Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Leo knew it was a no return mission, suicide. But he had to be the one to do it, none of his brothers were in condition to fight, and he was already there… It's what a leader does: protect the team, his family.

In order for his brothers to live, he has to die.

"Please, Leo, there has to be another way," pleaded Raph through his com. Leo only listened in silence, "We'll figure this out!"

"Raph, there's no time," answered Leo while struggling to keep his voice from breaking, "You barely made it out of the Krang's infection, and Mikey and Donnie are in no shape to fight. I have to do this."

"But-"

"Dad was wrong about me," the slider seemed to have accepted his fate, "You should've kept being the leader."

"Leo…"

"This mess is all my fault. It's because of me that you and Donnie are gone in the future! I let you get infected by the Krang, I let Mikey get hurt, I let Casey down… What kind of leader does that?"

"Leo, please," Raph was struggling a lot to hold his tears, "You don't have to do this."

"Hey? It'll be okay," said Leo while turning off his com. If he didn't do it right now, he would second guess himself, and that was something he couldn't do, not now that he was so close to putting an end to this catastrophe.

"Leo? Leo!" Despite all his attempts to reach out to his brother, it was no use. All he could hear from the other side of the com was static. 

Raph turned to look at his two youngest brothers with watery eyes. They shared the same concerned look as his. Even being hurt, Mikey was more worried about Leo than himself; it was understandable. Donnie, who was holding Mikey and tending to his wounds, was speechless for the first time in his life. Even though he wasn't so open about his feelings, especially about Leo, he cared about him, and was as worried as the rest of his brothers. He had called Leo reckless before, but this was another level. The dumb-dumb was going to get himself killed, especially since he didn't have his mystic powers anymore. Without his Ninpo, it would be a deadly challenge to face whatever was inside the Technodrome.

They couldn't do anything more than wait and pray that his brother would make it out alive.

He was blinded by the light of the explosion, the sound leaving a temporary ring in his ears. When he entered the Technodrome, he wasn't expecting to find a huge mecha controlled by none other than Krang Prime. The design of the armor brought back really bad memories: it looked a lot like the Shredder, but with a long whip-like tail with something that looked like a stinger at the end, and one single sickly red eye. Inside of it was one of the Krang. It didn’t look larger than the rest, but it was surely more terrifying due to his left eye being bright red like the one its armor had.

Leo felt like the fight only lasted seconds, but his badly battered body said otherwise. Krang Prime agreed to have a duel with him: if Leo won, the Krang would leave the planet and never come back, but if Krang Prime won, they would stay and he would kill Leo and his family first. To make things fair, the interdimensional creature gave Leo his mystic powers back, even his katanas regained their ability of creating portals, but none of that was enough to defeat Krang Prime.

Leo was no match for the alien creature. He couldn't remember getting this beaten up before, not even by the Shredder. The worst part was when Krang Prime got him with his clawed hand, big enough to cover the slider's full torso. When the creature tightened his grip, Leo felt the sharp claws trying to break into his shell; one of them found his way into his left arm, leaving a huge bleeding gash. After managing to get away from the deadly claws, Leo tried one last desperate move, blinded by rage and frustration of not being able to defeat the damned creature, but was quickly overpowered. Weakened and pinned to a huge rock, Leo could only stare as Krang Prime gave the last fatal blow, destroying the piece of floating debris they were standing on, and now he was falling.

Falling, falling…

Why falling? Why this again? It was his curse, his biggest fear ever since that day when Draxum had thrown him off the roof of the Grand Nexus Hotel. But this time it was different.

He was falling from the sky, he had lost his swords and no one would come to save him.

He was all alone.

Leo could feel his Ninpo leaving his body now that he had lost against Krang Prime, and worst of all, he had failed his family. Now they all will die because of him. He had messed up the future again.

The only thing he could hear was the ringing in his ears due to the explosion, his vision was blurry and felt every inch of his body screaming in pain, the wind furiously hitting his limbs, worsening his injuries. He closed his eyes for a few seconds and then opened them again, feeling the tails of his blue bandana hitting themselves and his face. 

Using the last of his strength, Leo took out the picture from his pouch. Since he was about to die, at least he wanted to see his brothers one last time. He took a good look at the picture: it was all dirty and battered, but he could still see the smiley faces of his brothers, dad and April. It was funny to think that this wasn't the actual picture they took, but from a future version of Leo who gave it to Casey in order to find them. Leo felt a bit guilty about having taken it with him, but on the other hand, he was glad he did because otherwise, how else could he apologize to them? 

He felt like a failure, a disappointment, a loser. He was no leader and was never meant to be one. He had doomed the world, he had doomed his family.

