Chapter Text
Flashback
"Mikey!" Donnie cried, his tears vanishing in the darkness as the door closed and the room turned black one more. "Don't leave me! Please!"
He tugged at his handcuffs, once, then his wrist begged for mercy. He didn’t know how bad his wounds have gotten by now, but the smell of blood stung his nostrils and he could taste iron on his tongue. That, and the constant, pulsating pain coming from his wrist was an indicator that whatever state he was in now, wasn’t a good one. Honestly, he was a bit scared of seeing his wrists, somewhat he was glad they were locked behind his back and out of his field of view.
"Come back, please," There was no stopping the tears. Those were probably the last ones. He hadn’t got anything to drink for the past 2 days, or maybe it was only one. He had lost all feeling for time in the dark, lonely room.
"You know, my offer still stands."
Not entirely lonely room,
Company never felt so sickening.
"I'm not going to free you," Donnie said lowly. They had this conversation before, after the first time he was left down there. It was a bittersweet proposal, one that could have him free of the handcuffs and out of the dark room and out of the house. Donnie swallowed, breathing in through the mouth and shakingly breathing out, "You can ask me many more times, my answer won't change."
"They won't come back for you, Purple one. You're going to rot down here."
"They'll come," Donnie countered, slight amounts of doubt bleeding into his voice, "My big brother Raph won't leave me behind."
"Just like you thought your baby brother won't leave you behind?"
"Mikey will be back! He just- He just has to come up with a plan! He... He wouldn't abandon me...neither of my brothers would abandon me"
"Are you trying to convince me or yourself?"
Donnie bit his tongue.
He didn't want to answer that question.
Mikey would come back for him, he was sure of it. Mikey would never leave him. He probably had a good reason for going with April... showing no resistance... not even trying to free him...
Throwing his head back, screaming at the ceiling. He had nothing particular to scream but simply needed an opening to vent out his frustration. The tugging on his handcuffs became more vicious, this time not stopping when his wrists bleed all over his arms.
"Let me out!" He cried, moving the entire bed an inch forward after one especially harsh tug. Metal dug deeper into his flesh, getting stuck there and rubbing against his insides. Sobbing, he noticed his legs give out underneath him and he collapsed in a heap.
His hands tingled weirdly. A bit as if they had fallen asleep. They were numb and he had trouble moving his fingers.
His stomach was doing the exact opposite. It made itself known by rumbling and growling, hurting him and making him feel empty and weak. He wondered, was this how Leo felt all the time? Afraid, hurt, lost, and with no one to hear his screaming? Leo might not be locked in dark room, but he had a prison of his own, one he couldn't escape from.
He wanted to cry for his twin. He wished for nothing more than to be free and run into Leo’s arms, squeezing his twin until the world was bright again. He didn't know what hurt more, his own pain, or the sympathy he felt towards his twin.
He needed to get back to him. To Leo.
He promised he would free him, and he wasn't going to break that promise. If he had to cut his hands off, so be it.
And the tugging began anew. One thing Donnie noticed was how the handcuffs were moving around a lot less, one of the cuffs having itself embedded deeply into his flesh. It might have hit bone at one point because he heard a weird sound he couldn't quite place. The bed scratched over the floorboards the more Donnie struggled and thrashed about.
'Nardo...' Donnie felt the last of his tears roll down his face, 'Wait for me... I'm coming for you...'
He lost all feeling in his hands. There was pain and then there was nothing. Donnie had trouble even lifting his arms anymore, he pulled at the handcuff and suddenly his body was shutting down. It confused him. He tried to move and nothing happened.
"Give it up, Purple one."
Who else could it have been but Gentry that spoke, her voice laced with a gentle tone that Donnie knew was fake.
"Either you agree to my plan, or you'll never get out of these handcuffs."
Donnie hissed at the shadows, baring his teeth, "You want me to free you! If I do that, you'll go after Leo again!"
There was a chuckle, shortly broken by a cough, which then grew more violent. Gentry took a few seconds to compose herself and then spoke, "That's the reason you don't want to help me? Not the possible danger of me stabbing you in the back the first chance I get?"
Oh. Now there were two reasons he doesn't want Gentry out of that magical barrier.
