two, placing the bowl holding ICK onto his lap, sending cold chills over his body. Donnie and Raph both look over their shoulders to him, no longer focused on the TV or their laptop.

"Hey Leo. Nothing much actually, just checking the news again while Raph and Chompy watch TV." Donnie says before looking back down at the computer. Leo felt words clog his throat, nearly taking his air and making it hard to breathe. His ocean blue eyes look around first, not wanting to cause any tension, but being the oldest of the four, he felt he had a need to worry. His mouth tasted dry as he finally opened it, "...and uh- how- how's Mikey doing?"

Raph flinched at the name, but tried to make it seem like he didn't. His ears no longer focusing on the TV and listening to the conversation between the two. Donnie's eyes immediately moved from his computer screen to Leo's face, which held more nervousness than concern at the moment. The tallest turtle looked away before looking back as he replied, "He's, uh-... He's doing fine. As long as he continues resting and gets enough nutrients, he should wake up sooner than predicted. Which is still about a month..."

Leo mererly sighs at the facts. Knowing it is one thing, but being told the same thing on repeated instances will definitely make his heart break more than it did when Splinter... You know...

A hand slapped his shoulder, causing him to snap out of his thoughts. Raph giving a smile to his older brother as he keeps his hand over Leo's shoulder. "Aw! Cheer up Leo! We had to wait longer than that for you at the farmhouse! If the three of us were able to wait over 6 months for you, we can definitely wait a month for Mikey." Raph was right with that, despite how his heart only ached just as much - if not worse - at the mention of his comatose at the farmhouse, but knew his immediate younger brother meant well. Mikey would normally be the one cheering everyone up and with him asleep, Raph was happy to do his best to bring his older brother's spirits up.

The oldest terrapin smiled, a genuinely grateful smile as he looks into Raph's brightly toxic green eyes, "Thanks Raph."

"Any time big bro..."

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Year: 2025 ; Month: Unknown ; Day: Unknown

His eyes opened as he was awakened from a dream. Or... was it a memory? Raph couldn't tell anymore. His eyes were greeted by the beauty of the ocean of stars and now visible planets that showed themselves through Earth's atmosphere. Raph wondered if he could even call Earth "Earth" anymore. He's been wondering that for years. Out loud he'd call the planet The Wastelands, but in his mind... It's always going to be Earth for him.

Big bro...

The faces of the turtles soon blurred in an instant, only able to barely recognize their voices. Donnie's was easy to figure out, but Leo's. His voice faded out as quickly as the memory of his face did. It caused the bulky turtle to sigh a soft groan. He hated being unable to remember his brothers sometimes. His sister. His lover. His friends. His Dad...

He'd never admit it out loud, but he wishes to have some memories of each person he knew and loved to remember them by. All he knows is their name, their personality (explained by Donnie, which helped bring some memories back), and what relationship he had with each person.

"The stars are beautiful, aren't they?"

Raph turned his head to his right. Mira laid in the same position as him, on her back, arms over her stomach and head facing upwards to the night sky. Her eyes are wide open, as if she'd been awake longer than him. "Once we find the Oasis Kingdom, I'm sure the greenery there will be just as beautiful. Don't you think?" Mira's head tilts over to Raph, her eyes held a spark of hope as she waited for an answer.

The terrapin felt a small ache as a memory flashed into his mind. Mira was quickly replaced by the image of a young turtle in an orange mask, his body littered in freckles. What caught him off guard the most were his bright smile and baby blue eyes, which sparkled with so much hope that it made his body relax for a moment.

"Right, Raphie?"

His green eyes nearly widened at the voice and the nickname. Before he could open his mouth to respond, the turtle was gone and Mira had returned to the spot she was before the young turtle was. Raph's heart ached, but didn't show the pain that quick memory gave him as he tried finding his words to say to the young meerkat.

"Yeah..." He says in a softly gruff voice, looking back to the stars, which Mira followed his movement. "I'm sure it's great kid..."

A soft wind blew lightly against the sand underneath the makeshift beds the two had. The silence soon washed over them, but neither of the two felt the need to break it.

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A bright blue orb floated in between two odd looking hands. The hands were thin but not showing any bones through the skin. Skin, that's right. No fur, or scales, or claws, or slimey coverage to avoid prey. Just a lightly tanned skinned hands, which held five fingers each.

The orb showed the image of Raph, Mira and the oddly shaped van, which held Donnie as he charged. The lips of the odd figure went upwards, smiling in joy as they had found who they have been searching for.

"I finally found you..! Raph... Donnie... Just wait for me, okay? I'll meet up with you two as soon as I can. That's a promise...

...a heartfelt O'Neil promise..."

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Chapter Text

Back on the dry, sandy road...

The sounds of engines roaring as the vehicle leaves behinds tracks on the sand ground...

They're close... She's almost there...

The stranger's hands grip tighter on the large, stolen, bike. She reaches a certain point to where there were odd looking structures, though she knew exactly what they were.

"A freeway," she whispered to herself under her biker mask. The stranger's outfit was tight against their skin, showing a thin but strong frame. Their outfit was black, highlighted in yellowish stripes on their arms and legs. The bike mask was pure black, and the visor littered with sand, but still able to see through from the stranger's eyes.

Her eyes narrowed as she turned the bike over to the freeway, deciding to use it as a shortcut to lead her to the ones she's after. The old road made by the humans that once existed were deserted, which they can sense the many people that once drove over this very road she's taking. It made her head ache, but kept herself focused....

Stay focused... You can't lose them again... Not this time... You got this...

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Raph kept the van steady as the direction they needed to head towards was only many miles forward. The inside was silent, neither of the brothers spoke and Mira kept herself entertained by counting the many buttons the vehicle has for the 4th time.

Suddenly, Donnie's mask-tail antennas flick upwards, his head soon following. His robotic body let out a beeping sound, and seeing something on the screen infront of him. Something was coming, though more like somethings. Though Donnie knew that these were actually mutants, and they all seem to be coming to them at a pretty fast pace. "Raph!" "Already on it!"

The eldest of the three immediately shifted gears and pressed harder against the pedal, making their vehicle move faster. The ones chasing them down seemed to do the same, nearly reaching the van. Eventually, they were surrounded, and soon were able to see that it was the mutants from nights before. The Honey Badger Ravangers.

Raph let out a scowl as they showed their appearance through his window. "Donnie! Defenses, now!" He growled to his mechanical brother. Donnie saluted on his seat, his antennas quirked up as he did, before rushing over to work up the vans defense. The meerkat popped up and looked to the bulky turtle, "And what do I do?" "You? You're staying in the van!"

"What?!" she shouted in rising anger. "What do you mean stay in the van! I can help-" Raph swerved as the honey badgers were trying to attack the van with their weapons, shouting and laughing from outside the van. Mira slid in the van, but managed to grab Raph's seat as the turtle continued to avoid being hit. Meanwhile, Donnie is now above the van, on a seat with some sort of machine launcher. The robot brother tried his best to keep the honey badgers away from the van from a far enough distance.

Another motorcycle makes it's way, the driver sensing great danger ahead. She reaches for something from her back pocket as they pressure the engine more to make the bike go faster.

"Hand us the girl, turtles! And we might leave you alone!" Verminator Rex demanded, laughing out loud in amusement. His confidence boosted as they continued to flee while one of the turtles try to push his ravangers away from their vehicle. "Fat chnace!!" the robotic turtle shouted rebelliously. The leader's grin widens and his eye glares daggers at the machanical turtle outside of the vehicle. He points his weapon at him as he shouted, "Take them down!" As demanded, some of the honey badgers manages to move their bikes closer to the turtle's van.

Mira saw them coming up to the other side of the van and looked back to Raph. "You have to let me help!" Raph grunted as he tried to move away from the ones on his side, forgetting to check the other side of the vehicle. "No way kid! They're after you and that damn, cryptic map that's tattood to your arm! We can't risk it-!" His sentence barely got cut off as he and the meerkat heard something stab into the van. The teen whipped her head in panic, seeing sometimes being cut through. She looks back at the window and sees a honey badgers try to climb up above the van.

They're after Donatello!

Mira's brows furrowed in anger, "I can't just sit here!" She runs over to the opening over the top of the van, ignoring Raph's calls for her to stay with him. A honey badger finally made it up to the roof of the turtle's van, and was about to attack the robot turtle, who seemed to be having too much fun attacking the other honey badgers. As soon as he went for a blow, he was tripped and kicked off the van, landing harshly on the ground and left behind by everyone else. Donnie heard sounds behind him and saw Mira smirking at the fallen honey badger. "Shouldn't you stay inside?!" He questioned, returning his focus to keeping the enemies away.

"Well, they were climbing up here! I just saved you!"

"Thanks for the save then!"

Mira's smirk grew, not hearing a "get back in the van" and taking that as an acceptance for help from the genius turtle brother. The two kept each other's back, Mira protecting Donnie as Donnie protects the van from being anymore damaged.

Rex growled in anger, shouting at more of his ravangers to cease the two turtles and take the meerkat. Just before anyone could, something flew past him and hit a few of their ravangers, causing them to lose their grip on their bike's controls. Their bikes then fall to the dry road, bringing the honey badgers with them. The object that hit them went back from where it had been thrown. The shocked honey badger followed the object and was surprised to see a stranger in all black catch the object. Donnie and Mira were shocked to see them knock out some ravangers with such presice.

The stranger was standing proudly on their bike, the bike steady and fast. Rex could feel eyes glaring down at him, which caused a drop of sweat to fall. The stranger got into a stance, ready to throw the weapon again. The Honey Badger grunted, narrowing his eyes before looking forward to the rest of his gang. "Retreat!" Was all he said before his tired screeches when he made a sharp turn. The rest followed his lead, going back to the opposite direction. As Rex passed the stranger, he could see an eye from the dirtied visor, narrowing at him with cold eyes.

Eventually, the Honey Badger Ravangers had fled the battle, but the turtles knew that wouldn't be the last time they'd see them. Donnie signed, relaxing in his seat before setting the defenses to return inside the van, Mira following him after. The stranger quickly shifts, quickly and carefully sitting properly on the bike as they put their supposed weapon away, now reaching behind the van. Raph, seeing the honey badgers gone and only one stranger, he groans as he puts the van to a stop.

The stranger does the same, turning their vehicle towards the side to help slow the stop as the bike's tires slide against the sandy ground.

Once everyone was at a stop, Raph stepped out of the van, gun in hand and ready to fight if needed. His guard up as Mira and Donnie watch from the van's door. "Alright, pal. You have 5 seconds to explain who you are and why you helped us." He demands, pointing his gun to the stranger, "Now..."

The stranger merely stares at him through their visor. Their movements slow as the stepped off their motorcycle and stood tall. The bulky turtle didn't know if it was him, or the stranger's hand was trembling. Suddenly, they made a move to grab their mask. Raph was ready to shoot at any moment and wasn't going to hesitate if they appear as a threat to him, his brother and the teen he promised to take care of for the time being.

The stranger slowly lifted their bike mask. As the mask was lifted off their head, ginger hair fell from the inside of the mask. Their ginger hair reaching the middle of their back, their face was nothing but tanned flesh, light freckles scattered on their cheeks. Teary, bright blue eyes were now staring at him.

Raph flinched at the reveal. His arm slowly lowering his gun in surprise, tears beginning to sting his eyes while he hears Donnie gasp loudly behind him. "A-... April...?"

The one now known as April smiled as tears slid down her cheek. She huffs out air of relief.

"I finally found you... Raph... Donnie..!" She shouts happily, dropping her biker's helmet and reach out to the turtle in black in front of her. Raph couldn't help but do the same, immediately dropping his weapon and wraps his thick arms around April's small body. They both hug each other as tightly as they could, Donnie quickly running over to them, seeing April, actually seeing her. "You're... you're alive!" If Donnie was flesh still, he knew he'd be crying waterfalls at the moment. April broke the hug with Raph as she smiled fondly at Donnie. She wrapped her arms around his neck and cried, "Donnie..!"

The robot turtle jumped at the hug, hesitating to return it. One look from Raph and he gently wrapped his arms around the human. He let out a shaky sigh as he laid his head on hers.

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Chapter Text

"So she's an old friend of yours?" Mira asks softly, shocked herself to see a human. An actual human!

The group, of now four, have gathered together. After a few hours of freaking out, hugging and catching up, it was nearing nightfall. Raphael had set a campfire, and the four had sat around it to keep warm through the cold of night. Donnie sat beside April. Even though she had just saved them, he feared losing her again after believing years of her being dead. Raph sat on April's left, while Donnie sat on her right, and Mira sat across from the human.