All those feelings concentrated in a single tear that rolled all the way down to his chin, while he embraced the picture tightly, close to his chest.

"I'm sorry." 

And after that, the darkness claimed him.

If there was one thing Raph hated more than anything else in the world, it was feeling powerless. He couldn't help Mikey because it was him who hurt his youngest brother in the first place, and he couldn't help Leo because his mystic powers were gone and he had no way to get up there. Frustrated, he punched a nearby car with both fists, making it bend like a soda can.

"I can't wait any longer, we need to get there to help Leo!"

"And how do we do it, Raphael?" teased Donnie. He looked as frustrated as him, "We have no powers, my battle shell is toasted and the flying vehicle of the Turtle Tank was destroyed! Don't you think I care? Don't you think I'm afraid too? I am as worried as you are, but there's nothing we can do!"

"Stop it!" Mikey shouted, now standing on his feet, "Arguing will do no good. Donnie is right. Right now we can't do anything but wait."

Raph clenched his fists and lowered his head. He was afraid of his brother's well-being, he was afraid of losing him. Mikey could sense this and put a hand over one of Raph's fists. The warm feeling of the box turtle's little hand was enough to calm down his mind.

"Leo will be okay, I trust him."

Raph was about to reply until he heard several steps coming their way, his first instinct being to put a protective hand in front of Mikey and Donnie. 

"Guys! We finally found you!" It was April, who looked exhausted, but happy to see the turtles, "Boy, I'm so glad to see you!"

"Master Raphael!" Casey screamed in excitement, taking off his mask to reveal a relieved expression, "You're free from the infection!"

Next to the young warrior was Splinter. The old master had a huge grin on his fluffy face at seeing his oldest son was himself again. The oldest Hamato wrapped his son into a big hug.

"My son, I'm so happy to see you're alright," he said while taking a look at the crack on his plastron and the ripped mask. It was when he checked on the rest of his sons that he realized one was missing, "Where's Blue?"

All three turtles were silent. They didn't know how to tell their father about Leo.

"Boys… where's your brother?"

It was Raph the one to answer by looking at the pink portal in the sky where the Technodrome was. Splinter's blood ran cold. Everyone else turned to where Raph was looking, terrified.

"No…” Casey whispered, alarmed.

"You're telling me Leo's in there?!" April asked, pointing to the huge portal.

"I couldn't change his mind", Raph answered looking away.

"No, no, no, no, no, no!" "This wasn't supposed to happen!" Casey shouted, panicked and running his fingers over his hair.

"What do you mean?" A concerned Mikey asked.

"Master Leonardo never mentioned facing Krang Prime alone," Casey answered.

"Wait, Krang Prime?!" Donnie asked, alarmed at the sound of that name and the way Casey said it.

"He's the leader of the Krang," answered the young warrior while turning to face the Hamato family. He had a lost, horrified expression, "He's too dangerous. And since Master Leonardo never faced him alone in my timeline, I don't know what is going to happen next."

They all fell silent. April had covered his mouth, Splinter was feeling like he couldn't breathe, Casey was completely horrified and all three turtles seemed lost and more concerned than before.

"Leo…" Raph whispered, frustration and worry growing inside his chest. He was powerless in all senses, he couldn't help at all. He couldn't do anything. This uncertainty and waiting would kill him. He wasn't the kind of person who would stay on the sidelines and do nothing, but this time he had no choice, and he didn't like it at all.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of an explosion coming from above. They all turned to the portal, which was the source of the explosion. 

Suddenly, April gasped.

"No… is that-?

"No, it can't be…" Casey's eyes were wide open, an expression of pure horror on his face.

Raph felt like his heart skipped a beat.

Right there, between huge pieces of falling debris, was Leonardo.

And he was falling. 

"LEO!!" Raph screamed, watching helplessly as his brother fell to a certain death.

Everyone followed his path with their eyes until Leo's body disappeared behind some distant buildings. Everyone looked away and closed their eyes tightly. There was no way Leo could've survived that fall. He was gone. Despite that, they knew they had to get the body to give him a proper burial. Raph wanted to get to his brother as soon as possible, he didn't want to leave him alone. He had to find him.

As if he had read his brother's mind, Donnie made a suggestion.

"I… I can track him," he said while touching a few things on his tech-gauntlet's screen, "Just give me a sec." 

Mikey knew what Donnie was referring to. If he was right —and obviously he was —, Donnie did put a subcutaneous tracker on Leo the same way he did with Raph. Splinter walked a few steps until he was next to him. The old rat put a comforting hand on his shell.

