#battle spray (art)

[tf2-plus2]

(another doodle, dunno what Soldier's suggesting or thinking about, but it has Demo concerned lol)

#announcer speaks (ooc) #battle spray (art) #Helmet Case (Soldier) #Molotov Tartan (Demoman) #tf2 soldier #tf2 demo #tf2 demoman

[brosif40]

Changed it a lil, He's water resistant now yayyy

He can still melt, but only if he's in water for a while (sortof like when your skin gets all wrinkly after being in the water for so long, the only way I can describe it)

#but also basing it off of the boss battle- bc he just laughs when you spray him #my art #king boo #sunshine king #drugs tw

[weheartstims]

Can you do raid (animatic battle)?

Raid (Animatic Battle) with various suitable stims!

◼️|🔶|◼️ 🔶|◼️|🔶 ◼️|🔶|◼️

#weheartstims #stimboard #raid animatic battle #animatic battle #object shows #orange #black #spray paint #graffiti #coffee #latte art #kinetic sand #clay popping #clay cracking #glitter #hands #red #sticky hands #spray bottle

[transcendragon]

Battle of Air and Sea - a dramatic dragon battle. I had fun make the water and water effects for this one. 

My original art make in Procreate, please credit if you re-use. 

[Image description: a side view of a large green beast bursting out of the water t try to bite a dragon with a mouth of sharp teeth. The dragon is red with semi-translucent wings, a long neck and tail, and taloned feet. It’s using its wings to rear back away from the large water beast and opening its mouth to summon a small cone of fire, the light of the fire reflecting off of both dragon and water beast. The force of the dragon bursting through the water has caused a white frothy explosion of water with a spray of droplets. Below the water is a rich, layered blue being pushed outward by the movement of the beast. Small fish rush away from the scene and a shark, dwarfed by the dragon and even more dwarfed by the beast, is shoved sideways. Behind the scene it’s a clear blue day with distant clouds and sunlight pouring down from above. End image description.]

#fantasy art #fantastical art #dragon battle #mythic battle #dragon fight #beast fight #fantasy beasts #fantasy dragons #fire dragon #water dragon #flying dragon #water battle #shark #procreate art #colorful art #vivid art #digital art #water spray #water art #water effects #original art #artists on tumblr #queue should see this #transcendragon art

[engulfedbymaleficsaturn]

It's been almost a month now since I left my abusive ex. He still is contacting me and also stalking me while at work. He somehow knew what area I was in. As he knocked at every hotel room in the radius.. He believed we were in a room two doors down and busted the huge glass window out. I tried keeping My dog, peanut silent but he had to say HI and gave us away. At the door, he paced back and forth for what seemed like ever. Noone came for help or called for help. Now though I see that Motel 6 is what you can call a dead zone. Every day all day and through the night echoes of screams and cries. The girl next to me I feel is involved in it. Peanut is probably what has kept my son and I safe. The few times I have found myself without him. Certain parties have approached me. Right now I think they are just trying to get a feel. Dipping their toes before diving type of ordeal.

I am Selling some spray paint art pieces to try and gather up enough to get out. Any donations would be greatly appreciated. I wish I had more time to go in-depth with my life and be more consistent in staying updated on here. As a single mom, working, and being on the road with no stability makes doing what I am passionate for almost impossible. And now I am about to walk into a courtroom. Another trial in life that is all new to me. Things can only get better or 6 feet under.

"I can only say there are things that stand In the way of other things and the ocean murders all of them." -Melissa Broder

#melissa broder #Art #Spray paint #Galaxy #astronaut #6 feet under #trials #motel 6 #dead zone #homeless #why? #battles #faith

[tervaneula]

u said leoichi drabble prompt request. consider. one injured and the other protecting them and then the injured one has to calm them down bc 'they're okay, really, promise, rest now'

OKAY SO this fused with a ghost of an idea I've had for a while and it ended up being a bit more serious than the prompt called for and a lot longer than just a drabble. (It's ~1120 words.) CW: blood and injury

Also I made a silly header thing I don't know what to do with, so I'm putting it here since this fic doesn't come with art of its own :'3

“Yui, I’m okay–” 

The rabbit turns his head to look at him, furious. 

“I heard your shell crack, Leonardo, and I'm not an idiot! Now stay down and let me handle this!” 

He falls quiet for a moment before redirecting his glare towards their adversary and then adds a muted, “Please.” 

There's no compromising with Yuichi in this state, apparently, and Leonardo stays right where he got crushed between metal claws and the concrete, splayed on the ground next to those very same claws which had gotten swiftly cut from the wrist for their transgressions.

He does roll onto his side to get his body weight off his shell, and yeah, alright, one or more of the old cracks that never healed properly must have split open again. It's tough to breathe and his back feels… His kimono is sticking to his shell and his back feels wet now that he's paying attention, and that. That is not good. 

Just his luck to run into a massive mecha wreaking havoc on an otherwise lovely day, huh. He wasn't even supposed to be on patrol and thus is embarrassingly swordless. 

Good thing that his date and their resident samurai always carries his. 

The slider watches as Yuichi does quick work of the metal hunk's wiring behind its knees, his frighteningly sharp katana slicing through the cables like butter. The mech falls with a ground-shaking rumble, unable to rise again, arm flailing as it tries to catch the rabbit. It's no use, Yuichi is much smaller and faster – and as soon as he reaches the mech's head, it's already rolling. The construct immediately loses power and Yuichi wrenches the windowed hatch in its chest open. Turns out there's no pilot, just a program-operated dashboard, and he makes sure that none of the controls are functional after he's done with them. 

Leonardo thinks he could watch Yuichi trash villains all day long, he's practically mesmerised by the strength hidden in that soft frame despite his shell throbbing unpleasantly in tandem with his heartbeat. He sighs, lovestruck. 

As his final move, Yuichi thrusts his katana into the heart of the mecha and Leonardo sees a spray of ink-black oil splash all over Yuichi's face and the front of his kimono. It makes him laugh and he realises his mistake too late, his lungs struggling to draw breath again as he finally gets hit with the pain, his body trying to stop him from moving; from causing any more damage. Shit, shit, shit. 

He had hoped he wouldn’t need to bother any of his brothers today since he was supposed to spend the whole day with Yuichi but he knows to pick his battles, now. He opens the comm link embedded in his prosthetic, contacting someone who he knows will pick up. 

“Che~ello!” comes the cheerful answer in just a few seconds, and Leonardo can't help but smile. 

“Mikeyyy, hermano, I'm in a bit of a pickle,” he wheezes, feeling the shift in his little brother's energy as soon as he hears the strain in his voice. 

“Leo? Are you okay?” 

“Not really, no,” Leonardo grunts. “Got into a scuffle with some big haywire robot– don’t worry, that’s taken care of. I suspect Donnie will want to scrap it for parts. Um. My shell’s– my shell’s cracked though.” 

Leonardo can vividly imagine the colour draining from Michelangelo's face and it would be funny if he wasn't acutely aware of a broken shell coming with the very real possibility of his innards turning into outnards. 

“I'm calling Draxy. Stay put, I'll get Lee to pick you up.” 

“Right,” Leonardo sighs, the line going out just when Yuichi is finally done with the mech and rushing to his side, face haphazardly wiped from oil. His gaze is sharp as he kneels next to him, sweaty and out of breath, and Leonardo thinks he looks like a knight. Or maybe like a samurai of the old, in this case. 

“There’s my hero,” he coos before Yuichi can get a word out and the rabbit’s brow furrows. 

“Don’t start,” he snaps but his tone softens almost immediately, “I saw you calling someone. It’s bad, isn’t it? It… it looks really bad.” 

“Yeeeah, this kimono is definitely ruined,” Leonardo laments, “unless you know how to, gh, get blood out of corduroy? No? Or the obi?” 

Yuichi stares. 

“A– a shame, really, I did like this one a lot–” 

“Leonardo!” Yuichi interrupts him and grabs his bicep, looking two seconds away from crying. Leonardo frowns. He knows he’s getting a little delirious but he was sincerely trying his best to lift his mate’s mood. 

“Leon, please, you’re rambling. Is someone coming? Can I do anything?” 

“‘m not rambling,” Leonardo grumbles, hissing when he fills his lungs again. “Leo’s coming to get us, Draxy– Draxum will treat the shell. And no, better keep the obi in place until we get to the medbay.” 

Yuichi’s shoulders slump and he sighs, most likely relieved that he’s not going to have to figure out how to deal with a cracked shell. Leonardo does not like the lingering worry in Yuichi’s gaze one bit, though, and he offers him a grin. It’s a little shaky but whatever. 

“Heeey, bunbun. Listen. This is nothing I haven’t been through before. I’ll be fine.” 

Yuichi gives him an honest-to-God kicked-puppy look and Leonardo thinks it’s the most adorable thing he’s ever seen in his life. He almost tells him so but Yuichi cups his cheek and his forced grin melts away into surprised silence. 

“I hate seeing you hurt,” Yuichi murmurs, leaning down to press his forehead against Leonardo’s. The slider’s eyes flutter shut and he lifts his hand to hold onto Yuichi’s wrist. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispers. “I mean it. I should’ve been more careful.” 

Yuichi huffs and leans away to gently bump their foreheads together. 

“It wasn’t your fault.” 

“Maybe, but ’m still sorry. Didn’t want to worry you.” 

“You’re an idiot,” Yuichi says, exasperated. “You should know that at this point, I’ll always worry.” 

Leonardo grins and this time it’s genuine. Breathing in his partner’s scent is like a balm to him, even if it’s tinged with the bitterness of motor oil, even if his body currently thinks that breathing is overrated. Even if he just got called an idiot by none other than said partner. 

“Raincheck on the date?” he mumbles, and finally he gets a chuckle out of the rabbit. Yuichi straightens his back and flicks him on the nose. 

“Like you even needed to ask. Idiot.” 

Before Leonardo can express his displeasure of being called an idiot for a second time there’s the familiar electric hum of a portal opening behind him, and someone whistles. 

“Sheesh, old man. That kimono is definitely ruined.” 

#NOT PROOFREAD I had to stop myself because every time I tried to check this over I kept writing MORE and that's just not sustainable #sdfghhsfghjafsfd #anyway these peepaws gay #rottmnt #rottmnt fanart #rottmnt fanfiction #leoichi #peepaw leo #peepaw yuichi #other characters mentioned + a cameo from #rise leo #future leonardo #future leo #samurai rabbit #usagi chronicles #yuichi usagi #usagi yuichi #tervdraws #tervdrabbles

[cucumberteapot]

Ugh! I love how so unapologetically punk this film. Obviously, there's Hobie with his battle jacket and electric guitar, and his whole Vibe™ immediately comes to mind, but the subgroups of punk are so deeply entrenched throughout the entire movie.

Like Hobie's style, in particular, reminds me so much of how British punk fashion is accumulating old, worn, even ugly pieces of clothing and turning it into something cool. It's thrift stores. It's hand-me-downs. It's customisations. It's momentos from friends. Maybe even piercings done by friends. It's about taking things from different places and making them your own - which is exactly how Hobie ends up making the dimension travel watch. Another thing is Hobie's blue laces, which I've been told is punk-code for having killed a police officer. We as audience members can go back and forth on whether ATSV is a copaganda film or has its themes, but I believe that tiny detail about Hobie is huge for a film distributed from a country that often values authoritative institutions more than it citizens.

Gwen is implicitly trans and shaves half her head, which is, from my understanding, HUGE for trans women who experience gender dysphoria. A lot of Gwen's fashion and prom dress especially reminds me of Hayley Williams in the late 2000s-early 2010s. It's very experimental, which I feel matches her age and uncertainty about being Spiderwoman, her dad, and Peter's death.

There's also a lot of concept art for Gwen's hair where her side-cut becomes an undercut and she wears it in a pony tail or bun and I just think they're so cool - D especially.

Miles G Morales' design is so heavily inspired by alternative goth fashion and techwear - a mix of combat attire and hip-hop streetwear. It's loose yet slick with it's own customisations in the crown-cut collar and the spray-paint insignia, and incorporates high-advanced technology in the mask.

It's futuristic. A what-could-be. And specifically what Miles could've been if he wasn't bit by the spider. Another cool thing, I don't know if this is related but worth pointing out, is that Prowler wears a modified (leather, bomber, varsity??) jacket. That's kinda crazy for an superhero/anti-hero suit if you think about it. Most of the time you'll see Marvel or DC characters running around in a spandex suit or (for women) almost nothing at all. But like Hobie we see how Miles G styles himself even when he's disguised. Like I wouldn't be surprised if his outfit change was just turning the jacket inside out like a sukajan jacket.

ATSV has so many characters with the own specific styles and it's really nice to see where most franchises are all or nothing when it comes to character design aesthetics.

#man there's so many ways to be punk in this film whether it's alt or anarcho or garage etc #spiderverse #across the spiderverse #miles morales #spiderman #atsv #satsv #hobie brown #gwen stacy #miles g morales #spiderman across the spiderverse #prowler #spiderman: across the spiderverse #spider punk #spiderwoman #spider man #ghost spider

[florencemtrash]

Hummingbird: Chapter Four

Miguel O'Hara x Reader

What if the Earth-1610 (Miles’s universe) version of Miguel’s wife was actually Miles’s AP Art teacher?

Masterlist

Warnings: Violence and injuries

Seven months later

This shit was getting old.

One of Doc Oc’s tentacles rammed into Miguel’s side, tossing him against a wall and leaving a crack in the concrete. She smiled in satisfaction, oblivious to the spider-venom blaster he’d stuck to the underside of the mechanical arm. With a quick chirp and blast of energy the arm was blown off. It landed with a pitiful twitch on the ground as electricity sparked through its circuitry.

“Let’s go!” Hobie whooped, slamming his fingers down the guitar strings with so much force Miguel was surprised they didn’t snap in two. 

Doc Oc screamed, blown backward by an eclectic spray of pink and purple newsprint. 

Three arms down, five more to go… or so they thought. 

New arms sprouted from their old stumps, flailing around for a brief moment before they shot out towards Hobie. 