April smiled at Mira's surprise, chuckling softly at it. "Yeah, we've known each other for years," Donnie answered happily. Excited to have his old friend back. Raph smiled, just happy to see a familiar face finally be focused clearly through his eyes, and clear the blur of April's face from his memories. Finally, a face he won't have trouble seeing...

"So, what brings you three out here? And why were there honey badger mutants after you guys?" April finally asked, pointing at nothing behind her as she references the battle from hours before when she found them. Raph's smile dropped and leaned forward, his right knee bent as he rested his arm over it. He stares into the fire for a few seconds as he closes his eyes with a sigh. Donnie's antennas twitched and dropped a little, Mira stared at the oldest turtle, her shocked expression gone. The human's smile slowly fell apart as well. A brow now raised in curiosity and knowing full well the reasoning was serious.

Raph opens his dry mouth, forcing them apart to speak, "This meerkat here has a map tattood on her arm. The Honey Badger Ravangers are after her because it leads to the Oasis Kingdom." April's eyes widened and her brows raised at the name. She leans forward slightly, Raph immediately catching her interest at the explanation. "And... Don and I believe that... There's a possibility Mikey is alive as well..."

The robot turtle's antenna flinches at his younger brother's name. He knew how hard it was to say it for Raph, but he knows he doesn't fully believe it either until he sees for himself. That's something Donnie can't force, and he understands why. April leaned back and looked to the meerkat with a hum. "So, you have the map to the Oasis Kingdom?"

Mira smiled widely, nodding in excitement as the humans attention is on her. "Yeah! It's a little confusing, but we're figuring it out as we go. We should be a couple of hours away from it." The red head smiled and closed her eyes. Her body seemed to relax from the tension that no one else realized she had. "This is perfect... We can see them both!"

The two turtles and meerkat looked at April in confusion, now having their complete attention on her. Donnie tilted his head to the side in curiosity. "Both? Who you talking about April?" April opened her eyes, staring into the fire as it danced and consumed the wood it was given. "How I found you guys... My psychic abilities grew and I've been figuring out ways to make it stronger throughout the years. I figured out that when I sleep, I can use my psychic abilities to find certain people from objects I have from them and eventually find their aura."

The robotic turtle's antennas flinged upwards towards the sky, surprised and excited to gather information of April's powers, which have clearly grown stronger. Raph processed what he could as he listened to every word the ginger explains. Mira, was confused, but somewhat understanding how she was able to find them.

"When I found Raph's aura. I tried to do the same with Casey..." Raph's eyes widened. "I mean, I would've done the same with all of you guys, but... I could only find stuff that were Raph's and..." April paused, her hand slowly reaching towards a necklace that Casey had given her. The sign of his love to her, to which she heavily accepted. The necklace was a silver locket, and inside was a picture of them from their teenage years. The picture was of them together on their graduation day, which to April was a wonderful memory.

The turtles had called the graduates to head to the sewers to celebrate their graduation. They invited friends, April's father, allies, even Karai and Shini! It truly was one of the best days April can remember. A memory she'll forever cherish.

She sighed as she tried to push down the memories for right now, ignoring the tears that burned her eyes. "After I tried to find Casey... I couldn't seem to find him for a good while, but I wasn't going to give up. One night, which was actually two nights ago, I finally found him. He's alive..." Donnie leaned closer to April, excitement for her powers now shoved down and replaced with excitement for seeing another familiar face. Not only is April alive, so is Casey! Possibly the only humans to live, but maybe Karai could be alive - who knows?

Just hearing that Casey being alive boosted his determination that Mikey could also be alive. Raph was more shocked than anything. His best friend was alive, living somewhere in this wasteland! Mira. was a little more confused. The only reason she's not excited about Casey is because none of the three adults had mentioned the man is a human.

"Although..." Their shock vanished as they see April's worried expression, "...I don't understand why it was so difficult to find him in the first place." Now this caught Donnie's attention.

"What do you mean by that April?" The robot asked her gently, not wanting to seem forceful or pressure the human to answering his question. She merely sighed as she continued to stare at the campfire. "I- I don't know how to explain it... It only took a few hours to find you guys and after getting used to using that ability, it would only take a few seconds..! But Casey... it took me weeks to find him and I only found out he's alive just two nights ago. It was like... Something didn't want me to find him... And I doubt not just me specifically, but- I don't think this something didn't want anyone to find him."

Raph blinked at this. Something didn't want anyone to find Casey...? That's weird...

The bulky turtle widened his eyes as he remembered what April had said before explaining. We can see them both she said...

Both...?

They were talking about the possibility of finding Mikey at the Oasis Kingdom... and if April is saying Casey is alive after bringing up his baby brother, could that mean...?

"April," Raph called, which he was quick to gain his friend's attention. She now faced him and hummed in response to being called on. "You said we could see them both. Are you saying you found Casey at the Oasis Kingdom?" There's no way this could be true...

April nods with a blank face, slowly creeping into a confused one. "Uh, yeah. Is there something wrong about that Raph? You look a little freaked out?" Donnie can see his older brother's concerned face. He didn't understand why he was so worried at first, but after running through the information he was given by both, April and Mira, his mask tail like antennas slowly moved downward.

"Mira? Didn't you say that there was someone named 'The Lightning God' that ruled over Oasis Kingdom and was at some point called 'The Holy Chalupa' before all the fancy titles?" Donnie barely hesitated to ask as he looked to the teen. Raph looked at him, seeing that his younger brother was placing down the same pieces as him to the puzzle. Mira looked away and back to the robot, confused, but gave a hesitant answer. "U-uh-... Yeah...?"

The turtle brother's immediately whipped their heads to stare at each other. The oldest of the two struggled to swallow the lump in his throat. His slightly narrowed as he stared at his brother. Donnie barely titled his head downward as his antennas lifted in the slightest.

It can't be... Mikey wouldn't... He couldn't... He can't...!

The brothers thought the same thing as they both struggled to believe it.

If Mikey is a king... A titled God of the Oasis Kingdom... And nothing wanted anything or anyone to find Casey... The only way that would be possible is if...

"Guys..?" April called for them, reaching a hand to Donnie's shoulder. "What's going on?"

They both turned to April, unsure of who should tell her the pieces they had just placed together. Donnie let out a mechanical whirr as he struggled to let out words, "Uh. A-april... You know someone who would call themselves 'The Holy Chalupa'?"

"Mikey would..."

"Yeah... well, Mira had told us that - who we believe is - Mikey ruling over the Oasis Kingdom, and- And, well... with what information you had just told us..." He paused, unsure if he should finish his explanation of what both, he and Raph, are theorizing.

April narrowed her eyes, confusion took over as she processes the information adding together. Her eyes move from spot to spot as she slowly puts the same pieces together. Her sky blue eyes slowly widening as her brain gears soon clicked.

"No... He can't be- Mikey wouldn't-! ...Are you saying-"

Raph dropped a hard fist on the sandy ground, causing the others to flinch. They look to him in surprise. The buff turtle soon stands on his two feet, his eyes glaring at the fire. "If the kid is right and Mikey does rule over Oasis Kingdom...

He clearly doesn't want Casey to be seen or known by anyone whatsoever..."

Chapter Text

The sounds of leaves being blown by a soft breeze was consuming the sounds through his ears. There was also the sounds of water, most likely a water source nearby where he was. Where even was he...?

His face scrunches up as he let out a grunt. A hand of his achingly reaches for his face. His palm rests on his forehead as his fingers brushed against his raven hair. He could also feel something that's wrapped around his head, something that's not his usual bandana.

Bandages.

That's what they are.

A groan escapes his lips, his teeth pressed together as he slowly sits up. He uses his free arm to lift him from the soft comforter he laid on. His eyes scrunched together once more before fluttering them open. His dark brown eyes were dazed, unfocused as his body was slowly regaining his senses. His mind is empty of thoughts, too busy trying to regather the memories of what had happened. How did he get here?

A hand gently started to rub his back. Odd. He didn't hear any footsteps. This hand also held three fingers. Three fingers? Maybe a mutant. Another three fingered hand was placed beside his numbing legs. His hazy eyes slowly moved to the hand.

Three fingers. A green, scaly hand, in all facts. They seemed familiar. His friends! They were green and had three fingers. His eyes drifted up from the hand to the arm, which was covered by a shade of blue. Blue? Clothes. Yeah. That much he could tell. He continued, seeing a bare shoulder, the tip of a plastron, and a shell on their back.

Then he saw something moving from the face of the being. A small, gentle smile moved as they were speaking. They sounded muffled as they did, his ears still ringing from the incident. Becoming more confused, his brown eyes soon met with baby blue.

Baby blue eyes...

Mikey has baby blue ey-

"-ight. You shouldn't force yourself to move, Casey..." Their voice now overcoming the ringing, which had begun to fall into silence. Their eyes blinked as they observed him.

He shouted, curling into his body as a sharp pain hit his head. Memories flooded his mind as his hands gripped onto his head. No matter how tight his grip was, nearly pulling his hair, the headache didn't stop. Screams filled his ears. Cries followed with them. The sense of adrenaline and rush was revived into his system, but only for the moment.

The incident.

"Casey, I'm scared-"

"Where's Leo?!"

"-e have to go now!"

"No! Don't do it, Leo!"

"Casey!!"

"April-"

"LEO!!!"

His eyes shot open, he inhales sharply as his body now begs for air. He pants harshly, his mind now processing everything that had happened.

Leo sacrificed himself again...

The mutagen caused a massive explosion, nearly affecting half of the world...

Everyone was seperated, and he ended up alone...

He remembers passing out during one of the many days of sefl survival after the destruction of Earth, but nothing more as to how he came to this place and why...

Mikey..!

The young man slowly moves his face, once again meeting eyes with the turtle. Mikey seemed a lot different, yet the same at the same time. For example, wearing some sort of old timey outfit, his wide eyes had terrible bags under them, permanent scratch marks on his plastron, and his hair... He remembered Mikey suddenly having a quick growth of hair after he woke up from his mini comatose due to his lightning powers.

But now... Now..?

Mikey's hair was longer, some strands drooping down his shoulder, and the rest tied up. It also seemed he tied his hair with his orange bandana. He wanted to speak, tried to at least, but was only let out a dry cough.

"Here..." The turtle's voice spoke, gently passing a bowl of fresh water. He didn't hesitate to take it, his hands shaking and chugs down the cold, yet soothing liquid. He welcomed the cold in his throat with open arms as he let out a refreshed sigh, his shoulders relived from tension from the sudden memory rush. The memory of adrenaline immediately forgotten within mere seconds.

He looks back to the turtle, who watched him with quite the happy face. The turtle sat down on a chair that he didn't notice before, humming softly and resting his chin on both his hands. Mikey's eyes stared into his very own for the third time as he spoke before he could, "I knew you would wake up eventually... How are you feeling, Casey? Hungry, perhaps? I have brought some fruits that you can eat." The turtle lifted his chin from his hands as he mentions his human friend's possible hunger after awakening from a coma. The mutant leaned down, grabbed a bowl of many fruits, and handed them over to him with a soft, caring smile.

Weird.

Since when is Mikey so calm and gentle? When does Mikey use formal wording?Why is his hair so long? How long has it been? Where are they? And why did he look so cute with his big 'ol eyes?!-

The many questions flood through, but the young human merely keeps a blank face as he takes the bowl of fruits. "Thanks," he mumbles with a tired voice. He felt unsure which question to start asking his dear friend, and pushed down the last question and relocking it with the rest that are similar to it.

He can't think of Mikey like that again. He promised himself that when he proposed to April-

APRIL!!

His eyes widened and begun looking around the wide, yet so formally decorated room. Was April here too?! Raph? Leo? Donnie? Karai? He looked back to Mikey with a worried look, "Mike, where's April? Where are your bro's?"

His voice forced out because of his worry and panic. Mikey merely stared at him, blinking as the silence took over for some moments before he cocked his head to the side and lifted a small brow. "Huh...? April...? Who's she? Is she a friend of yours, Casey?"

No way...

This has to be a joke, right?!

The turtle in front of him giggled, "And what is "bro's"? Such humurous words you use, my dear."

Okay, something is definitely wrong-

His brows furrowed as he tried to explain to his friend, "What are you talking about? Your bro's, you- you're brothers! Leo, Raph, Donnie! And you know April! You should know we're not friends, Mikey! We're engaged!"

The giggling stopped. Mikey stared at him with wide eyes at his last sentence. He felt ice-cold shivers running down his spine as the turtle kept silent.

Suddenly, a thin smile grew on the mutants face, his cold demeanor growing slightly frightening as he hums, "Hm... Sorry to say Casey, but I don't know some... April-," his teeth clench as he mentions the name, "-or these Leo, Raph and Donnie characters."

He felt fear.