"We will find your brother," he said while patting the youngest turtle's shell.

"I have the coordinates," Donnie announced, "We better move."

They all ran as fast as they could, Raph holding Mikey between his arms since he wasn’t completely recovered. Raph will never forgive himself for everything he did to his brothers: he attacked them, hurt them, and lost one of them, all in the same day. Worst of all was that he did the first two things while being under the control of the Krang. The last one was totally his fault. He shouldn't have let his brother go alone, he should've done a better job trying to convince him not to do such a crazy thing. 

He should've told him how much he appreciated and loved him. 

He didn't know Leo was feeling everything he said through the com, he always seemed so chill and happy, but it ended up being a façade. Raph felt so guilty for not realizing this sooner, he could've helped him. Leo didn't have to go through all of this alone. 

But he did.

And now Raph would never be able to help him.

Tears rolled down his face and got lost with the wind during his race. All he wanted now was to find his brother.

It took them a while to get to the exact location, but a few blocks before reaching it, they found something between the debris, something that belonged to Leo.

Casey was the first one to see it, making everyone stop on his tracks: there, lying hidden between some debris and dust, was one of Leo's twin katanas, a bit battered due to the fight and the fall it took. Once the young warrior got close, he fell on his knees and took it gently with both hands, seeing his reflection on the now dusty blade. Casey's eyes got filled with tears; that wasn't the face of a warrior, that wasn't the face of a ninja apprentice. That was the face of a child, a poor scared child who couldn't keep the promise he made to his sensei before he died.

"I'm sorry, Master Leonardo," Casey said with a broken voice, "I'm so sorry." He put the sword close to his forehead, unable to contain his tears.

His master had died in vain. He had failed him.

The sudden shout of Donnie snapped Casey out of his sorrow. The softshell and Mikey had walked away from the group until they reached a warehouse on the corner of the street. They looked distressed.

"Guys! Over here!" Donnie shouted from a distance while Mikey ran past him and headed around the corner, "We found him!"

Chapter Text

He opened his eyes and found himself running. His body was feeling so heavy and could barely keep his eyes open, but the quick glimpse he got of his right arm was enough to get them to finally open. He couldn't feel his right arm now that he had regained his senses, but apparently he had something replacing it, something that looked a lot like Raph's arm, but made out of metal.

Weird, Leo thought. But there was something else, something on that arm that made him have chills running down his spine.

Blood.

There was blood dripping from under his metal arm. Now that he thought about it, the middle section of his plastron hurt like hell. He somehow recalled being stabbed, although he didn't think that memory belonged to him. 

He wanted to stop to get a better look at his surroundings, but he couldn't. It was as if his body wasn't responding, like when you're dreaming and cannot control what you're doing in the dream.

"Hold on, Master Leonardo!" 

There it was. A familiar voice he was not expecting to hear, and somehow, he knew he was going to hear. Leo turned his head to find Casey with his mask on, running and holding him tight. His young protégé was helping him stand on his feet and run away from all the chaos around and from whatever had stabbed him. 

Gosh, it hurts like shell, thought the slider while holding his wound tightly. Slowly regaining his senses, Leo spotted a few things he was sure he didn't have before: a pair of fancy pants, knee pads, a belt with the Mad Dogs emblem on it, a blue cape around his neck, several scars on his plastron, and he could also feel his right eye was a little swollen. If he wasn't bleeding to death, he would've thought the cape was very cool since he had always wanted a cape or a scarf. He had taken quite a beating back there before Casey came to his rescue. At least he knew he could always count on the kid.

Everything was so confusing and yet it all made sense. Leo couldn't distinguish which were his actual thoughts and which ones were not. There were moments where he didn't know where he was and then it looked like he knew and always had known.

Suddenly he felt a sharp pain on his chest: a large mutant creature had come out of nowhere and repented against him, scratching his plastron and leaving two large scars on his chest. Both he and Casey fell backwards from the sudden attack. Leo felt like he was about to pass out, but he knew he couldn't because he needed to protect Casey. The old slider tried to get on his feet, but collapsed again, holding his plastron with both arms.

"Sensei!" Casey shouted. Before he could help Leo, the creature threw itself at him, jaws wide open. 

From their right, an orange lightning bolt hit the creature straight on its side, making it crash with a nearby rock. Leo opened his eyes on time to see mystic levitating chains in front of him, and in the middle, a very old Mikey appeared. He used his magic to strike the creature again until it ran away.

"Right on time, Mikey," Leo greeted from the ground. The box turtle turned to look at him in the eye with concern, "It is time, brother."

Michelangelo only nodded and then proceeded to cast a spell in front of him. Before their eyes, an orange portal started to open. 