He barely dodged the series of blows.

“Is that hammer space, bruv?!” 

Joder.

Hobie lept around the barren stage, launching battered amplifiers slathered in a dozen layers of stickers towards her. A stray limb punched through the drumset as Hobie spun out of the way. 

He gasped. The amps they could replace, but no one fucked with his instruments.

“Is it time to call for backup?” Lyla asked Miguel as Hobie gripped the neck of his guitar (the battle-safe one of course) and swung at Doc Oc’s head.

“Do not call for backup!” Miguel growled in annoyance. 

He could handle this.

“Yeah, I didn’t even ask you to come, mate!” Hobie yelled over the sound of Doc Oc sailing over the empty mosh pit and crashing into the guard rails. “I ain’t part of no band.”

“You literally just finished a concert three hours ago!” 

“That got nothing to do with you.”

Miguel groaned, ready to bash his head into the wrecked drum kit. 

No puedo más. No puedo más. He found himself thinking that a lot lately.

But as much as Hobie and Miguel liked to pretend they hated each other, they made a good team out in the field. They swung from the ceiling lights, electric blue and pink lights showering down on them in that crazed, photomontage way that tinged every part of Hobie’s world. It was enough to give Miguel a headache. 

The worst part about the multiverse is that there was no telling what kinds of powers and modifications existed out there. For example, Miguel didn’t know a Doc Oc existed that had lasers shoot out of their tentacles.

“I feel like it’s time to call for backup.” Lyla repeated, casually watching from the safety of her AI existence as Miguel’s webs were split in two and he took a sickening punch to the jaw. He shook his head, blinking away the dots in front of his eyes as he took a moment to rest in the comfort of his rubble sofa.

“Do not call Jess. She’s on maternity leave.”

“I wasn’t talking about Jess.” Lyla grinned mischeviously. 

Miguel narrowed his eyes, “No. Absolutely not.”

It was too soon, far too soon for him to drag you into a fight like this. 

“CALL FOR BACKUP!” Hobie cried out from the confines of Doc Oc’s tentacles, squirming around and trying to use his head spikes to free himself.

“You weren’t saying that earlier!”

“THAT’S THE TOXIC MASCULINITY TALKING! YOU GOT TO BE COMFORTABLE WITH CHANGING YOUR OPINION AND ADMITTING YOUR FAU-”

A portal opened up stage left. 

Miles swung out first, black and red suit standing out like an ink stain.

“¡¿Alguien pidió ayuda?!” Miguel could hear his smug smile through the mask.

“You already called him!?” Miguel scowled and hopped onto his feet, sprinting to join the fight as Miles landed his first punch against Doc Oc. 

Relief flooded his system. He thought that-

“I actually called her.” Lyla said, pointing a finger with a grin.

Miguel’s heart skipped a beat.

You stepped through the portal, adjusted the gloves on your newly designed suit and teleported yourself onto Doc Oc’s back, casually blinking away any tentacles that got too close. 

You were absolutely buzzing with excitement. Nevermind that you were currently blinking across spacetime to avoid the lazers that left behind scorched scars on the grass. This was your first real mission outside of occasionally helping Miles with his friendly neighborhood Spider-Man duties. And in Hobie’s dimension no less! Ever since you’d seen his unique color palette and design you’d been itching to see his world for yourself. Maybe you and Miles could take an impromptu field trip to the nearest museum afterwards.

“Lyla said you didn’t want to call me.” You said, happy with the way his eyes slightly widened beneath his mask. He coughed to clear his throat.

“You’re supposed to be at work.” Miguel said, tearing into Doc Oc’s tentacles with his forearm blades, “I didn’t want to bother you.”

“It’s summer break.” 

“You said you were teaching summer classes.” 

“I am! Only five kids are enrolled and he,” You tilted your head towards Miles, who waved back before he tore off an arm, "was the only one who could come to the Met field trip. Which you so rudely interrupted by the way.” The smile in your voice exposed the fact that you were quite ok with the interruption.

Miguel rolled his eyes half-heartedly, hoping you didn’t notice his restrained smile.  “Let’s just get the job done.”

And you did. 

Fighting a flesh-and-blood supervillain was a far cry from the simulations you’d fought at Spidey HQ where the only injury you could sustain was a blow to your pride when Lyla flashed the battle stats on the screen. Your training also didn’t account for the absolute chaos of working with a team. You nearly got in the way of one of Miles’s spider venom blasts and accidentally teleported onto Hobie’s back, throwing him off his rhythm long enough for a punch from Doc Oc to send you both crashing. Miguel had nearly lost his mind after that.

But after walking away from the fight with only a bruised jaw, cut upper arm, and a very disgruntled Doc Oc in tow, you were going to call your first real superhero outing a success.

“Sorry about earlier,” you said, extending a hand out to Hobie from where he groaned on the ground. He grabbed your arm and rolled onto his feet, shaking the dust off his jacket.

“Eh, it’s part of the learning.” He straightened his coat and reattached one of the pins he’d tucked safely away in his pocket, “Not bad for a first anomaly though.”

“Hmmmm, are we counting Spot?”

“No.”

“Damn.”

A shadow fell over your shoulder and you smirked, turning around on your heels to come face to face with Miguel. The fight was over, but somehow Miguel looked even more tense and irrate than before. Behind his back you saw Doc Oc yell and punch at the orange walls of her prison. 

“Are you here to say good job?” You teased.

“Are you hurt?” He asked, voice tight.

Hobie brushed past you, “I’m good, cheers.” he said, patting Miguel on the shoulder before heading over to where Miles stared in awe at the anomaly. You felt more than saw Miguel roll his eyes.

“I wasn’t asking you.” 

“I know.” 

Hobie’s reply widened your smile. There was something glorious about seeing Miguel lose his cool. Normally you tried to get him to smile or laugh, but sometimes annoyance was an easier emotion to muster from him. It reminded you that beneath all that hard-won armour was a man just trying his best.

“I’m fine, Miguel.” You said. 

He gently tugged at the bottom of your mask and you took the hint, pulling it off entirely. Miguel’s frown deepened as he gently tucked a finger beneath your chin and turned your face to the side, eyes narrowed in on your swollen jaw. You tried not to blush under his watchful gaze. It really wasn’t a terrible injury, and with your enhanced healing it would fade within a day, but it stll felt like a gut punch to Miguel.

You were used to this kind of attention from him. The first two months after joining the Spider Society had been a pool of uncertainty that you’d flapped around in with little control - you’d been uncertain about your powers, the multiverse and your place in it, and your relationship with Miguel… especially your relationship with Miguel. 

His aloofness was only matched by his sincerity and once you’d forgiven him for what he’d done to Miles, you found him easy to like. His grouchiness and sarcasm pulled smiles from you as easily as water from a spring, and it didn’t escape anyone’s notice that you were the only one who could make him laugh and crack through his walls. But there was always that itch in the back of your mind that told you he only cared because you looked like his wife, not because you’d both grown to know and care for each other. 

You tried not to think about it too often. 

It made moments like these harder to handle.

“Nada que no pueda manejar.” You said softly, pulling his hand away and towards the anomaly, “Now come on. This anomaly isn’t just going to hop dimensions on its own.” 

Miguel opened his mouth as if to say something, but ultimately relented, allowing you to lead him to where Hobie and Miles bent their heads towards one another, shooting jokes back and forth as easily as their webs.

Margo portaled in to help Miguel take Doc Oc to Earth-928 and you watched their retreating backs disappear with a blink before Hobie turned towards you and Miles, rubbing his hands together and pulling you both into his side.

“Now! Who’s ready to see some real art?”

______

“I can’t believe all the museums in your dimension are Koons-themed.” Miles said, slouching in his seat and looking positively disappointed.

“Why’d you think I took you to the back alleys, mate. Real art’s cheap.”

“Say that to my bank account after a trip to Blick.” You muttered, biting into your empanada with a groan of satisfaction.

You sat cross-legged on top of the bench, watching Margo’s cyber body split into two as the Go Home Machine whirred to life. Its metal claws clicked together, sounding like the chirping of birds as it spun its web around Doc Oc as she watched with no small amount of curiosity.

“You think you could ever do that?” Hobie asked, leaning against your shoulder and slinging his arm around you casually. 

You raised your eyebrow, “What, forcefully send a living person back to their home dimension?”

He shrugged nonchalantly.

“You try interdimensional travel without your fancy watch and tell me how easy it is.” You said with a grin, poking at his side until he squirmed away with a chuckle. You took the opportunity to steal a french fry from him.

“Alright, alright, stop. I think you could do it.”

The four of you watched as the Go Home Machine finished its kaleidoscopic work. Miguel always had a clinical view of the work he did and the machines he created. Whenever it was traveling to another world, or encountering a new being (Spider-Person or otherwise) the last thing on his mind was beauty or a fascination with the ways things were. That’s where you two differed the most. So while Miguel hardly ever stayed around to watch the Go Home Machine run its science-magic, you always craned your neck to catch glimpses of the worlds beyond Earth-928.

“I better check in with Miguel.” You said, hopping off the table once Doc Oc was safely back in her home universe.

Hobie, Miles, and Margo all shot each other a knowing look before you could notice. 

Now that school was out for the summer you found yourself spending more and more time on Earth-928, and after six months of training you could walk to Miguel’s lair from any part of the building with a blindfold on. The first few weeks you hadn’t been able to suppress the slight unease at entering the dark room where many of the captured anomalies would sneer at you like you were a meal to be hunted.

Now… not so much.

“You’re still here, Norm?” You asked, catching sight of the familiar gentleman who shrugged and smiled. He sat comfortably on the floor, purple hood and goggles abandoned beside him to expose his weathered face.

“Still here,” He repeated, “I suppose I’m not as high a priority to send home now that I’m not, you know, evil anymore.” He sighed, “I just can’t believe my luck. I leave an alternate universe and not even a year later I’m sucked into another one!” He chuckled.

“I’ll talk to Spider-Man about it.” 

“Peter?!” His eyes brightened at the possibility.

“Ummm…no. Sorry.” 

He nodded, shoulders deflating every so slightly, “Thanks anyway Spider-”

“Y/sh/n, actually.” Miles and Gwen had helped you come up with it.

“Well, thank you Y/sh/n.” He said and waved you on before he could steal more of your time.

“I told you it’s dangerous to talk to the anomalies.” Miguel said, eyes still trained on the screens as you blinked next to him. One day you’d manage to sneak up on him, but today was not that day. 

You frowned when you saw he was still wearing his mask. 

“Well you’re talking to me right now, aren’t you?” You said, bumping his shoulder with your own before climbing onto the empty space on his desk he subtly reserved for you.

Miguel stiffened and his fingers froze over the keys. It had taken you months to fully forgive him for all the terrible things he’d said and done to Miles - the things he may have said to you if you didn’t have his wife’s face… if you were just a regular anomaly.

“That’s not what I-.” 

“You also said Earth-199999’s Peter Parker took care of the Green Goblin. I think we’re fine.” 

He nodded and sighed. His eyes were killing him right now and even the faint flicking of the red-orange lights from the screens felt like blows to his skull. 

“He wants to go home.” You said and saw his eyes flicker to the anomaly on the screen, red and tired.

“I know. He’s scheduled to be sent back tonight. I promise.” 

You nodded with satisfaction and snapped your fingers, a pair of sunglasses blinking into the palm of your hand, “You should take a break. You’ve been working non-stop for over two days now.”

“I’ve got work to do.”

“The multiverse is not going to shatter because you take a thirty-minute lunch break, Miguel.” 

He eyed you warily and shook his head, fingers flying across the touchpad like they were racing to win gold. 

He always did this. He always worked himself to the bone until you would find him red-eyed and slumped over the tabletop for one of his thirty-minute “power-naps.” 

“Lyla.” You called out. The woman appeared perched on your shoulders.

“You rang?”

“Can you please tell Miguel that the multiverse isn’t going to collapse before he does?” 

“Ooooh you said please. I like you.” Miguel muttered a few choice words under his breath, “The multiverse is holding steady. I’ll alert you if anything changes at all.” Lyla winked at you and disappeared. 

“Realmente necesito cambiar su código.” Miguel grumbled.

“¡Ni se te ocurra!”

Miguel tightened his lips but said nothing. You slid over to sit in front of him and pushed against his chest until he finally relented and sat down in the chair. He didn’t want to admit this, but the only reason he agreed to sit down was because he’d fractured two ribs in the fight, and you pressing against his chest hurt like a bitch.

“Did you really come all this way just to get me to rest?”

“Obviously.” You tossed the sunglasses into his lap along with the extra empanada you’d been carrying around the last half-hour. You hoped it was still warm, but then again, if it weren’t for you he probably wouldn’t have remembered to eat at all. 

The corner of his mouth tilted up. “Gracias.” 

“Solo cállate y come. Lo juro, es como si estuviera tratando de mantener viva una planta de interior. Una planta de interior muy obstinada.”

He tilted his head down, hiding his face as his mask disappeared. 

You held your breath, reaching out instinctively to hold his face in between your hands. Color rushed into his cheeks, emphasizing the dark, purple bruise that crawled its way up from his jawline to his cheek bone, the flesh around it swollen and warm when you carefully traced it with your finger. The bridge of his nose was similarly bruised, the strong slope of his nose tilted ever so slightly to the left. 

Miguel also stopped breathing, the pain hardly registering as he felt your eyes against his skin as physical and real as your hands.

You became all too aware of the closeness, the way he was looking at you. A familiar and malicious voice scratched the back of your mind - What are you to him? Who are you to him? Who is he really thinking about when he looks at you like that?

You let go of his face, your heart sinking in your chest.

“¿Qué te sucedió?” You murmured. His brown-red eyes were wide and soft.

He cleared his throat, disappointment gathering in his chest when you withdrew your hands, “I guess I should have called for backup sooner.” 

“Where else are you hurt?”

“I’m not-”

“Where else are you hurt? Y no te atrevas a mentirme.” 

Miguel melted under your fiery gaze. You weren’t one to show your anger - teaching teenagers had strengthened your patience - but Miguel had a special way of pushing your buttons, whether he knew it or not. 