The laughter got louder.
Donnie shut his eyes tied and rubbed his head against his shoulder to somehow turn off the awful sound. He didn't need to be 'boo'ed at for his uselessness, he can do that himself just fine, thank you.
Then the laughter turned to coughs, just like before, the transition was sudden and harsh. Donnie turned his gaze in the general direction of where the coughing was coming from. Small, shiny particles- they reminded him of confetti, sparkled in the dark before disappearing as if they had never existed.
"H-Hey," Donnie spoke quietly, unsure of what to say, "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm feeling just peachy." The sarcasm was so obvious, it might have as well slapped Donnie across the face. He didn't like the answer he was getting. Gentry hadn't done much for Donnie to trust her, but somewhere deep down, there was a friend, one in need.
The coughing wasn't getting any better. It got worse. The particles coming out were bright enough to light up smaller parts of the room, and for a split second, Donnie caught a glimpse of Gentry's face. She didn't look well. She was pale and her eyes were slightly sunken in.
"You're... You're not the sharpest tool in the shed, are you?" Gentry let out a quiet chuckle, "Those things you put on me... They're... They're magic draining."
Duh, that was their purpose. They couldn't risk Gentry running around freely, she would come after Leo and everyone else again. She could easily break out and go on another rampage.
"They are supposed to be," Donnie answered lowly, eying the darkness in confusion.
"Now, what is the one thing I'm made of?"
Magic.
The answer was magic.
Gentry's laughter grew stronger in volume, mocking him for his oblivion.
"But-" Donnie had trouble speaking, "But that would've meant you-"
"I've been slowly dying since we both got stuck down here? Yep, you hit the nail on the head there."
"Impossible! April- April would have never given you those if they would kill you! Despite being under the spell, deep down you two are still best friends! Stop playing with my emotions!"
"I may have known your family for very long, but from what April and Cass have told me, I know for a fact that Splinter and Draxum have magic restrictive items, yet, your sister…my supposed best friend went for the only thing that could effectively restain, and kill me."
"You're lying!"
She had to be lying. Donnie was the one getting those bracelets. He couldn't have been the one that helped in the murder of a friend. There was simply no way. He refused to believe this to the very end.
"Keep telling yourself that," Gentry coughed again, the particles growing more in numbers, "We'll see in an hour or two."
"You only got two hours left?"
"Maybe 30 minutes if I'm lucky."
Donnie chewed on the inside of his cheek, whether it was due to anxiety or doubt, he didn't know, "Okay. I'm doing it." He ended up saying.
"Hm?"
"I'm freeing you. Tell me what I should do."
"Oh ho ho! Now we're talking!
Donnie wondered if he was doing the right thing. Setting Gentry free would... most likely make things harder down the line. She was no doubt the biggest threat they had faced so far and now he would unleash her once again.
"The plan is simple." Gentry hummed from her prison in the darkness, "Those runes you set down there should be close to you. If you manage to wipe it away with your foot, the barrier should break away."
"And then you are going to free me from the handcuffs," Donnie emphasized. He was not going to sit here and do nothing while Gentry ran free.
"Yeah, yeah sure. Now get me out."
Donnie began to regret his decision. Nonetheless, he stretched his leg out and felt around, he remembered putting down a rune somewhere to his right. He leaned back to get more reach with his leg and swiped his foot over the floorboards. He hit a few objects, empty cans, a blanket, a pile of dust, though it was near impossible to find where exactly he had drawn the symbol.
As he searched, Gentry doubled over in another coughing fit. The particles were even more than before, and somehow the coughing sounded weaker like it took more and more energy out of the witch to get them out of her system. Donnie began to wonder if she should rather keep them down, they were like little specks of magic leaving her body. He wondered if this was the equivalent to blood.
At last, Donnie heard something shatter. It sounded like glass.
"Finally!" Gentry cheered. Looks as if Donnie managed to get the rune after all.
"Thank you greatly for your cooperation, Purple one."
"Donnie."
"Whatever. I fear I have to head out now."
"Wait!" Donnie called stumbling to get to his feet and stand, "You said you're going to get me out too!"