Somethinv must have happened during the explosion that caused him to lose his memories. Yet, why does Mikey remember him and know nothing about the others? It doesn't fit right...

"But-"

"Hey," the turtles chirps happily, interrupting the human before he could speak, " Since you've finally awakened, let's give you grand tour of your lovely home!" Mikey grabbed the bowl and placed it on his chair after he got up from it. He yanked the blankets off him, grabbed his arm, and pulled him off the bed with a cheery smile. Something about that smile seemed forced to him and didn't sit right with the young man.

Next thing he knew, he was walking around some palace full of mutants, being given a tour by Mikey, who seemed too happy than how he usually is.

None of this feels right...

Not even his own friend did...

Chapter Text

Casey can still remember the first day he was forced to stay in what Mikey called paradise. Yes, the lands of green and seeing mutants living well and happily are a great thing to see, of course. But where's all the action? All the bad guys to beat up?! There's none around because just Mikey's title scares people off.

Lightning God...

The human never thought his friend could gain such a title, much less become a king and do such a good job doing it. He always wonders how the smiling turtle never cracked from all of the pressures of his royal duties. Despite the fact that he has cracked before, but... that's due to other circumstances that roams in the turtle's mind.

The image of his friend, on the ground, while his hands grip on the floor, causing it to crack. Those wide, sparkling baby blue eyes were a bright blue, and in the shape of a circle as lightning sparked and snaked rapidly around the king's body. The ginger hair had somehow changed color into a dark, pitch black, the empty color also covering the face of the turtle, except for those burning, wide eyes. Casey could see the pain that overtook the turtle at that moment.

He winced, his right shoulder feeling a pinch from an after shock as if it was still made recently. A hand of his gently rubs the spot of the painful sting as he continues to make his way back to collect Mikey from his meeting.

...King's orders.

Don't get him wrong, he loves spending time with his friend, Mikey! It's just...

The King of the Oasis Kingdom...?

The Lightning God...?

Michelangelo...?

Neither of them were his Mikey... and that hurt. Knowing that his friend no longer has the memories of his brothers, of April or Karai, or even Leatherhead!

...it hurt...

An aggressive bang echoes through the hallway that leads to the meeting room. Where the 5 elders, the leader of the royal guards, leader of the scavangers, a young sorceress - and of course, the king himself reside. The bang caused him, and his personal guard froze and stared at the doors. The silence was heavy, and a sweat was dripping from both Casey and his rabbit mutant guard.

Someone had caused that bang... and they were both afraid to know who caused it...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The group was either frozen or shivering in terror.

A three fingered hand rested on the table, which there were many cracks spread upon most of the meeting table. The king stood, standing tall with his head, glaring at the bat sourceress. Her ears were pinned down, and her position in the chair was stiffened, tense as the turtle's glare was pointed to her.

The sorceress is a light gold fruit bat. Her eyes keep shut during the day and open at night. A black veil covers the top half of her face, blocking any of the suns bright rays to hit her eyelids. She has small claws on each of her 4 fingers, which clutch tightly onto her dark red outfit. The outfit is a thin dress with slightly baggy sleeves, with a white jewel embedded over the waist band, which tied into a bow on her back.

The sorceress's posture was tensed, her breath shaking with each exhale she took. The king's eyes were glued to her, shooting daggers as he heard something he was sure he would never hear. It angered him just enough to nearly destroy the meeting table and almost reach everyone sitting in their assigned seats.

"...What was that you just said?" Michelangelo growled as his baby blue eyes glowed a menacing bright blue. The bat flinched as he spoke but knew she cannot go against the King's orders. It was her who requested this meeting and knew it might set off the Lightning God, after all.

The bat felt her throat dry as she parted her lips, which trembled as she repeated her words... "S-someone has b-broken the barrier, m-my lord... Someone- A stranger- t-they saw the h-... the human..." Her voice was quiet, soft yet spoke anxiously as her hands shook. One of the elders, a male panther around his early 60's, held a hand out to attempt soothing the young king.

"Now, your majesty... We mustn't scare the young lady. She was kind enough to bring us these news and warn us of the young man's spy," the old mutant soothed. Fortunately, Michelangelo processed his words in and took in a long, very much needed, breath.

His shoulders went slack, his eyes closed, and he slowly sat back down into his seat. The glow in his eyes had died down, and the tension had been relieved from his body, but not the room. When the turtle reopened his eyes, they had returned to their baby blue hue, half-lidded as they were focused on the deep mark left on the table by his own hand. Boy, did he forget his own strength every few seconds... "Yes... Of course. My apologies, dearest sorceress. I promise, i will make no such forms of hostility from this point forward during the rest of the meeting," Michelangelo promised, lightly flickering from his body but died down immediately.

Forcefully, the king lifted his head up to face the young bat, giving his usual royal smile, " Now tell me, young one. Were you able to see who dared to have broken through my barrier and found Casey within the kingdom's walls...?" His voice was soft, gentle, and patient as he waited for a reply. Though the royal guard and two of the elders knew it was a mask to cover his growing anger.

Casey was never meant to be found. He's supposed to be safe and hidden from other mutants who would do such horrors to the human. Michelangelo couldn't possibly imagine what they could do to his only friend... His only, soon-to-be love... He has kept Casey safe within the Oasis Kingdom for this long and will NOT allow a small spy to slip through a mere crack like some rat hunting for cheese. The king will have to be the cat and rid of this rat before they even try to reach Casey.

No matter the cost.

"That's just it, my lord," the bat nervously started, taking in a small breath, "i-it's another human..."

This caught everyone off guard. Their attention all on the young sorceress in shock, including the king's - who's anger was slowly ditched by the girl's words.

Another human...

Another human!

Not long after, everyone but the bat, faced the King, who's eyes still rested on the bat. His face is blank, and his expression is empty. Not before long, his eyes sparkled in hope. A human! This could be what Casey needs! A human friend! That must be one of the reasons he says he doesn't enjoy this paradise of a kingdom! He's the only human of these lands, only mutants of the sorts. How lovely! He thought this would be some mutant going after his beloved human, anger and worry had consumed him. Now he's filled with nothing but joy and hope. "My, well why haven't you said so! This is such news to tell to Casey!"

Michelangelo cheered, clapping his hands happily. The rest of the group was relieved from the thickened tension, sighing in relief. "We must bring them here at once! The poor human must be skilled in such abilities but not skill. They must be starving, slowly dying of hunger. Oh, dear-! We must find them at once and bring them to this lovely paradise!"

Michelangelo stood from his table slowly, giving a soft grin, "Let us bring them to their new home! The Oasis Kingdom will be their new home... and they will come to enjoy it as everyone else does..."

It's all for Casey...

The effort of being a king, the effort of looking out for him...

And now the human will have a new human friend join him in his time in his home..!

Introducing a human friend to his human love, will surely make him finally feel at home...

And will make him fall into love in paradise...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter Text

"Alright Mikey... You got it little bro" Raph's own voice is heard in his own ears. His neon green eyes rest on the two pairs of feet. His own and another who's scalish skin is of a brighter hue of green, which are stumbling with each step. He blinks as his head moves up, missing the hands that hold tightly onto his own as he continues to move back. Now, his eyes look straight into a pair of baby blue, which are looking down onto the ground anxiously as the being with them follows him.

Mikey....

He seems different this time than ever. It had been nearly 3 months since the youngest's comatose. Michelangelo had woken up in the middle of the day and was just now given permission to leave his bedroom today. The shocking thing was, Donnie had kept this hidden from the two oldest brothers and friends... Mikey was growing hair... It reached just under his chin, and his hair was of a bright orange. His hair was straight, but quite messy.

Yeah, they were all freaked or confused how this was possible, but Mikey was the most freaked. When Donnie let Leo and Raph in the room after the half conscious turtle was finally awake, they were whisper shouting questions at the genious of the four, not wanting to scare Mikey out of his near 3 month rest.

When fully conscious, Mikey was confused and eventually handed a mirror. After seeing he had a full set of hair, he was freaked. Now, in the present as Raph is assisting Mikey out of his bedroom after so long, the turtle kind of likes having hair unlike his baldish brothers.

"Wah-! Don't pull away from me Raph! My legs still feel like jelly dude!" Said turtle shouts angrily at one of his second oldest brother, immediately pulling himself closer to the hot head. Raph could only smirk a chuckle, as he lets his baby brother keep close to him. "Calm down Mike. I'm not gonna let ya fall, alright." His smirk grows and teases the youngest by pretending to push Mikey off to the side where the pit is, causing the played turtle to scream in fear before he immediately pulls him back into his hold. Of course, the second eldest laughed at this while the youngest let out out a whining cry. His baby blue eyes then glared at him, letting out an angry growl before he bites Raph's hand.

Raph let out a pained yelp as he pulled his hand away from the teeth of his pouty brother, "OW! Okay, Okay! Hehaha... ow..! It was only a joke, dude. Chill." He felt a slight pit of anger, but it was overwhelmed by the happiness of his sibling being awakened from his comatosis. Laughing the pain away, he finally lead Mikey into the lab to get him checked out. The two found the others in the room, and not just the other brothers. After Mikey had woken up, Donnie called the others that the lightning powered turtle had finally risen from his energy collecting sleep. The genius was conversing with April and Karai, explaining everything that had happened during and after the youngest's coma. While Leo was answering any questions Casey had about what had happened. Eyes didn't fall onto the two walking in until Mikey grumbled at Raph, telling him how his "joke" wasn't funny. As Raph's neon orbs observed the room of his family, he could see the joy and worry across their faces. April and Karai immediately ran over to take Mikey away from Raph's arms, hugging him and checking him over while Mikey barely had a word in anything. Casey, however, just stared in shock, soon softened into a gentle smile. Seeing the turtle with hair is pretty shocking, but Raph could swear that his best friend looked a little upset at the sight while his brother who was being smothered by his sisters.

He said nothing...

He knows that this is a little painful for the boy, knowing the love for his little brother is still hidden underneath his love for April...

For Casey's sake, he didn't say anything and just turned back to watch the three girls-

wait... three...? No. That's not- Mikey isn't a girl. He's a guy. He was born a guy and always will be. But why does that sound... Wrong...

Mikey is a boy, he knows that and Mikey knows it. But born a boy... That doesn't feel right to say. Why...?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Neon green eyes snap open, the question was too great over the wholesome memory to continue. The sun was barely rising over the horizon, it's light slowly hiding the lights of the stars of the dark night sky.

Raph questioned why the question bugged him so. The faces of the memory blurred except for April's and Donnie's. That's good. He can finally remember April's face properly, no longer is her face blurred or distorted from each awakening from the dreams of memories. Though... Lately, he's been having dreams of after Mikey had gained his powers. Why...? Is it because Mira had brought him up as the Lightning God? Or is this something else?

It didn't matter, he thought as he groaned in annoyance. He just wants one night of rest where he doesn't have to worry about attempting to keep the faces of his loved ones close, yet he still did each time. He moved from his back onto his side, shutting his eyes as he lets himself rest a little longer. Letting the sun take the few hours it needs to be fully show it's rays onto them and tell them to wake from their stressful rest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The silence of the area slowly dissipates by the sound of a running engine.

With the sun risen to brighten this new day, the old gang slowly falling back together, they speed towards the direction they believe is the way to Oasis Kingdom. The kingdom ruled by said brother, Michelangelo. Whom, heed i remind you, is keeping the vigilante, Casey Jones, hidden within the kingdom walls.

How are there even supplies to make an entire kingdom after the Mutagen Incident, you ask? The writer says, "Don't worry about it."

April O'neil, one of the only two humans of this mutant ruled world, is now traveling with her long-lost friends and their guide to the Oasis Kingdom. More importantly, Mikey and Casey. They have come to a conclusion that Mikey is keeping Casey hidden from the outside world. But why? Mikey, along with everyone else, knows that the hockey loving guy can handle a bunch of mutants if needed. And seeing that the youngest turtle might still have his powers, they'd both be fighting off any mutant that would go after any one of them or the mutants living in the kingdom. So why was Mikey trying to keep Casey hidden? Unless someone else is doing it without the turtle knowing.

Though April can tell for a fact that it was Mikey keeping him off the radar. She just doesn't know why, and really wants to find out. That's her fiancè he's keeping, locked away. Despite knowing that most of his love to April was because of something else... She still trusted him and loves him dearly. If this really is Mikey hiding Casey within his walls of the Oasis Kingdom, she needs to know what the reasoning is.