“I may or may not have cracked a rib… or two.” 

“Miguel!” 

“I’ll heal!” 

“Estúpido, bastardo terco.” You muttered under your breath with no small measure of affection.

You reached over and gently pressed on his stomach, hearing him hiss in pain. He grabbed your arm to get you to stop, shame coloring his bruised cheek.

“I’ll be ok. I promise.” He whispered when you leaned down from your seat to inspect his jaw again. Any longer under your watchful gaze and he might just combust.

“I know you’ll be ok. I just…” Your lips tightened. “I don’t like to see you hurt.”

You’d been in this situation before with Miguel a few times. It always ended with him promising to take better care of himself, holding to that promise for a few weeks, and then falling back into old, self-destructive habits. The others said he had gotten better about taking care of himself ever since you’d come into the picture, but you found that hard to believe. 

“I don’t like to see you hurt either.” He admitted, gently rubbing up and down your forearms. He eyed the tear in your suit, and the clean white bandage that peeked through. 

Who is he really thinking of?

You told that voice to shut up.

“So you can imagine how worried I get when I see you like this.” 

Miguel sighed, running his hands through his hair and mussing up the curls. He could imagine it all too well. Every time you left for your own dimension a knot of worry would sink in his chest like a boulder dropped into a lake, and it wouldn’t dissipate until the next time he saw you safe and whole. He flinched at the very thought of you sporting bruises and cracked bones like the ones he had - the scars he bore after years on the job.

“What would you have me do?” He asked, “I can’t just give this up.” 

“I’m not- No one is asking you to. I know you need to do this. But you don’t have to do it alone. You know any of the other Spider-People would be more than happy to help monitor things in the Spider-Verse.” 

“One - it’s the Arachnoid Humanoid Poly-Multiverse. And two - the other Spider-People aren’t like me. They can’t do what I do.”

“You’re right, they’re a hell of a lot funnier” He scoffed, setting his jaw in a scowl that had pain flaring up the left side of his face. “And they don’t go around punching teenagers.”

“That was one time!” 

Your lips turned in a downward smile, trying to suppress your laughter at the indignant expression on his face. The scowl on his face slowly but surely loosened, twisting into a barely concealed smile.

“Stop doing that.” He muttered.

“Doing what?” You asked innocently.

“Getting me to smile and laugh. It hurts my ribs.” 

“All the more reason to get some rest, Miguel.” You said, ruffling his hair and gleaming with satisfaction when he finally allowed himself to smile. You plucked the sunglasses from his lap and placed them on his face, careful not to upset his healing nose.

How was it possible that he hated and loved the way you said his name so much? He knew you cared for him. The first two months had been tense and filled with questions of what you were to one another - A mistake? A bad memory? Husband and wife? It had been a time when every touch, glance, and hidden smile had been given with a measure of uncertainty and restraint.

Miguel didn’t feel that way anymore. When you messed up his hair and forced his hidden smile out into the open he just saw you. Not some version of his wife. Not someone he’d barely known. Not someone he’d lost. 

Just you.

“If I promise to take the night off to sleep and let Ben and LEGO Peter take care of it, would that satisfy you?” 

You hummed in thought, “How many hours of sleep are we talking about?” 

“Four.” 

“Seven.” You countered.

“Five.” 

“Deal.” You stuck out your hand, a wide grin on your face that Miguel matched when he shook your hand.

“What would I do without you?” He asked sarcastically.

You scoffed, “Shrivel up and die, probably.” 

<- Previous chapter Next chapter ->

_________

Author's note: Here's Chapter Four! Y/n is feeling some insecurity about her relationship with Miguel... I wonder if that will come up again in the next chapter 👀...........

As always, please let me know your thoughts! Hope you enjoy :)

Taglist: @geraskier-thots @howabouticallyou @sweetheartlizzie07 @dont-mind-me27 @omg-edzia-stuff @sarcastically-defensive17 @trouble-sistar @saltyluminaryvoid @lunablue001 @sadslasher13 @yas-v @thel0v3hashira143 @trishuh8 @vague-flying-shape @tiana76 @dinuxia-bhm @mxtokko @devilsrose666@natbratty @zettoaizawa-shusband @dorck26 @notasadgirlipromise @niyanispunk @thecraziestcrayon @athenxt @imnotyourbcbe @jannajuju @lunamoonbby @elle-19 @aces148 @sseleniaa @elaineiswithyou-blog @summerli-u @rattlethemskulls @sunseekerlove @bubbabobabubbles @loonalockley @aleombre @littlelilies@07-bilin @nerdalicios @insanely-creative-things @enby-rising @nataliahemsworth @coralineyouareinterribledanger @louderfortheback @damnzelsoul @enheduannasposts @bontensbabygirl @mynameiswilliamblake

#miguel o'hara #miguel o'hara x reader #miguel o'hara x y/n #atsv x reader #miguel x reader #Miguel spiderman #miguel o'hara x wife reader #atsv x y/n #atsv miguel #hobie brown #spider gwen #gwen stacy #miles morales

[wrongdodo]

DoL School LI's and their Dungeons and Dragons Characters

HERE'S SOMETHING NOBODY ASKED FOR.

Disclaimer: I never played DnD, but I did play Pathfinder, and maaaany years of World of Warcraft. This makes me FULLY QUALIFIED to make this post.

Robin the Orphan – Human Wizard Robin would go for something familiar and pretty traditional – human characters are adaptable and dependable. Especially if low on confidence, Robin would stick to what they know – nothing too outlandish. Mages are known for their ability to reshape reality, which is very appealing to Robin. What they lack in defence, they make up for in spellpower. Robin literally can’t imagine anything cooler than donning a robe and casting fireballs; pew pew pew.

Sydney the Faithful – Half-Elf Cleric Half-elf is just about as exotic as Pure Sydney would go right away, and only after getting the okay from Jordan. Nothing screams elf like a Tolkienesque strawberry blonde ponytail. Half-elves are often outcast for not quite fitting in with either the human or elf world, which Syd would find pretty relatable given their struggle. They’d be drawn to the cleric class for it’s obvious link to spirituality and divinity. Syd would be more than happy to be the group healer – but can deal plenty of damage themselves when pushed too far.

Sydney the Fallen – Teifling Bard Corrupt Sydney would absolutely roll a new character – something outlandish, dangerous and a little romantic. Teifling suits them perfectly - curled horns, sharp teeth a pointed tail… sounds pretty sinful if you ask me. Bards are known for their silver tongues, speechcraft and charm. It’s a versatile class – think jack-of-all-trades - and Corrupt Sydney would want to try everything they never had the chance to before. Spellcasting? Check. Melee weapons? Check. Musical instruments? Why the fuck not?

Kylar the Loner – Halfling Rogue A stab-you-in-the-ankles kinda character. Naturally stealthy, halflings survive by going under the radar - literally between the feet of the bigfolk. Rogue is an obvious choice– sneaky and cunning with a talent for thievery. Like Kylar, rogues are natural infiltrators who are light on their feet and can pick a lock like nobody’s business. Many rogues are also skilled potion makers – be it elixirs, poisons or… pepper spray. Oh, and Kylar’s already pretty experienced with knives - they'd probably bring it to the session along with their sketchbook.

Whitney the Bully – Orc Barbarian Let’s be real, they’d never agree to play – it sounds fucking stupid. But if you could convince them, it’d be with the promise that they could do whatever they wanted. The game’s completely open ended, after all. So, Whitney would want to have it all – lording it over the nerds by having the biggest, strongest character with the biggest, stupidest weapon. Orcs are ferocious in battle, with a tribal culture that doesn’t make much sense to outsiders. Barbarians have a natural toughness and a stubborn will. Whitney would punch the innkeeper. Why? Because fuck you, that’s why.

EDIT 1: @deadfish-dol drew some amazing art inspired by this! Looook! Rogue Kylar and Barbarian Whitney

Sydney the Cleric and Sydney the Teifling

Robin the Wizard EDIT 2: I wrote the fanfic!

#dol #degrees of lewdity #dol headcanons #robin the orphan #sydney the faithful #sydney the fallen #kylar the loner #whitney the bully #dol robin #dol sydney #dol kylar #dol whitney #dol dnd au

[artzychic27]

Tell me this doesn’t scream Akuma Class Energy

Caline Bustier’s Rules For Taking Care Of Her Students

If Marinette, Max, and Nathaniel stayed up late working on design/tech/art projects, you are to give them a shot of coffee. Just enough to stay up during class, but not too much to cause anarchy and make it everyone else’s problem

Do not touch Nino’s headphones. If he has a day where he wants to block out the rest of the world and you take his headphones, Alya, Adrien, Kim, and Marinette will make it your problem

There are to be fifteen stim toys in the classroom at all times. FIFTEEN

Do not scream, yell, or play music too loudly around Myléne

The words ‘Unexceptional,’ ‘Stupid,’ ‘Worthless,’ and ‘Disappointment’ are not allowed to be said in the classroom

If Juleka mumbles, she mumbles. Do not even think about getting upset when she yells after you tell her to raise her voice

Monopoly is forbidden, whether in board game or app form. If they insist on playing it, they must have adult supervision. No, M. Monlataing is not adult supervision

Nathaniel is allowed to draw during lessons. That is how he takes notes, and if you take away his note-taking sketchbook, Alix, Juleka, Rose, Marinette, and Marc will follow you home. In addition, there must be visuals when presenting PowerPoints. Some students (Nathaniel for example) are visual learners

Marinette, Chloé, and Lila are not to be left alone together for more than two minutes

Kim is not allowed to go downstairs by himself

Alya is not allowed to go out and record Akuma battles that happen during school hours, lunch, or study hall

Do not send Nathaniel alone to grab extra supplies without some form of supervision. Alix does not count as supervision

Adrien is allowed to eat during class whenever he feels like it

If Rose asks to see the nurse, you let her go

If you are sending any of the girls out of the classroom between 10:00am and 10:15am, make sure Ivan and Kim accompany them

If Adrien and Marinette need to leave during an Akuma attack during schools hours, let them leave, no questions asked

If you’re one of those dress code nuts, Alya cannot help her natural curves, and you have no place to to call her out in the middle of class and claim that her curves are a distraction

If any of them are having a panic attack in the bathroom, screw gender and let their opposite sex friend or significant other help them

If Nathaniel starts yelling in Yiddish, don’t bother or interrupt him. Just don’t.

Spiders are not allowed in the classroom, and do not show images of spiders

Markov is sentient and therefore, shall be treated as a human. If you attempt to confiscate Markov, expect many angry family members

If Adrien sounds British, spray him with water

If Marc Anciel walks into the classroom saying Mme. Mendeleiev needs to speak to Nathaniel, do not let Nathaniel go with him

If Adrien gets called in the middle of a test for a photo shoot, do NOT let him go until he is done with his work. Actually, don’t let him leave during school hours, period

In addition to Rule 24, Nino has a binder with multiple incidents of Gabriel Agreste proving he is unfit to be a parent. If you witness Adrien being abused in any sort of way, please fill out one of the blank incident reports

@msweebyness @imsparky2002

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous #akuma class #class rules #no one asked for this #who cares? #Mme. Bustier

[tf2-plus2]

While I work on finishing at least one of the lore posts before I go to bed because my brain has not wanted to brain today...

Have the original art for Retriever and Assassin (Assassin was actually done first!) Also Wally the good Dutch Shepherd in color! The lineart for these were originally posted on my main @cherry-blxssxm-chaos , and I think I posted Assassin's colored art there too? Either way, finished these in time for me to be redoing them relatively soon so- hah!

#announcer speaks (ooc) #team fortress 2 ocs #tf2 ocs #battle spray (art) #Smoke and Knives (Assassin) #Paint n Pickup (Retriever) #Good Boy! (Wally)

[quillpokebiology]

Primarina Facts

(Art by Kantarou)

-The scientific name for Primarina is "Otaria Symphona" which roughly translates to "Symphonic Little-ear"

-Primarina are mustelids, and their closest relatives are Dewgong and Samurott. Surprisingly, this means that they're also related to Pokemon like Skuntank and Furret

-The bubbles that Primarina makes are made from snot and mucus. The explosive ones are made with hydrogen and other gases

-A group of Primarina is called an Opera

-Primarina live in colonies with other members of its line. It's led by a lead Primarina who leads all of their songs

-Every once a month, usually on the full moon, Primarina will perform on beaches. These wre major tourist attractions for anyone visiting the Alola region, and it's popular for wild pokemon too

-Primarina developed their singing abilities as a way to attract mates and to lure in prey. When trying to attract mates, Primarina will gather in large crowds where a Primarina (male or female) will perform a mating call. The Primararina who like the song will then mate them. The same kind of courting is used with Lapras as well, making crossbreeds between the two very common (here's a Lapras crossed with a Primarina!)

-There are old beliefs of Primarina using their voice to lure sailors to their deaths. Despite this being popular in stories, there's no records of this ever happening

-The entire line is Crepescular, meaning they're active at evening and at night

-When courting, male Primarina will give the females gifts like seashells and pearls. Primarina that have mates will carry around said items; sometimes putting them around their naturally occurring pearls as well

-Primarina most often lay their eggs in water beds (place underwater between two objects to make sure something doesn't float away). Popplio have a lot of blubber and will float up while instinctively swimming to the surface for air as well. They'll let their mother know they hatch by giving a unique call

-They're piscovores, so they only eat shells and fish. They'll use their calls to lure in fish mon

-Primarina gained popularity worldwide after the movie, "The Little Primarina," used a Primarina as its protagonist

-Unlike Popplio and Brionne, Primarina have both lungs and gills

-Primarina's hair feels very silky. It's kept clean by natural gels they secrete. It's very thick due to naturally living in the ocean

-Primarina colonies are often matriarchal and lead by a grandma

-Primarina's voice is the most important part of them, and things like battling and communicating are impossible without them. It's important to take care if their voice, like using throat sprays and letting them rest their voices properly after battles

#quill pokefacts #primarina #rotomblr #pokemon irl #pokeblogging #pokeblog #irl pokemon #pokemon #pokeblr #rotumblr #pkmn irl #pokemon roleplay #irl pkmn #pokemon biology #pokemon biologist

[nardos-primetime]

An Unedited Ramble for my Villain Mikey AU

TW// Death, Toxicity, SH technically, probably some typos and odd paragraph spacing but that's not a TW is it (this was written by a sleepy man who listened to a song and Got insane inspiration and had to get it out)

Probably prior movie after series ends timeline wise, around where things start breaking down. With all the arguments, Mikey's optimism has started to break down. He's noticing every negative, Donnie's even started getting involved in Leo and Raph's arguments, removing his only safe space. It doesn't help that Donnie and Leo both keep acting like they're in any position to give advice on being "better" than the other ones. Hypocritical, acting like you're above the arguments you start just because Raph is older.