Gentry- Donnie didn't know how he knew since he still couldn't see, but he swore, he felt Gentry's smile on him- giggled quietly to herself, "I also told you I would stab you in the back the first chance I get, did I not?"
The room dropped by 10 degrees.
"No," Donnie breathed out, his eyes widening, "Nononononono, you can't do that! I'm not going to let you get away with that!"
"Oh, please, can you choose any less cliche last words? Every base hero ever said those, but let me tell you a little something, this isn't a movie or stupid book. There are no heroes. And if there were- well, you certainly wouldn't be one."
"But-" Donnie struggled with his words, he had trouble breathing, "W-What are you going t-to do? You still have those bracelets on! You're magic is still gone! Without it- Without it, you have nothing to beat my family with! You're going to lose!"
He was grasping at loose straws, "I read the description on those bracelets! Only an object stronger than them can break them! You would have to go back to the lair or even go to Draxum’s place and find something to get them off! You'll never make it without me! You need me!"
"I don't." The cold tone in Gentry's voice made his blood freeze. She sounded weirdly ahead of the situation. Did Donnie really just play right into her hands?
"My mentor once gave me a pretty handy item. I never had a need to use it as I thought it was worthless. Guess it finally pays off keeping that junk."
Donnie heard rumbling, though he still couldn't see. Something might have moved in the shadows, maybe his sanity was playing tricks on him.
"Now, where did I put that diamond dagger?"
Diamond dagger? Mikey talked about them once. They cut through everything, not even the strongest metal in the world was strong enough to withstand those.
"Don't!" Donnie was begging now. If Gentry left him too, then- He would be all alone. No one was coming for him.
Mikey left him.
His sister left him.
He didn’t know if Raph would come and find him
"Please don't leave me!" He was crying, but without tears. His voice hurt from how much he's been using it lately, and he felt drowsy, "I don't want to die!"
His cries went unanswered. The shuffling in the dark came to a stop with an excited exclaim of, "There it i-" and it got abruptly stopped by a loud crash, Gentry collapsing on the stop and sinking to the ground with loud coughs. She spat out an entire cloud of particles, almost like glitter, it sparkled through the darkness.
Unlike before, the coughing didn't stop after a few minutes, it continued and got gradually worse. The particles she coughed up also didn't reduce in numbers, they gathered in a little heap right beneath Gentry, which was bright enough to light up the room by a little bit. Donnie could faintly make out the silhouette of Gentry, kneeling hunched over, holding her stomach with her arms and coughing up more of that glitter. She looked like she was in great pain.
Next to her- A dagger. Shiny, blue.
The diamond dagger.
If it can cut through Gentry's cuffs then...
Donnie held back a loud scream as he took a step forward, dragging the entire bed behind him as he walked. He couldn't feel his wrists anymore, at all, but there certainly was pain flooding his brain. He didn't quite know what he was going for, but he moved, and so did the bed. Loud metallic sounds screeched as the heavy object scratched the floor and broke his wrists.
Donnie felt blood cover his arms and soaking his skin. Normally, Donnie would be disgusted by this. But, he had a mission, so he continued on. His eyes were fixated on the dim lines of the dagger, assumably the only thing that could free him from the bed and get him out of the room and out of the house
It was in reach now, Donnie stretched his leg out like before to grasp it and pull it closer. He touched it- and poof, it was gone. Gentry swiped it away from under him and slid it to another part of the room. "If I'm going down, I'm taking you with me," the witch huffed, seemingly out of breath. She looked as if she was about to claw Donnie's throat out, her fingers tickling with some faint blueish light. Then another coughing fit. This one was different, however. The particles coming out of her didn't respond to the colors of the rainbow anymore, now they were an array of greys, blues, and greens. And to Donnie's surprise, so was Gentry. The new colors flickered in and out, sometimes staying longer and other times only for the blink of an eye. He felt he saw this somewhere before, this color change.
Donnie couldn't afford to stand around and see what would happen. He began his new path, towards where the dagger had disappeared from his vision. He had one mission. Not die in this dark room. In this house. And the first step to reaching his goal was to get out of the handcuffs. Everything else was secondary.