"So...," the meerkat hesitantly started, "what... do we do when we get there...? at the Oasis Kingdom... If that really is your brother ruling the place, what's gonna happen?" Mira wasn't sure if the action of the turtle's brother is a common one, seeing how Raphael had a face of mixed emotions shown openly to the others. Donnie? Mira can't tell how he feels about the situation, but seeing his mask tail shaped antennas drooped down, she could suspect that it wasn't good. His silence was another way to tell as well. He'd usually be giving Raph updates about the road, directions to take, something coming up ahead, or just spitting out facts to Mira while the eldest of the three drives. Now... the robotic turtle is aimlessly staring into the screen of the radar, his fingers frozen on the buttons of the keyboards.

The silence was unbearable, and Mira is curious how this would go down. Raph huffed a short scoff as his neon eyes twitched, "We go in the Oasis Kingdom, find Mikey, and see what's going on with Casey. As much as I doubt Mikey's lack of responsibility, much less "royal duties, the titles that he had are no doubt him. No way any other mutant would be that much of an idiot to call themselves "The Holy Chalupa" except for our idiot brother..." The groan turtle grumbled the last sentence, eyes narrowing at the path in front of him as abandonded freeway roads rapidly come into view. He scoffs when he remembers Donnie is supposed to bring up in anything comes up ahead but doesn't say anything to him.

They all have a lot to process, plus a lot of questions that have yet to be answered.

"You sure like to use idiot a lot..." Mira mumbled with a small smile, who gained a chuckle from the human. The ginger rolls her eyes playfully, "Oh, that's just Raph being Raph. He's probably annoyed because he can't ask any questions already." She brings a finger up to her lips, her smile letting out a small giggle, remembering that the red banded turtle is quite the impatient one. Though she could tell, even without her powers, that Raph had gained some patience throughout the years.

She isn't sure if it's because of his only companion being Donnie or because he had lost quite a whole lot of his memories. That part was devastating to hear. She flet guilt that the turtle only had snippets of his memories. Memories of his family, his friends and his experience of growing up and fighting bad guys.

Donnie asked for Mira to show him her arm to once again figure out if they need to take a road of the deserted freeway. The mechanical brother instructed for the driver to continue onward, keeping north as they drove. Raph, being the turtle he is, merely grumbled and carefully drove onto a street and followed its path until it they reached more sandy watselands. The street of the freeway rapidly faded under the many grains of sand. Though what caught the gang off their guard for a few minutes was the standing, sandy rocks that were closeby.

The rocks were nearly as tall as the freeway, but the farther they went, the bigger the rocks were, nearly creating a canyon surrounding them. Fortunately, the way there wasn't any that made the space too thin to drive through and there weren't that many. There was still giant spaces of sand, so Raph just blinked and kept his focus an-

"STOP THE CAR!!"

Immediately, Raph stomped on the break in surprise to Donnie's shrieking warning. The tires of the vehicle screeched against the hard sand, causing everyone to shout and slide towards the front of the car. As the vehicle came to a forced stop, the red banded turtle took a shaky inhale before whipping his head to his brother. "Donnie!! Why in the fucking hell did you scream like that!"

Donnie, who lifted himself from falling off his seat and landing face first onto the floor of the van, stood up and looked up at him witg his antennas pointing straight up and pointed to the windshield window, "The radar detected something up ahead! Something big!"

"How big?" April asked in concern.

Suddenly, the ground beneath the vehichle shook greatly. In front of them, just feets away, something was slowly arising from the sand ahead. At first it was dark purple hill turning into a mountain, which suddenly turned into a giant creature. Their eyes widened in shock, Donnies antennas slowly drop as the others have their mouths open as the creature was now fully risen from the depths of the sand.

The creature to- "IS THAT A GIANT TURTLE?!"

(okay, rude- don't interrupt me again Mira. just for that, I'm ending this chapter.)

Chapter Text

Eyes, almost as wide as the sun itself yet only showed only white blank emptiness as the giant turtle-like creature towered over the group of freaked out mutants and human in their sand covered vehicle. The beast growled lowly as it stared down at the group, watching its targets stare back in fear and shock before it lifted its head and roared. The roar echoed through the rocky towers around them, causing the entire area to shake. There was a moment of silence afterwards. The groups started to wonder why the giant turtle hadn't attacked them already, but Raph wasted no time on trying to escape. The eldest of the group switched gears and slapped his boot on the pedal, causing the van to quickly swerve around the alienated turtle-like beast. The rest shouted as Raph moved around the giant and sped through the rocky maze full of rock columns.

The beast roared and began chasing after them. The van moved faster and didn't stop, while the giant turtle slowly chased behind them; not close yet not, too far. "What is that thing?!" Mira screeched as Raph drove, freaked out since she had not seen a thing such as that. Donnie's antenna's flicked upwards, "Some sort of alien turtle, maybe! I'm not sure- but for some reason..." The robotic turtle walked to the side window, peeking out to see the giant still chasing after them - despite Raph swerving to avoid driving into the rock columns - he observed what he could of the beast. "...it almost seems familiar..." The red banded turtled grunted and huffed as he continued to swerve around the columns, seamlessly hoping that he would loose it as they continued to play the game of cat and mise.

"I can't loose this thing! Why is it after us?!" April tried to think of an answer to Raphael's question while she and Mira slid from side to side of the vehicle with each direction the vehicle sped through. Her thoughts were interrupted as the sounds of deeply low horns were amidst the area. The farther they went, the less rock columns there were. The less columns there were, the more the gang were able to see groups of beings riding raft-like boats that floated over the sand while being driven by something swimming beneath the sand. The creatures pulling the sandy rafts were closely similar to how the giant turtle had before chasing them on foot. The being eventually pulled out of the sand and appeared to be mutant geckos, taller than an average human would be and a little wider than a normal mutant would be. Something the confused gang couldn't help but notice were the mutant geckos were wearing some sort of armor over their backsides as the sped over the sand and pull the rafts over the sand.

"What in the what?!" Raph exclaimed as he check the rear view mirror, "What in hell's name is going on?! Who are these guys?!" Another horn was blown as three other raft-like boats made their way besides the giant turtle, and rapidly passing it up. The four groups of fully covered people(?) started to catch up to the speeding van as one being from each one blew on similar horns that echoed through the rocky columns that have begun to lessen and lessen. The columns slowly losing numbers meant a disadvantage for the chased group of four.

One of the beings on the first raft took a wide shell and held it up to his mouth as he stood tall and pulled off his baggy mask. "Mutants of the vehicle! Stop now and surrender the human, in the name of his royal majesty, the Lightning God! Follow these orders without trouble or suffer the consequences of his majesty's might!" The name made everyone whip their heads behind them, even Raph - who quickly forced his head to turn back to the front to face the roadless sand. Donnie's ears perked up at the mention of April and the title, of the mutant who is believed to be Mikey. Mira was shocked and thought for a moment before realizing that these guys are actually mutants who work for the Lightning God. April was pale as her eyes were wide with horror. She never revealed her identity as a human to any mutants she ran into besides Raph, Donnie and Mira. How did these men know that she was a human? How did they even find her with her friends?! This made no sense.

Donnie looked to Raph who growled under his breath, unsure of what to do. "Raph! We gotta stop!" The oldest of the two glared at him when he spoke such nonsense, "What?! Are you crazy Donnie?! These guys somehow found April and want to take her-" "To Mikey." Silence grew between the two brothers. The giant turtle growled. When the mutant with the shell saw they were not stopping, he lifted a hand with two fingers up. He kept them up while April and Mira looked to Donnie, knowing that this could be the quickest way to find Mikey and eventually Casey.

The leader lifted his entire arm so the beast running behind them could see it, causing it to let out a low ruble in its throat.

"They clearly think we're holding April hostage. If we stop, we can clear things up and see Mikey and Casey. We can get answers on what's been going on, Raph..." Donnie explained gently, choosing his words carefully as his older brother listens as he drives.

The leader split apart his fingers, all four wide open, letting the giant turtle prepare to do what it must.

Raph stares at the endlessness of the sandy lands, over the horizon where it continues for an eternity. His neon green eyes look up towards the sky, dark clouds slowly began to form and began blocking the view of space and its wonders. The colors of the northern lights, the movement of the other planets that are so easily spotted beyond Earth's broken atmosphere were being hidden by the blanket of storm clouds. The hot head lets out a low sigh, knowing his genius brother was right.

The leader quickly made a fist. The giant turtle roared and jumped, only to fall deep within the sand. The roar snapped the gang out of their thoughts, Mira looked out the back window, only to see the giant beast had gone and what was left was a massive cloud of sand while the four sand rafts grew closer to their vehicle. "Um, guys.. We got a situatio-"

Boom!

Another cloud of sand was made right up ahead of them. They all screamed as they see the giant turtle making another appearance in front of them, as to which Raph slammed both his feet on the brakes and turned the wheel of the van. The vehicle screeched as it came to a hard stop, bumping into the foot of the beast, which growled over them. The geckos that sped over the sand came to a stop as well, surrounding the mechanical vehicle. The groups rushed off the rafts and surrounded the vehicle with spears in hand. The leader stood tall and on the very front. He took off his thick scarf for a mask and pulled down his hat to reveal himself as a mutant hare. His fur is of a dark brown hue, markings imprinted onto his face fur to symbolize his position as a top royal guard of the Lightning God himself. "Exit this mechanical vehicle at once, and surrender the human!"

Inside the van, the group groans in pain from the sudden stop they were forced into. April winced as she gripped her head and helped Mira, "I-is everyone okay?" Raph groaned, more of annoyance than pain as he pushes himself off the drivers seat, rubbing his shoulders. Donnie lifted his face from the floor of the van once again, his antenna's down as he let out a sigh. He moved his head around, scanning himself for any damage that needed to be fixed. "Yeah... I think I'm good. You guys?" "We're okay," April replied as she and the meerkat stood. The teen looked to Raph as she rubbed her cheek, "What happened..?" Suddenly, they hear the leader demanding them to exit the vehicle and surrender April. This caused the bigger turtle to growl and reach for his sai, "Why that little-"

"Wait, Raph," Donnie fumbled as he rushed in front of his older brother, making him stop before he could move, "Remember. They're confused. If we fight with them, it'll make them have more of a reason to believe we took April hostage." Raph's scowl slowly dissipated. His eyes rested over his human friend. He knew April can take care of herself, of course she can beat these guys up if she could, but his younger brother was right. Any wrong moves could risk, not only April's life, but his own along with Donnie and Mira's lives with it. Eyes go from the human to the teenage meerkat. The poor kid had lived through hell since childhood, having only dreams of once day seeing the Oasis Kingdom to keep her alive and going. If Raph messed this up, it could ruin the kid's dreams of living happily with just one flick of a stone. Raph shut his eyes tightly and sighed longingly, his fingers finding a way to his temple and rubs it gently. He felt like a parent unsure of how to handle an arguing child, though his robotic brother is a genius and contains more knowledge than he will ever know.

"Fine... But if they attack first, I'm not holding back." He warned Donnie. The robot turtle merely shrugged at his brother's words, "Eh, fair enough."

After a few minutes, the four hesitantly stepped out of the vehicle, as to which the soldiers tensed and their grips over their spears grew tighter. As for the giant turtle, its head had tilted curiously as it felt something familiar from the older three of the group. The red banded turtle lifted his hands in surrender as he stopped a few feet away from the hare, "Listen pal, there's some kind of misunderstanding here." The hare narrowed his eyes at the other, humming in suspicion of the mutant, "And what would that be, turtle?" "Well, for one, we didn't kidnap anybody. And two, April isn't going anywhere with you bozos." Donnie and April slapped their hands on their faces and shook their heads in disappointment. The chosen words Raph put weren't exactly kind ones, but what did they expect from someone such as him? It's such a Raph thing to do.

"His majesty has demanded us to bring the human to his kingdom, and if any mutants stand in our way we are to punish them for treachery against the king." The hare spoke deeply. The army of royal guards made two steps forward, shortening the space between them and the small group. Donnie jumped and moved besides Raph in a hurry, "B-but we know the king! We're his brothers! Surely, we can sort something out here, right?" The robot laughed nervously. The leader raised a furry brow as he snorted with a small smirk, "You? Brothers of the King? Don't think of me as a fool. The King doesn't have brothers. They died from the Mutagen Incident about 10 years ago. Don't think you can use the Lord's families name in spite to see him."

"Well, clearly we aren't dead, you idiot! We thought he was dead from the incident this entire time, but apparently he's a king and a God," Raph argued back. Donnie placed his hand over the hot head's chest, backing him away from the hare. Suddenly, the giant beast had leaned its head down right behind the four, making Mira shout in surprise. April flinched and pulled the teen behind her and opened her tessen as a warning. Donnie jumped back, and almost dragged Raph down. Speaking of which, the eldest turned his head in confusion before seeing the purplish turtle held his snout out at him. The hare made a curious look, yet stood on guard for anything. Raph held wide eyes as the beast's snout sniffed him, eyes observing him as he stood still in slight fear.