Splinter seems to insist they'll level each other out eventually.

Once again everyone's treating him like a naive child. Y'know, in the past he never asked Splinter for help and this is why. 'Incompetent,' the thought breaks into Mikey's head whenever he sees another argument get ignored by his father. He feels like shit right after. How could he ever think that? How could he ever think something so negative?

He turns to his art, gripping pencils and brushes, pressing the tip of spray paint cans down. But his ideas. They're all so…

Wounded. That's all, they're wounded, he can heal them, they just need time, all this darkness will eventually leave him. He turns to training, something he's been avoiding since his brothers have seemed to split up. He starts normally, than for extra flare he adds his extraordinary skill of bending further than he should, twisting and contorting himself as he sends out his nunchucks towards the training dummies that have grown dusty, since who needs a punching bag when you're fighting your brothers?

If they can't man up, he will. He trains himself. Dummies fall, catch on fire. Not a single time do the others notice his time in there, every day there's another slammed train door, another shout. It becomes art to figure out how he can defeat the faux enemies in front of him.

In actual missions he carries the weight. God knows they won't. They're too busy focusing on each other fault of the time he deals with it because they get a hit in. And Donnie and Leo act like it's a positive.

Raph. Judges. Him.

"Your strategies have gotten more… dangerous, but more effective, Michelangelo! When'd you learn that?"

"He's on fire, naturally."

"Are you okay?"

He freaks out at night. The crackling in his hands when he tried to paint has returned, they tremble until he has those nunchucks back in his hands. He's becoming something scary.

He trains it out.

Pushing his body farther and farther. His thoughts of his brothers and father being so selfish turn against him, visions of swinging the flaming chain around their necks and throwing them down turn into him. The chain around his neck. His eyes blur with tears but he still swings and bends and swings and every fucking battle Leo and Donnie argue like it's their achievement and not his. And not a result of them doing the same shit Splinter did, if not worse.

And Raph looks scared.

So he picks his razzmatazz back up, just to feel a little better amongst his violence. A dance step here, a twirl, a flip. It makes it so much more comfortable.

Rpah watches from the corner of the doorway. He doesn't bother getting Mikey's attention. Mikey wouldn't give it to him.

He doesn't deserve it.

Mikey's hands start glowing, they start burning.

He wants to leave.

One day, in the bathroom mirror he sees himself. He thinks he's lost it. He looks so old but happy. His reflection tries to start a conversation, he speaks like he knows Mikey. Like Mikey's supposed to stay here, like anything good has come out of the Hamato family but mask after mask.

He knows what he's going to do without any preparation. He deals with his problem, tears welling in his eyes as he screams, he's finally ranting as he tries to go somewhere else, anywhere else instinctively putting his arms out.

They tried to stop him and something came out. An explosion. The flesh of his arms peel upwards as he stares.

And he laughs. Because it's funny, it's funny how his brain had lost any positive words to say but once they're gone all he can think of is the good. The fake "good" things.

He steps through the portal. His arms covered in blood, his body held together by spite. He should be dead. Some part of him thinks back to his reflection. Maybe he wasn't crazy.

Maybe there's some Michelangelo's out there still lying to themselves. More good for nothing brothers who continuously drop the ball and hit their little brothers square in the chest.

Each fix burns his hands, flesh falls off his arms in chunks. His fingers are completely covered in bloody bandage until it's time for him to do his thing. He can never man up enough to get the Splinters.

He moves swiftly, confidently yet casually. Twisting himself to the edge of what he can handle as he throws himself around, grinning and smiling, almost flaunting like some things he used to know. Showing his strength in an attempt to protect, overstepping the boundaries of universes themselves to protect someone he doesn't even know, like some thing he used to know.

Michelangelo is all grown up. It's too bad his brothers couldn't do the same. It's too bad he had to do it for them. It's too bad he still has to. It's too bad he has them wandering around whenever he's alone. It's too bad that they act like he's done nothing wrong.

"It's too bad none of this matters."

"Right, Mikey?"

"You'll find us next time, Big guy!"

"There's a good bunch out there, you'll find them."

He always was one for imaginary friends.

#rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #rise of the tmnt #rise mikey #rottmnt mikey #rise raph #rottmnt raph #rise donnie #rottmnt donnie #rise leo #rottmnt leo #rottmnt au #rottmnt fanfic #i suppose #writings #villain mikey au #broke a million dollar box au

[phoebepheebsphibs]

Please, whatever they offer you... DON'T FEED THE PLANTS!!

ACT 3

@boots-with-the-fur-club @daboyau @tmntaucompetition @littlemissartemisia @shiveagit @shiveagit-arts @thevoidbrothers @noval1t @kathaynesart @bluepeachstudios @amevello-blue

CW: Panic attacks, cringe musical references

(Special thanks to boots-with-the-fur-club for helping write the NFIF bois!)

Prev || Next

Names and abbreviations (sorry there's a lot, we have a big cast for today's performances!) : UIFY = Until I Found You NFIF = No Fun in Fungus Leon = UIFY Leonardo 'Phael = UIFY Raphael DvD = UIFY Donatello Mike/Mikey/Micheal = UIFY Michelangelo AudRaph = Swayed Raphael AudreyTello = Swayed Donatello LeonAudro = Swayed Leonardo MichelAudrelo = Swayed Michelangelo AudRai = Swayed Karai rhg!Donnie = Rise Hunger Games AU Donatello Raph = NFIF Raphael Donnie/Dee = NFIF Donatello Leo = NFIF Leonardo Angie/Angelo = NFIF Michelangelo

The show must go on...

AudreyTello turned around just in time to watch as the explosion blew AudRaph several meters back, slamming him into a wall while the majority of the room that housed Audrey III crumbled to the ground. As the glow of deep cobalt, violet, crimson, and bright green filled the room, it chased away the neon electric blue, causing each and every spore it came into contact with to disintegrate.

"NOO!!!" AudreyTello screamed in pure fury. He gripped his head, the familiar ache returning as he could feel the hold over NFIF Donatello started to weaken.

"You... you WRETCHES!! You think this will STOP ME?!"

"Well, we certainly hoped so," Spider-Dee mumbled.

"You pathetic, insignificant, worthless, meaningless, little trifles of trauma-riddled turtles!!" AudreyTello screamed.

"...This might be a shot in the dark, but I think we made him just a teensy bit mad."

"OH, YA THINK?!"

AudreyTello's battleshell erupted with furious weapons building one on top of the other, the purple glow blending with the blue infecting his ninpo. But piece by piece, the purple was starting to take back control...

"It... it's working! The sway is breaking!" Spider-Dee pointed.

"Then let's break it all the way!" Ghost shouted over the commotion, grabbing Spider-Dee and DvD out of habit and jumping away from the spray of mystic missiles and bullets.

Meanwhile, in the rubble, a shield of ninpo created by the infected Hamatos kept MichelAudrelo, AudRai, and poor little Misa safe from the destruction.

"I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT THE HAND.PNG SET A FIRE AND BURNED DOWN THE HOUSE!" MichelAudrelo screamed in anger, clenching his fists tightly.

"One less enemy to worry about," AudRai stated calmly. "What is the damage?"

"Our base has been destroyed," MichelAudrelo growled. "Quite obviously."

AudRai held her head as she groaned.

"Our true form... has been wounded," she grunted, looking up slowly.

The mushroom was half-destroyed in the corner, the cap singed and burning slightly, the hyphae curling as the fungus screeched in agony. Leonardo sat under the stalk, his body half-freed, but the blast had knocked him unconscious. He laid limp against the roots that kept him anchored to the floor, half-destroyed and withering beneath his weight.

"They will pay for this," MichelAudrelo snarled.

Blue/gold mystic chains started forming as he approached the battle, seeing the non-Donnie team come round the corner...

"Okay, so the room was destroyed, the spores are dissipating... you guys know what's next?" Leon asked, making sure the plan was still in effect.

"We'll get going to save all the zombies," Spider-Shine said with a smile and a nod, gesturing to the other Spider-Teetlez as Spider-Dee reunited with them. "Get the antidote to anyone with glowing blue eyes!"

"Great, the rest of us will stay behind to help free the swayed and eradicate the rest of the mushroom!"

The Spider-Teetlez shook hands with the group, saying fond farewells before swinging away to complete their quest and save the rest of the AUs...

"Okay then, now we--"

"RUN!!" 'Phael shrieked, pointing to an army of golden chains coming their way.

MichelAudrelo smiled cruelly as he sent the chains to grab at them, the contestants and supporters scattering quickly in all directions to avoid his attacks. One chain grabbed Leon and dragged him forward.

The slider was bound by the ankles and hung upside down in front of the mystic warrior.

"Hello, worm," MichelAudrelo said with a smile.

"Uhhh, heeey there, Angie!" Leon said, hoping the childhood nickname for his brother would strike a chord with this version of Michelangelo.

It didn't.

MichelAudrelo raised his hand.

"You'll regret what you've done..."

"Hey, you!!"

Leon and MichelAudrelo turned in surprise to see who had just shouted at them.

Golden flower petals and butterflies made of light started fluttering down around the boys.

Abby smiled brightly as she threw her crutch aside to Diana. Music starting playing.

"Do you hear that sound? That beautiful sound?"

Giant vines started sprouting from the ground, lifting Abby and MichelAudrelo up into the air. In his shock, MichelAudrelo dropped Leon to the floor, where Diana quickly grabbed him and pulled him aside.

"What are you two doing here?" Leon asked. "You were supposed to stay with Mikey--"

"Slight change of plans," Diana answered. "We brought the cavalry!"

"You didn't bring him here, did you?"

"..."

"Diana, if you value your life you will answer 'no'."

"...Then, no?"

"You're lying to me. Where is he...!" Leon growled as he stormed off to find his Michelangelo.

"YOU SAID TO ANSWER NO!!" Diana shouted as she followed after him, while Abby finally got to do her big number with a 'captive audience'...

Leon rushed off to find his brother, no doubt glowing and sporting his own mystic chains. He was gonna give him an earful when he found him...

As Leon was storming around, something lodged within the wall fell to the ground and groaned behind him.

"URGH!"

Leon whipped around.

"What was that--"

A large spiky shell and limbs started moving from the broken pieces of plaster that had crumbled along with the body on the floor. It slowly started rising, groaning and grumbling. Leon swallowed, tiptoeing closer to the swayed Raph.

"...Diana... go look for Mikey. Make sure he's not doing anything too.... y'know."

"But, what are you gonna--"

"Just go," he whispered. "I'll handle this."

Diana reluctantly obeyed, rushing away before AudRaph could get his bearings back and start attacking them.

Leon crept forwards, wary of the strength this Raphael could have. He knew that his brother 'Phael was pretty strong, though he was mostly unshed baby fat. This Raph was head and shoulders above him, and had been training as a ninja since his childhood, he figured. Besides, he knew that 'Phael had a tendency to go kinda savage when he was really, really scared. And who knew what this fear fungus was making Raph see in his deep subconscious...

"Hey, buddy, it's me, your ol' pal, Neon Leon..."

AudRaph made a low rumbling sound as he slowly got to his knees, still dizzy and dazed.

"I know that whatever you're seeing... i-it's probably pretty rough. I'm sure you think that it's hopeless, but it isn't! You can get through it..."

AudRaph lifted up his head, growling at him with bared teeth.

"Hey, it's okay to be scared. I'm scared most of the time. Have you seen half of the hijinx Mikey gets involved in? I'll bet you know how tough it is, being the oldest brother, the one to look after everyone... But then again, you also know how much they love you. You know how excited they are when they succeed just like you knew they would, the look on their faces when they see how proud you are when they exceed your expectations and blow you out of the water! You're so lucky to be the big brother, no matter how many times they make you worry... because for every grey scale they give you, you get ten extra memories of them and how wonderful they are and how much you love them."

Raphael's blue-glazed eyes started leaking.

"And I know you love them. Because how could you not love our brothers?? You, me, we sacrifice for them all the time, because we would do anything for our little brothers. You'd do anything for your brothers, right? And... you said I would always have a big brother in you. And I need you, Raph -- they need you -- WE NEED YOU. We need you to come back to us..."

Leon placed one hand on Raph's shaking shoulder and cupped the other hand under his cheek, wiping the blue tears from his face.

"Come back to your family, Raph. Because we need YOU. Not a hero, not a sacrificial martyr, we want our brother to come home. Please, Raph. Please."

Raphael blinked away the tears, the final remnants of blue melting away with the tears.

"...L-Leon..?"

"Welcome back, big guy."

Leon was suddenly engulfed in a bear hug, Raph squeezing him tight and shaking all over.

"I'm so sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so so so sorry, Leo LEON, I'm so sorry... please... please, can you forgive me, I never meant to hurt you, I never wanted to--!"

"It's okay, dude," Leon said, trying not to cry himself as he squeezed Raph back. "You old softy."

Leon had to force himself to pull away from the sobbing snapping turtle, offering the end of his scarf for the eldest sibling to wipe his face with.

"Now, let's go wake up the others, hmm?"

April's teleporting powers kicked in as soon as she saw the golden chains coming. She was suddenly in a new place, landing in a small heap of rubble. She turned around and watched as NFIF Michelangelo managed to snag her Leon and reel him in.

"Leo!"

"YOU."

