3634/Sewers Under Seige: Old faces, New Enemies

From Heroes Assemble MUSH
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Sewers Under Seige: Old faces, New Enemies
Date of Scene: 30 September 2020
Location: Turtle Lair
Synopsis: The Rat King has come to the turtle lair with an army of rodents. Splinter leads the charge to defend their home, only to fall under the Rat King's control and attack his sons. A combined effort of all the allies of the Turtles pushes the Rat King into retreat, but the lair is no longer safe, and the turtles have had to fight their own father... Where does this leave them now, with the very real threat of this dangerous enemy still moving around in the sewers.
Cast of Characters: Leonardo, Casey Jones, April O'Neil, Kainashi, Alopex, Vanessa Carlysle, Raphael, Sally Pride, Donatello




Leonardo has posed:
It's been a week since the incident in the pumping station and the sewers have been largely quiet. Leonardo has been worrying over decisions he's made, Mikey is out skateboarding (or doing hero stuff), and Splinter is meditating in his room.

Several friends of the turtle clan have come together at Leo's behest to discuss the situation with the MOUSER droids, April, Casey, and Kai have all been invited to eat pizza with the brothers.. Leo has gone out to get the pies.

Unfortunately and unbeknownest to the gathering... Everything is not as quiet as it seems. Victor Falco, thought dead in the station collapse, has resurfaced.. and spies under his command have found the location of the lair. Beady red eyes watch the gathering from hidden alcoves in the dark shadows where nobody ever looks. Places too small to worry about intrusion.

Places only rats can go.

It wouldn't be that big a concern if sentry alarms all along the various tunnels leading to the lair hadn't suddenly gone off at once.. Something is coming.

And there's a lot of those somethings.

Casey Jones has posed:
Casey Jones comes in slowly with his hands holding pizzas, in his mouth is a bag packed with energy drinks, colas, and juice boxes. As he stumbles forward now, his hand is trying to balance as he moves towards to table."GOTDISSTUFFAYDYDKASDFRHELPSMNEEE." The voice is rumbled around the plastic bags, as he tries to set down the pizza, going down to the table, then the bag is removed as he sets it down next it the 8 pizzas, with a grin."Aint' going to do that again, sup bros and dudettes."

Casey walks over to flip open a pizza, to grab three slices of pep, as he walks over to a chair to sink into it, his gear is over his shoulder mask, cricket bat, baseball, golf club, disc golf, and a giant mallet-whack a mole baby.

April O'Neil has posed:
April had arrived with another young woman, one of her closest friends, not really holding back on secrecy of the Lair since things were getting a little dire with the turtles lately, plus she trusted Vanessa more than most people in this world. She knew Vanessa was trust worthy and would help the turtles in whatever conflicts might arise.

Once inside, the duo of women stand side by side and April waits for a chance to introduce her friend. "Hey, everyone. This is Vanessa. She's a friend, she's here to help us figure this out." April is wearing a military green jacket, like the kind from the 70s, with blue jeans and a baggy white top beneath it, some leather boots on her feet..

She motions to Vanessa. "She's a more capable fighter than me, and has some powers too." She smiles to Van and nods toward her. "Show'em some of that?" She asks of Vanessa.

Kainashi has posed:
    Kainashi had brought along Alopex to the lair -- with permission. She's changed out of her ripped T-shirt and well-spent patrol clothes to a fresh set of jeans and a black-and-pink leopard print shirt. Her ears had drawn up from her place, perched at the edge of the couch, but Casey is easy enough to pick up on.

    April and her friend, on the other hand, are met with a layer of suspision from the red-and-white pitbull. She shifts her weight, her ears drawing down as she reached for her boogie bag, the heavy chain rattling inside before her ears come to strict alert at the sounds of alarms.

    "-- did someone else set those off?!"

Alopex has posed:
    As of late, a particular white fox had been getting a little frustrated with themselves. Often she'd been showing up a few minutes too late, or was just out of range to help when folks had been needing it lately. Then came the wakeup call. Since then Alopex's patrols had tightened up, trying to keep close to known friends and allies.

    With a call to gather sent out, and a surprising invite to the Lair, Alopex agreed with no hesitation. She had, at least, brought a six-pack of water to contribute a bit to the gathering, the hydration settled in front of her and Kai. This wasn't her home, so April's new visitor doesn't get the same worry from her as Kai. The alarms, however.. "That is a -very- good question.."

Vanessa Carlysle has posed:
Vanessa Carlysle enters with April. She has a bag slung over one shoulder and is wearing dark jeans and a top, with her hair pulled back. The way she glances around, it might be easy to guess that even after having April tell her about the need and where they are going, seeing the hidden lair in the sewers still was a novelty for her. If no less interesting than those she's come to try to assist.

She lifts her hand in a motionless wave towards the Turtles and others. Casey is given a little nod of her head of recognition, in particular. "Hey guys. Nice to meet you. Vanessa," she says, confirming April's introduction. "April's said a lot of good things about you," she tells them. "Any friend of hers is a friend of mine, as far as I'm concerned. And, well, I gather I've tangled with some you guys aren't too fond of either, as well?" she says, looking to April for confirmation. As she notes Kainashi's suspicious look, Vanessa tries to give a reassuring smile.

April's comment about showing them gets a small nod. Whatever it is she was going to show though, is interrupted by the sounds of alarms. "That's not a good thing, I take it?" she asks. She unzips the bag but hesitates as she watches the others for a clue on what is going on.

Raphael has posed:
There could be a running debate over which of Leonardo and Raphael was more wary of new visitors to the Lair. Both had their moments, and right now Raphael was the one being especially grumpy about it. April was one thing. There was no choice at the time and she became one of their best human friends. Casey took a little time to warm to, but he'd become known. Kainashi..well, she and Donatello were a thing, and that also kind of became necessary, and Sally was there too. Alopex only fit to end up coming with Kainashi.

Even if April vouched for Vanessa, Raphael wasn't sold yet. These things took time, but time might not be something they had the luxury of being able to count on. He already went through a bout of 'I don't like it' and 'This is supposed to be our secret' and all that, arms crossed, watching Vanessa with no shortage of suspicion and a sour expression on his face while the discussion about the problems going on settled in.

Then came the alarms, and Raphael wasted no time in swearing before adding, "I /knew/ this was gonna bring us nothing but trouble. We might as well have just set up a big damned welcome mat and signs pointing right to us!" Out come the sai in both hands, and he's en route to the primary way in.

Sally Pride has posed:
There was certainly a lot to talk about. The high tech weapons those pump station mutants had been using had her a bit concerned, mostly on where they could possibly have come from. So she was all too glad to come back to the lair and get together with everyone else so they're all on the same page of things. Good to see Kainashi was able to get Alopex in on the loop too. Eat some pizza, get to know others involved in the growing circle a bit better, share information...

... and then alarms. SpecOps training kicks in almost immeadiately and the lioness was on her feet with blaster drawn fast enough to rival some of the ninjas in the room for quick deployment. "Well at least now you do know the security grid works at least," she mutters in dry sarcasm.

Donatello has posed:
    The shoji-style door that led to Splinter's private quarters slides open slowly. It is not a rat who emerges, but rather a turtle. Donatello slowly steps out of the tatami room, having just spent a rather long evening in deep discussion with Master Splinter. The two had MUCH to talk about. With a pained sigh, Donatello slides the door closed and turns to see a Lair full of visitors.