He dislocated his shoulder halfway through. He felt- and heard- it pop out of its socket, and he's been dragging it behind him limply ever since. Pulling the bed by one wrist only greatly slowed his speed. He wasn't sure how long he's been trying, his own breathing drowning out the coughing he was supposed to hear. He cried at the pain flooding his mind, wishing for it to stop. He reached the dagger a second time, making sure he would quickly pull it close to him with his foot, and scooted the object up his legs until he could bend forward and pick it up by the handle with his beak.
He has the dagger. Now, he just had to-
He couldn't feel his hands.
How was he supposed to cut through?
Donnie blinked, his brain drawing a blank.
He wasn't quite sure how to proceed from there. He tried to turn so he could cut his way out with his beak, but he still had too many bones in his body to restrict him from bending in such a way.
"Hey, Gentry?" He asked, with the dagger still in his beak and muffling his words. He waited a few seconds for a response, just to not get one. He looked to where Gentry had laid before, hoping that the particles were still there to light his way. It was dark. And there was no coughing.
"Gentry?" He asked again, a bit more worried this time, "Hey, Gentry?"
Nothing.
"H-Hey... Are you still... here?"
Nothing.
"Gentry?"
Nothing.
"Please say something."
Nothing.
An uneasy feeling settled into his stomach. Biting down harder on the dagger, he turned his head as far as he could. It hurt his neck, but he managed to get to the bedpost he was cuffed to. Maybe he couldn't get to the cuffs, but, if he got free from the bed, he might be able to break the handcuffs off another way.
And so, he began sawing away.
He needed multiple breaks, breathing heavily throughout the entire process. Sometimes he stopped and listened, hoping he could hear something shift in the darkness. He got disappointed every single time.
His teeth began hurting. He was biting down on the handle so hard he feared he might break it. It was tedious to cut through the metal, but resolve and desperation could bring one a long way.
He gasped in relief- dropping the dagger by accident- when the upper part of the post gave away and for the first time since he was left here, he could walk freely. He lifted his arms over the broken part, which was a lot harder than expected with his body barely listening to what he wanted.
With him being free from the bed, Donnie began to bring his legs close to his chest, and he wiggled his arms around so he could get them under his tail and possibly move them in front of his body. He hadn't noticed before how bad everything ached from being stuck in the same position for what was probably over a day. Repositioning himself was as hard as getting free in the first place. He was breathing heavily and almost threw up from the strain. He ended up only dry heaving, which was enough pain to make him pass out for a minute.
He was confused when he looked around, everything was still dark and quiet.
But he was free.
He didn't care for much else.
With his hands still cuffed- he didn't border at freeing them at the moment, he didn't know where the dagger had fallen anyway- he moved forwards. Falling over objects multiple times, spraining an ankle when he slipped and caught himself weirdly, he eventually managed to get to a wall. From there, he felt his way along it until he found the doorknob.
He had heard April mention the rocks to Mikey, and he knew they were put back there. Almost losing his balance, Donnie rammed his shoulder against the door, letting the smallest of lights fly into the room. It was dawn, with the sun setting in the far distance.
Donnie snarled at what he saw.
He slammed his good shoulder against the door multiple times to throw the rocks off. More light spread into the room, and Donnie could feel some warmth on his face. The sensation didn't last long, the exhaustion taking over and making him lose his footing. He fell backward and back into the room. He landed on something sharp, crying out in pain, and did not get up.
His body was growing more and more numb, his brain was foggy and he didn't want to move anymore.
With light now on his side, Donnie sluggishly looked around the room. The barrier was gone, no surprise there, and the diamond dagger laid a bit further away from him.
No sight of Gentry.
He didn't have the strength to pretend he didn't know what happened.
Groaning, Donnie fought to get back up, his legs shaking and his arms still with no feeling left in them. He crawled over to where the diamond dagger was discarded, picking it up with his beak once more. Like before, he used the strength of his beak and neck to begin sawing. The dagger moved up and down along the outer cuff, slowly moving further in.
’Clanck!
The cuffs got loose and fell to the floor.