April whirled around to see AudRai coming for her. Her neat braid had been mussed up in the explosion, the strands falling loose and falling apart. Her eyes were surrounded by deep, dark circles and tear stains.

"Karai... what happened to you?"

"What always happens to the Hamatos," she replied glumly. "We die."

"You're not dead yet," April said, gritting her teeth. "I'm not going to let that funky mushroom kill you."

"Why not? You let it kill Michael."

April's breath caught in her lungs.

"...Karai... you don't know what you're saying..."

"It's our doom, our fate," she said, voice wobbling with sniffles as the tears started pooling. "The fate I started us all down... the role I took on, the example I set... it's all my fault--"

Karai started weeping, her voice cracked as her fists clenched.

"It's my fault that Michael died. I felt him leave. Not just because of our family ninpo, I saw him die through the spores. I saw his fears. I watched him go!" she whimpered, falling to her knees.

April's eyes welled up with tears of her own as she slowly understood what Karai was saying.

"It was my fault... I trained him in his ninpo. I taught him all the Hamato magic. I showed him the importance of our traditions, our lore, our creed. I... I... I killed him..."

"You didn't kill him. He's still alive," April reassured her. "And you didn't teach Mikey self-sacrifice. It seems to be a running tendency--"

"But that tendency started with me!" Karai sobbed. "I can't save them, no matter how hard I try! I couldn't save my village, my father, my own grandson! My legacy is to be the failing martyr!!"

April rushed forward and hugged Karai tightly.

"No. That is not your legacy. That is not your destiny. Michael is not dead, and neither are you. Karai, you are more than just your mistakes, more than your defeats. Don't let the fear of failure keep you from succeeding later on! Don't let the past keep you from building up your future! You told me that you saw how strong I was, where do you think I learned that courage from? Don't let this be another failure, don't give up! You can beat this fear. 'You shall not be challenged beyond your strength.' You can overcome it."

Karai stiffened for a second, before softly hugging April back. After a few shaky moments, Karai pulled away. Much to April's relief, her eyes were back to normal.

"Arigatō, April..."

Karai wiped the tears from her cheeks and turned to the small caged-in cradle holding Misa.

"We should help release her."

"Can I offer my help?" NFIF Raph asked, as he and Leon rushed up through the rubble and broken drywall.

April and Karai looked at each other, unsure if that was wise, considering what had happened.

Yet Karai nodded, stepped forwards and used her ninpo to create a small dagger of flame that cut through the vines. Misa was growling and crying, her eyes shut tight as she fought against her nightmares.

Raphael leaned down and picked her up gently, rocking her back and forth.

"If one of the Mikeys were here, they'd know how to snap her out of it," April murmured. "He saved her from the spores last time..."

"Raph knows what to do," he whispered, his voice soft and gentle. "I've had my fair share of getting my little brothers to calm down after a nightmare..."

Raph sat down on a pile of debris as he held on to Misa.

She hissed at him, pushing to get away.

"Misa? Misa, it's me..."

Misa growled again, still struggling to break free from his hold. In her mind, she had just been taken away by an evil scientist who was going to do terrible, mean things to her...

"No!" she snapped, biting his hand.

Raph gasped in pain, but didn't let go. He smiled through the hurt, tears forming in his eyes again.

"I guess I deserved that one, huh?" he chuckled dryly. "Misa, please, it's Raph... it's Ra-Ra?"

Misa slowly stopped, her ferocious bites turning into soft nibbles as she opened one eye, the edges of white turning a soft blue.

"Misa, can you see me? Can you see Ra-Ra?"

She shook her head no.

"...R-Ra-Ra? Ra-Ra has Misa?"

"Yes," he assured her, rubbing his thumb in circles against her cheek, wiping away the bitter and angry tears.

Misa flinched, her eyes widened at the touch.

"...Is Ra-Ra good guy now?"

That hurt. He knew she didn't mean for it to hurt, but the truth was painful nonetheless.

"Yes, Misa," he whimpered. "Ra-Ra is good now. Misa, I'm so sorry for what I did to you... I hurt you so much, Raph is so sorry..."

Even though he knew that he was meant to be comforting her, Raph lowered his head and cried onto her as he held her in his lap.

"Misa... I'm so sorry. I'll understand if you hate me forever after this, I wouldn't blame you. But... I want to help you now, I want to help with the scary things you're seeing. How can Ra-Ra help you?"

Raph felt tiny hands reaching up and touching his face. Misa blinked away the blue, eyes refocusing until she could see Raphael properly.

And Misa smiled.

"Little brudder..."

She kissed his cheek and nuzzled him, hugging his face and wiping away his tears.

"...Misa forgives Ra-Ra. Ra-Ra good guy."

Raphael blubbered at that, whimpering as he pressed Misa against his plastron in a desperate hug. Misa giggled, patting him on the back as best she could, though her arms barely even reached the edges of his shell.

"Thank you, Misa... thank you..."

"Where's Mikey an' Dee-Dee?" she asked, looking around.

"Around here somewhere," Leon replied, looking around. "I'm sure we'll find them eventually..."

"Hey, guys!" Abby shouted at them. "Look who we got!"

Abby gave the performance of a lifetime. She and swayed Michelangelo had been dueling it out against each other for a few minutes while Abby belted out her favourite musical number. She ordered the vines to protect her as she spun and ducked and danced and leapt around the mystic attacks. Her vines reached out and grabbed MichelAudrelo and pulled him high into the air, away from Abby as she finished up her number. MichelAudrelo struggled against the vines, breaking free eventually, but Abby had been prepared for that. Several other series of vines reached up and caught him, much to his frustration.

"THAT BEAUTIFUL SOUND--"

"STOP IT!" MichelAudrelo screeched, lashing out his chains to grab at the feline, but she jumped away at the last second, her choreography coming in to save her as she danced around him gleefully.

"A SOUND THAT MEANS NO MORE CONDESCENDING ADULTS HANGING AROUND!"

Abby continued to sing at the top of her lungs as MichelAudrelo chased after her, his chains doing battle with her vines.

"I SAID STOP IT!!"

Abby ignored him, singing to her heart's content.

"EVERY GROAN, EVERY WAIL AND EACH MOAN, ADDS UP TO DADDY'S LEAVIN' ME THE HECK ALONE!"

"I SAID STOP! STOP, Stop, s-stop..."

MichelAudrelo's hands began to shake, his chains started to fade.

"THEY'RE OUT OF MY GRILL, BECAUSE OF THAT SHRILL SYMPHONY..."

Abby pirouetted, a glorious spin that created a flurry of petals around her. MichelAudrelo couldn't see her anymore, her spin was so fast that she became a blur. While he was distracted, a grappling hook shot up and grabbed him by the ankle, tugging him down to the floor as Ghost wrapped his arms around the boy.

"H-hey!! LET GO!!"

"It's okay, Angelo," Ghost murmured, keeping him close to his chest. "It's okay, we've got you..."

"AIN'T IT THE SWEETEST NOISE AROUND, THAT BEAUTIFUL SOUND!" Abby belted, echoing the final word as she jumped down from her podium made of vines.

"Aaaaaaand she sticks the landing!" she cheered as she gracefully touched down. "I did it! I really did it! I guess my leg's all better, I can't wait to show Diana--"

"YOU CAN'T KEEP ME PRISONER LIKE THIS!!" MichelAudrelo screeched, kicking and squirming in Ghost's hold. "LET ME GO!"

"Not until you calm down, kid," Ghost said, tightening his hold on the mind-controlled Angelo. "Just let it go, let go of the anger and the fear and--"

"NO! I'LL KILL YOU ALL! I'LL...I'll... I ... heh... heh, heh..."

MichelAudrelo's screams melted as tears started trickling down his face. He smiled painfully, laughing as he saw what he was.

"I... I wanted to kill everyone," he murmured. His voice was soft, he was in shock and somewhat dazed as the realization of what he'd done seeped in. "I really did. I wanted to break everything and destroy the entire arena and everyone in it... why?"

MichelAudrelo looked up at Abby, the small trickle of tears turning into rivers, his smile breaking as the corners of his mouth turned down.

"Why did I wanna hurt you so bad? I never would have done that before, I was just so... so..."

"Scared?" Abby offered, stepping forward to wipe the tears away.

"No," Angelo flinched, pulling back from her, refusing to accept her help. "No, it wasn’t fear, it was--"

"It was grief."

MichelAudrelo looked up in confusion at Ghost, who looked down with his own understanding gaze.

"You were scared of losing your family, huh? April told me a little about some of the things you said when you were first spored. I know what it feels like to lose your family. To know that you'll never get to do the things you always said you'd do together. See the places you always wanted to go. Win or lose the arguments you planned in your head for fun, just to antagonize them. Give that apology you meant to say. Make that special gift for their next birthday. Eat lunch with them. Say I love you one last time. I know how it feels to realize that you've been pulled away and there's no going back. And what's worse... you see them everywhere. Carbon copies, phantoms of the past that bring up phantom pains. You want to pretend that they're yours, but..."

"But they're not!" Angelo sobbed, letting his limbs go slack in Ghost's embrace as he wailed. The two fell to their knees, Ghost comforting Angelo as he cried out a pain that was so deep and scarring it could shake the foundations of the earth.

"But... your family isn't dead, Angelo," Abby reassured him. "They're still here --"

"FOR HOW LONG?" he howled. "How long until they really do get themselves killed?! How long until I have to go through this again, but for real?! I can't keep doing this!! I can't, I can't! I won't let myself get hurt again!!"

The blue light started to return to MichelAudrelo's eyes as he growled.

"That's what I said, too," Ghost chuckled.

Angie stopped.

"I told myself I would never get hurt like that again. So I shut everyone and everything out. I refused to let myself get too attached to what I knew could be another family for me. I couldn't face the idea of seeing replicas of my brothers and father and April again. I was scared of getting hurt."

Angelo swivelled his head around to get a better look at Ghost, who was starting to cry himself.

"I was so scared, kid. I let myself rot in a sewer alone for over two decades before I finally faced my fears and tried again. Knowing that the pain would come, knowing that I would have to be strong. Because sometimes... healing hurts."

"If you love someone, you have to understand that one day they will hurt you," Abby added. "Whether they mean to or not... love opens you up for both the happy times and the sad times. And the angry ones, too, believe me."

"It may seem like the pain is too much to live with --" Ghost replied, "-- and you may think that it's easier to feel nothing at all than to feel the pain. But when that happens you become nothing more than a... well, a ghost in a shell," he chuckled weakly.

"I don't want that," Angelo wept, turning around and wrapping his arms around Ghost in a loose hug. "I don't want to just rot inside myself while the people I love most are waiting for me..."

"Then you have to let go of that pain."

"But it's so hard!"

"I know, bud, I know. But nothing that the great Dr. Feelings can't face, right? And you'll never face it alone."

"I thought that was Dr. Delicate Touch... wait, what's the difference again?" Abby asked.

Angelo rubbed his face against Ghost's cloak, wiping the tears and snot from his blubbering face.

"Dr. Delicate Touch feels nothing... O-o.... okay..." he whimpered. "I can do this. I don't want to be 'Dr. Delicate Touch' forever. I wanna be with my family again. Even if we'll get hurt. I'd rather get hurt with them than feel nothing forever alone."

"Good call, kid," Ghost said, leisurely releasing the box turtle.

Angelo stood up, wiping the last of the glowing aqua blue tears from his face, his eyes back to normal as he weakly smiled.

"Should... should we go find the rest?"

"The Donnies are still doing their epic anime battle royale or something," Abby pointed. "But the others are in that pile of debris over there."

"Well, I've learned the hard way to never interrupt Dee's work, so let's go see how the other guys are doing."

"Another good call," Ghost laughed, rubbing Angelo's head.

The trio crossed over to the rest, reaching them just as Misa was released from the fear fungus' hold and hugging Raphael.

"Hey, guys! Look who we got!" Abby cheered, pointing at Angelo, who waved weakly at the group.

"Hey, Angelo!" Leon said with a wave. "You're not gonna... string me up again like before, are ya?"

"No," he whimpered softly. "Sorry 'bout that, by the way..."

"It's all cool," Leon said, waving it off. "Shrooms will do that to ya, or so I've heard."

Raphael looked over at his baby brother, seeing the tear stains and red puffy eyes and the trail of snot he kept wiping and sniffling away.

"Rough comeback, huh?"

"Yeah. You too?"

"Pizza supreme in the sky, you have no idea."

"Pizza what in the where now?" Leon asked, raising a brow at the snapping turtle. "What did you just say--"

"I'LL KILL YOU!!"

The group jumped at the scream that shattered the calm they had been enjoying for the moment.

"That was one of the Donnies!" Abby yiped, jumping into Diana's arms.

"...Do you think maybe we should look into that?" Leon asked.

rhg!Donnie had carried Michael into the outskirts of the battle, just as he'd promised. The Donnie confrontation, or 'Donfrontation' as they were calling it, was in full swing as the drones flew like a tornado around the halls.

"Okay, we're here now, what exactly did you have planned??" rhg!Donnie asked.

"Uh, I honestly figured I could wing it--"

"YOU WHAT?!"

Mikey shrugged and laughed nervously.

"Well, I assumed that I'd have a plan by the time I got here!"

Before rhg!Donnie could let in to him, an explosion went off. The bright rainbow of light blew away the spores and darkness, clearing the area almost instantaneously.

"Well, it looks like the guys managed to set off the TNT," Diana noticed.

"No kidding," rhg!Donnie grumbled. "We should get out of here--"

A large body flew into the wall some short distance aways.

"Was that Raph?!" Abby yelled loudly.

The halls started glittering as golden chains filled the air.

"I swear, that isn’t me," Mikey said, seeing the glare that the others were about to give him.

"It's the other Mikey!" Abby yelled, suddenly running off to go help the others.

"Wait a minute!" Diana shouted, running after her.

"Well, um, I guess it's just you and me now," Mikey chuckled dryly.