    Perhaps a first sight for many present, Donnie is wearing clothing -- a grey, loose, hooded sweatshirt with a zipper down the front. It's large enough to cover his shell and not follow his form too closely. Most importantly, it covers the turtle's sides. Donatello manages a meager smile for each and raises a hand to give their new acquaintance a quiet wave. The turtle opens his mouth, as if to say something more memorable, but the klaxons of the alarm system fill the lair.

    "I'm shocked that you doubted it, Sally," Donatello replies quietly. Preparing for the pain of the movement, Donatello takes a deep breath and begins to move quickly towards his workstation. Once there, he lets the air out from his lungs and prepares a command. "Miyagi," he commands. "Status report." The nearby dot matrix printer, MIYAGI AI's only means of communication, starts to come to life. The paper inside begins its loud, slow journey out the top of the printer.

    Donatello sighs loudly and lowers himself, carefully, into his chair. He begins to taptaptaptaptap at his keyboard, sure that he'll be able to learn something before MIYAGI does.

    On the dot matrix paper, the following sentence is printed:

        ** A REPORT MAY REFER TO AN INTRANSITIVE VERB MEANING TO GIVE AN ACCOUNT. HAVE A NICE DAY. **

Leonardo has posed:
It is Splinter's calming voice that cuts through the klaxon alarms sounding from Donatello's work station. The mysterious, benevolent Sensei and father figure to the turtles who had previously not been there, is just... there.. standing beside Raphael when the sai appear in his sons hands, "Before you go rushing off, we should assure that your brother is safe." While Donnie had woken from his sleep, he was still in pretty bad shape.

Traditionally this would fall upon Leo to give tactical direction, but with the eldest brother away acquiring pizza .. the Master is in the haus. "Hello, April.. and Vanessa. It is wonderful to meet you." A human sized rat in red robes extends a long fingered hand, the eye of silence in the turmoil of alarms. He greets each of those present with a smile, "Casey, perhaps you would take Kainashi and Alopex to defend my study should whomever this is breach our line of defense... Donatello, I wish for you to accompany them."

Considering his critical eyes set upon the newest human guest, it is a fair assessment he's sizing her up. "You should probably get your bow ready." He knows things.

With small cameras placed along the main track leading to the lair, a wall of fur is moving across the debris strown floor of the sewers. At each camera, they are suddenly destroyed, until the last... one several junctions down the main intrance.... it spots the image of a man, or mostly a man, wrapped in heavy gause. Patches of fur have sprout out in places, but it is very clearly not uniform over his entire body. His head turns towards the camera, one blue eye squinting, one red beady, both glaring at the camera. He points and it is suddenly destroyed.

The sound of chittering echoes distantly.

They're coming.

Casey Jones has posed:
"It's mallet time!" Casey reaches back to grab that large mallet, as he spins it in his right hand, as he grins at them."Harls said it's fun, got to try and it out." His hand is resting on the middle, as he walks forward-moving to Splinter, with a nod of his head."Got it, I'll make sure aint' nothing coming outta there if it comes outta nowhere."

" Apes if ya need me, scream, and I'll come running. Come on; we got protecting to do ya'll." With that, Casey is swinging that mallet twice as he grins at the others as he moves out of the room, shouting behind him."I always wanted to play real-life whack a mole; dreams do come true and shit!"

April O'Neil has posed:
April's eyes go up toward the source of the alarms when she hears them sound off. "That... was not us." April says, her stare dropping to Raph and her finger pointing at him. "I swear it wasn't. We followed the protocol you gave /me/ to get /here!/" Either way, it didn't matter now. There was alarms going off, and as the others all reacted, April put her eyes across everyone. "Where's Mikey?" She asks, reaching in to her jacket to pull out two items, a tazer, and a asp baton. She snaps the asp out next to her right thigh... apparently having prepared for a fight this time.

She looks to Splinter and then to Vanessa. "See? I knew we needed your help tonight." She tells her friend. "Pre-apologies for getting you involved in another fight, yet again... and again." She states, her eyes following the sounds of the incoming noises...

Vanessa Carlysle has posed:
Vanessa came prepared to not gape, though she really had 'turtle' in her mental preparations. There is that sense of calm and wisdom about the rodent sensei though that is unmistakable. It reminds her slightly of Yao Fei. Of what he might have been like at a greater age.

The young woman clears the distracting memory from her head as Splinter suggests preparation to her. She doesn't ask how he knows, just unzips the bag, pulling out a double, side-by-side pair of quivers. She slips the straps over both shoulders and into place on her back in a way that feels practiced. An oddly shaped metal baton comes out of the bag next. A quick flick of Vanessa's hand and the collapsible bow has extended into its normal shape. The bowstring on the weapon draws tight to just the perfect tension for her. An arrow is pulled from the quiver and fitted to the string instinctively.

Vanessa looks back to April and says, "It's kind of getting to be a habit for us, isn't it? Though I was the one who wanted to help clean up New York." Vanessa moves over to stand between April and the entrance that they came through, as if to protect her friend even as April arms herself. Vanessa glances over at the others, eyeing what weapons they pull out. Sally's blasters. So many questions for later.

Kainashi has posed:
    Kainashi was about to argue, her tail stiffening, fur rising up on the back of her neck as her hackles start in, but she looks to Casey and Alopex, and gives a nod.

    She turns to Donatello, very, very lightly putting her hand on his arm as she whispers to him 'I've got your back.'

Sally Pride has posed:
"That was sarcasm, Don," Sally retorts. It's reassuring to see him up and about, but there wasn't really time to make a deal about that right now. She does give regard to Splinter for a moment, and a brief nod to the rodent sensei. "Wish it wasn't under the immeadiate threat of invasion to finally meet you in person."

Her gaze turns back towards the tunnels. Particularly the entrance of the one the chittering ruckus is coming from. A single flick of the thumb-claw disengages the blaster's safety setting.

".. But I can't say getting potential meals and conversations interrupted is a -new- thing," she adds, with a knowing glance towards Alopex.

Raphael has posed:
"I didn't say it was you," Raphael answers April, but it's clear this has him concerned. Miyagi spits out whatever it does, and he pauses near Splinter and Donatello, looking between the two with a frown set in. "I'm defending my home and my family, and anyone who gets in my way is gonna regret it," he tells his sensei and father figure, turning away to return to his path approaching the main entry. But will the trouble come from there, or another direction?

There are a lot here, both human and otherwise. Will it make any difference? For Raph, it doesn't matter. He's going to fight regardless of the outcome.

Alopex has posed:
    There are a -lot- of faces. That combined with the alarms may be a lot to take in, but there's something about the appearence of Splinter that seems to calm the chaos. At his suggestion, Alopex is quick to rise, offering a bow of both respect and acknowledgement, "Nothing will reach you, or your son. That I swear to you," Alopex says before standing straight once more. For emphasis, her blade is slowly drawn a moment later. This was the home of friends and allies. It was -that- kind of occasion.