"But sensei, are you sure about this?" Casey asked without taking his eyes from his master's wounds, "You're losing too much blood."

"We cannot wait any longer. It has to be no-" before he could finish, Leo fell on his knees after trying to get on his feet a second time. The pain was unbearable and it was getting harder and harder to breathe. 

"Oh no!" Casey barely managed to catch his sensei. He knew his condition was critical and he needed a healer, "Master Michelangelo-!"

"No! He needs to save his energy to keep the portal open," Leonardo stopped his young apprentice, taking a deep breath, "It'll send you to the day before everything started."

"Wait, me?" Casey couldn't believe what he just heard. Leo gestured to him to come closer; he was leaning on his katana to keep himself from falling. A glimpse of red and purple fabric tied to the handle caught his eye, but he didn't have time to think about that now.

"Listen, I'm not gonna make it and you know it. It has to be you."

Casey was speechless. He was so confused and scared and he wanted to reply, but he simply couldn’t articulate a word. His mind was still trying to process the information. 

"You went over the plan with me, so you know what you have to do: find the key, stop the Krang."

"But what if I can't do it?" The young apprentice replied. Fear was evident in his voice, "I'm nothing like you, what if I mess it up?"

Leo had seen that face before: it was the face of a young warrior who was so afraid of failing and disappointing everyone that he forgot about his own worth. The elder turtle put his prosthetic hand on his student's shoulder. Casey looked up with watery eyes and found the comforting look of his master.

"Trust yourself the same way I trust you."

Casey's eyes lit up. His sensei really trusted him so much to entrust him with such an important mission. He couldn't fail him. 

"I won't let you down, sensei," he nodded, determined.

"I know you'll succeed, kid. After all, you're my best student, and I'm not saying it just because you're the only one."

Casey couldn't help but giggle at his sensei's comment. It was good to see he still retained his sense of humor despite being in a life-and-death situation.

The young warrior helped his master to his feet. Michelangelo had just finished casting the spell. Now before their eyes was the reason he had been studying mystic arts all these years, the fruit of his labor: a time portal. 

Leo looked at the portal with pride in his eyes and a new light of hope. On the other hand, Casey just took a deep breath so he could calm down. He was still scared. Leonardo noticed this, so he turned to look into his eyes.

"Hey? It'll be okay."

Casey admired his sensei so much: his bravery, his cleverness, and his ability to stay calm in complicated situations. Leo was like a father to him. He had trained him to be a great warrior. Now it was time to prove it. 

"Here," Leo took out something from his pouch and handed it over to Casey: it was an old picture of him and his family when they were younger, "It'll help you to find them and to prove them you're telling the truth."

Casey looked down at the smiling turtles in the picture: they looked so young, so happy and full of hope. He never met Raph in person, and he didn't know Donnie for too long. He learned more about them through stories his master had told him, so he was excited to meet their younger versions. He was so focused on the photo that he didn't see the other two mutant creatures coming from the sides.

But Leo did. 

"And Casey?" Leo put his prosthetic hand over the kid's shoulder while he tightened his grip on his sword handle with his left hand, "When you see my brothers, tell them I love them."

"Wha-?" Casey didn't have enough time to react. 

It all happened so fast. 

Without a warning, Leo used all his remaining strength to throw Casey to the portal. The kid was surprised and horrified when he saw both mutant creatures throw themselves at his master. Casey's eyes got filled with tears while he stretched out his hand to try to reach out to his mentor, but the portal was too strong and began to drag him further and further.

At the other side of the portal, Leo didn't even dare to turn to see Casey. He didn't want the kid to see what was going to happen, and he didn't want to see the hurt expression on his face.

Meanwhile, Michelangelo was struggling to keep the portal open until Casey had disappeared from view. He was too tired. 

Both remaining brothers shared a look and closed his eyes, accepting their fates. 

Goodbye, Casey. 

Leo could feel the claws and teeth of the creatures sink into his skin, feeling the warm blood pouring from the open gashes. He could feel his legs buckling beneath him and the hurt look of Casey while being sucked by the portal. The last thing he heard before being consumed by oblivion was the helpless cry of his protégé disappearing through the portal: 

"SENSEI!!"

Leo opened his eyes again, slowly; Casey's helpless cry echoed in his head. The first thing he noticed was that there was no loud noise around him, and the sky didn't look red, but blue. He tried to get up, but he couldn't find the strength to move. Everything hurt. It was at that moment that he realized he had felt cold stone beneath him with both of his hands, so he took a look at his right arm. There was no metal arm anymore, just his yellow-striped arm, and it was complete. There were no stab wounds nor scars on his plastron either, only the scratches from his fight with Krang Prime.  