Donnie needed 5 whole minutes to understand that yes, he was actually free, and yes, he was looking at his gruesomely disfigured wrists. The cuffs had dug deep into them, his earlier assumption he might have hit bone suddenly was no longer just an assumption. His arms were drenched in blood, obscuring how much of the wound he could see, but a good portion of his flesh was- gone. Cut open by all his tugging and struggling. The wound was deep, wide, and loose strands of muscle came off.
And this is where his weak stomach decided to make an appearance
Donnie doubled over to dry heave, spit and bits of stomach acid coming out. The action made his stomach grave inwards, he felt his organs actively fighting his body, and neither was winning. Stuck in between the battle Donnie had with himself, he limped over to the door under great pain
He didn't border looking back at the room, he could live his life without ever thinking of this place ever again.
Donnie ran and ran and ran but he didn't run far. Not only a minute after he got out, he felt his body give in. He might have tripped over a root, maybe the wind was too strong, whatever it was, Donnie couldn't fight it. Giving in to all the agony he was in, he let his eyes roll back and passed out on the spot.
...
...
...
Everyone remained quiet as Donnie talked. The plane was set into auto pilot, with Donnie only having to check every couple of minutes to make sure they were still on course. His wounds were being treated by Mikey and Raph simultaneously.
Donnie hissed from the pain that came when Raph reset his shoulder, "I was found the next morning by a couple of yokai who tied to get me to the hospital. They thought I was being abused and refused to get me anywhere but the hospital or the police, so I jumped out and ran. Luckily, I was quite close to the portal to New York and so I went through the portal and went down the nearest manhole cover, running towards the sewers"
"How did you get this plane? It looks like the Turtle Tank but in plane mode" CJ asked, eager to know but scared to push the injured turtle too hard.
Dewey let out a bitter laugh, "Yeah there is a story behind that. When I arrived at the lair, I noticed how everything was destroyed and abandoned. I'm not sure if anyone was hiding somewhere, I booked it for the Turtle Tank the first chance I got. Surprisingly, it was in decent shape and I- OUTCH!" Donnie pulled away harshly. Mikey muttered an apology and continued to clean the wound on his wrists. The cut was deeper than they had all thought, literally half of his wrist was sawed open on both sides, the bone was revealed and greatly damaged. Meanwhile, Raph operated on his ankle, wrapping it in bandages and searching for a pillow and chair to place it on.
"I never told you guys this but once I got done with my pilot classes, I put a flying feature into the Turtle Tank, as a sort of just in case scenario. However, I am the only one who knows about it and show only be used in case of emergency” Donnie glared his eyes at Raph and Mikey when he said that. They were surprised to find out that Donnie had done this, but didn’t say anything as they continued to patch up Donnie’s injuries
“Once I got into the Turtle Tank, I saw that there wasn’t much damage done as the shields for it held up well. I pressed the ‘flying’ button on the control panel and the Turtle Tank roared into life as it sprouted it wings and took off. At first, I just flew around aimlessly, trying to figure out what to do next. I didn't know where any of you were, until I heard about a report of a gas station being robbed on the radio. The employee described you, CJ, and I sorta just hoped he was right. Sorry it took me so long to get here... I... I had a few breakdowns/meltdowns on my way..." Donnie ended by looking at the floor. He didn't want to see any of their gazes on him.
"Donnie, I'm so sorry for what you had to go through," CJ said softly, placing his hand on his shoulder, "I wish I could have helped you. I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault," Donnie tried to calm him, "You didn't know... Once I was in the Turtle Tank, or Turtle Plane I guess you could say, I noticed that April had stuffed the tarp in a trashcan. If it weren't for that, I would still be useless right now."
"Hey what are you walking about? You got us the Turtle Tank…I mean Turtle Plane, and food, and gear! Donnie, without you, we might have never made it!"
"We still haven't made it."
"Not yet, at least.“
Donnie had enough optimism. He didn't want any of that. He wouldn't allow himself to get his hopes up until he arrived at Eliza's doorstep and demand that she fix/uncurse his twin. Nicely demand of course
Mikey tightened the bandages and forced another startled yelp out of Donnie. "Sorry." The box turtle muttered.
"So, when you arrived at the lair, April and Todd weren't there anymore?" Cassandra decided to join the conversation from afar. Afar, because she wasn't allowed in the range of either Donnie or the amulet.