Donatello has posed:
    Donatello's keystrokes silence the klaxon alerts for the moment, but a series of red lights hidden throughout the features of the Lair continue to blink to indicate the security system's concern. The turtle fills his lungs with air to prepare to lean towards the printer and pluck off MIYAGI AI's response to his query. Report may refer to an intransitive verb, uh huh. Donatello frowns at the paper's first line, but its second line causes him to crumble it into a ball:

        * THE UNIT OF MEASURE IS SECONDS. SEVENTY-TWO (72) SECONDS UNTIL POWER IS RESTORED *

    Embarrased, the turtle slides his chair back to his computer. Donatello's eyes study his computer screens as the video feeds start to appear. And then...they begin to disappear. "It's them! The rats!" he calls out to the group. Anyone attuned to Donatello's voice would pick up notes of fear. If he was keeping score, so far, it's rats 1, turtle 0. As a plan begins to form, Donatello hitches his breath and tries his best to rise from his wheelie chair. He's able to do it, but it's not graceful -- the chair kicks out from underneath him, making it obvious that there was some difficulty getting out of it. But, he does.

    As Sally Pride readies her blaster, Donatello's eyes zero in on the energy weapon and his breath leaves his body. The turtle closes his mouth, gulps, and then takes another step away from his work area and towards the group. His mind was elsewhere, lingering on details from another time. But, he hears his name come from his father's mouth. He wants Donnie to go with them? The turtle's breath hitches.

    "...Me?" he wonders, giving a quick look to the others in quiet hope that they didn't notice his fear. The hand on his arm, though, brings the turtle out of it. He looks down at Kainashi and takes in a lungful of air before resting a three-fingered hand on top of her's. A quiet smile is given. Thank you.

Leonardo has posed:
Splinter does not look afraid, he almost looks proud.

"It has always been my intention to keep my sons and myself hidden away beneath the streets where we might act from the shadows for the betterment of those who live above us." He's quiet, moving through the congregation that has amassed within the dank lair of the Turtles, "I tought all of them that secrecy, above all else, would be key to our survival.. trained them in the arts of ninjitsu so that could react swiftly from concealment.. but as they have grown and become wiser, I see that perhaps it is they who are teaching me."

Surrounded by so many friends, some family (April and Casey), "Tonight, we face a threat that has come to our home." His cane settles up beneath his arm, moving forward to stand beside Raphael. Crouched at the knees with his shoulders turned so his left is facing the entryway. "The bring threat of harmm to my boys and my friends... It is not simply the five of us anymore, however. We are not a table of few... we are a Clan of many faces."

Beady eyes turn towards the silence that has taken over the darkness beyond the opened doorway. "These agents of the enemy will find none cowering here." His left hand comes up, fourth and fifth fingers curled, the first three extend and spread. "For /WE/ are clan Hamato."

The first of the multitude of rats through the door is met with a sudden whip crack of Splinter's cane snapping out from beneath his arm, slapping the labador sized rodent away like a tennis ball. There are more though.

There are so many more.

Casey Jones has posed:
Casey is running forward now his hammer is perfect for rat smashing, as he swings it forward now as his body is in motion, as he leaps around smashing like a hyper 5-year-old in a theme park, as he starts to lose himself to smashy zeal.

His hammer is aimed with skill; as he bounces it along from fuzzy bodies to bones, with that large mallet, blood-stained but his rage will not be quelled, he has a family to protect.

He is standing in front of Donnie mostly, blocking the turtle with his body, as he watches the sea of fuzzy little bastards pour in from the entrance, as he nods towards splinter."I aint' had a family in a long time, but ya'll my family I aint' fancy, I'm not complex but ya'll my fam fam."

Sally Pride has posed:
Sally Pride has a laser gun. A highly advanced piece of combat hardware.

The Master is still FASTER smacking a giant rat dead out of it's charge with A CANE than she is pulling the trigger to fire a burst on several more of the creepy critters swarming in behind it.

That's freaking impressive. Though now is not the time for marveling at it. Sally keeps her fire down to rapid-fire bursts, spacing out her rounds of shooting so the melee oriented combatants can get in and get their blows in.

There's no shortage of targets to go around.

April O'Neil has posed:
April peers over Vanessa's shoulder as she watches and listens to Splinter. She loves Splinter, he's like... a kind elderly grandfather that she never had... who is also a rat. She'd want to hug him after everything he just said, if there wasn't an army of... other rats... attacking them?

"Oh god, this is my life..." April mutters moments before Splinter's cane thwacks one of the rats! Her eyes go HUGE.

"Here we go." April mutters, before glancing over to Casey and smiling at him, just incase it's the last time she gets a chance to do it! She's no fighter after all!

With her tazer in one hand, her baton in the other, April raises them up, the electricity on the tazer comes to life and sizzles hungrily!

Kainashi has posed:
    "Alopex, Sally, did we just get uh-dopted?" the scarred up bully girl asks, her tail giving a momentary wag, looking to the lioness and the fox with a confused expression (her natural state of being), and then she braces herself for the onslaught. She stays as close as she can to Donnie to defend him, and with her weighted chains she begins to sweep, tug, and apply super-strong punts of rats at the ready!

    "WHOOP! Gotta lotta rats, gonna send 'em to space!" she sing-songs out. She should not quit her day job.

Alopex has posed:
    The fox blinks at what Splinter has to say. She'd bow again, but the insane number of rats that appear at the doorway are far more pressing than anything else. The tentetsutou starts slicing, singing, and swinging, "That is a lot of rats!" the obvious needed to be stated.

Vanessa Carlysle has posed:
Vanessa holds the bow with the arrow knocked, but not drawn as she watches the wave of rodentia begin to poor into the underground lair. There is a moment of hesitation as if she's not quite sure how much force to use, fighting alongside the mutated animals against... other mutated animals. Though as the others open up and don't seem to be pulling any punches, that seals the deal for Vanessa.

"I'll try to handle the bigger ones," she says over her shoulder to April, "If you can keep the littler ones down." And with that the bow is drawn and the arrow released. The first arrow was a blunt-tipped and hits a terrier-sized rat in the head, knocking it out.

That first arrow has barely arrived when a second is already in the bow and being released. This one has a sharp arrow head, and it takes a Rottweiler-sized rat between the eyes, causing it to collapse and slide to a stop after a few feet. One arrow follows another, the female archer's movements fluid as the speed of her shots seems only dictated by targets worthy of an arrow.

Raphael has posed:
"Aw, rats!" Raphael helpfully shouts as the first few begin to infiltrate the Lair.

And in that moment, they will know that whoever has sent them knows they are there. That is so very not good. If they get into his bedroom...

He shares a glance with Splinter, and it's fitting the rat sensei chooses to take up the front line with him. Some of the rodents will get through, some will find other ways in, but there are others here to help account for that. Though sai are not typically sharp at the tips, they can still do a lot of damage. In this case, broken bones and busted bodies, starting to pile a few of them up to hopefully slow down the rush. They bite and claw, opening up cuts and marks over Raphael's skin, but he does not stop or slow, fighting like he he was trained to be: an expert ninja, and a killer if necessary. He does not speak unless it is required. His weapons do the talking for him.

Donatello has posed:
    Sally's laser burst earns a sudden gasp from Donatello as his eyes widen. Relax. Focus. Breathe. Clan Hamato. The turtle looks down at Kainashi and gives her a worried look. Splinter had said he approved, but turning Kai into his sister would be the ultimate way to end things right then and there.