"Apparently so. I'm taking you back to safety--"

"No!" Mikey yelled, holding his hand out to stop him. "I need you to take me to my brothers, or --"

"No, Mikey, I can't let that happen! You'll get hurt, or--"

Before rhg!Donnie could finish his sentence, one of the drones snagged the back of his shirt and carried him away into the storm.

"Oh no! Human Donnie!!"

Mikey summoned a small chain and latched it onto one of the other drones, getting yanked away into the torrent along with the alternate version of his brother.

"I'm coming!"

Mikey held on as tightly as he could to the meager chain, climbing up the links to get to the drone itself. He climbed atop it, looking for rgh!Donnie amongst the flurry of purple. He found him, several feet away, trying to reach back and unhook his clothes from the device.

"Hold on, I'm on my way!!"

Mikey readied himself, and then leapt. His stomach slammed into the head of the drone, and he slipped down the side. Mikey swung his legs up, gripping the drone with his knees as he crawled back up the side of it. Mikey saw the legs of the drone dangling beneath him, and got an idea. He took out his nunchucks, wrapping one end to the drone's mechanical legs as he held on with a deathgrip to the other end. He let himself fall, dangling from the machine and swinging around as the drones turned the corner and continued their tornado patterns. Mikey used the momentum of the turning corner to fling himself forward, landing directly on top of the kidnapper drone.

"MIKEY?!" rhg!Donnie screamed above the roaring mechanical wind. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

"Winging it!" Mikey yelled back, as he grabbed rhg!Dee's shirt collar and tore the fabric from the metal limb. With nothing holding him up anymore, rhg!Donnie fell to the floor, dragging poor Michelangelo with him.

"AAAAAHHHH!!"

Before the two adolescents could hit the pavement, something caught them both. They looked up in shock to see two drones had chased after and grabbed them.

"Not again," rhg!Donnie groaned.

"I assure you, this time it was intentional," Omega said as he rolled by. "Congrats on being rescued."

"Thanks, computer Dee!" Mikey cheered, giving him a thumbs-up.

"Of course. Now, WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING HERE?! I thought you were given direct instruction to--"

"Where is everyone? Where's Leon, 'Phael, Dvd, and April?" Mikey interrupted.

"I suspect UIFY Leonardo, UIFY Raphael, and UIFY April are over by the remnants of that housing unit," Omega said, a robot claw pointing towards the heap of rubble caught in the explosion. "But your Donatello is in the center of that drone tornado. He's taken the forefront of distracting --"

"I gotta go talk to him!" Mikey yelled, trying to run but tripping over his own feet as he did so.

"No way!" rhg!Donnie said, grabbing him and dragging him back again. "You're staying over here, where it's safe!"

"I thought you were on my side!"

"I'm not on anybody's side. I just want you to be safe, Mikey," he said, the last few words coming out as a whimper. "Please... just stay here for me, I'll go and help!"

"BUT YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!!"

rhg!Donnie ran in the direction of the tornado, Omega chasing after him.

Mikey waited a beat.

And then began to shuffle towards them, too...

rhg!Donnie ducked in between each and every drone as they sailed around them. He listened for the shouts, for any noise other than the roaring wind whipping around him.

He couldn't hear anything.

He couldn't see anything--

"Hey! Watch out!"

rhg!Donnie jumped. Someone had grabbed him by the arm and pulled him aside. DvD stared the teenager in the face, glaring at him angrily.

"WHAT are YOU doing here?! You're supposed to be watching after--"

His eyes widened as he realized.

"WHERE. IS. HE."

"I left him with Omega!" rhg!Donnie shouted.

"OMEGA IS RIGHT BEHIND YOU!!"

rhg!Donnie turned around to stare the computer in the face -- or rather, icon.

"WHAT?! I THOUGHT YOU WERE WITH HIS BROTHER--"

"I came to make sure you would be --"

"Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute --" DvD stopped the explanation hastily, trying to figure it out. "-- if he's not with us, then who is he with?"

UIFY Mikey crawled across the floor as best he could. He was still wobbly, and every time he tried to stand he got the nastiest dizzy spell. The dizziness was only compounded by the continuing swirling of the mechanical hurricane before him. But he had to get to them, before it was too late...

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"

Mikey paused, a pair of feet appearing in front of him. He slowly looked up to see AudreyTello standing before him, tech-bō in hand and pointed down at Michael.

"...Heyyyy, Dee... just the guy I wanted to see."

"You're supposed to be dead," AudreyTello said, leaning closer to him.

"Eh. I got better."

"So I see. Shall I remedy that for you?"

Mikey swallowed.

"You're not going to kill me."

"Oh? And why ever not?" AudreyTello chuckled, walking closer as Mikey inched backwards.

"Because we both know that you don't want to hurt me. You didn't hurt me before--"

"An oversight on my part. As I said, I can remedy that," AudreyTello growled, as he cocked back the bō and prepared to strike.

"No. Before the battle. When I helped you, when I gave you some of my strength to fight against the fungus, I could feel what was happening to you. I don't know how or why, but I could sense that you were being sorta... swept away. But not gone for good."

"You're wrong," AudreyTello laughed. "Donatello is DEAD."

"No," Mikey refuted. "I made sure of it. I know you're in there, I know you can see and hear me. That's why you gave me back to DvD when you did."

"You were unconscious for that, how... ah, yes. Your odd little dreams that fill you in on what you've missed," AudreyTello rolled his eyes. "How useful."

"You didn't want to hurt me," Mikey informed him. "Because you're still in there."

"No, he's NOT," AudreyTello growled.

"I know you are. It's why you wouldn't kill me. Why I couldn't kill you. Because you care."

"DONATELLO IS DEAD!!" AudreyTello snapped. "I AM IN CONTROL, YOU HEAR ME?!"

"You can scream all you want, but we both know that isn't true."

"BUT IT HAS TO BE!" Dee sobbed. "IT HAS TO BE TRUE, OTHERWISE... otherwise, I really did all those terrible things to you... your brother... m-my brothers..."

NFIF Donatello's knees started wobbling. He backed away from Mikey.

"I know you're scared. You're probably thinking everything that happened is all your fault, right? You're blaming yourself. The hand told me..."

"No... No, NO! S-STAY BACK!" AudreyTello shrieked, fumbling away from Mikey, who started crawling back towards him.

"You're scared that what you've done is unredeemable, that the mistakes you made will haunt you forever. But that's only true if you let it be true. Because -- whether you want it or not -- I forgive you for everything that happened."

"No, you can't -- Don't say that!" Donatello wept, holding his staff at Mikey, trying to ward him off as though he were a wild animal. "You can't just forgive that, you can't simply forgive him, he tried to spore you! He -- I almost sent you to your doom, I did send you to your doom! MY spores killed you!!"

"Do I look like I'm dead to you? Like I said, you wouldn't hurt me. You didn't know that would happen, it was a freak accident or whatever. And even if you did mean for that to happen... I still forgive you."

"BUT YOU CAN'T--!"

"But I do anyways. Because you're my brother, Dee," Mikey said with a smile, slowly getting up to his feet to stand.

"I-I'm not... I'm not your brother... especially after what I did..."

The tornado of drones behind them started to slow to a lull. The roaring cyclone and whipping wind calming to a gentle breeze in the background.

Mikey smiled at the weeping Donatello. He crawled closer.

"...But I still choose you as my family. And I still forgive you. And your real brothers will, too, because they love you so much more than I ever could! Donnie, do you know how much you are loved? How much we care about you?"

"No... you can't... stop it, stop, please..."

"We all love you so much, nothing you could ever do would make that love go away. No mistake, no failure, no evil monologue could ever make our love for you just simply vanish! We'll fight for you, we'll die for you, we'll live for you, because we love you so much."

"I don't deserve it... please, you can't say that! I don't want your love! I don't want you to keep loving me after everything, I don't deserve it!! I haven't earned it!!"

"You don't have to earn or deserve it, Dee," Mikey said, taking shaky steps towards him.

"Stop, Mikey, st-o-o-p..." Donnie wrapped his arms around himself, clutching his stomach as the alt. version of his baby brother came closer, holding his arms out to hug him.

"It's like Karai always says... anatawa, hitorijin--"

"I'LL KILL YOU!!"

Mikey whirled around just in time to see DvD leap over him, tech-bōfurnished with a saw as he lunged towards his enemy.

DvD crashed into NFIF Donatello, the two rolling around and scuffling on the floor as DvD attempted to avenge his brother.

"No!! Get off of him, what are you doing?! I was just getting through to him!!"

"I'M GOING TO KILL HIM FOR WHAT HE DID TO YOU!!" Donatello Von Draxum screamed.

AudreyTello kicked him off his stomach, tumbling to the side and watching in pure fear as DvD readied his tech bo again. Mikey jumped onto him, clutching his arm tightly as he tried to pull him away.

"Please, this isn't you!!" he begged.

DvD shook his baby brother off, the small child falling to the ground from the exertion and watched in horror as his big brother stormed over to the swayed Donnie.

"You're forgetting, Mikey... I'm the son of Draxum! I never asked to be... but I'm the SON OF DRAXUM, now face my..."

DvD pressed a button on his tech-bō, and it began to glow green as a new and yet unused weapon formed at the end.

"...URANIUM-POWERED FURYYYYY!!!"

"DVD, NO!!!"

Mikey screamed, his wails just barely stopping DvD in his tracks.

"AFTER EVERYTHING HE DID TO YOU... I PROMISED NOTHING WOULD HURT YOU, I SWORE TO PROTECT YOU AND KEEP YOU SAFE! MIKEY, WHAT ELSE AM I SUPPOSED TO DO?!"

"You can't hurt him!!" Mikey screamed. "He's YOU! He's my brother, just like you are!! He didn't mean to hurt anyone, I won't let you destroy your soul on my behalf! I won't let you hurt him!"

"...N-no... he's right..."

Mikey stared at NFIF Donatello, as he shakily looked up at the two arguing brothers.

"He should kill me... I deserve it..."

DvD glared at him.

"I TRUSTED you. I told you things about me, about Mikey, and you USE THAT AGAINST ME. The last person who did that --"

"I know," Dee wept. "I know. And you're right... after everything that happened, I don't blame you... I'd do the same. So... s-so go ahead," he cried, hanging his head in shame and resignation. "Do what you want. I did this, I did this to myself. I'm... I'm a monster.

DvD gripped his staff tightly. He took one step forward.

"No, please, don't do this," Michael begged. "Please, there's no coming back from this! Don't --"

"But Mikey, what am I supposed to do?" DvD growled, hot and angry tears filling up behind his visor.

"Forgive and forget."

"But he--"

"KILLING HIM WON'T MAKE YOU FEEL BETTER ABOUT YOURSELF, DVD," Mikey scolded. "I KNOW YOU THINK IT'S YOUR FAULT. I KNOW YOU THINK THAT IT WAS YOUR FAULT BECAUSE YOU LET YOUR GUARD DOWN. IT'S NOT. PLEASE, Please, please..."

Mikey sobbed as he tugged on his brother's cape.

"Don't do it... don't do this, not for me. It won't heal anything..."

Before DvD could respond, the others suddenly came running from every direction towards them, Leon and 'Phael lunged at DvD to pull him back as April and Karai went for Mikey. rhg!Donnie and Omega came running from behind and joined the UIFY gang to Keep DvD at bay, while the rest of the group went to check on NFIF Donatello, who was shaking and sobbing blue tears.

"Get back, Don!" 'Phael yelled, using all his strength to keep his warrior brother away. "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!"

"He... I... Mikey was..."

"AND JUST WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE, MISTER?!" Leon shouted at Michael. "I told you to stay put!"

"I had to help! I knew that Donnie was gonna blame himself and Donnie was gonna try to kill him and the other Donnies wouldn't understand and Donnie needed me so I--"

"I told you to stay--"

"CAN WE PLEASE TURN OFF THE DEATH RAY?!" April shouted loudly over the commotion.

"Oh, right," 'Phael said, snatching the tech-bō away from DvD. Omega came over and helped him to find the right button to switch it off before it could do any real damage.

"How does this child have uranium?!" Omega asked angrily. "Where did he--"

"We can geek out over Donnie's collection of killer rocks later, right now we're kinda on mission?!"

"Oh. Right. Yes, of course..." Omega said sheepishly.

NFIF Raph was by his brother's side almost immediately, taking his hand and trying to soothe him.

"Donnie! Donnie, it's Raph... it's me, can you--"

"R-Raph?" Dee asked looking at him.

"Yeah! C'mon, you're still kinda under the influence of the spores, so I need ya to--"

"You should have let him finish me," Donnie sobbed. "I deserve it!"

"Deserve...? Donald, what are you talking about?" Angelo asked nervously.

"I... I hurt you all!" he wailed. "I keep hurting you, I keep -- I keep ruining -- I'm a villain, I'm a monster, I--"

"HEY."

Dee jerked at the deep rumble that came from his older brother. He turned to look at Raphael.

"No. You are not a villain, you are not a monster. You were stuck in a nightmare and your body was being used like a puppet. You are not to blame for what happened."

"B-but...!"

"Donnie. You were krangified."

Dee froze at the words.

He knew this argument. He was on the other side of it, now...

"If you truly believe that what you did was actually your fault, and that you really are to blame, then you're also saying that it was really me that almost killed--"

"NO!" Dee yelled, gripping his brother's arms tightly to keep him from finishing the thought. "NO! No, I would never say that, I -- it was different, you were -- you -- you weren't yourself at all, they made you into -- it's different this time!"

"How is it any different?"

"BECAUSE THIS TIME IT WAS ME!!" he howled. "YOU DIDN'T DO ANY OF THAT, YOU WEREN'T IN CONTROL--"

"Neither were you!" Angelo reminded him.

"But I--"

"You should hold yourself to the same standards of forgiveness you give to others," Raph said. "I know you feel like you're on some different level of mercy, that the mistakes of others don't matter as much as the mistakes you make, that you should be punished for every little thing you get wrong -- but that's ludicrous. Really, really ludicrous."

"T-two reallys..."

"Exactly, big man. With as big of a genius brain as yours, ya'd think you'd understand that, huh?"

Dee chuckled as he hugged his brothers. The blue glow from his birthmarks slowly faded away, revealing the purple tones underneath.