Leo didn't know if what he saw was a dream or a memory, it felt so real and yet so surreal at the same time. Whatever it was, he started to think that it probably was something that his future self already lived, since it looked pretty similar to the story Casey told them the day they found him, but seen by his own point of view. How was it possible? He had passed out and woken up in the body of his future self, and relived everything he had to go through to send Casey safe and sound to the past. 

The slider tried to get up again with no success. Everything hurt and he didn't know why. He was supposed to be dead, a fall like that should've killed him, how come he was still alive?

"Hey, blue one!" Called a voice coming from his left. It was a deep and very familiar voice he wasn't expecting to hear, at least not here.

Leo blinked several times to adjust his vision until he finally discerned a silhouette. He would recognize those caprid ears anywhere.

"Draxum?"

"Good, at least you can talk," said the yōkai, relieved, "Try not to move. You're badly hurt."

Leo took his left hand to his head; that was when he noticed his arm. Draxum had used a piece of his clothes and one of his roots to bandage the wound made by Krang Prime. The slider finally took a good look at his surroundings and saw a lot of rubble around him and boxes in the background; the ceiling had a huge hole right above his head, dust particles falling everywhere.

"You were lucky I was around," Draxum started explaining with concern in his voice, "I was hiding from the infected when I saw you falling from the sky. Since none of your brothers seemed to be around, I decided to act fast; I used my roots to catch you and get you to safety, it was one of them which caused that hole you see there."

"Once you were safe, I got inside this place and tended to your wounds the best I could. You were in pretty rough shape, turtle, what caused those injuries?"

"I tried to protect my brothers by fighting Krang Prime alone, but I failed," Leo answered, frustrated and sad, "I was a fool."

Draxum just nodded.

"Yup, it was pretty foolish of you to go by yourself. You could've died."

"I know. It's just-" Leo squeezed his eyes shut. The adrenaline was wearing off, "It's just I thought… I wanted to keep my brothers safe. They've been through enough suffering.

"I think they must be suffering right now not knowing where you are," Draxum replied, "They all must be worried sick."

Leo felt guilty and stupid. 

"I don't even know if they're still alive."

"I bet they are, they're tuff warriors! I made you like that, remember?"

"Well, I think you made a mistake with me."

Draxum didn't look offended, but worried.

"Impossible! You have Hamato blood running through your veins, blood of a clan of warriors that never give up. I may have made a lot of mistakes in my life, but creating you and your brothers wasn't one of them. In fact, I think it was my most successful experiment."

Leo stayed silent, thoughtful. What Draxum was saying made sense: he was a Hamato, and so were his brothers. He knew what they were capable of, he trusted them with his life, but he had forgotten to trust himself. Fighting the pain, the slider managed to get into a sitting position.

"Thank you, Barry," Leo said, sincerely. It was actually poethic: the same yōkai who tried to kill him years ago by throwing him off the roof just saved him from a deadly fall. Suddenly he remembered that weird dream he had. Maybe Draxum could tell him what it was.

"Hey? While I was out I had this really weird dream or something. I woke up in the body of my future self! And I was seeing everything through his, well, mine-, you know, his eyes. But everything felt so real, and it somehow felt like a déjà vu."

Draxum listened carefully to Leo's story, analyzing every single detail of it.

"It looks like you had some kind of inside-out-of-body experience."

"An inside-what?"

"It means while your body was still here, your spirit traveled through time and space and ended up in the body of your future self, probably caused by the mystic waves of the interdimensional rift made by the Krang."

Leo was clearly confused, but he tried to hide it by just nodding at Draxum's words.

"From what you tell me, it looks like you relived the last moments of your future self, and since you were a foreign spirit that also melded with that of your future self, you could see and hear what he was doing, and think his thoughts as well, but not interfere."

So I really died in the future, Leo thought, horrified. He relived the pain, the fear, and saw every single memory of his future self; he relived and felt the painful agony and regret of Future Leo during his last moments. 

That's when he remembered them.

The fabric… No. The masks.

He just remembered seeing them tied to the handle of his damaged sword. A wave of future memories invaded his mind, fused with the memory of what Casey told them before. That's when he remembered.

Raph, Donnie…

They were dead.

They died in the future because of him.

It was his fault.

My fault, my fault…

How could he have forgotten?

The pictures were too vivid. He was there. He couldn't protect them. He couldn't save them. All because he wasn't a good leader.

Leader, leader, leader…

I can't protect anyone. I failed them.

And Mikey had died too after creating the time portal.