    Donatello takes in another worried lungful of air, lets it out slowly as he was taught, and then lifts his hands. He slowly reaches behind his head and gives the purple tails of his eye mask a sudden tug to tighten the knot. The red oak bo that had been leaned against his desk is taken with a heavy hand.

    As Casey, Alopex, and Kainashi advance, Donatello moves with them. What choice did he have? The bo is brought into a readied stance, held with both hands. As a few rats trickle past the front line, Donnie tries a swift jab with the end of the staff. He hisses in pain but pushes through it. Another jab.

Leonardo has posed:
There is a tide of rats, but the initial onslaught is met with a stalwart vanguard of mutates and humans alike. A Clan.. a Family. Raph and Splinter out in front leading the charge with sharp counters to the endless stream of furry monsters clammering to get into the lair at the behest of their command and chief further down the tunnel, yet unseen. "Do not give them an inch!" Somehow, the Sensei is still calm even in the midst of such lopsided odds against them. Thrashing his cane around, kicking, and palm thrusting rodents away with a practiced, almost casual sense of control.

Mobile, the Master of the lair flips and twists as if he's far younger than his appearance would suggest. A central force of morale, the wisened general of the Hamato moves fluidly amongst the enemy. While he is struck, they are glancing blows. Tears on his Gi.. a small knick on his arm. It is a measured, assured, and efficiency.

But there are so many rats.

With one set in particular staring from behind a wall of fur deep in the darkness beyond the hidden entry to the Lair. A devious grin playing across his twisted mouth.. "Oh.. how adorable." The words are hauntingly loud for being so far away, teasing, taunting, and attempting to goad.

Splinter's staff whirls around above his head, long fingered hand gripping the spinning weapon and bringing it around for another swing...

On Raphael.

"Never bring a rat to a turtle race..." The haunting voice echos as the Master begins to attack one of his sons.

Casey Jones has posed:
Casey is too far out to notice that trouble behind him that large mallet swings again, as his eyes move to check on Apes. As he is leaping forward now, still trying to keep them off Donnie, his mallet is swinging towards the rat swarm, as he swings it around to club a second group trying to go behind him.

As he is watching it all, as he leaps now dodging, them as they are swarming towards him, as his hand is swinging that hammer down into another swarm of bodies, as the voice is talking his eyes going wide, as he tries to find that voice, but it sounds so far away, like a spooky haunted house.

April O'Neil has posed:
Everyone is being so heroic, and so weapon-proficient, as the fighting starts. Some have laser guns, some have swords, some have giant hammers, or bows and arrows...

But for April, she just nods softly to Vanessa's words of combat tactics. "They all look big to me." She quietly says back, but then the fighting is on!

And for all the combat prowess in the Lair tonight, April is attacked by two of the smaller ones, and her reaction? She just screams, stabs at them with her tazer and whacks at them with her baton!

"Go away! Go away!" She shouts repeatedly, smack smack, taze taze! "Ahhhhh!" And more screams! She even tries to kick at one of them, until it bites her pantleg and tugs her down to the ground, only to get a hard whack to it's ratty-nose from the metal asp in April's right hand!

Raphael has posed:
It feels as if the flow of rats is running into some resistance thanks to Splinter and Raphael. The more they go down, the tougher it is for the next to scurry through, though some larger ones manage to bum-rush their way in. Raphael taunts a few of them. "Yeah, that's right! What you got, huh? Nothing! That's right, nothing!"

That's when the voice is heard. "Who the f--"

That's when Splinter strikes, catching him square in the side of the head with his staff. It's certainly not the first time any of them have been bonked on the head, but this is the first time it feels like it was done to /hurt/ instead of to /reprimand/ and it sends him stumbling off to one side, a surprised shout coming from that location as he ends up on his rear, looking up in shock. "Sensei..?" He's blinking, seeing stars. "When did you..multiply?" What just happened?

Sally Pride has posed:
Sally Pride has her eyes on the flood of rats, or she'd probably notice Donatello being a bit on edge from her blaster. But right now she's got tunnel vision focus on the enemy, zorching rat after rat after rat... Until the blaster clicks. The programmed audio cue that it's charge has been spent gets an annoyed snort out of the lioness. "That is the fastest ever I have drained a battery." She ejects the power pack from the blaster, catching it like a spent magazine in her other hand.

Then April screams behind them. Sally turns and whips the empty power pack at the rats trying to drag down and swarm the girl. "It's hard to keep an enemy this small and numerous from flanking. Cover each other's sides!" Instead of wasting the time to plug a new pack into the gun she flips it in her hand, grabbing it by the barrel and pistolwhipping various rats as she tries to get closer to help April out.

Vanessa Carlysle has posed:
The twang of a bow string reverberates in the lair, a deeper sound than the high pitched scree of the onrushing horde of vermin. Vanessa is picking her targets and timing rather than firing as rapidly as she can. A larger rat nears the door and an arrow leaps towards it, lodging in its eye and dropping it in the doorway. The archer's intent seems clear, use the larger bodies to clog up the doorway and try to slow the tide. Though so great are their numbers they are just pushing the inert rats into the room to make way for more.

A trio of smaller rats make it to her, Vanessa kicking one with her boot and sending it flying across the room. A sweep of her bow takes out a second. But then April is crying out and Vanessa turns, ignoring the third rat even as it jumps on her leg, clawing through the dark denim and sinking teeth into her calf.

April's asp hits the rat in the nose, sending it flying. It looks like she might be ok, and then there's a sudden twang of the bow and an arrow flashes across in front of April's face close enough she can feel on her nose the air of its passing. The arrow takes a rat that was in mid-leap towards her head, knocking it back across the room and pinning it to the side of a cabinet.

As Sally is closing in to help April, Vanessa lets out a small groan of pain, finally swinging the metal bow to swat aside the rat biting into her leg and leaving a slightly darker stain on the black clothing.

Kainashi has posed:
    The smaller canine is doggedly protecting the injured Donatello. Her eyes are narrowed, her teeth bared and ears flicked back as the onslaught remained, and then she launches herself forwards with a bark of fury -- see, pitbulls are just really big terriers -- and terriers are terribly good at getting rid of rats.

    The scarred up, super-strength canine doesn't seem to feel the bites against her as she snarls, and when her chain doesn't hit a rat, sweeping it away, then haw jaws snap. Her strong neck muscles shake vigerously, and she throws the rat to the side, on the full defensive now, defending the Master's study, and her beloved family.

Donatello has posed:
    Jab. Jab. Donatello's bo was being used very conservatively -- just the tip being thrust into the swirling madness of fur and claws. It was the most that he was able to do without applying heavy torsion to his sides. After maybe a dozen or so, the turtle was clearly winded. It was no use. Donatello takes a couple of steps back, away from the front line and the safety of those who might be looking out for him.

    This was a situation that Donatello found himself in a lot over the years -- he wasn't the strongest or the most graceful. He certainly wasn't the luckiest. But, he was smart. And so, while the others might be establishing themselves as the destroyer of rats, Donatello makes a slow retreat to the kitchen. A few rats have managed to get this far, but the turtle passes them on a bee-line to the cabinets.

    Donatello returns from the kitchen in time to see the most unthinkable horror -- Raphael going down at the hands of Master Splinter. There's a gasp from the turtle, who stands there utterly stunned as the smaller rats spread through the Lair. After a sudden yelp from Donatello, a large yellow vegetable lands on the ground next to Raphael. There are a few more squeals of pain as the turtle tosses a few more into the chaos. In one hand, Donatello grips a heavy orange mesh bag.