"You back with us, Don-a-Tron?"

Donnie nodded and mumbled a "mhm" at them.

"Good. Welcome home, Donnie."

"Not yet," he said, slowly pushing himself away as he remembered a crucial detail.

"We still have one last zombie to free..."

"You.... you've destroyed EVERYTHING......"

Every head simultaneously turned.

LeonAudro pulled himself out of the rubble and ruin, rising up to confront them.

He was thin and pale, one eye burning blue while the other was covered with the charred and scarred remains of a mushroom cap and gill, one singular glowing yellow eye gazing furiously at them. His body was veiled over with roots and vines and ring and stem and stalk. Toadstools grew over his shoulder, umbrella mushrooms had sprouted from his plastron.

Raph gasped in horror at how similar he looked to... to... him. When he was part of the kraang.

Angelo covered his mouth to keep from gasping and sobbing.

Donnie stared in silence, his hands curling into tight fists.

"... Don't... be... fooled if I should whimper like a sappy, sobby dope, it's just the spores... they get me low......"

He lumbered lazily towards them. His voice was weak, but in the silence it carried. His breathing was shallow and strained. His face was absolutely painted with the glowing blue tearstains.

"... But don't let my cries deceive you, any moment I could go....."

Angelo whimpered at that verse. He felt Raph grab him by the shoulders and pull him in. Donnie took his hand and squuezed it tight.

"...All my vital signs are failing... cause the fungus I'm inhaling... makes it difficult as heck to catch my bre-ha-heaaaaath...."

He wheezed as he sang, his movements laboured and exhausted.

His brothers watched him, frozen where they were as he continued on closer. And closer.

"...Leo...?"

LeonAudro smiled.

"Guess again."

"Audrey III," Dee snarled. "Let him go."

LeonAudro let out an airy chuckle.

"Why... should... I?"

"LET HIM GO!!" Angelo screamed, his hands igniting into flames for a split second.

“Wow, Miguel. Did someone lose their temper?" LeonAudro gave a wicked smile. "What happened to always thinking positively? All you did was hurt that other April and Karai instead! You tore a family apart! How are you supposed to bring us together when you’re just a violent, blood thirsty, anger filled husk!?"

Angelo's eyes widened. He felt Raph's grip on his shoulders tense. LeonAudro's head tilted to the side as he continued.

"I’ll never feel safe around you again. I bet once April hears what you did she’ll never even come back to the lair. Who knows what you’re capable of now?”

"Stop it," Raph growled. "Leo would never say those things about--"

“Raph, is it easy for you to show your scarred up face to me again when you’ve failed so miserably?" LaonAudro stated, stepping closer to shorten the distance between them all. "Not just now, but again and again and again. How many times will you let me be lost? Injured? Scared? What kind of leader lets his team go on alone? What kind of brother cares so little that I can be missing for so long that this happens!?"

"I... you..."

"You said you’d always protect me!" LeonAudro continued. "You lied! Is this because I’m better than you? Are you punishing me? You want to hurt me? Again?”

"HE SAID STOP IT!" Donnie shouted, standing up definitely against the spore-infected brother before him.

LeonAudro turned his head to peer at his twin.

“And you. You think you're any better?? Your tech was useless, Donnie. Again. Knowing I’m twins with someone who can’t, not even once, save someone he cares about with the only thing he’s good at makes me sick! Maybe you don’t actually care? I bet you’d be fine if I just croaked here and now! You might even like it! I bet you enjoyed getting to play your little villain role because you could hurt us without any consequences! You’re an emotionless, selfish, annoying little freak who wishes he could be normal!”

Donnie's tech-bō materialized a drill in his hands.

"Just because you're using him to say these things doesn't mean it's Leo. We're taking him back. NOW."

LeonAudro sighed glumly.

"It's too late for that, I'm afraid."

"No!" Angelo shouted "We're saving him!!"

LeonAudro somberly lifted his arms up to gesture to the weak and frail body he possessed.

"Look at me, Angie... what is there left to save?? Am I still really worth it to you? Be realistic, I'm better off dead."

"Leo would NEVER say that!" Raph protested.

"You don't know your brother at all..."

LeonAudro gave a weak and meager grin at the boys, his legs nearly giving out beneath him as he struggled to stay upright.

"He's long gone... he really is. Funny, how the spores turned you all into the opposite of who you are... Raphael became a pathetic little worm, willing to give up so easily. Michelangelo became a destroyer, a hate-filled wretch. Donatello couldn't wait to cause the pain of others, to ruin them, to--"

"YOU DID THAT!" Donnie yelled. "That was your twisted vision of us!"

"...And Leonardo. What a poor, unfortunate soul... who would have thought someone so full of hope and endurances could be broken so quickly?"

Raph growled. LeonAudro tilted his head back and grinned wide, licking his lips. The pain tasted so sweet.

"But in the end, he gave up much faster than I expected. Because, he really is just a worthless, wantless, 'WRETCHED LITTLE PEST'."

"NO!" Angie screamed, Raphael having to hold him back from attacking the fungus that covered his brother. "Don't you DARE say that about him!! Leo is still in there! He survived once, we can--"

"ARE YOU DUMB?!" LeonAudro screamed at them, causing everybody to jump back. "OR HARD OF HEARING? OR RELIEVED MY END IS NEARING? ARE YOU SATISFIED?! I SCARED MYSELF TO--"

"NO!!!"

LeonAudro's eyes rolled back, his legs gave out from underneath him.

Raph's hologram arms reached out instantly, catching him and carrying him to them.

"Leo! Leo, wake up, wake up!!" Angelo sobbed, shaking his brother frantically. Donnie grabbed his wrists and yanked him away.

"Angelo, stop, don't shake him like that--"

"But he won't wake up!!"

"He's been weakened by the mushroom," Karai interjected, coming to kneel besides them all. "He doesn't have much time left."

"Well then what do we do?!" Raph sobbed.

"He is still a prisoner of fear," she said sadly, placing the back of her hand against the exposed portion of Leo's forehead, checking for fever. Instead he felt cold, his body shivering and his breaths shuddering. They were getting slower and slower...

"You will need to help free him from the fungus' hold."

"How?!" Angie asked, clinging tightly to Leo's limp hand.

"I can help take you into his nightmare," Karai said. "You can confront him and his fears once you are inside his subconscious."

The boys nodded, each one taking Leo's hand and squeezing tightly as Karai focused on NFIF Leo...

The boys eyes started to glow their signature colours...

They each fell over, lying beside Leonardo on the floor.

Raphael opened his eyes to find himself floating in an empty void.

Well, almost empty.

It was empty in the sense that there were no living beings here. Just debris, wreckage from ginormous mechas and spaceships that were the size of moons. Shards of broken ground and platforms floated about them. There was an odd, twisted version of gravity. Unless you were within five feet of the 'ground', you were basically weightless and could fly around wherever. There was minimal light, and no real source for it. It just sort of faded in and out mysteriously. Though, there were some sharp red pin lights coming from the useless kraang prime suits and ships.

It was cold, here, too. Cold like in the dark room with the --

Yeah. Cold.

Angelo was beside him, as was Dee. He hadn't noticed them at first, the loneliness in this vast empty space was suffocating. He felt like he was going to choke on it.

"Look, there!" Angelo gasped, though in this space his voice carried and echoed so much it was almost a shout.

Angie pointed off into the distance where a single speck of green and blue floated alone. They could hear the faintest weeps coming from it.

"It's Leo!!"

"How do we get to him?" Raph asked, squinting and peering as best he could. His damaged eye was not doing him any favours right now...

"I've got it covered," Donnie said with a grin, grabbing onto Raph's shell. "Oh Raphala, do hang on to Angelo for us, please."

Raph hugged his brother to his chest. Donatello's ninpo activated, creating a huge jetpack that was twice their cumulative size, and the trio blasted off to save their brother from this duplicate prison dimension.

"We're almost there!" Angelo shouted.

"Great, how do we slow down?!" Donnie yelled back.

"YOU DON'T KNOW HOW??"

"In case you haven't noticed, Angelo, this place doesn't exactly follow the typical rules of physics! Unless there's something to slow our accelerated direction, we'll just keep going forever!"

"Raph's got it!" Raphael called out, his ninpo creating a gigantic arm and grabbing onto the broken down ship hull that was just in front of them.

The trio slid down, Angelo using his chains to keep them levitated around their team leader as he drifted motionless, his three brothers surrounding him. They didn't notice the deep dark circles under his eyes, the wounds covering his body, the tearstains that seemed to have been made a permanent addition to his face, the tattered and chipped sword with the dented hilt wrapped in weathered and worn masks, each mask a different but familiar colour... They were just relieved to see him still somewhat alive.

"Leo? Leo, we're here to rescue you--"

Raph had started to reach out for him, but before he could touch his shell the masks tied to the sword suddenly flew at him, transforming into apparitions that haunted the slider, growling and snarling at Raphael, keeping him away.

"GAAH! What the--?! Now there's ghosts? Who's the creepy old guy?"

The ghouls circled around Leonardo. They seemed to be guarding Leo from outsiders... Angelo recognized the fine halo of colour that surrounded them as they circled about him like vultures. One red: large and bulky and missing an eye, the spines on his shell were singed and the entire front of him was burned and scarred beyond recognition; the second purple: a thick shield over his back and broken goggles that covered his damaged face; the last one orange: balding with liver spots and a massive cape that flowed behind him, his hands shattered like glass as remnants and shards of him followed behind as he circled Leonardo, who pressed the sword closer to his chest. Angie swallowed, a sick feeling growing in his stomach.

"I... I think those ghosts are..."

"R-Raph..."

Leo slowly turned to gaze back at Raphael. Tears were pouring down his cheeks.

"Leo! Tell your futuristic guard dogs that we're friendly!"

Leo hiccupped sobs as he watched them.

"I... can't control them..."

"Then we'll find a way through!" Dee yelled, readying his bō staff.

"Th-they're not here to trap me..." he whimpered. "They're here to protect you..."

"Protect us? From what?"

"...Me..."

Leo hugged the sword as tightly as he could, as if it were everything he'd lost in the world.

"They all died saving me. Protecting me. Following my orders. Heck, I actually TOLD Mikey to sacrifice himself! Look what I did to them. What I'll eventually do to you, too..."

Leo curled up tighter into himself, clutching the sword. It's edges were dull, the shine lost ages ago, scuffed and marked and dirty and unloved. Like him. Just like him...

"They hate me, and I deserve it..."

Raph could hear the voices... soft echoes that were earworms, whispering breaths that had their voices plastered onto them, but altered -- gruffer, older, deeper, more strained with time and trauma.

"...it hurts, leo..."

"...you were supposed to protect us, leo..."

"...why did we have to do it instead, leo..?"

With every word, Leo's light began to dim, the colour in his skin and birthmarks faded and became desaturated. With every utterance, his grip on the sword loosened. He was fading away...

Raphael sucker-punched the ghost of his future bad timeline self in the face, sending him reeling back as the ghouls screeched in response. Raph screamed back at them.

"Stop talking about my brother that way!! I would never, ever say those things!"

The two other ghosts lunged at him, but were no match for the younger flesh-and-blood counterparts. Donnie swung his bō at his future phantom, smacking it into the side of its head and sending it careening into the distance. Angelo had his chains swirl around the eldery version of himself and -- with a flick of the wrist -- sent the geezer spiraling into oblivion.

Raphael jumped to Leon and clung to him as firmly as possible.

"Leo. I need you to listen to me, because I'm only ever going to be able to tell this to you once. I never told anyone this, not you or our bros or pops or April or Casey Jr. or anybody. Not even my teddy bears or Princess Peach figurine. So you'd better pay close attention to this confession."

Raph took in a deep breath. He knew Donnie and Angie were listening too. Good. They all might as well hear it, he definitely did not plan to ever bring it up again.

"...When I was part of the kraang -- particularly when I was fighting you -- the kraang tricked me. They'd tricked me before, they'd made me think that I was coming to save you after I'd managed to escape them, They made me think I'd come home... but it was a trick. A dream."

"That was how they found the lair..." Donnie muttered to himself.

"Yeah, well... when I was in the technodrome... when you came to rescue me, and we fought... the kraang did it again. I thought... I thought everyone was dead. Mikey and Donnie were on the floor, they were skewered and bleeding and dead and... and you were in front of me, begging me to save you. A kraang monster or something had you in its grip, and I tried to -- it kept fighting me, every time I went to save you. I was going to kill it to rescue you, I... I didn't realize until after we got home, and you guys explained everything to me -- it was you I was fighting."

Leo ugly sobbed, his face scrunching up as he wrapped his limbs all around Raphael, just like how he used to when he was a kid and needed as much love as he could receive from his big brother. Raph held him closely and rocked him back and forth, giving long gentle strokes down from the top of his head to the middle of his shell.

"B-b-b-but it w-was MY fault that y-you were, were--!" Leo blubbered, Raph interrupting his wails to continue.

“From the moment I knew I had brothers, I knew I would do anything to protect you no matter what you did! You want to know what I really hate about you, Leo!? It’s that you think we don’t like you! We love you. Always have, always will. So stop being dumb and let us help you!”

"Raph's right!" Angelo said, coming close and cupping Leo's stained cheek and giving him his signature sunshine smile. "Even if we died in some other future, and even if it was for you, that was what we decided! If we didn’t do it for you then it would probably have been anyone else in the family! And it’s not because we don’t care about ourselves, it’s because we’ll always take care of each other!”

“I have never, ever known a world without you and I don’t want to!" Donnie added, taking his hand. "If you know how I die then….I would have hoped it was next to you. I hope it was you telling some dumb story or telling a terrible joke! If you don’t want me to die so badly, think about how much I don’t want you to! But that’s what you’re doing! Do not die on me Leo!….Please.” Donnie begs.

Leo's eyes brightened, the colour slowly coming back to his face, the sickly blue in his eyes dripping away as it was replaced, not only by his true blue, but by a mixture of red, orange, and purple. The crescents along his arms and around his eyes began to glow, as did the birthmarks on his brothers.