Suddenly, the blank eyes of the beast blinked and showed its violet eyes. The creature smiled and made a rumbling sound before licking the turtle happily. Raph blinked after being licked. April laughed at his expression and the fact he was covered in saliva. Mira gave a face of disgust, keeping herself closer to April than Raph. Donnie, however looked in confusion of the giant creature, observing it to figure out why it suddenly licked Raph. I mean- yeah, Raph is literally the animal whisperer and the Disney princess of the four, but why would such a creature they had just ran into suddenly take a liking to the hot head so easily. Unless... Wait a dang minute-

"Chompy?!"

Chapter Text

The sounds of giggles echoed throughout the sewers. Leo, Donnie, and Raph watched happily, yet carefully, as their baby brother ran ahead of them. Their body relaxed to see their brother's cheery self again, but prepared to jump in if something were to happen. Mikey merely danced around in excitement.

After 3 months in a coma and 2 weeks of being kept on lockdown in the lair, he finally gets to see the surface once again! Breathe in that wonderfully smoky air. See the night sky and the few stars he could find, wishing that he'd one day see more as he always did.

It felt different as he danced ahead of his older brother's, and not because it had been months since his awakening, but because he had hair! His hair grew quite rapidly during the past two weeks. When he first reawakened from his comatose, his hair was barely reaching under his chin. Now, his hair was a little past his shoulders.

He didn't mind it though.

It seemed fun to have hair. April seems to really enjoy it as much as he started to get used to it. When she came down to the lair, she'd bring some fun hair clips to put on Mikey's fresh, ginger hair.

"Careful, Micheal," Donnie warned as said turtle reached the ladder to the surface, grabbing onto it and jumping impatiently. "Come on, dudes! You guys are so slow!" The youngest groaned a whine, his body not even settling still for a second; jumping on one foot to the other.

Raph rolled his eyes with a playful smirk, "That's because we're not little lightning bugs like you." He reaches his hand onto the youngest's set of hair and quickly brushes his fingers on his head to mess it up. The new ginger whined and started pushing his second oldest brother's hand away with an annoyed look. He pouted as another hand layed on his hair, this time gently and comfortingly. "Just make sure not be too fast for us to the point we can't catch you up, 'kay Mikey?" Leo asked him calmly, almost motherly, as Mikey's expression softened.

The bubbly turtle returned that signature smile of his and nodded excitedly, "Mhm, mhm! You got it bro!" To that, the older brothers smiled and relaxed slightly.

The turtles eventually made it up to the rooftops, meeting up with the humans who were merely inches away. Karai beamed when she saw her baby brother out of the sewers after so long. She called to him and opened her arms for an embrace, to which Michelangelo happily didn't waste any time for. He zapped over into his big sister's arms, who held onto him tightly. She spun him around in joy, causing the turtle to giggle and laugh as his legs swung as they did.

Raph couldn't help but give the two a soft smile at the sight, and he knows everyone else did the same. Mikey is Karai's favorite sibling, a secret to no one. Seeing that her favorite brother finally better and back to his energetic self was something that relieved so much weight from her shoulders.

Karai stopped spinning but kept a tight hold on Mikey, afraid to let him go. The youngest did nothing to move away from his big sister, only giving her soft chirps from his throat.

Raph understands Karai on an equal level....

Although...

Why... can't he remember Mikey's face all of a sudde-

"Raph?"

The bulky turtle blinked as he snapped out of his thoughts, whipped his head to his robotic brother who leaves a mechanical hand on his shoulder in comfort while his voice held worry as he called his name. "Everything alright? You starting to zone out more than usual." Raph could only look away with a frown.

"You're nervous about seeing Mikey too, aren't you?" Donnie asked him cautiously. The oldest of the two blinked again and dared himself to look back at his brother. They stare at each other, almost reading each other's minds about the whole situation.

They were about to meet the King of the Oasis....

But would that mean seeing their brother again...?

As far as the group of four knows, Mikey was a very busy king; being responsible and doing what he can to care for his kingdom and people, according to the top of the royal guards.

The hare, who introduced himself as Aasim, had answered the questions given by the turtles and the human about the king with as much as he is allowed to give. After seeing how Chompy, the alien turtle who is the pet of the (supposedly still alive) brother of the king, had chirped in joy when he licked the eldest turtle, he couldn't help but feel his suspicion slightly break.

Chompy and Ice Cream Kitty, the king's beloved and most trusted pet, are very well known for figuring out danger within miles. It wasn't until the mutants with the humans had shown themselves from the vehicle that the giant alien had recognized his owner. Aasim, not being one to question the pets of the king, sighed and bowed as he allowed the turtles to explain themselves.

Luckily, the stern hare believes their story, especially since the human seemed to speak for the mutants she's with without a sense of hesitance or fear. She was sincere, as she vouched for them.

It only took another 30 minutes before they were asked to be taken to the king. Aasim was still suspicious of the mutants, but seeing how Chompy kept rubbing his beak againts the red banded turtle seemed to give him enough trust in them. Hence why they are now on the sand rafts, the Oasis Kingdom was now in view.

Raph and Donnie broke their eye contact. Mira smiled as she gazed upon the Kingdom she had been searching for, most of her life. April was flabbergasted, seeing such a well-made construction in a wasteland like this was clearly non-existant - that was until her eyes rested upon the walls of the Kingdom. Donnie's antennas rose up, shocked by the beauty of the well-made wall surrounding the palace, the guard towers at each corner, as much of the palace he can see past the wall and the small tints of that lushing green that he had only seen all those years ago.

Raph could only stare at the Oasis Kingdom up ahead, unable to shake the anxiety of how he were to approach his brother. His baby brother... And his best friend... Oh, how his heart longed to see more of his family throughout the years as his mind had told him that they were no more. And now... He can finally see them again... The sense of hope fills Raph's very soul, yearning for one of Mikey's hugs, just wanting to crush his baby brother until he couldn't breathe as he feels the relief that his brother was still living and breathing in the beautiful air of the Oasis Kingdom.

"Mikey.... Casey.... We're finally here..."

           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The gates of the wall surrounding the palace slowly close as the geckos pulling the rafts move forward at a slow pace. Once they stopped, they stand and stretch as servants come and hands them water, pulling the three to their quarters to eat and rest. Raph, Donnie and April were shocked to see such varieties of mutants, how much they seem so happy and enjoying the life they've been given. Another two or three sevants came and kindly led Chompy right behind the other servants and geckos, to which the giant alien gave a happy chirp to Raphael. The turtle couldn't help but smile and wave to the loving creature.

He couldn't believe he had forgotten Chompy. Raph felt guilty for forgetting his beloved son-like pet, it made it even worse that Mikey had been the one to take care of his pet. He will be sure to give his youngest brother a great thanks after seeing him again. "Come. The King will be pleased to see the human in one peace and joyous to see his brothers alive," Aasim said as he lead them to the whide but very few steps. For some reason, he stopped at the very end of the stairs, freezing himself before he moves closer to the doors of the palace.

The four stop behind him, confused as to why the hare had stopped moving onward, until the royal guard turned his head. "Though," he begins with a deep voice as he turns his head to where his right eye faces the ones behind him in warning, "heed my words turtles. His majesty is different from what you may know him as from throughout the years of becoming king, and the titled Lightning God. He can only tell so much..." 

With that, Aasim looks forward and continues to the path ahead, leaving the group either confused or conserned.

Aasim ordered the two mutant guards at the front to open the doors. They followed their orders and pushed the doors open, giving the group a view of the inside. The inside was wide, the sun rays brightened the room full of baskets. On both of the side walls were neat arches leaving a wide opening that lead to the beautiful green trees and grass, bushes full of all sorts of fruits and berries. Mira couldn't help but feel joy. She finally made it to the paradise she had promised her family. It was exciting to see so much of the bright, glorious green! A color or hue of green that was not seen outside of the kingdom walls.

They walk trough another set of doors as the entrance doors had shut - with the new doors opening, the adults couldn't help but feel a sense of anxiety and inferiority. As soon as the doors opened completely, they walked forward a few feet before coming to a stop.

Infront of the group was stairs leading upwards to an empty throne. Two female servants stand tall with gently smiles on their faces as they hold their assigned guards' spears beside the king's throne. The throneroom, Raph could assume it was called, was similar to the first room they went through, except with curtaints over the arches leading to the outside, a very well-made chandelier with unlit candles on them, torches lit with blue fire and two entryways on either side of the stairs of the throne, leading to two seperate hallways.

The servants, a female boar and blue jay, wore ancient greek styled outfits as they stared at nothing. When their eyes rested upon the group, they bowed with their eyes closed and placed their free hands over their chests. "We welcome your return, Sir Aasim," they say in unision. The ladies straighten themselves, once again standing tall as they smile kindly to the hare, "His majesty will be pleased that you have succeded in your mission," the boar spoke. Her voice was deep, yet gentle as she knew how proud the royal guard must feel on his success. Aasim nodded with a stern expression, though didn't hide his pride with his voice, "I'm sure he will. When will he arrive?"

Before anyone could respond, cracks of lightning seemed to echo through the throneroom. Suddenly, sparks of lightning formed from the chandelier, which Raph had just realized was made of metal, gathering into one ball of bright blue electricity. Donnie, being a robot made of metal, felt his mechanical body buzz around him. April reached a hand on his shoulder, staring at the forming lightning ball with a nervous look. Mira was astonished by the lightning and Raph felt a great sense of familarity.

The blue jay closed her eyes as her smile slightly grew, "His majesty has already arrived."

The ball of lightning shot down infront of the empty throne, brightening up the room as the sounds of thunder boomed from the acoustic room. Aasim and the servants merely shut their eyes as they wait for the brightness of the lighgning to die down. April, Donnie, Mira and Raph shut their eyes tightly as look away or block their eyes from the light. It only took a few seconds before it did, letting the group hesitantly look back to the throne infront of them. Though, this time, there was a figure blocking the throne from their vision, their head was down as they rise from a crouch.

Bright, glowing blue eyes sparked and crackled lightning as they opened. The figure then shot upwards, standing tall as their hips lean to the side and their arms spread open and upwards in a welcoming manner. A familiar grin showed itself to the group as the glowing eyes vanished, leaving nothing but energetic baby blue eyes - despite the dark circles underneath them.

"Welcome guests... To the Oasis Kingdom!!"

                 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Welcome to Murakami's restaurant!!"

Mikey exclaimed happily as he and his brother's posed and point their hands to Mr. Murakami's small restaurant. Small, but the owner held a great heart for it and those who came to seek his delicious food.

It was just after Karai and Mikey had their long hugging session, after Mikey struggled to push his sister off after spending almost half an hour in their embrace. Apparently, his brothers also invited the mutanimals as well, though only a few could join. Leatherhead, Mona Lisa and Mondo. Two of the three had never been, so when the lightning turtle heard where they were going on his first night out in a while, he wanted to leave it a surprise for them.

"My. What a fine establishment," Mona said kindly with a curious smile. Leatherhead nodded with a hungry smile after sniffing such delicate scents from the inside of the small building. His throut let out a soft growl, his mind feeling peace, despite his hunger. "Indeed," he grumbled.

Mikey bounced, rushing over and grabbing the giant alligator's clawed hands with his usual bright smile, giggling happily. "Come on then silly! Let's go eat already! I miss Mr. Murakami's food and could really go for a pizza gyoza! Ooh! You haven't tried pizza gyoza, right LH? Oh, you have to try his pizza gyoza, it's like, one of the bestest thing in the world!"

"Bestest is not a word Mike," Donnie told him as he and the other two moved out of the way as his baby brother dragged his closest friend to Mr. Murakami's door. Mikey ignored him and continued ranting. The smart turtle could only shake his head, the leader chuckled as their sister walked up and patted his back.

Raph kept his eyes on his baby brother....

The excitement held in his voice as he welcomed the four to his kingdom was the same as that sudden memory that had flashed through his mind. His baby blue eyes as bright as ever, giving anyone who had nothing, more hope than anyone ever could. That smile was as bright as the sun, if not brighter, always being infectious in the best ways possible. Those freckles spotting over his face and shoulders as they always did, never changing from the patterns Raph could find from when they were tots.

Tears started to form from his shocked neon green eyes as his dry lips parted. Relief flooded his senses, the way his body seemed to twicth, wanting to reach out to him. His body wanted to rush over to him, grab him just to see if it was reality, because not even his mind could tell if it was some illusion of the sort.

The only thing Raph could do was say one thing, as to which was hardly above a whisper...

"Mikey....."

Chapter Text

Michelangelo stood tall as his arms were wide open and welcoming to his new guests. He hoped that he would change that after a day or two in the Oasis Kingdom.