    When he was eight years old, Donatello discovered that rats hate the smell of onions. Ask Splinter about that some time.

Casey Jones has posed:
Casey told Apes to scream, too many in front as his hand is throwing the mallet high into the air, as he reaches back time for some Disc Golf, except it has razor wire around the outside of the rim, as he lines it up aiming, that mallet is slowly dropping towards him, as he throws it aiming for the rats around April, as he grabs the mallet still working now on the rats. As he throws it, his eyes going to Raphael, and splinter with a look of what the hell etched on to his face. Then he is going down, as he pivots with his left foot, almost missing the hammer as it is coming down, as he misses steps forward, tripping, almost going down. He was going to leap over there, to figure it out, but his leg buckles for a moment, Casey is leaping, but he is too slow.

Due to this being off-balance for a moment, he is open to attack. The swarm is yanking him down as they start to maul him, biting and tearing, the smell of blood is coming out from where Casey was yanked, as he is howling out in pain. Blood is in the air; it is not long before he stops struggling, down for the count under so many furred bodies and teeth.

Leonardo has posed:
The pattering feet could go unheard even as the ninja to whom they belonged ran along the open commons area of the lair from a hidden entrance on the other side of the room. A Katana in one hand, he moved in a staggering side to side motion, brushing past (and through) the group of gathered friends defending their home against the endless rush of rodents.

Splinter presses his attack. Raphael staggered by the blow across his skull is suddenly under the gun of his fathers strikes, a palm strike aimmed for the center of his hardened chest shell, a kick at the inside of his left knee, and the whip of his cane around in Donnie's direction when the purple turtle gets too close to the unusually aggressive father.

But it never hits Donnie...

Leonardo's katana slashes out to catch the wooden staff and deflect it away with a twist of his wrist and upward turn of his elbow. Putting himself with a spin between his Master and his brother. "Master... fath-" The words are never finished. The eldest turtle becomes the new target, the sounds of blows deflected against steel, and the *CLACK* of flesh against shell is met with the visual image of the eldest brother being man-handled by his father.

Thrown with a hip toss that has him sliding through a group of rats right up to Donnie's feet. Leo looks... shocked? Determined, maybe, but... but shocked. "Donnie-..." Pushing himself up, hand wrapping around the hilt of his sword as he stands, "I... need you to get Raph. You two have to get everyone out of here..." The blade in his hand twists, jerks to the side, and he's going back in.

"I'll hold off Master Splinter." In a thousand years the Turtle never would have thought he'd say those words. "RAPH! I need your help..." The overhead chop is easily deflected and the turtle easily kicked away by the rodent ninja master. At least, for now, all Splinter's attention is on Leo, who was just smashed against a wall like a fly swat out of the air, "... We have to buy them time to run!" Already up and headed back in, ready to be tossed like a rag again.

The shadowy figure watching couldn't be happier. Clapping his clawed human hands together, "It's all coming together!" There is, even now, no shortage of rats.. Millions.. some normal sized, some not, but all of them mindlessly throwing themselves at the gathered heroes.

April O'Neil has posed:
April's eyes look up to Sally first at her aid. "Thanks!" She gasps out to the other, using that power pack to help fend off the rats attacking her. April only partially realizes that the arrow had flown past her face so close, and she looks to where it went, then back to Vanessa. "Holy shit, scary much?" She says to her friend, laying back on her elbows she moves to try to get up. She looks to Casey as well, but then is pointing across the room toward Raphael, Splinter, and the turtles... She does't nkow what to say, Splinter hs gone, crazy?

She can't point for long though, as another rat leaps at her! This one is met with a loud thunk though, as April sweeps the Lair's refrigerator door open to shield herself, the rat just slamming right into the heavy metal door, and falling to the ground. "Zap!" April shouts as she crouches and tazers the damn thing to sleep with a high voltage of electricity... though she's running out of charges, as per the indicator on it's side.

Alopex has posed:
    Alopex is knee deep in the dead. Dead rats everywhere, and she's so focused on defending Splinter and Donatello that she almost doesn't register the *thwack*, the confusion, or the surprise. She takes a moment to glance back and just stares. "... Did that just...?" she isn't sure she saw it. It's the follow up attack that Leo stops that gets her to act. "Kai, keep on the rats, protect Don!" she calls out, not that Kai needed the order. While Leo may insist that everyone needs to get out, Alopex is wise to one thing. "You'll need help." She isn't taking no for an answer, either. Dealing with Splinter is one thing, but Splinter and the ocean of rats? That's too much for just one person.

Raphael has posed:
Raphael looks up, still in a daze as he begins to rub the side of his head. An expression of feeling betrayed shows in his face. "Sensei..stop. What are you--" Doing?

As the twin Splinters, from his jolted point of view, move in to strike, he only barely remembers his defensive moves in time to nudge the strike aside from his front, but the kick still causes him to cry out sharply.

Donatello moves in to help, no matter the shape he's in, but then Leonardo is there. Raphael knows by the flash of metal to turn the staff away. The red-masked turtle scrambles back to buy himself a breath, squeezing his eyes shut tightly before whacking himself upside the head just to try to shake the cobwebs loose.

"Father, why are you doing this?" he asks, and there is a moment where he sounds a lot younger, a lot more vulnerable. Leonardo's initial call to help evacuate goes unnoticed. It's the shout of his name that gets him to shake his head and scramble back to his feet, unsteady at first before the adrenaline kicks into overdrive.

"You know we can't beat him, Leo!" But they are going to have to fight him, aren't they? This is a nightmare come to life, the sense that their master, the one who raised them and taught them everything they know, has turned on them. This is about the only time he doesn't want to fight, but it is the time above all others that he knows he must. The Lair is rapidly being overrun, there's a voice out there in the darker parts of the place, and..they have to get out of this safely.

It dawns upon him that even if they do, whatever they can claim as theirs could be lost. He clutches his sai, both held defensively at the moment. "Father, I don't want to fight you, but you're not giving me a choice!" In he goes, to battle Splinter with his brother, trying to avoid anything that could be lethal, knowing it may only be a matter of time before their rat teacher overwhelms them.

Sally Pride has posed:
Sally Pride winks at April. "Normally lions go for bigger prey, but tonight I'll make an exception for you guys."

Then Leo shouts instruction from the other side of the lair. "Why would we--" But the rest of Sally's query response is cut off as she glances over her shoulder to see Leonardo join the fight, only to get kicked across the room by his own mentor and father figure... Wait. Hordes of rats. Splinter is a rat. The mutant rats before all had just kind of stopped when the man giving them orders was stuck down. Like he had been somehow doing more than just giving vocal comman--

"Shit!" the lionness curses, mostly at herself for not having put that together sooner. Her attention snaps back to April and her friend, and to the still injured Donatello where the others are shielding him. "--No, Leo's right." She kicks at the rats trying to bite through her leather biker pants. They're going for limbs, trying to cripple their ability to move. To get away. There was definately a more intelligent presence in control, and right now it likely has that over Splinter as well. They're almost caged in... And she REALLY does not like cages, metaphorical or otherwise.