It was familiar, seeing the light shine in this desolate and lonely place.

But not so lonely anymore...

Leo's eyes slowly opened.

The real world hurt and ached. The arena compound's lights burned his retinas, the sounds and cries deafened him, the warm touch from every hand that reached out for him burned his chilled and slightly feverish skin. Something was pulled from his face -- it had been stuck to his mask and skin but relented in the end, falling off with ease; the roots and mycelium threads gently slipping out of his epidermis. Out of the corner of his blurry vision, he saw UIFY Donnie take the last remnants of the mushroom and disintegrate it with some kind of death ray... good.

Leo barely registered that his brothers were holding him, clutching him close to them and saying loving things to him, trying to get him to respond as proof that he was back with them. Proof he was alive. Not just breathing, but alive. Because when you're a prisoner of fear, you're basically walking dead. And Leo was so tired of being dead in himself. He wanted to live again...

Leo managed a smile to let them know he was alright.

And he fell asleep... with no nightmares.

When Leo awoke again, he was in the medbay. His head was bandaged, and an IV was stuck into his thin and emaciated arm. Raphael was snoring by his bedside, holding his hand in his sleep as he drooled onto the mattress. Dee was reading an article on his tablet in the corner, while Angelo was fidgeting with his wrappings and looking over the new collection of scars he'd gotten.

"...Heyyyy, guys, when's the entr'acte?" Leo joked.

Somehow immediately Raph's head shot up as he snorted awake.

"Snrrk--! Leo? LEO!!"

Raphael wrapped his arms around him in a bear hug, crying into his shoulders as Leo tried to convince him that he was okay. Donnie and Angie joined in soon, with Donnie taking the opposite side of the bed and Angelo simply jumping up onto the mattress and flattening his bedridden bro.

After ten minutes of wholesome crying between the four of them, inspecting each others' injuries and coming upon the decision that they were all lucky to be alive, they calmed down and brought up an important conversation.

"So... we're leaving now, right?" Leo asked, looking around the room for any objections. It was an awkward silence he got instead.

"I mean, it's for the best, right?"

"I think so," Donnie sighed. "We've caused enough trouble already."

"And we lost the contest, anyhow," Raph added. "There's... no real reason to stay."

"I would have liked to say goodbye to everyone, though," Angelo sighed. "But... after everything that happened... maybe you're right. A quiet exit is probably best." He gave an airy chuckle. "In any case, I'm honestly too emotionally exhausted to even try a conversation with anyone."

"We can leave a written apology," Dee offered.

"Good idea," Leo said with a fragile smile. "Let's go."

The four took a small piece of paper and wrote down their apologies to everyone. Leo cried during his portion. Donatello snapped his pencil tip during his. Angelo couldn't find the right words and ended up doing a fourth and fifth draft before Raph finally told him he was done. Raph's section of the note was long and overly poetic, but truly heartfelt.

They left the note on the pillow, and silently left the room.

"Do you even know which way the exit is?" Dee asked.

"No, but I'm pretty sure it's around here somewhere..." Leo replied, as he turned his head around every corner.

"You'd think a med ward would have better signage!" Raph bemoaned softly.

"Look, there it is!" Angelo said, dragging the others to a doorway.

The doors swung open.

"Great, now we can escape without anybody--"

The crowd cheered.

The four boys were stopped in their tracks as an enormous crowd of people with signs and posters and gifts came and shouted their names. For a moment, Leo clutched his katanas and prepared to fight them all before realizing this wasn't an angry mob.

"Guys! Look! It's NO FUN IN FUNGUS!!!"

"They're okay!"

"Thank you for saving us!!"

"You guys are the best!"

"Hey, I know that team!"

"Way to go, you guys!!"

Everyone was here...

rhg!Donnie stood with Ghost, smiling and clapping along with the rest. Ghost gave them a thumbs up. Abby and Diana were screaming cheering their heads off, their universe's Huginn and Munnin wearing tiny t-shirts that had the phrase 'I survived the great Spore Invasion of 2024' scribbled onto them. The Spider-Teetlez were shouting and screaming, Slider-Punk playing celebratory music on his guitar. The mods and employees were here too, ecstatic over the grand victory that they had made, and the fact that they were okay and alive. Even the void brothers were also there, grumpy but willing to let bygones be bygones. Especially after they'd had the effects of the fungus' control over them, they understood what it could make you do.

The entire competition was here.

The teens stared in awe. Leo had started to cry again.

They... they were happy for them?

Happy that they were okay? No one blamed them? No one was angry, no one was bitter, they were simply thankful for their recovery?? They were cheering them on, despite the fact that not 5 hours ago they had almost doomed them all...

But nobody cared about that. Thank Pizza SUPREME.

They just cared that they were okay.

Leonardo smiled.

Raph nudged him forward.

"Well, face-man?" he asked, smiling down at him. "What do we do now?"

Leo chuckled.

"...I guess it wouldn't hurt to stay for a little while longer...!"

And that is that.

They are safe. Leo knows it was not his fault, it was not his blame. They are all returned to each other, the spores destroyed completely. Or, at least until another author chooses to use an ask. And the UIFY family is also resting comfortably, back in the medbay yet again.

Everyone is safe and sound.

Even I. The Hand.PNG.

You didn't truly think I was gone for good, did you?

No, of course not!

Ah well, their crossover is completed. They may join together at some other time, but until that moment comes, I think they deserve a good rest, now that their task is complete.

And mine as well. I wonder what I shall do now... I'm sure the authors will find some way for me to have fun with them again. I do so love being in their stories.

However, there is one last thing I must do, though it pains me to do it...

The Until I Found You AU cannot remember this final battle. I'm sorry, I know. But they simply cannot. They are not ready to understand the concept of the Authors, nor their ninpo. Especially their ninpo. It isn't their time. They aren't meant to know these things yet. But soon... Someday, perhaps they will be allowed to recall all they did, but until then they must forget their feats... and forget me, as well. I shall become a shadow of a memory. Ah, but it isn't too sad! Most of them probably wish they could forget me! And I don't blame them. It was quite a run I had, eh? Quite a story we told.

And yet, there is one last part of the story left to tell...

UIFY Mikey woke up somewhat groggily from a strange dream. He wasn't sure how he got here, in the medbay... he could remember... getting spored in the lounge area... but... not much after. There were vague recollections of a battle... an explosion... versions of his family... but nothing solid, nothing that wasn't a fuzzy blur and left him with a woozy spell when he tried to think about it a little too hard.

Oh well. If he couldn't remember it, then it probably wasn't worth remembering!

He was downright exhausted, though. He felt like he could sleep for an eternity or two.

The only reason he'd woken up in the first place was because of someone... humming....

"...With every job when it's complete, there is a sense of bittersweet... That moment when you know the task is done..."

Mikey groggily opened his eyes to look over at the singing lady. She must've been a mod, or an employee, or a nurse or something. She was human, wearing an oversized denim jacket and tiny pale lavender flowers and petals in her messy hair. She was placing a small tray of water and crackers, plus a tiny bouquet of bright yellow daffodils on the bedside table.

"...Though in your heart you'd like to stay, to help things on their way... You've always known... They must do it alone..."

The lady turned to smile at him.

"Sorry, did I wake you?"

"Um, no, not really," Mikey lied.

"How are you doing?" she asked, checking his hands to make sure they were alright. Her fingers traced over each scar and blemish... an impressive feat, considering Mikey's bandages covered them and she couldn't have seen the marks.

"I'm alright," he yawned. "A little... woozy..."

"I understand wholly. Here, have some water..."

She gave the cup to Mikey, who slurped it down. Mikey thought her hands looked familiar... he wasn't sure why, though. But something about how real they were...

"Thanks..." he gulped, having downed the entire glass.

"No probbles. I just wanted to take a quick moment and make sure you were doing well!"

"I'm okay," Mikey chuckled. "Are my families... is the NFIF team okay? Did we save em?"

"Yes, they're all present and accounted for," she said with a grin. They're just in the other room. I think the med ward should be releasing you all soon... You deserve a big respite, I think. You've done a lot. Oh yeh, I also wanted to quick tell you something!"

"Tell me something?" he asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Yep! I wanted to let you know how important you are."

"Me?" Mikey laughed, wondering what this was about. "Important??"

"Oh yeah! Mhm! I know you sometimes feel like your personal story isn't glamorous, or that you might not be so impressive, or that others are doing better than you. But you should know how wonderful and amazing you are. Did you know, people talk all the time about how inspiring and relatable you are! And I just think that's wonderful."

"You make it sound like I'm a character in a story!" Mikey laughed.

"Well, we're all kind of like the main character of our own stories, aren't we?" she beamed.

"I never thought about it like that, actually," Mike hummed, tapping his chin. "What do you think your character's purpose is about?"

She paused, not expecting that query. Her eyes darted upwards, reflecting the light against the green and amber gold that speckled her irises, and bouncing off of her cheeks with white radiance. She pondered the question for a second before smiling brightly.

"I'd say prolly the same as yours," she stated. "I think I'm meant to inspire."

She laughed afterwards.

"Or at least, I hope I inspired somebody! Anywhoser, I'd better let you get back to your rest," the girl sighed, a sort of melancholic exhale that said she'd rather stay longer, but had to go.

"Oh, okay!" Mikey yawned, snuggling deeper under his blankets. He thought about going to see the guys before they left...

"See you around," the girl said as she walked away....

Mikey wondered who the human girl was, if not a nurse. She wasn't dressed like a nurse. Maybe she belonged to an AU... Ah, well. Maybe he would see her again one of these days.

Boots waited outside the medbay for their 'accomplice'. She'd wanted to make a dramatic exit and say 'hello' -- or rather, 'goodbye'. For now.

The competition was so nice in the calm and quiet aftermath. Tiny turtle tots giggled as they chased one another for their games. Parent versions of Leo and Donnie and Mikey and Raph and Cassandra and everyone else meandered about with their wards. A water fountain nearby trickled. The sweet scent of chocolate cake pops filled the air. As Boots waited, they pulled out a few stickers and decorated a scrapbook they'd brought with them. A mushroom sticker was placed on an electric blue sheet of paper. Boots enjoyed the peace... they hoped it would last for a little while. At least, until the next story came into play. Speaking of, out from the medbay frollocked the self-proclaimed weird kid author, smiling happily.

"All good?" Boots asked.

"All good," Pheebs responded, her denim jacket bouncing along with every skip she took. "They're all sleeping, now."

"I'm glad you got to see them; I wouldn't even dare to see my guys after what happened," Boots laughed.

"You wouldn't have to say who you were," Pheebs clarified. "I mean, it's not like they know what you look like."

"True, but even still, it'd freak me out too much and I'd end up spilling some of the beans!"

Pheebs laughed at that.

"I guess... anyways, shall we go?"

"I'm ready if you are," Boots sighed, folding up the scrapbook supplies and tucking it away. "Our guys deserve a good long rest..."

"Yeah. Though..."

"Though?"

"...I think I have one last moment I want to include."

End of Act 3

Epilogue

#rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #tutant meenage neetle teetles #until i found you #until i found you au #rottmnt until i found you #no fun in fungus #fear fungus #fear spores #crossover #fanfic writing #fanfiction #rottmnt fanfiction #rottmnt mikey #rottmnt leo #rottmnt donnie #rottmnt raph #rottmnt misa #the void brothers #rottmnt replica #spider-teetlez #leaves from the vine #rottmnt ghost in the shell #rise hunger games #rottmnt angst #angst #wholesome #finale #musicals #broadway musicals

[engulfedbymaleficsaturn]

#battles #faith #galaxy #spray paint #art #wall murals #painting #obstacles #strugles of life #lost #astronauts

[jadegretz]

Crimson Vigilante: Tifa's Triumph by Jade Gretz

The stench of decay hung heavy in the air, an oppressive blanket over Midgar. Tifa Lockhart, her once vibrant red dress now mud-caked and torn, surveyed the desolate wasteland that had been her home. The familiar skyscrapers of Wall Market lay in jagged ruins, the once-bustling streets choked with the monstrous offspring of a twisted nightmare.

Weeks had bled into a blur of relentless combat. What began as a strange luminescence emanating from the heart of Shinra HQ had morphed into a citywide catastrophe. Grotesque creatures, fleshy amalgamations of discarded Mako waste and warped Shinra technology, had erupted from the glowing core, swarming across Midgar with a ravenous hunger.

Cloud, her anchor in this storm, was missing. Last seen venturing into the corrupted HQ to investigate the source of the luminescence, he hadn't returned. Worry gnawed at Tifa, a constant companion to the chilling dread that had settled in her gut. But despair was a luxury she couldn't afford. Every survivor in Seventh Heaven depended on her, on her unwavering determination.

A guttural roar echoed from a nearby alleyway, shattering the fragile silence. Tifa, her emerald eyes flashing with steely resolve, gripped her worn leather gloves tighter around her fists. It was another one, a hulking mass of pulsating flesh and twisted metal claws.

The creature charged, a lumbering monstrosity driven by a primal hunger. Tifa, a blur of controlled fury, met its charge head-on. Her years of martial arts training fueled her every move, her kicks and punches imbued with the raw strength honed through countless battles.

But these weren't ordinary enemies. Each blow sent a sickening spray of acidic bile, its touch burning and scarring. Tifa gritted her teeth, ignoring the pain, her focus solely on neutralizing the threat. With a final, bone-crunching uppercut, she sent the monstrosity sprawling, a mound of twitching flesh dissolving into a pool of toxic goo.

Relief, a fleeting emotion, washed over her. But it was short-lived. Another roar, closer this time, ripped through the air. More of them. It seemed …(see the rest of the story at deviantart.com/jadegretzAI). For more supergirl, chun li, batgirl, tifa, lara croft, wonder woman, rogue and much more, please visit my page at www.deviantart.com/jadegretzai - Thanks for your support :)

#tifa #tifalockhart #finalfantasy #clouldstrife #gamer #gamerart #videogames #ai #aiart #digitalart #jadegretz #fantasyart #fanart #beautifulgirl #aiartwork #aiartcommunity