My fault, my fault, my fault…

He was no leader. A good leader wouldn't have let his own brothers die. A good leader wouldn't have lost to Krang Prime. A good leader wouldn't have let his own brothers die in the hands of Krang.

I failed, I failed, I failed…

Leo's hope vanished in an instant. It was likely that his brothers were already dead.

All because of him.

They're gone. 

They're gone and it's all my fault.

The slider started to hyperventilate, nails were sticking into his thighs. His eyes were now filled with tears. Draxum noticed this and was about to ask him what was wrong, when suddenly they heard a crash outside from a distance. It was the infected by the Krang, at least a dozen, and they were getting dangerously close to the warehouse…

"They're outside!" Draxum shouted, distressed. He knew he had to keep Leo safe until his family would come for him, but if he stayed here, they would be an easy target, especially Leo, who was still pretty weak. He couldn't move him either or his injuries would get worse. He had to make a choice.

"I'll lure them away," he said, determined, "You stay here. I'm sure your family will find you soon." Before leaving, Draxum handed Leo over the photo. He had taken it and kept it safe while tending to the slider's wounds. The older yōkai smiled at him, "You've always been a brave warrior."

With a battle cry, Draxum raced out of the warehouse to distract the infected. Leo could only hear from a distance how the alchemist warrior fought the creatures, and judging by his cries of pain, he had already been infected as well.

Indeed, Draxum managed to lure them away from the warehouse, immobilizing and throwing several of them with his roots, but one of them caught the yōkai out of guard and infected him. Before the Krang could take full control of him, Draxum used a giant root to get himself and the remaining infected as possible from Leo. The turtle had to survive, no matter what.

Meanwhile, inside the warehouse, Leo was desperately trying to get on his feet. He couldn't let anyone else get hurt because of him.

"Draxum!! ARGH!" The sudden movement had worsened Leo's injuries. So, bending in pain, he collapsed.

Now the slider was lying sprawled on the cold floor, dead to the world, completely alone. His grip on the photo had gone slack, letting it slip between his fingers.

This was it, he was dying. He was going to die knowing he had failed everyone. That he had failed his family, his brothers. He would never see them again.

Before finally losing consciousness, Leo thought he heard a couple of muffled familiar voices. They sounded so close and yet, so distant.

"Guys! Over here! We found him!"

Donnie?

He heard footsteps, then a loud crash coming from the entrance.

"Leo?"

Mikey?

"LEO!"

They're… alive.

That was his last thought.

Chapter Text

Raph wished Mikey wouldn't have been the first one to see Leo, not because he wanted to be the first one to get to him, but because it was gonna be really hard and painful for everyone, especially for someone as sensitive as Mikey. The youngest turtle had jumped out of Raph's arms once Donnie said he had located their missing brother. Mikey ran past his oldest brothers and went straight around the corner where the entrance of the warehouse was. Ignoring his own injuries, he kicked the door down and ran inside. 

He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw him.

"LEO!" The young turtle ran up to the unmoving form of his brother, crouching low once he reached him.

Even though he was the one who wanted to see his brother the most, Raphael slowed down his pace, letting everyone else run past him. He was afraid. He didn't know how Leo would look after that nasty fall. For the first time in his life he felt like his legs were failing him, he was frozen in place and his hands were shaking.

"SON!" Splinter cried at the sight of his missing kid. The elder rat kneeled down, eyes filled with tears, and picked his son's head up. The slider's breathing was shallow and he was sweating as if there was a fire around him, "Leonardo…"

He was alive.

Leo was alive, but it looked that he took quite a beating, courtesy of Krang Prime. How did he survive such a fall? Raph didn't know, but he was glad to see his brother was still alive… barely.

April got closer to Splinter, fear in her eyes. She had never seen Leo or any of the turtles like this, and the fact that he was still alive and in one piece was incredible.

Casey was petrified at the sight of Leo lying limp on the ground, the handle of the katana slipping from his grasp and making a CLANK sound that echoed inside the whole place. 

This felt like a déjà vu, like he was reliving those awful moments before being sent to the past. It was as if he was seeing his sensei die again.

And he couldn't do anything to save him.

"Master Leonardo?" He said in a whisper, still unable to move. 

Meanwhile, Donnie was scanning Leo with his goggles. What he saw made his blood run cold. His brother had sustained multiple fractures, a mild concussion, a nasty stab wound on his left arm, and multiple bruises and scratches all over his body, even on his shell and plastron. At least there were no signals of a cracked shell. That's when he noticed the purple root tied around Leo's left arm. He let out a gasp when he realized what had happened.