"They've got too many advantages on the field now, if we're pinned down here we're toast." She shoves her empty blaster in its holster. She needs something bigger to... "Gah!" One of the larger rats jumps on her back with it's sharp claws and teeth. "I JUST GOT THIS JACKET FIXED FROM LAST TIME!" She reachs over her shoulders to grab the rat, yank it off her back, and piledriver it into the nearest swarm.

Vanessa Carlysle has posed:
An eye long-experienced at hand to hand combat tells Vanessa just how difficult stopping Splinter will be. That experience also helps her keep her calm in the moment and evaluate what is happening. "Something is controlling the other rats!" she calls out towards the turtles that are facing their father. "It is probably controlling him as well."

The woman's arm is in continual motion now, sending arrow after arrow into the surge of rodents at the doorway. "There are too many to stop! We should listen to your brother and pull back!" she calls. Though even with saying that, Vanessa isn't ready to give up Splinter to this unknown enemy yet, either, it seems. She continues firing arrows, but now one of every three is a blunt-headed arrow, aimed at Splinter's head instead of the rats in the doorway. Hoping to knock him out so they can take him with them in an escape, or at least give one of the turtles an opening.

"April, lead us out of here," she says firmly, hoping both she'll find them a way out, and also keeping April away from the horde of rats as much as possible.

Kainashi has posed:
    ... well, the adoption didn't last long. The canine pauses in the fury, looking confused, she works her jaw, tasting blood -- but she hears Alopex's order cut through the squeaks and the smell of blood and rats, of Casey's bullish sounds and the hum of the tazer, the snap of the bow.

    So she does what occurs to her first -- a ninja being a master of their environment and their abilities, she channels her -1 Wisdom and decides that the largest item might give them the opening they need.

    "DONNIE LEO RAPH QUACK!" she calls out --

    And the pint-size power pupper purposefully puts the family couch to the air, attempting to redecorate the kitchen via force!

Donatello has posed:
    With the bag of onions in one hand, Donatello's bo was tucked under his arm and unable to block Splinter's stick even if he was able to see the attack coming. With his shell already coming apart at the seams, such a blow would be it for the young turtle. Donatello sucks in a mouthful of air just as the sound of metal clanging against wood fills his ears. Leo.

    Saved from what might have been a killing blow, Donatello steps towards Raphael's improved position and empties the bag of onions on the ground. The rats hiss and a path begins to clear around them, creating some room for recovery. Donatello's bo is returned to his fist and he stands at the ready to defend his brother. He takes a breath. But then...QUACK. Without even a pause, Donatello translates.

    "Duck!" he calls out as he bends down quickly, his face recoiling in pain.

Casey Jones has posed:
Ducking is easy for Casey, yanking down knocked out under that rats, blood is in the air. He is down for the count, his right hand is sticking out of the swarm holding that large hammer, in mid catch as it was tumbling back down, his hand is gripping it tightly, his knuckles whtie from the preasure on the handle, and the blood loss.

Leonardo has posed:
"I know..." Leo is rolling over his shell, wincing in pain as he comes back to his feet after being tossed by his father... again... His grip on his katana is determined, vigilante, but not as stalwart as it might usually be given the opponent he faces here in the lair. Can they beat him? Raph and Leo? No...

There is no world where that is a possibility.

Leo knows it.

But to protect the people who willingly came to protect his home? He'll fight him...

Family is more than the people you have grown up with, Leonardo... It is all the people around you. April, your brothers, myself.. Clan Hamato does not end there.. it grows. Florishes. It was Splinter's words, only a few days ago.

The catalyst for Leonardo calling together all of their allies tonight.

The reason they are here..

"Father, I know you're in there.." He fight sin conjunction with Raphael. The two turtles have so many fundamental differences, but of all the brothers, fight so well together when they can put them aside. His sword sweeps out as he rolls over his brother's shell, striking the cane meant to slap at Alopex away, and coming forward to strike uselessly at his master.

It was no where close to the rodent master who dodges out of the way with a grace that defies logic. "Please, father!" BOOSH, the kick catches the Blue turtle across the jaw with his upper body fully extended from the swing and his weight down to his left. He clatters to the ground, scrambling to the side out of the way of a downward heel kick that would have certainly shattered his shell.

"Keep fighting.." To his brother, reaching out a hand to Raph for help pulling himself, bleeding from the corner of his mouth, up to his feet. The blade turns in his hand, blue eyes cutting side long at Splinter.

QUACK?

Ohhhh DUCK...

Leo QUACKS!

Splinter leaps, grips the edge of the twisting, thrown couch, climbs over it while it is still airborne, flips off the other side with his torso coming around in a twist, and brings his staff straight down across the side of Leonardo's sword.. The blade clatters out of his hand, having only come up /just/ in time to block the blow caving in his skull.

That couch takes out most of the rats right up to the entry though... hundreds of the rodents are smashed and the path in is temporarily blocked. Temporary because they're spilling over the top seconds later.

Leo is sent sailing with another straight kick that connects with crossed forearms to block his face. Sliding across the floor into a backwards kip up roll onto his feet. "Okay, new plan..." Hearing Vanessa, remembering how the rats had stopped when that scientist had gone down. "Use those onions to clear a path and SOMEONE find that son of a bitch... Vanessa, soon as we find him, put an arrow in him..." The archer has the best shot, with all the rats in the way, of hitting him... if someone can just pinpoint where he is out in that tunnels.

Drawing his hand across his mouth, the other reaches back and whips out his other katana with a hiss of steal, back in to hold off the Splinter onslaught.

Alopex has posed:
    With so much respect for Splinter from what little she heard of him, and the words he offered earlier, it feels absolutley bizzare to be crossing weapons with him. Leo takes the brunt of a lot of their Sensei's assault, but there's a point when Leo is send sailing that the fox steps up, watching him lunge and bound over the sofa she barely ducked when Kai yelled QUACK.

    "This isn't right," she growls, eyes narrowed, fully focused. She's at least listening to Leo given that an ear turns his way. Plan. Scientist? They could take care of that. She has to try and deal with a master, that is the opposite of her former master, that she only drew blood from once. She expects this to Not Go Well since she has no killer instinct for the brother's sensei.

April O'Neil has posed:
April watches the others fighting for a moment, having backed up in to a corner of the kitchen, but her gaze goes to the injured Casey and she calls out his name. The reporter rushes to Casey's side just as the 'QUACK' is shouted out and the sofa is sent flying in the direction she'd previously been.

"Casey!" April says again as she reaches him. "Come on, we gotta... we gotta go." She looks around once more to try to find an exit angle on this. She'd heard Vanessa's call to find a way out, the front door wouldn't be a good choice, since that's where the horde came from...

"Maybe... whoever is doing this is, shit I don't know." April grumbles, her hand on Casey's back now. She looks in to Casey's eyes. "Hey, remember that 'crazy' I've always tried to tell you to get rid of? We... uh, could use some of that right now. If there's any inside, waiting to come out and, ya know, do that smashing thing you do. We gotta clear a path outta here, before it gets much worse."

Can it get much worse?

Raphael has posed:
This is..very bad. Even if Splinter is being controlled by someone else, that someone has access to all of Splinter's knowledge and abilities. Overwhelming the wise old rat is next to impossible, but /not/ impossible. They just have to find a way.