Donnie shook his head, "I didn't see them, but I wasn't looking for them either."
"Was there any other mode of transportation? Did you see Todd’s RV?"
"Other than the Turtle Tank? No, there wasn't. And I didn’t see Todd’s RV"
"So they took it."
Donnie look down at his freshly bandaged wrists. "You don't have to come with me, guys. Everyone is going to come after me, it's safer for you to stay behind."
"We're a family, Donnie, no one is left behind." Raph argued, lovingly rubbing Donnie's head, "You should rest for a bit, you've done enough."
But Donnie shook his head, "I need to fly the plane-"
"I remember watching a video or two of flying a plane when you sent them to me after you took your classes. I'm may not know a lot and may not be as good as you, but I can keep the plane in the air until we land." Raph reached back to scratch a sweet spot on Donnie's neck. The softshell immediately moaned in delight and tension left his shoulders. Donnie purred and chirped, leaning into the touch and finding comfort in the gesture and almost falling asleep instantaneously. He hadn't noticed how straining the day had been, despite him having 4 hours of sleep before he stole the amulet and started this mess.
Peacefully resting in the arms of his big brother, Donnie allowed himself to slip into a peaceful sleep.
...
...
...
He wasn't sure for how long he has been asleep, but when he woke up, the outside of their window showed him white. White everywhere. White floor, white sky., white- everything. The Turtle Tank now turned plane was also shaking a lot more than before, the rumbling being the main reason he awoke early from his slumber.
When Donnie looked around, he noticed that he was on the co-pilot seat, sandwiched between his twin and baby brother, with Mikey the only one of them still resting. For a moment, Donnie regarded Leo sitting next to him. It didn't seem like his twin had gotten any sleep the past days, and there was something about him that seemed... broken.
Donnie reached over and pulled Leo to his chest. His twin didn't fight the embrace Donnie was putting on him, simply accepting him as if he had no choice. Donnie held Leo tightly, whispering "I love you so much" into Leo’s shoulder. Ending with a kiss on the forehead, Donnie slowly rose from the seat, hissing slightly as his injured foot hit the floor. Composing himself, he took another step, shooting Leo a small smile, "I'll just get us something to eat, I'll be right back."
He walked past Raph, who was trying his hardest to keep the plane steady in the raging storm they were flying into. He was honestly impressed with how well Raph was flying the plane. Maybe it was because the controls were the same as they were in the regular Turtle Tank. Even though Donnie knew that flying a plane and driving a giant tank were two different things. Maybe he should take over once he got the food, they probably were going to land soon either way. He passed by CJ, who sat near Cassandra.
"I have a question," Donnie announced his presence to CJ and once he got his attention he continued, "What is up with Cassandra? You're all circling her out."
"She's infected," CJ said, quietly. Cassandra was currently asleep and therefore couldn't answer herself.
"Oh," Donnie answered. This was problematic He should keep a closer look on the amulet then. He didn't want it to be suddenly stolen from right under him.
They exchanged a few more words and Donnie continued with his quest to get some food and water. He loaded up on as much as he could carry, given his current physical state, it wasn't much, just enough for him and his brothers. Carrying a few apples and bananas, as well as some bread buns and a big water bottle, Donnie returned to his brothers
"And remember that-" Was the first thing he heard when coming closer. Mikey must have woken up in the short span of time he was gone, and from the looks of it, he was talking to Leo. Once they noticed the presence of their brother in purple, Mikey's face lit up, "There you are! I got worried! Don't just vanish like that!"
"Heh, sorry." Donnie chuckled, "I brought food."
He handed the items over, giving equal amounts to both Mikey and Leo, and whatever was left he took for himself. Donnie took the amulet, which he had left in the seat next to Mikey while he was gone getting the supplies, and quickly allowed Leo to eat. His twin didn't need to be told twice. He dug into his share of the food, which was gone in the blink of an eye. Did he even border chewing? Wait- did he eat the banana peel too?!
Donnie opened his beak to tell him to slow down when a different voice from behind called out his name.