"Draxum," he muttered. He deduced that the capri yōkai must've been the one that saved his brother, but there weren't any signs of him or anyone else around the place except for them. Quickly, Donnie started tending to his brother's wounds.

While comforting his father, Mikey noticed something on Leo's right hand, something that apparently he was holding. The box turtle took it and let out a whimper when he saw what it was. Noticing this, Raph finally snapped out of it and kneeled down next to Mikey. Donnie turned to them as well. With his eyes filled with tears and a trembling lip, the youngest turtle turned to his brothers and showed them what Leo was holding. 

It was the photo. That photo with all of them together, smiling.

He took it with him, the oldest turtle thought. Casey had been looking for it. He thought he had lost it. He thought he had lost the only thing he had left of his deceased sensei. Raph understood how the poor kid must feel right now, and how he must've felt when he saw Leo sacrifice himself for him.

But he's alive, he's breathing. He's here. Maybe there was a chance to save him this time. There was still time. He turned to his dad.

"Is he gonna be okay?" Raph asked, hopeful. Splinter had both hands resting on Leo's temples. He let out a sigh.

"His spirit is giving up," he answered, lowering his head, "He's fading away."

Raph felt like he had been stabbed in the heart.

"What?! No, no, no, no. There has to be a way, like a magic-mystic potion or ritual, anything!"

"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do," Splinter said, a powerless look on his face,  "It's up to your brother now."

Raph couldn't believe it. This had to be an awful nightmare. His brother was actually dying on him, and there was nothing he couldn't do to help. He was powerless, useless. That was something he refused to accept. 

"NO! Wake up, Leo!" The snapping turtle started shaking his unconscious brother violently by the shoulders, "Don't you dare do this to us! You gotta wake up now!!"

Horrified, the rest of the team ran immediately to try to stop the furious turtle.

"Raph, are you crazy??" April shouted.

"You're hurting him!" Mikey cried.

"You're making things worse!" Donnie yelled. 

"RAPHAEL, STOP!"

It wasn't until Master Splinter's intervention that Raph finally let go of Leo, realizing what he just did and staring at his hands with fear. He was startled at first by Splinter calling him by his full name; that would only mean that he had made his dad furious, but that wasn't what was worrying him: he had lost control and almost hurt his brother more. 

He had hurt him again.

"I'm sorry," he managed to say between sobs, "It's just… It's all my fault. IT SHOULD'VE BEEN ME!" Raph collapsed on his knees and punched the ground hard, creating a small crater and several cracks around it. 

Everyone fell silent. All that could be heard was his bitter cry. 

"He wasn't supposed to do this. He should've stayed with us," Raph went on between sobs, "But I lost control. I hurt everyone and he had to go alone."

"It wasn't your fault, Raph," April said, "You were infected by the Krang. You weren't aware of what you were doing."

"I am the oldest one. I was supposed to protect him, but I failed," Raph replied, "I couldn't even protect myself from being controlled by the Krang." 

No one said a word. They just kept listening to Raphael, who was still crying.

"I was angry. I felt replaced, even when I was the one who told him he could be the leader." 

He suddenly felt his father's comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Raphael, I know it's not been easy for you, to be the oldest of your brothers and feeling responsible for protecting them, but you have to understand that they all have their own strength," Splinter said with a calm and understanding voice, "You must learn to believe in them. I'm sure you wouldn't have entrusted Leonardo with the leadership role if you didn't believe in him."

"I did believe in him! Who I didn’t believe in… was myself. I was scared of not being able to protect them, of losing them." Tears stained Raph's red bandana during their way down to his chin.

"Then you have to believe in yourself the same way we all believe in you," Splinter said, smiling warmly to his oldest son. A few feet away, Casey's eyes opened wide at hearing these words. Those were the same words his sensei had told him the last time he saw him before going back in time.

"It doesn't matter who leads the team, you're all brothers. You're all my sons, and I couldn't be prouder of you," Splinter went on. He then turned to see Leo's unconscious form, "Your brother did what he thought was the best for you, to protect you, to protect all of us. And I'm sure you would've done the same if you had been in his shoes." 

Splinter was right. Raph would've given his life without hesitation to protect his brothers, just like Leo did. But that didn't make it less painful.

"I just want him to wake up," he said in a whisper.

"That depends on him," the elder rat said while softly stroking Leo's forehead, "His spirit has been hurt as well. We can only wait."

Raph looked at his downed brother with watery eyes. Leo didn't deserve this. He had spent the last two days trying to prove that he could be a good leader, that he could protect his family, and all Raph did was to argue with him instead of giving him a chance. He had to make it up to him.

The snapping turtle got closer to his wounded brother.