Now, looking at the guests, he found it quite shocking to find other mutant turtles. He had assumed for years that he was the only one all this time. He had graced them with his prescens, smiling above the steps, bringing his arms down. "I hope you can forgive me," he starts with an embarrassed smile, carefully stepping down the stairs as the guests stare in awe and shock, "I suppose i have misunderstood the situation of your human friend." Michelangelo giggled as he finally reached the end of the steps.

He could see them better now. The tallest is the bulkiest of the four, most likely the oldest as well. He wears such dark clothings. Michelangelo sighed internally, we'll have to change that soon.

Moving to the next, a robot shaped like a mutant turtle. How interesting that was to the king. He lightly tilted his head in curiosity, seeing only a thin glowing rectabgle where the eyes would be located and a small square on its chin, most likely the mouth. The turtle hummed, finding that one quite an interesting one. Never had he seen an actual robot, it's incredible.

The human. She looked familiar, yet couldn't place a finger on it. She wasn't as tall as the first mutant turtle but almost reaching the same height as the robot turtle. He smiled at her, feeling a slight tinge of anger for some reason.

Finally, the meerkat. She stared at him with star shaped eyes, which immediately vanished when she realized he was staring at her. She grew flustered, instantly bowing from the waist out of pure embarrassment. "Y-Your majesty! I'm sorry-"

Michelangelo only laughed. Oh, how he found the meerkat adorable. Although... He could almost remeber something... His eyes subconsciously trailed to the tattoo on the teen's arm. His eyes slightly widened and his smile faltered at the sight. Welcoming eyes then became sympathy and somber. "You're a part of the Meerkats I see..." That made the girl's ear twitch. Her embarrassment gone, and filled with the raw emotion of pain.

"Yes... I-... I was..."

'Was' she said. That made the king sad. He didn't like that. He won't allow this child to suffer any longer. She's in the Oasis Kingdom, a wonderous paradise for any mutants. The turtle touched her chin with the tips of his fingers, gently lifting her head up. Her eyes sparked in curiosity as she met his soft baby blue eyes. "You have done well, child. I'm sure you're family is proud that you made it." The tense bowing of the meerkat broke and her eyes widened in surprise to hear those words. Her eyes became glassy, Michelangelo knew just what to do.

He opened his arms, welcoming for the girl into an embrace. She was surprised, hesitant to even dare to hug who was considered royalty amongst this wasteland and yet, she couldn't help but rush in for a hug crying as soon as she felt his arms wrap around her protectively. She sobbed, feeling bad for letting her tears stain the clothes of the Lightning God, but felt relieved at the same time.

He felt real.

If he was real, then that means this place is real.

She did it...

She actually made it...

Oh, how long she's been awaiting for this moment to come...

To finally not waste away, struggling to search for food and hydration without being targeted.

She can eat in peace. Sleep in peace. Live in peace. Mira was sure that the king was right, hoping that her family was proud of her.

Michelangelo held the girl tight within his grasp, telling her through his mind that she no longer has to suffer and can live wonderously. His thoughts were cut off as he opens his eyes slightly, a voice called for a familiar name.

"Mikey..." The voice was low and gruff, but the emotion behind it was unreadable. Michelangelo opened his eyes as he recognized the name. He looked up, his arms loosening around the meerkat, seeing the turtle with the red bandana step forward. His hand was extended out hesitantly towards him, he had tears pricking his eyes. The king could only return the look with shock and confusion. "...is-... It is actually you...?"

The lightning turtle narrowed his eyes at him in slight suspicion, "How... do you know that name...?"

Aasim, the knight who had been forgotten in the moment, found it best leaving him self forgotten. He walks to the throne and whispers to the servants, dismissing them from the room as he waits for the moment to pass.

Mira silently stops her sobbing and kindly breaks herself from the royal's embrace. April gives a worried look, which Donatello would match if he had a face, though April could tell. Raphael's eyes blinked at his brother's words. "How do i know that name...?" He repeated, "How could I not? You're my baby brother Mike! You're the only Mikey i would know."

The said baby brother's eyes widened at those words. Lighting danced faintly around his fingers, causing them to twitch. He felt something brewing inside himself, and it wasn't good. "Apologies, dear guest, but I have no recollection nor memories of you or your friends," he apologized giving a guilty smile. Raph almost gave an offended look. Why is Mikey speaking so formally? That isn't right. None of this is! Why is he standing here saying he has no memories of them?! It's ridiculous! He couldn't have-

"Raph..."

April's voice calls telepathically as her hand touches his bulky shoulder. She gives him the eyes of "I'm sorry to say this, but they're dead". Mikey's not dead, he's right infront of them! So why-

"He doesn't remember us..."

His neon green pupils shrank rapidly. His fist, which he didn't know was formed at the second, loosened. His shoulders fell.

No...

Raph had no memories, well most of his memories...

Donatello was the only thing helping keep what memory he had left, telling him stories of their childhood. It barely helped at all, but it was what caused his dreams to become visions of his past, he supposed.

But Mikey....

Raph could only assume that he met the same fate as him after the Mutagen Incident. If Raph lost most of his memories, who's to say Mikey could've lost most - if not all - his memories. Only having Chompy by his side at the time somehow.

If Casey is here, he can't tell Mikey the memories of his childhood. He wasn't around until they were almost 16! If Casey isn't here, then either way, Mikey would have no way of remembering what his past was like.

Something poked him though. If he had no memory, then how come he knew Chompy's name...? How did he even know his own name?

No. Raph's not having that.

"Mikey, listen to me," he told the king with a harsh tone, "i need you to remeber. It's me! Raphael! And- And look, it's Donnie! He turned himself into a freaking robot, man! Just like Professor Connecticut!" He explained as he grabbed his immediate younger brother by the shoulders.

"Honeycutt, Raph." The mechanical turtle corrected.

"Honeycutt, whatever! Look, Mikey, it's really us! You're big brothers..!" His voice went from loud and harsh to soft and desperate, grabbing his baby brother's hands tightly together in hopes he could unlock every memory for him. "Please..! You gotta remeber... At least remeber Leo and Master Splinter..." April, slightly offended she wasn't introduced or added in walked over to Donnie. She knew the reason why she wasn't added in was because Raph wanted Mikey to remeber his family first, especially since they've known each other their entire lives.

Michelangelo could only tilt his head, his face showing a mix of offense, anger and confusion. How dare he call him by that name! Casey gave that name to him because they are close. This stranger was not even close to reaching their bond. Although... He couldn't help but think. Donnie...Leo... Master Splinter... Raphael..? That one doesn't quite ring the bell. His scrunched up face slowly relaxed as he observed the face of his desperate guest, tears brimming the edge of his eyes, not ready to give up on this attempt.

Raphael..?

That name seemed longer than the rest. The ginger haired turtle believes that the names he mentioned are mere nicknames. Maybe he can... give a small nickname for this one just to amuse the guest. Like... Raph. Raph...

"Hey, Raphie!"

"Raph did it first!"

"If you're Raph, then what's the secret ninja password?"

"...I pound you Mikey!!"

Something strung in Mikey's head. Almost stabbing him brutally, yet all he could do was feel his squinting, observant eyes widen in shock and remebrance. A shaky breath was exhaled. His body began to tremble slowly then rapidly as he can finally see the resemblance. "Oh, my..."

Raph smiled, "Mikey! You see me now!"

"Oh, my god..." His voice began to shake, whimpering as his expression changes into one of sadness and pain. Mira was surprised to see Raphael breaking through the king, awakening his memories. April grinned excitedly and Donnie's antennas whipped upwards in hope, gasping at the sight of his baby brother's face. "...Raphie...?"

The bulky turtle couldn't help but laugh at the name. Finally, he let the tears of relief fall, "YES!! YEAH, MIKEY IT'S ME!!" Without a warning, he lifts his brother by the waist tosses him up before catching him in his arms. Mikey gasped in surprise but couldn't help but laugh back. Raph hugged him tightly as he twirled around, letting Mikey's ridiculously long hair swirl around them. The two cried as they laughed. Once they stopped spinning, Raph dove for Donnie, who gave a yelp as he was dragged into a crushing hug.

"Oh, Donnie! Guys!" Mikey exclaimed cheerfully, wrapping around both of his brothers' shoulders in pure joy. They're alive!

The robot let himself become infected by the laughter, hugging his older and younger brother lovingly, "Mikey..! You have no idea how good it is to see you again little brother!" He's alive!

April and Mira watched the scene. Aasim walked next to them, smiling at the sight before him. It made his heart float seeing his king so happy. The human couldn't help but cry, wiping tears away as they fell. Mira sniffed, but had used up all her tears on Mikey. All she did was pat April's shoulder in comfort.

This felt like a dream to all three of the turtles. They never thought they'd see each other together again. Mikey started feeling guilty for forgetting his brothers, his family. Oh, how much he grieved for them before finding Casey. How much he cried for them on his searches. How much he damaged his voice, calling their names in desperation - hoping they'd be alive. And now here they are! The answers to his prayers were ten years late, sure, but at least they've been heard. He finally has his family again. He can finally remeber his family again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The group now sat on a dinning table, large enough to hold twenty people at best. Michelangelo sat at the head of the table as he watched his family and friends shove foods in their mouths. Well, except for Donnie of course, he just tried to make sure nobody choked. A somber sight to see. Oh, how much he missed his brothers. While in his throughts, actually thinking as he realized... They were alive this entire time. Alive, meaning they had been out in the wastelands, struggling to survive, suffering from the trauma and loss. They thought he was dead too, but he had built this paradise to keep him and his people safe. His brothers had nothing.

How selfish could he be?! His right hand flickered a spark of lighting. Well... They are together again. This means his brothers can live with him, Mira can live peacefully and April ca-

Wait a minute...

April....

He remembers now....

His bright blue eyes were wide open, keeping a smile as they flickered towards his human friend. His pupils shrank instantly.

"Tell me though, who's April?"

"Sh-She's my fiancé... You know this Mike."

His eye twitched and a larger spark of lightning popped over his mask tails, setting his mask on fire. Luckily, his personal servant was beside him holding a cup of water and lightly poured some water on his mask, carefully so she won't get his clothing wet. Mikey remebers now...

April O'Neil.

His dear, first human friend. He doesn't like these nasty feelings. He doesn't want to feel anger and jealousy towards his friend. Though it was hard not to since he remembers what his soon-to-be-husband had told him when he first awakened. 

Fiancé...

"Everything alright Mikey?" Donnie asked, due to seeing the lightning light his mask tails on fire. Mikey whipped his head to him, putting a bright fake smile, humming a yes. "Alright..." Donnie knew that look. He always did when it came to his baby brother. The two were the closest growing up, so he was used to seeing that face.

Mikey's hiding something...

Raph sighed after finishing his fifth bowl of fruits. Yeah, they were a bit too much sugar for his liking, but at least he finally got something that Mother Nature provided instead of some rotten piece of expired food he scavanged in destroyed places. "That amazing," he dreamily mumbled. Mira sighed and places her hands over her stomach in bliss from the given food, "You can say that again."

April could only laugh. Mira seemed to really take a liking to Raph, she can see that. Inbher eyes, they almost seem like father and daughter. It was nice. Mona would be proud of her partener, she knew that much.

"So~," Mikey sung, gaining the group's attention, "I can have my servants prepare rooms for you all now. Though, since the palace is still under constant construction, you can pair up into one room for the time being. Just until we have enough rooms for you all individually." Raph grinned, chuckling as he hears words past Mikey would never use.

"Wow. Thanks, a lot Mike. Really. But say, you mind showing us Casey's room?" The red banded turtle asked. The tip of Mikey's hair crackled at the mention of his beloved's name. He can't let them know he's here. He can't let him know that they're here. He won't allow April to see Casey. As much as that breaks the whole reason for bringing her in the first place, he can't lose him to her of all people. Okay, that sounds mean...

The king placed a mask on, looking innocent and confused as he tilts his head. His baby blue eyes are big and wide as he does. "Uh? Casey? What are you talking about big brother?" Raph's finger nearly twitched. Mikey called him big brother instead of big "bro" - but that's fine! He most likely didn't gain all his memories, which he can see as fair, seeing how he himself doesn't have a full recovery of his memories.

The current oldest cleared his throat. "Casey..? You know the hockey-lovin'-vigilante-dude with the face mask and the massive gap in his teeth? The guy that would aways get into fights with Don here?" If Donnie had his eyes, people would see him glaring at the chuckling Raph while he slowly turned his head towards him.

Mikey giggled at the two. He gave his older brother a small flick of the hand. "Haha, yeah, I already know who you're talking about. But, why are you asking as if he's here? I don't remember him ." He explained blankly, showing a hard thought expression to play off the false information.

