Self Discovery
Chapter 1
 

"All right Leo, I'm going to kick your ass."  Raph furiously made a move at Leo but he was too quick for him.

"You should concentrate on fighting me rather than flaunting your meaningless words."  Leo made a swift move which Raph was able to block just in time with his sai.

"I am concentrating.  I thinking about when I'm going to beat you."  With a quick move Raph moved his sai to try to knock Leo swords out of his hands.  Leo was able to block in time and knocked a sai out of Raph's hand.  Then he swiftly made his next move and removed Raph's other sai.  Raph was so surprised and caught off guard, that he lost his balance and fell backwards.

"Your lack of concentration was the reason why you lost Raph."  Raph lay on the ground feeling frustrated and confused.

"What the hell happened?"  Raph thought to himself.

Splinter walked up to Raph.  "Your fury and lack of concentration have caused you to lose this fight.  I suggest you focus on the task at hand."

Leo came over to Raph and offered his hand.  "I can get myself up, Leo."  Leo just shrugged his shoulders and left to take a shower.

Feeling humiliated and mad at himself, Raph finally got up and decided he wanted to be alone.


"So what movie, out of are wonderful collection, should we watch guys?"  Mike was on his hands and knees looking through their video collection.

"I don't know Mike, you choose."  Mike stopped looking at the videos.

"Leo, I always choose.  Don't give me a cheap answer like that."

"Well, I really don't have a preference right now."

"Well can you get back to me when you do?  So Donnie, what do you want to watch?"

Donnie looked up from his laptop.  "Huh?"

Mike sighed.  "I asked you what movie do you want to watch."

"Oh, I don't care, whatever."

Leo laughed to himself as he watched the frustration on Mike's face.   Then Mike smiled and said  "Okay, since nobody around here is interested in the democratic process of choosing a movie, I will choose.  If you don't like it then that is too bad cause you had your chance."

Mike looked through the movies some more and finally decided on Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

Before Leo and Don could voice there disagreement, Mike turned around with a smile on his face.  "I told you, you had your chance.  It's too late now."

Leo and Don exchanged a look.  They shrugged their shoulders and knew there was nothing they could do.  Mike popped the tape into the VCR and began the movie.


"I can't believe I let Leo trip me up like that.  I don't understand what's been going on with me lately.  I've been feeling so tired and weak.  I must be getting the flu or something.  I remember feeling a little dizzy when Leo made that final blow at me this morning."

Silhouettes moved stealthily through the shadows of the alley, surrounding the turtle.


"You know why I like this movie so much?  It's because of all the candy."

"Yeah, you would."  Mike gave Don a look and then looked back at the movie.

Leo was unusually quiet. "Hey, Leo, are you already falling asleep through the movie?"

"What Mike?" Leo seemed distant and deep in thought.

Mike laughed to himself.  "I asked you if you had fallen asleep yet.  I haven't heard a word from you for awhile now."

"No, I just have this weird feeling that something is wrong."  Don and Mike exchanged worried glances.

Shivers went through Mike as he heard Leo say those dreaded words.  Leo could always sense when trouble was on the horizon.  Mike just couldn't shrug it off and just think: Leo is only worried about nothing.  When Leo said there was trouble, there would, without any doubt, be trouble.

Don looked over at his brother, Mike, and saw the seriousness of the situation clearly on his face.  Don didn't even want to think about the ramifications of what Leo had just said.  He hated to fight.  He wished they could just live normal lives without having to be involved in all of these battles.  He looked over at Leo.  There was no indication of his feelings showing.  Leo looked calm and collected.


Raph was still mad and confused about that morning.  It wasn't just that morning that bothered him but it was also his tiredness.  He seemed to have lost his edge.  He was so distracted that he didn't notice the gang that was surrounding him in the shadows.  They were waiting there like a panther watching her pray.  They were waiting for the right moment to strike.  At the same time they were wondering what the hell this green creature was.

Usually Raph is good at hiding in the shadows but now his mind was too occupied. He just wasn't alert enough to watch his actions.

Suddenly, Raph heard a noise.  He turned around but saw nothing.

"It's probably just my imagination."  After thinking that to himself he slowly became aware of the possibly dangerous situation he was putting himself in.  He realized that he was out in the open and that he was in a bad neighborhood.

Then he heard a noise and felt a sharp pain on the back of his head.


There was an uncomfortable silence.  The movie was just not enjoyable anymore.  Nobody was even watching it.  They were deep in there own thoughts.

Leo knew something was wrong with Raph.  It wasn't just the awful feeling that he got but also that Raph wasn't himself.  His win that morning was too easy.  Raph usually put up quite a fight and even has beaten him on bad days.  Raph didn't have as much speed.  He even seemed weak.

Leo looked over at his brothers.  They were disturbed by what he told them.  He didn't tell them that he believed that Raph could be in some trouble.  They didn't know what kind of trouble he meant.

Leo thought about Raph for awhile and finally broke the silence with a decision.

"I'm going to find Raph and see if he is in any trouble."

"We'll go with you."

"No, you guys stay here just in case he comes back.  Besides this is only a feeling."  Deep down inside Leo hoped that it was just a feeling.


Raph felt dizzy and confused.  It took him awhile to perceive what was happening.  He had just gotten hit really hard in the head from somebody behind him.

Raph began to fight them off.  It was a hard struggle since the gang had surrounded him.  They had circled him.  When he attacked one member, he would feel the hard attacks from other members.  He was just too out numbered for his condition.

Even though his whole body felt achy and bruised he continued to fight for his life.  Then he felt a sharp distinct pain in his left thigh.  He looked down and realized that he had been stabbed in the thigh.  Blood began to run down his leg.

He started to feel dizzy and confused.  The battle began to feel like a dream.  His motions were slow.  He lost consciousness while they continued to beat him.


"Mike, I can't watch anymore of this movie."

"Didn't I tell you that this is the final decision and we have to watch it."

"That's not it.  I'm just too worried.  It just feels stupid to be sitting here and watching a movie while something terrible could be happening right now."

"Well, Leo told us to stay here, maybe it's not that serious.  If it was serious then he would have had us go with him.  I think he's just worried about Raph."

"Well, maybe, but I'm just too distracted to be watching a movie now."


Raph laid in the alley by himself.  This is where Leo found him.

"Raph, Raph, can you hear me?"  There was no answer.

Leo looked over Raph's body and noticed the blood trickling down his leg.  Leo took off his bandanna and applied pressure to the wound.  His whole body looked battered.

He picked Raph up and began to carry him back to the lair.



End of Chapter One.

Chapter Two

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Prologue