"Alright people, put on the winter gear, we're landing," Raph said, struggling to keep the plane steady. He was messing furiously with the control panel, pressing the wrong buttons without realizing it. Oh yeah, Donnie had to take over if they didn't want to crash.
That reminded him, something was wrong. This was a little... too easy. If he didn't miscount, there were still 4 people out there and hunting the amulet. His sister, Todd, Draxum, and Splinter. He doubted any of them had given up on their chase, meaning they were around somewhere. But where?
Following his big brother's command, Donnie excused himself to get the winter gear. He had packed enough for all of them, he just didn't know if he had enough to fit all of them. Someone might have to settle for an oversized one and he just hope that he had packed one for Raph
Bringing the gear to the others, they all began changing. Raph helped Leo dress, while Mikey assisted Donnie after the softshell was struggling to put on all the parts.
"You shouldn't put so much stress on your wounds, they won't heal," Mikey scolded him while pulling the zipper of his jacket close.
"They can heal once we have Leo back," Donnie replied dryly.
Mikey sighed and looked Donnie in the eyes, "I promise you, once all of this is over, you never have to worry about Leo again, alright? Please, take care of yourself. Do it for me."
Donnie frowned slightly. He knew that Mikey knew how much he care about Leo. Worrying about Leo was all he ever did. To hear Mikey say this…left Donnie feeling unease
"Hey, Mikey, are you okay?" He asked, "You've been acting weird lately."
"Weird? How?"
"I don't know. Something about you seems... Off, if that makes any sense."
"You must still be tired," Mikey eventually concluded, "Hey, everything's alright, don't worry about it."
Donnie nodded. He was tired. All the stress must have caught up to him. Sighing and leaning over to the pilot seat, he finally got the plane into a less nauseating pace. He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand and focused on the endless amount of white ahead of him. According to the map, they were close to where Eliza’s place should be. Very close. As in, if they fly another hour, they would be there. And all of this would be over.
His hands began from shaking, from what exactly, he didn't know. Somehow, he had trouble believing it would be this easy. The blizzard…A viscous, unbeatable snowstorm that would force everyone and anyone to their knees. Donnie didn't want to question his flying skills, however- he also intended on staying alive to see another day, meaning he wouldn't fly into the blizzard once he sees it. As good of a companion the Turtle Plane was to him, he knew the plane couldn't take the raging storm ahead. Moving the steering handle down, he began to let the plane sink lower and lower, nearing the ground for debatably the hardest part of their journey.
"We need to travel lightly," Raph told the group. Donnie was not really listening, too focused on not losing control over the plane in the harsh winds.
"We leave the food and medicine here. Eat up well before we leave, this is the last stretch. Leo, Donnie, we're going to change your bandages and clean your wounds one more time before we leave."
Eventually, they were down on the ground, filled up with food, their wounds freshly dressed, and mostly rested with a couple of hours of sleep under their belt.
"Are you guys ready?" Donnie asked, his hand over the button to open the hatch. This was it. They were nearing the end of this horrible, horrible nightmare.
He received an encore of nods, and Donnie nodded back, checking if the tarp was securely tied around his neck and wouldn't fly off in the storm, then grasped the amulet tightly where it was placed around his neck. His wrists complained slightly, the hurt dulled down by the painkiller he was on.
Then a clatter and the hatch opened. They were created with an icy cold they haven't ever experienced. The blizzard was raging in front of them. Strong. Vicious. Deadly.
"Stay together, everyone" Raph announced, tasking the lead. He barely could see the map in his hands with all the snow smacking against them, but by the way the snapper moved through the storm, he probably memorized the path.
Donnie walked close to Leo and Mikey. He didn't want either of them out of his sight, and despite them walking almost shoulder on shoulder- with Leo needing to be pulled along because he couldn't walk on his own- Donnie had trouble making his brothers out in all the snow. Heck, he couldn't see his own hand in front of his face.
"Raph?" He called, but his voice was drowned out by how loud the blizzard was. "RAPH!?" He called louder this time, his throat scratching and burning.
"KEEP WALKING FORWARD!" His big brother answered him, "GO STRAIGHT AHEAD! I'M JUST IN FRONT OF YOU!"
"OKAY!" Donnie shouted back.