In the moment, he fights alongside Leonardo like the well-trained unit they are, complementing each other's attacks with more of their own, only it still doesn't get them much closer to success. An arm out, helping Leo back up, then a thrust forward. A kick. An elbow. A strike with the sai. All held off. No progression made. If April or anyone else had ever wondered what this day might be like, now they are finding out.

With Kainashi throwing the couch and telling them to..to quack? Raphael is slow on the uptake, and his eyes go saucer-wide as it comes into his whole field of view. Still, there isn't quite enough time to /duck/ out of the way, so the next best thing happens: his turtle genes come through, head disappearing inside his shell just in time.

When it pops back up, he finds Splinter /still/ isn't fully dealt with. Leonardo's got an idea, centering on whoever's apparently controlling him. Right, if Splinter was under control, he'd never do this.

The forward approach isn't getting them much further. A ninja also relies on deception. Time to try that. He points behind their Sensei and shouts, "Mikey! Now! Get him!" Only there is no Michelangelo. It is a trick. Will Splinter fall for it?

Kainashi has posed:
    "-- Casey! Drums a' War! Clear your way, get April high up --" the small canine barks, and then inhales deeply through her nose and hawks out a gross glob of blood. Most of it reeks as rat.

    "Follow me! I can find him! Alopex -- keep an eye on Donnie for me!"

    The canine narrows her eyes, and she gives a snarl, and picking up the turtle's coffee table, she begins to use it as a bulldozer to clear the way into the tunnels, looping one arm around a leg and the other pushing against the middle as she clears a path! "GO GO GO!"

Casey Jones has posed:
Casey Jones is not in a good way, little bites, scratches, he can stand with April's help as he is looking around dazed, his bag is hanging off his left shoulder, as his eyes struggling to focus, as he bites his lower lip, as he smells the blood, something snaps as requested is it her in danger, them or just the fact his mind is blank, who knows.

Leaping up with bat in his left hands as he screams at the top of his lungs."Goongala!Goongala!" His hand is gripping tightly, his body is dripping with blood, but he is dragging April with him, swinging for rats, kicking rats, and headbutting one; he is wearing that mask covered in his blood, and maybe now some of the rats's blood. He had grabbed it placed it on his face when he went down to protect his face.

Casey pulls April into his arms now that he has a moment to look around, as he is leaping towards Kainashi, kicking, spinning, twirling in the air like a gymnastic flare landing down, setting April down, as he motions her towards Kai."Let's find this fucker. I will annihilate em." His hands reaching behind him to grab both bats, as he starts to beat the rats back, waiting for the talent sniffer to find their god damn target!

Vanessa Carlysle has posed:
Vanessa can see the determination on the Turtles as they fight their father. Their mentor. Their teacher. She launches another blunt arrow towards Splinter, trying to make him split his attention and give the turtles an edge.

So far she's stuck to conventional arrows, but her fingers work a few buttons on the bow. Within the quiver a special arrowhead goes on the next arrow. She fits it to the bow and fires it, not at any opponents but at the ceiling. A grapple line reels out behind the arrow, and as the titanium broadhead sinks into the cement ceiling, Vanessa's winch pulls her up on the line. She ends up hanging from the line up to the ceiling. Upside down. But giving her a line of sight over the head of Kainashi, and over as many of the rats as possible.

"I still don't have a shot," she says, arrow knocked and ready to fire, but without a target other than a mass of rats of unusually large size. "Where is he!?" she calls ahead to the dog mutant.

Sally Pride has posed:
Sally Pride steps out of the kitchen just after April, watching as Kainashi hurtles the sofa across the lair to temporarily stem the tide of rats. Very temporarily. But they can take every little bit they can, if it means a chance to get to the bottom of this. "Kainashi, your nose is better than mine!" Her heightened sense is vision, not olfactory.

Then back to April trying to help get Casey out of the swarm. Which seems to work. Good. "Hey, whatever works for him..."

She unclips a power cell from her belt and redraws her blaster to load it into. Then pulls a second one out. Mentally ticks in her head. Kainashi picks up the table, turning it on it's side to use as plow.

When she sees which way Kainashi is going to go she hurtles the second power cell in a high, long arc to get it well over the mutant pitbull and into the tunnel. Then fires a shot into it with her blaster.

The thrown power cell immeadiately fires and detonates like a flashbang, the overwhelming discharge to the senses hopefully enough to leave the rats vulnerable to being plowed through so they can find the real culrpit behind this.

Leonardo has posed:
The irony of the situation isn't lost on Leonardo.

Time has begun to slow for him, watching all the assets in play across the battle board like in one of April and Donnie's video games... Mikey! Now! Get him! Leo almost grins, knowing Raph's play even as his brother is setting it in motion, and moves to capitalize. Alopex is already on the move, so the Leader of the brothers doesn't go directly at his father, but does move across his line of vision when the rodent brings his staff up and around in attempt to swat an Orange Turtle out of the air that.. well he's not there is he? The ploy works.

Attention snapping swiftly back on a flash of blue and a line of steel to further distract him, Leonardo rolling over his shell directly in front of his Master with a little frown cutting the corners of his mouth down on either side of his long lips... "A ninja must always be mindful of their surroundings, Master..."

Twisting his katana to catch the light, just enough to send a beam right into his fathers eyes-

It's enough, that perfect storm, to distract the Sensei who never even turns his attention in Alopex's direction. Never sees the attack until it hits him square between his shoulders and knocks him forward TOWARDS Leo. Who responds just as swiftly with the handle of his katana coming around and down, locking the wrist holding the cane against the side of his shell. "RAPH!" Twisting their Master around, putting him in position.

As bulldozer Kai rushes out of the lair steamrolling rats away from her in much the same tonka fashion as her coffee table shield wall was intended to emulate! With Casey right behind her, Vanessa up above, and Sally hurling a blaster pack over the whole congregations head to detonate with a flashing shot that errupts the power cell in a miniature explosion that baths the tunnel in a momentary WOOSH of light and several hundred flaming rodents suddenly awash in whatever the heck plasmic fury is inside those cartridges.

The real discovery, however, is the half rat/man standing back amidst his endless army of rodents. The only one of the bunch to bring a tattered labcoat covered arm up to shield his eyes against the explosion.

It's miliseconds, really, but for a practiced and trained Archer?

April O'Neil has posed:
April sees the light flicker back on behind Casey's bloodied hockey mask-- a visage not lost on her how unsettling it is, that mask --but in this instance she's happy for it and rises up to her full height with him. She rushes past Sally, with wide eyes. "Make sure they're all okay!" She shouts, using Casey for cover as he bulls his way through the horde, April jumping over some of the rat bodies left in his wake, until he grabs hold of her and spins her about through the chaos of it all.

When she's back on her own two feet, she uses the last of her charges in her tazer to zap another rat before it can get back on it's feet. "Shut the hell up!" She shouts at it, before slapping her baton down with a wet smack against its head!

April lunges forward then to catch up with the others, trying to find where Kai and Vanessa had gone to. "Where is he?!" She shouts, but it's dark and... well, the sewers!

Kainashi has posed:
    The flashbang hit. The sensitive ears of the canine was ringing, but she could smell him.

    The mutagen, still on his body, dredging up memories.

    She snarls. She's fought blind and deaf before, she has no problem with this, but this was Vanessa's shot.

    But if she didn't bring him down....