April, looked down at the information. She could feel something as she secretly double checks Mikey's mind. She knew she saw him in her vision, here in this kingdom. If Casey was here just a few days, weeks, months, years ago... The probability of Mikey not remembering is high, seeing how he had forgotten his family and friends after almost ten years. "...Oh. What a shame," she mumbled as her hand reaches the locket Casey gifted. The other ginger gave a look of pity and guilt, "I'm sorry April... I really do wish I could remeber seeing him around..."

She sighed solemnly, "It's fine Mikey. I know it's probably hard to remember a lot right now..." The turtle gave soft smile, seeming as if he felt understood. The youngest adult at the table then stood up and clapped his hands, giving a big smile. "Don't worry! I'm sure if Casey came by at some point he'll come again. So, why not just stay here and wait until he comes back? Maybe Mira can finally settle in to her new life, April can help around, and Raph and Donnie can catch up with me. You know, see what's been going on the past 10 years."

They all smiled, agreeing to the idea. Mikey happily led them out of the dining hall to show them the rooms they'll be staying in for the time being. At least until they get their own personal rooms to live in.

This is a good day, despite the not-so-good realizations and feelings. His brothers are alive, he has more guests to enjoy this paradise, and April will never be given the chance to ever lay her eyes on Casey.

Nope!

He'll do what he can to protect them, but he will do whatever it takes to keep them from seeing Casey. If they believe they'll see him again someday, then its enough to keep his new guests here.

And they won't ever want to leave again...

No other lands could amount to this paradise...

Chapter Text

The halls were surprisingly grand for a place in the middle of nowhere. The was the stones were carved and soothened delicately just showed how hard these mutants worked to create a home for themselves in this oasis. Mira was all but in awe and excitement as she took in every inch of the place, every glance a window appeared. The meerkat was even more shocked when the king, the Lightning God himself, started leading her and the other adults down the handmade corridors of this divine palace. Mutants roamed each and every one as they chatted, played, ate, or watched as the group passed.

Many were looking at the new group but spot their king immediately after and were quick to pay their respects and bow as he passed his beloved subjects. Mikey bowed his head down to each one of them, smiling as brightly as he could. Raph, the second eldest of Michelangelo's brothers, started to wonder how someone like Mikey ended up in a place like this... Much less become the "King" or "Lightning God" of these mutants. And where did all these mutants come from?! Never had any of them expected to see so many mutants in one place.

It was astounding!

"So, erm, Mikey," the red banded turtle started after his baby brother bowed his head to another group of mutants, "...how did you end up being the king of this place? You mind sharing the tale here, little brother?" When he asked the question, Donnie's antennas twitched upwards, but only slight. April hummed and looked at Mikey from behind him, a brow raised in curiosity, "Yeah, Mikey... How did you become king?"

The said brother gave a short hum, his baby blue eyes looking at the floor ahead as he thinks. He figures they should know how his reign of the Oasis Kingdom began, although...

"Holy Chalupa! Over here!"

"Casey?! Casey can you hear me?!"

. . .

"I promise, Casey... I will take care of you until you wake up. And i won't let you go... I will never let you go again..."

Casey....

He can't let them know about him... Not yet...

His faltered smile was brought back up as he gave a laugh, turning his head back to show a shy expression. "Ah, are you sure? It's quite a long story to tell you guys." Donnie's antennas perked, his interest immediately caught. His robotic hand reaches his baby brother's right shoulder, causing him to look into the pink glowing line that were his eyes, "We won't mind it at all Mikey. Especially seeing how long you've been by yourself for quite a while," his tone shifting from desperation to a soft, brotherly tone, "you must have so much to tell after everything that happened after the incident..."

The incident...?

A few sparks of lightning cracked at the tip of his hair which drags along the clean floors. April couldn't help but notice, her psychic abilities going off at the sound of distress and pain from the youngest brother. She could see him almost stop in his tracks, but continues to lead them to their rooms anyways.

"Ah. Yes, the... incident..."

His voice didn't sound right to her. It seemed Raph caught it too, the two exchanging a glance at each other. Mikey is always one to give off a conforting vibe everywhere he goes, no matter scared or upset, he'd always try to brighten everyone's mood. Show them that not everything is as dark as the moment seems. That voice though. His tone. As he brought up the mutagen incident, his voice sounded dark. Dark and dull. Maybe a tint of anger. It was kind of hard to tell with the smile still drawn on his face. The human's and oldest turtle's concerned thoughts were cut off by a huffed laugh. The youngest turtle smiled, lifting his chin up as his eyes trailed onward, "Well, I suppose a small story can't be helped." He sighed, his smile once again faltering, "Let's just hope i can remember the important bits at least."

Mira sped up her pace slightly, just to be closer to the king so she may hear the tale of his past. Donnie patted his shoulder gently, "Take the time you need to remeber, Mike. We'll wait and listen." That made the freckled turtle's smile brighten a little, just hearing the comforting words of one of the brothers who were never good with emotions. Yeah. He can definitely remember that easily. Perhaps the rest of his memories could be brought back if he thinks hard enough. Sure, it hadn't worked before, but his brothers are here now.

Michelangelo sighed longingly, gathering words and collecting as much of his memories as he could. Wincing as he could remember screams of fear from people... Actual people...

Humans...

The people of New York screamed in terror and fear. A few just accepted their fate, hugging each other close and sobbing together, telling each other how much they love them. Some calling friends or relatives, telling them that they hope to see them again soon. Meanwhile, a great amount of humans in the area tried running, attempting to escape a fate that has already been set. A fate that can no longer be changed. There are no corners to hide in this time.

The city is colored in a sickly, bright green glow from the gicantic machine, huddling itself downward to the surface of the city with gallons, beyond gallons, of mutangen. The four brothers stood on a rooftop, their eyes laced in horror as they watch the ungodly amount of mutagen grow closer to Earth. "So, uh... What do we do now, Leo?" Raph asked, turning his head to the eldest, who merely continued to stare at what was coming.

"There is no way we can stop all of that!" Donnie shouted from the other side, his arm stretched outwards as his hand points to the giant canister. Mikey just fidgeted his fingers, electricity sparking around his body nervously, "I'm not even sure if my lightning powers could blow up this thing like last time, dudes." The hotheaded turtle whipped his head to his baby brother, "What?! There is no way in hell we would even let you do that again! We don't need you going through another coma!"

As the three younger turtle's spoke amongst themselves, trying to find a way to at least move the mutagen away from Earth's orbit, Leo was stuck in the empty void that is his mind. He already knew... Donnie was right. There is no way any of them could stop all of that, much less move it. The blue leader slowly lowered his head, he though of something, realizing something. They were standing right underneath it. His body turned, his blank face staring at Donnie and Raph arguing and Mikey covering his ears, eyes shut tightly as lightning continued to crackle and spark around his body anxiously as he tries to find something to make better of the situation, or at least help find a solution to the doom that's now breaking through the atmosphere.

Leo knew what to do now...

The mutagen was now miles away from them and the three didn't seem to notice through their distress. Leo swallowed a lump in his throat as tears pricked his eyes. "Hey..."

Depsite how quiet his voice was, the three snapped out of it and looked to him. The eldest suddenly wrapped them into a tight embrace, smiling as the tries to lock this moment within his memory, pinning it with the most memorable and important memories he keeps stored. His smile was loving yet wobbly as he sniffed. Tears fell as soon as his arms were wrapped around his brothers.

"Leo..."

"I'm sorry..."

"What?-"

Without warning, Leo shoves his three brothers off the edge of the rooftop, his smile gone while his teeth grind together and his eyes shut tightly so he won't see the faces of his shocked brothers. Raph and Donnie were closer together as they fell, Raph reaching out to Leo, calling his name as Donnie immediately clung to his red banded brother as they fell. Mikey, however was pushed away from the rest. His baby blue eyes widened in terror, his mind raced as he fell. Time slowed, seeing his big brother sacrifice himself again hurts more this time. Because this time... There was no way to get out of this one...

Mikey's mouth opened, tears falling along with him as time reversed back to its normal pace. He couldn't tell for sure, but a pained screech shouted Leo's name. Maybe it was him...

"LEO!!!"

Ringing fills his ears. His body is heavy as a great rush of cold flooded his body. There was something touching his face, licking it. It felt... warm. Almost too warm. The weight of gravity spared him, and granted his body movement. The ringing slowly died along with the tiredness he didn't realize he had until now.

Baby blue eyes blinked open, confused and dazed. His mind was barely beginning to process how he got here. Where was here...?

Something licked his face again. He grunted, flinching as he feels the a small amount of warmth. Finally, his body was given the sudden strength to push himself up. Groaning, he blinks some more. When his brain finally catches up, he sees two creatures in front of him, giving him beady little eyes in worry. Ice Cream Kitty and Chompy. They were both in Ice Cream Kitty's cooling container that Mikey puts her in when they travel. Oh. Right. He kind of remembers now...

Mikey shoved the two inside the small cooler to protect them. His eyes blinked again, realizing he was still in an unfamiliar place. But when he stood up and to leave the room to figure it out, he realized it wasn't unfamiliar. It was just the lair. Which was greatly destroyed. Rubble was everywhere, leaving no place without destruction. He was hiding away in the kitchen with the two pets, staring at the horrid sight of what has befallen of his precious home. His mind immediately snapped back, remembering Splinter and Tang Shen's altar. Holding tightly to the cooler, he rushed to the dojo, not hearing the stressed sounds of Chomy and Ice Cream Kitty.

He climbed over some rubble, ignoring the opening of their home that leads to the surface, and kicks whatever was left of the dojo's door and slides in. His mind panics as he sees the altar knocked over and broken, the picture frames and items on the shelf had fallen with it and shattered.

"Oh- no! No, no, no, no, no!" He whispered worridly, rushing over before sliding onto his kneepads, placing the cooler down beside him as his shaking hands hover over a specific broken frame. His scaly fingers twitch, causing a spark of lighting to flicker. As carefully as he could, he lifted the frame, bringing it close to him as his widened eyes stared at the photo inside the frame. The photo, unfortunately, was not left unscathed. It was burnt and ripped from underneath the cracked glass, barely letting Tang Shen's face be shown, visible to his shrunken eyes. His thumb caresses the edged of the frame, ignoring any splinters given. Tears started to form as he sat on his legs, his arms loosening and reluctantly drops the photo to stare off into the distance. His eyes devoid of life as he does. Tears slipped, dripping slowly over his pale face.

How did this happen...? How could this happen...?

Something cold causes a slight shiver, followed by a shy meow. The turtle blinked, their consciousness being brought back to him as he tries to regain his senses as well. When he does, he looks down to the source of the cold. Ice Cream Kitty rubs her sweet little head against his hand as Chompy jumps out of the cooler and crawls under his palm. The baby alien turtle let out a small chirping sound, looking up to his baby blue eyes with his big violet eyes.

Carefully, he lifts Chompy into his hands before petting him. The baby alien seemed to enjoy it, and seeing it made his heart beat a little. His dull eyes slowly regaining its spark. He turned his head, he takes one of his hands and pets his dear Ice Cream Kitty while the thumb of his other hand rubs against his brother's alien turtle's head.

His brothers...

They aren't here...

He can't sense any forms of electricity in the lair... It felt weird to think that. Knowing that the lair that was once buzzing with electricity that Mikey could feel had suddenly gone.

Its quiet.

Dead.

A wave of exhaustion washed over him, barely hitting him, but it was just as strong. He felt the need to move, to run out and find his brothers and friends. His sister, his allies. They all needed him right now. His eye lids had started to drop. He looks up and sees that the darkness of night was starting to fade into the picture. Mikey's energy was low, and he knew that if he wanted to find his family, he needed to be in full battery. A tired sigh left his beak, eyes shutting before opening them again.

He opens the door to his room. everything was covered in dust and small grains of rubble. He was lucky enough that his room had survived what caused the destruction of the lair. At least somewhat survived. His room was messier than he usually leaves it after what happened. Everything had fallen to the ground, the shelves were tilted, leaning on the wall, right beside the door. His tired eyes slowly looking down to the two in the cooler in his now still hands. Ice Cream Kitty and Chompy had fallen to rest, somehow exhausted and cuddled together. It was shocking to see Ice Cream Kitty not melting, but with how cold it's been the past few minutes, he could understand why.

After clearing up his bed, which he was lucky to have still up and unbroken, he places the cooler on the ground beside the bed. The poor turtle removes his dirtied, orange bandana to tie it around his short ginger hair and wraps himself tightly around the two layers of blankets. His mind was everywhere, yet nowhere at once. It wasn't radical, nor the situation he was in.