In fear of losing even more of his vision, which was happening as they walked further into the cold, he hooked onto Leo and Mikey, so that they were locked together by their arms.
"HOW MUCH FURTHER?!" CJ called. Donnie guessed he was somewhere to his right, alongside Cassandra probably.
"JUST KEEP WALKING! THE BLIZZARD SHOULD GET WEAKER TOWARDS ELIZA’S HOUSE!!!”
Snowflakes hit Donnie's snow googles.
The gear did a good job ensuring he didn't freeze on the spot, but he felt his tail getting cold. He wiggled it to return some heat with little success. His beak was freezing the most. The suit he had had a little mask-thingy at the front that he could pull over his beak to warm it, however, it would limit his speaking abilities even further, and for now, he could deal with a cold beak.
It got harder and harder to see, he couldn't even make out what was now coming from above and what was the floor.
Well, he got his answer soon. The ground beneath his boots suddenly gave out and broke away, having him freefalling to whatever demise was awaiting him. Since he had his arms locked with Mikey and Leo, he brought his twin and baby brother down with him. Donnie screeched- or screamed- as he fell, flailing around wildly. His fall was abruptly stopped, someone grabbed him by the neck of his jacket and held him there. He was too afraid of opening his eyes, the last he saw was wooden pikes at the bottom of the pit.
"HOLD ON, GUYS!" CJ shouted, huffing in fatigue from the strain to pull the three turtles back up. He didn't manage to get them anywhere, even with Cassandra's help they weren't strong enough to heave them up.
"GET RAPH!" Donnie screamed up at them, prying his eyes open.
"I CAN'T SEE WHERE HE IS!"
Oh, that wasn't good.
Donnie noticed he was in the middle of the turtle-chain, Mikey being on top of him, holding him with one hand and being held by CJ with the other. Donnie was grasping Leo, who was barely able to hold Donnie's hand and not fall to his death.
"GUYS!" Cassandra called and dug her heels into the snow, "YOU HAVE TO CLIMB UP! FAST!"
"CLIMB?!" He echoed back. He was literally hanging by his neck over a spike pit! One wrong step and he would be dead!
"LEO!" Donnie finally opened his eyes, staring at his twin that was hanging wide-eyed on his arm. His fragile brother was shaking, and Donnie doubted it was from the cold. it broke his heart to abuse his power like this, but he had to get a move on, "LEO, CLIMB UP AND HELP THE OTHERS PULL MIKEY AND ME UP!"
He received no verbal reply, but the weight on his arm began to shift. Leo was moving.
"YOU'RE DOING GOOD! KEEP GOING!"
Donnie cheered on his twin, even when he got kicked in the face accidentally. The climb was slow, much slower than he preferred, and he could feel his wrists cry out worse when Leo came to that part of the climb. The painkillers he had gotten earlier were wearing off, and Donnie wasn't sure if he could hold on for much longer Once Leo wasn't on his shoulders anymore, he reached his free hand up to stabilize his hold a bit, but it also helped in furthering his pain.
Leo was up eventually, and CJ called out for Donnie to climb up next.
Yeah, easier said than done. Biting his tongue to distract him from the pain in his hands, Donnie began to pull himself up, tugging at Mikey’s snow suit for some stabilization. His climb was also slow, although faster than Mikey's. From there, pulling up the box turtle was an easy task. Though Cassandra looked as if she much rather had him drop down the pit.
Up and safe, Donnie let out a loud breath.
There were several near-death experiences one should experience, and Donnie crossed the limit a long while ago.
"WHERE IS RAPH?!" Donnie asked once his breathing returned to normal.
"I DON'T KNOW." CJ replied, "HE WAS IN FRONT OF US A SECOND AGO."
"UH, DONNIE-?" Mikey came a step closer and tapped him on the shoulder.
"HM?!"
"WHERE IS THE AMULET?"
Donnie blinked.
What?
The amulet was right-
He lifted to touch his neck, alone to find that there was nothing there
"WHA-"
Donnie looked down the pit, his heart stopping when seeing the pikes at the bottom, but no sight of the amulet.
But with the amulet gone, that would mean-
"LEO?!" He looked around, "NARDO?!"
And he never got an answer.