    ... Kainashi was totally ready to violate the one rule.

Casey Jones has posed:
Swing batter swing batter swing batter! Casey can't see with a damn flash bang, but swinging is all he needs to do, maybe throw some knees, so here he stands in that dark doing just that as he snarls out."Do you smell, that fucker so we can end this shit!" His voice is howls out in the too bright, towards the dark behind him."Throw this towards him, Kai." He is throwing a flare behind him from his tool belt, everyone that fixes cars for a living with a tow, needs one of dem.

Raphael has posed:
If they come out of this in one piece, if Splinter is returned to normal and has any memory of this, Raphael won't let him forget the Mikey Misdirection.

First, they have to get there.

An opening is created, however small or brief, and Raph steadies himself. His head is still ringing enough from the business end of that cane that coming down from this later on is not going to be pleasant, but that's for then. This is now. There is more to be done, and there is still a lot happening around them. Shouts. Burning rats. A bright flash. A hunt for their leader.

"And a Sensei must never underestimate his students," Raphael joins in after Leonardo, trying to remember not to get too cocky here. They've had Splinter on the ropes before in training, only for him to surprise them swiftly. As Leo catches Splinter's hand with the cane, Raph moves in with the sai in his left hand, binding it around the cane to twist it loose. One less thing their Master can use on them.

Then, his mouth tightens as he locks eyes with Splinter's. Even if the old rat isn't in his right mind at the moment, even if he's not himself..well, hopefully he'll have no memory of this. "I'm sorry, Father, but this has to end right now," he says, barely above a whisper as tears stain the fabric of his mask and he puts everything he's got into a right fist aimed at Splinter's jaw, only pulling it in the last moment by a fraction.

Vanessa Carlysle has posed:
Vanessa sees the power cell sailing in an arc into the tunnel. Deducing what comes next she looks away, saving her eyes from the flash even if the detonation leaves her ears ringing. She looks back and sees it. Kainashi pointing the way. That human gesture, uncontrolled reaction to shield his eyes that no rat, even a controlled one would do.

Adrenaline floods Vanessa's system and for her, time slows to a crawl. Voices slow like an old tape player on the last moments of its battery life. Rats writhe in slow motion from the exploding power cell shot as Sally gives Vanessa the clear shot.

The arrow nocked in the bow is a sharp pointed broadhead. Meant to penetrate even body armor, and to destroy any flesh that it hits. Vanessa's eyes don't leave her target, but she hears the fight against Splinter. Knows this might be the only chance to free the Turtle's father.

Memories of the men she's killed flood her head. Arrows lodged in hearts. In necks. In eyes. Focused on her target, Vanessa doesn't let herself shake her head against that flood of memory. A gesture that would remind herself the memories are not her own.

But it doesn't matter. She remembers every death. What it is to kill. She remembers too what it took to make the choice to stop killing.

Will he forgive her? Will she forgive herself?

The bowstring is pulled back and released quicker than the eye can follow. The arrow flies true straight towards the villain's eye even as the rats in the hallway jump, trying to conceal him.

The arrow punches clean through one rat that gets in the way, then into a second. It's body stays stuck on the arrow, which dips and strikes the figure in the shoulder rather than the eye where Vanessa was aiming.

And just like that he's hidden from her view again.

Alopex has posed:
    She may be ignored, she may be a diversion, but she'll be damned if she isn't helping in some way as the brothers are working to keep their father from doing something they'll regret later. There's a lot going on, there's a flash, there's a lot of dead rats, there's an arrow flying past, and all that Alopex can really think to do, with most of the brothers going high, is to go low. Sweep for the legs, but high enough with the back, unsharpened bit of her blade, hoping to catch something in case the master hops it. WHich would hopefully just put him in the path of the others. It's hard to say.

Sally Pride has posed:
Sally Pride doesn't charge down the tunnel, instead braced against the entrance of the passage with her blaster ready in both hands. She relies mainly on eyesight so she can't do much until the light of her own flashbang improvisation fades. Even she isn't entirely sure what it in those things, but it sent rats scattering aflame and out of the fight so good enough.

She can hear the brawl with Splinter still going on behind them. As much as she wants to turn and check on the brothers and fox out of concern, disiplined training keeps her focus on the tunnel. She does see the brief movement, but can't get aim pinned on it before Vanessa shoots and he disappears again.

Leonardo has posed:
The rats in the tunnel move in a way to try and return their King to concealment after the flash of light has begun to fade from their twinkle eyed vision... but it's not enough. They are beneath the rush of Casey Jones swinging wildy with his weapons of mass hilarity, under the beams of Sally's blasters scorching them into oblivions, and under boots as Kai bullrushes straight through their midst carrying a damn coffee table like a tower shield.

Gosh darn if that's not some Ninja Turtles shit...

The air sails, over heads, leaping rats, through the glow of burnt fur still smoldering in sludgy water, and right through two rat bodies leaping to protect their master... who ultimately takes it in the shoulder. It spins him around like a top and knocks him off his feet... already on the move beneath the new cover of bodies to get the hell out of there now that someone has actually drawn blood.

Victor is a lot of things, but a fighter is not one of them.

It is in that moment, however. In that brief period where he shouts in absolute pain, all the rats suddenly start acting more like regular rats and less like a legion of single minded rodents.. It's in that moment that Raphael's fist swings towards Splinter's jaw. It's a moment that breaks Leonardo's heart because where it hurts him to see it? He knows how bad it must feel for his brother to do it. It's in that moment that time slows down, Alopex is sweeping the leg..

Splinter blinks thrice, he blinks and lifts his leg out of Alopex's path. Not the leap she'd intended, but no counter attack comes. Nor does Raphael's fist strike their Master's jaw. It's caught in a long fingered hand, which close gently across his knuckle sin that MOMENT where he pulls the punch.

In that moment, he pulls his arm free by releasing his staff and throws his arms around his students necks. All three of them, should Donnie be anywhere near, holding them in a way only a father can hold sons. "What have I done..."

The words are so pained.

In that one moment, the Rat King is running, the lair is littered with thousands of rat corpses.

And four mutants hug in the center of a room. Some of them bloody, one of them with a broken shell,

And all of them with tears in their eyes.

Raphael has posed:
Raphael's eyes widen when the punch is caught. Of course it is. He tenses up immediately, already trying to figure out what he's going to do now that this gambit failed...only for he and his brothers to be drawn into a fierce embrace.

Splinter is going to choke them out! Squeeze the breath out of them until their eyes go empty! Kill..

No. It's just an embrace. Just a vital one, as the Rat King flees into the darkness, and in that moment there is a shudder over Raphael's body from the understanding that the moment he pulled his punch, it happened to coincide with the hold over Splinter being broken, enough awareness in their Sensei for him to stop the attack just in time. It saves Raphael from a nightmare later, even if it was what he thought necessary, and the hesitation gives way into a returned hug, as strong as he can muster given the bites and claw marks up and down his body, the almost immediate release of all that adrenaline.

Raphael is not one to cry much, but his shoulders heave with enough sobs that anyone watching will know how much this impacted him. "Father..." he rasps.

Later on, he will deny anyone saw that, with all the threats he's known for.

Soon, they will have serious decisions to make about their immediate future, given the compromised safety of the Lair.

Now, all that matters is they are together, that they are safe as can be.