All he could do was hope that his brothers and everyone else were safe and sound somewhere. Hope that Master Splinter and Tang Shen are watching over them all. Him? He'll be fine... Just needs rest...

His mind drifts, his body finally relaxing as the numbness of sleep consumes him, pullimg him to the sweet peacefulness sleep could offer him.

"I'm sorry..."

(To be continued. . .)

Chapter Text

"I think the day after, when I woke up, there was no good food or anything to drink from the destruction, so I just went straight up to the surface... When I stepped out of the sewers... ALL of New York was in ruins... Some buildings were standing, some weren't. But either way, every single building was destroyed somehow... With no one left at all..."

Mikey grunts as he places the cooler with ICK and Chompy on the messy street. When he stepped out of the sewer entrance, he grabbed the cooler - holding it with both of his hands - before looking up. Once he did, he actually got to see the damage that has been done to his home. The city, and possibly hundreds of miles away from here, was affected greatly. The ginger haired turtle shivered at the sudden emptiness of the city that was once always so lively and busy. Now it's dead silent, nothing but a mere ghost town. His baby blue eyes stared at the destroyed city, standing still as he felt he couldn't trust his eyes, or his mind. Either one could be playing tricks on him. Or both could. He hoped that was the case...

Ice Cream Kitty meowed, patting a sticky paw on her owner's hand. Mikey's body tensed before nodding to himself as he gulped anxiously. Hesitantly, he barely gets his body to corporate with him and slowly, real slowly, walks forwards, his head turning to look at every building he passes by. "Hello? Anyone out there?" The anxious tone of the turtle calls out, only gaining the response of the eerie echoes mocking him. He didn't like it one bit. He was shaking, not just from fear and nervousness, but from the cold. Why is it so cold..? It shouldn't be this cold in New York right now. Or what's left of New York anyway. It's the middle of spring, just a few weeks from summer. Meaning it shouldn't feel like a snow storm during winter when there is no snow or wind. There were clouds in the sky, but looking closer at them, they were most definitely just smoke clouds from the destruction.

"Guys! Can you hear me?" He started to call out for his friends and family, hoping they would at least be around and alive at best. "Guys, this isn't funny, come on out here! I know I usually like to play games but now isn't the time to play hide and seek!" The turtle mumbled out loud, at this point and praying that a familiar face would pop up the further he went from the sewer hole he came from and deeper into the deserted city. His fears grew and grew with each step he took, ICK and Chompy having the same feeling, slowly choosing to hide away from nothing in the cooler. "Karai? Leatherhead! ...Mondo, buddy? Slash? . . ." No response.

"Casey...?"

No response.

"April...?"

His voice gets quieter.

"Donnie...?"

Tears prick his eyes.

"Raphie..."

His voice cracks as he calls for his second oldest brother.

"...Leo..."

He breaks at the mention of his eldest's name.

Mikey falls to his knees and cries, bringing the cooler close to his chest as he sobbed. Sobbing, he lifted his head, "Please!! Anyone! I don't want to be alone! Someone answer me!! Please..! Someone...! Anyone..." The turtle continued to sob, his mind becomes foggy as he cries, unable to focus to continue searching for any survivors. His friends... His family... If they're gone, then what's the point. Why must he suffer through everything? Why must he be alone? What is he supposed to do? Lighting cracks and begins to spark, crawling all around his arms. Ice Cream Kitty and Chompy, spotting the lightning dancing around the sobbing terrapin, squealed in panic. The tried to call to him, chirping or meowing, hoping to get his attention in attempt to distract him from the scene all around them. Mikey's grip around the cooler tightened, which only caused the lightning to quicken around him, sparking all around him. The electricity made his ginger hair lift slowly, his eyes began to glow a bright blue, flickering as they do. ICK and Chompy whimpered and tried to hide deeper into the cooler, wanting to close it in fear but didn't. Sobs eventually became aching growls. The turtle who was forced to be left behind because of the mutagen missile. This lonely, pathetic, electricity gifted turtle, who was unable to save his friends and family.

Mikey looked out to the destroyed city, the emptiness it holds brought him so much pain in just mere minutes, maybe even hours if he'd count the night before. HIs grip was terrifyingly tight to the point the cooler started to crack. He chocked on a sob one last time before the lightning overtook his body, causing to make his entire body brighten with a burning amount of energy. ICK and Chompy huddled close and squeaked to feel protected by the other, unsure of what was happening to their friend. And then, that's when it happened...

Mikey snapped.

A loud scream of pain, taking the form of a nauseating screech, released all of lightning that buzzed all over.

With the lightning released, a giant burst of energy  overtook the deserted city of New York. 

"I don't.... I don't remember much after that... There wasn't really much to remember anyway... All I know was that it went dark after that moment, I can't say I remember what came of the city. I don't even remember passing out or... Waking up... Everything else is either gone with the wind, fuzzy or foggy... Well, up until I ran into this beautiful oasis."

13 months have passed, Mikey, with dull and foggy eyes continued with his slow march for nothing. He still believes that his brothers are out there, but he doesn't know where. He doesn't even bother to know where he is. The cracked cooler was being carried in his arms as he slowly walks the ground that has become sand. Though he never realized that there was only one pet in the cooler. Soft foot steps slowly trailed behind him, watching the area around him. The source of this was Chompy. Despite it not being that long, he grew quite a lot. He was now walking behind the zoned out turtle, reaching just about his knees. The alien turtle was wider, taller and somehow stronger. Even without realizing it, Mikey ran into some abandoned places and managed to keep the three fed and healthy enough to keep pushing through the deserted planet. Mikey can't even remember when the last time he slept was. It didn't matter to him.

"I just need to find my brothers..."

Suddenly, the ginger haired turtle was forced into a stop by being pushed back, his butt hitting the ground with an 'oof'. For the first time, in who knows how long, Mikey was fully aware of himself and his surroundings. His eyes wide in surprise as he sees the alien turtle in front of him. He was on both of his back legs, struggling to keep balance before landing back onto all four. Mikey now started to realize that his brother's pet had grown. "Ch-...ompy...?" Gosh, his voice was raspy. "What's going on with you, bud...?" Chompy chirped happily, tail wagging as he sees the other finally notice his presence after so long, and turned behind him with a jump. Ice Cream Kitty peered up from the cooler, seeing Chompy quite happy and saw what her companion did. Mikey's baby blue eyes followed and gasped softly. He stood up, careful with ICK in the cooler. His eyes sparkled as he stared in awe. "A... Tree..." He looked around and started to see that he passed some trees, not many but not a few either. He looked behind the tree that is in front of him and gasped louder. More trees! He hasn't seen a single living, thriving plant in ages! The mutagen from the missiles must have missed this spot. A small smile started to form from his dry beak. "Come, Chompy," his hoarse voice called as he started to run. Running and running, the numbers of trees grew and grew, spotting some bushes here and there, some berries growing on some trees. It was all so exciting! Finally a change in this cursed wasteland. His hair, which he just realized grew a few inches more, flew with the suddenly fresh air that closed from these life giving trees. Tears started to prick as he and Chompy ran together through the growing forest, with Ice Cream Kitty, meowing loudly as the rushing wind blew at her. Chompy chirped in joy, letting his tongue slip out of his mouth like a dog would in a car.

Mikey let out some raspy giggles here and there. Letting the discovery of this forest bring him a sense of hope and relief. The smile on his face grew and grew to the point his cheeks got sore. He never felt so much positivity at once in so long. It was therapeutic almost. He laughed, turning and dodging every wonderous tree that was in his path. Nothing could ever ch- "Wait, Chompy- Stop!" Mikey gasped hurriedly before dragging his feet against the grassy ground. Chompy did as told, doing the same. As quick as they ran, they came sliding to a stop. Their feet were inches away from.... A cliff? Panting for air, Mikey and the two pets stares at the sudden cliff.

"Dude... We totally almost fell into that cliff, ha!" Mikey grinned to himself, it felt funny to hear himself speak. Hesitantly, he walks towards the edge of the cliff, Chompy slowly following behind him. What Mikey was expecting was the usual rocky spikes or something you'd usually see in some movies or comics. What he didn't expect was an immaculate amount of water, just a few feet below the cliff's edge. "It's a lake!" Mikey's eyes widened bigger than they did before with the trees, "It's a giant lake!! This is insane! And its clear as heck!" He puts down the cooler and bends down on his hands and knees, attempting to get a closer look at the crystal clear water. "You can almost see the bottom of this big old dirt tub of water...! This is amazing." The baby blue eyes of the turtle glowed brightly out of hope and joy. All of his old self started to come back to him, and mentally prayed that he isn't dead or dreaming. This place... This Oasis! It's nothing but a miracle to Mikey. A symbol of hope and even peace. The life growing around him just brought what he never even noticed he'd lost. It was all beautiful and astounding. He leant back and sat down on the edge, letting his feet dangle, his arms holding his upper body as he took a slow breath in, taking in the freshly cold air, before sighing. Tears that pricked his eyes have finally got their chance to fall, dripping from his chin. Chompy chirped lightly, letting out a huff of warm smoke onto the ground before stomping on the spot and laid himself onto the soily ground. His eyes shut as a rumbling sound came out of him. Mikey giggled through the tears, petting Chompy as the alien turtle begins his nap. He turns to see his beloved pet Ice Cream Kitty, seeing her do the same. Sighing one last time, he laid on his shell, his eyes gazing upon the sunny sky.

"I can't wait to find my bros... Then I can show them this place," his hand reached down into his pouch on his belt, gently pulling out the photo of Splinter, when he was human, and Tang Shen holding baby Karai when she was named Miwa. "Then we can finally be together again, Papa... I'll make sure we live happy together again... Even if we can't watch TV or read comics anymore... At least we'll have this paradise..."

A hand froze over a door. Mikey stood still as he remembered what he told his Papa that day. To think, he suddenly gave up after finding only Casey and was forced into the role of being king of these mutants who needed his care and protection. As happy as he was to help, being ruler and nicknamed a God was a bit much in his case. Though it seemed that he had no other choice but to take on the role. For the sake of all these mutants... It was something he kept pushing through and just accepted years later that his brothers were indeed dead.

Dead.

They're dead...

They-

"Mikey?"

He flinched and whipped his head back to see the source of the gruff voice. "Raph?" He looked at the others with him, trying to remember who they were. "You okay, Micheal?" The machine asked him with a soft tone, antennas whirring as they go down. His face scrunched for a moment before his eyes widened in embarrassment. "Oh! Yes, I'm fine! I guess I almost forgot who you were again. Forgive me, brothers." He frowned in self disappointment, removing his hand from the door and bowed solemnly.

Raph stared down at his baby brother, his heart aching terribly as he sees Mikey look so sad. It upset him. He placed a gloved hand onto the youngest's shoulder, which caused his baby blue eyes to open. "Hey," he started, his voice low and serious, but still held a tint of gentleness to it, "We're together again now, Mike... You won't have to worry about forgetting us anymore. You've been through a lot more than you can even remember, and being a king to these mutants on top of that? You definitely had to push so much away just to take care of them and this place. You're doing good, little brother... Just know we won't leave you behind like that again." Said brother rose back up, standing straight, as he looked into his big brother's eyes. A huffed laugh was all that came as his eyes began to water, his hand grabbing onto the one on his shoulder. HIs grip tight as a tear fell in relief. His brother's are here... Even if it's not all of them, two is enough to fill the aching void in his heart. This was enough.

"Yeah... I know....."

After explaining what he could to his brothers, April and Mira about how he came to discover other mutants that have been caused by the mutagen, how they were able to construct a palace for all the residents, how he became king and nicknamed as the Lightning God, he finally showed them their paired rooms and left them to rest. He said he will come to them when dinner has been made and I already to eat.

He walks down a few halls before making it down to a certain room with a guard standing beside the doors. Michelangelo stopped his walk a few centimeters from the guard with a serious expression. "We seem to have some guests in search of our king-to-be...." The royal guard straightened his posture in response, he head held high. The king's baby blue eyes have dulled over as he slightly turns his head to him, "Make it be that he never runs into our guests during their stay. They will be moving in when construction has been completed in the Western side. Have Casey under lock and key, and keep him on the Southside at all times, is that understood?" He ordered with a dark tone. "Aye, your majesty." The guard nodded as he responded, taking in every word of the king's order. Michelangelo hummed in satisfaction and continues his walk, a dark smile growing on his face as lightning sparked from his eyes.

From behind the corner, the elder panther overheard the king's order to the human's personal guard. These mutants, along with him, are happy to serve their king after what he's done to help them from the tragedy beyond the walls. Though he, among the many, know more of his majesty as much as Casey did...

And it seemed the young human was right.

"There's more to the king than the mask he wears..."