"Leo, I don't know if you can hear me, but if you do, please, forgive me for everything," he said while holding one of Leo's hands, "I shouldn't have been so harsh on you. If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t be like this now."

Everyone else stared at the scene with watery eyes.  

"Please, don't give up, Leo. You have to come back to us. We need you. You're our leader. Our champion," Raph took out the photo and put it in Leo's right hand, "Our brother."

Without him noticing, sparks of red mystic energy started to come out from Raph's body. The ones who did notice were Mikey and Donnie, whose bodies also started sparking mystic energy. After exchanging looks of realization, both ran to Raph and knelt next to him.

Maybe there was a way to save Leonardo after all.

Leo didn't know how he had ended up there, but he felt an inexplicable need to keep moving forward. He was in a white empty place with nothing and no one else around. His injuries had disappeared, and his body gave off a blue glow. He didn't know for how long he had been walking; the only thing he knew was that the pain was gone.

He soon spotted a silhouette in the distance. The slider hurried to get to where that mysterious person was. It didn't take him too much to realize who it was due to the ancient clothes and the green glow coming off their body. Someone he loved and missed every day since they met a couple of years ago.

"Gram-Gram?"

The figure took their cape off and revealed the concerned face of Hamato Karai.

"Gram-Gram!" Leo exclaimed while running straight to where Karai was,  "Oh, I'm so happy to see you! You have no idea how much I miss-"

"Stop right there!" She ordered. Leo stopped dead on his tracks, "Don't come any closer."

The slider didn't understand what all of this was about.

"But-"

Karai put her index finger over her lips to silence him, and with the other, she pointed to a mystic green line between her and Leo.

"If you cross this line, you'll never be able to go back with your brothers." 

"But I want to…" Leo let out a sigh, "I don't know what I want anymore."

"Are you sure about that, Leonardo?" Karai asked.

Leo stayed silent. He always had something to say about everything, but this time, he couldn't find the words. He was afraid; afraid of leaving, but also afraid of staying. He felt lost, miserable.

"What troubles you?" Asked the Hamato warrior.

"I failed everyone," he said, looking down, "I thought that I could be a good leader, but I was wrong! I wasn't able to protect my brothers, and now they'll die, just like it happened in Casey's future."

"My boy, you were entrusted with a great responsibility for which you were not yet ready, but that doesn't mean you're a bad leader," Karai said. She lifted her great grandson’s chin. Apparently she could cross the line with no problem at all, "You carry the problems of the world on your shoulders, but you must learn to trust your team. Even the greatest warrior needs help."

"I couldn't risk my brothers getting killed. They're all I have. I had to keep them safe," Leo replied with tears in his eyes, "I'm supposed to be a great leader in the future! Everyone was expecting a lot from me!"

"And what were you expecting from you?" Karai asked.

Leonardo was speechless. He was also ashamed because all he'd been thinking about was to become a great leader like his future self, but he just couldn't figure out how to do it. Karai gave him an understanding grin.

"You were so focused on being what you were going to become in the future, that you forgot what you really are in the present," she said, "You're young, you're growing up. You're still learning, and that means you still have the chance to make things right before it's too late."

Leo was thinking in silence. His head had been full of a lot of stuff lately that he hadn’t had a chance to think clearly.

"It is your choice, Leonardo." Karai concluded.

The slider gave her a weak grin.

"But how are we supposed to defeat those things? They took away our mystic powers!"

"What are you talking about? Your Hamato essence is not gone," Karai said. Leo's eyes opened wide, a small spark of hope could be seen in them, "It's just asleep for now, but it's always been with you. You just have to wake it up again."

So this was what the Krang were trying to do, to make them believe they couldn't defeat them, that everything was lost. Boy, they were so busted right now. They should've never messed with the Hamato Clan.

"Thank you, Gram-Gram," Leo said. Karai smiled and wrapped him in a big hug. Half of her body was now on Leo's side of the line. The young turtle hugged her back, eyes squeezed shut. He had missed her so much, he didn't want to let go, but he knew that he couldn't stay there forever, not yet. He still had time to fix things up. He still had to go with his brothers, with his family.

The slider finally let go of his Gram-Gram, confidence restored. He gave her a wide determined grin. He knew what he had to do. He knew who he was. 

Karai gave him a kiss on his cheek.

"Go for it, Leo," she said, smiling back at him, "Keep being awesome." Karai gave him a last glance before finally disappearing. 

Suddenly the whole place started trembling, and while Karai's spirit vanished, the white place broke into pieces, and Leo started falling into the darkness. 

Not this again! He thought, exasperated. Not even in spirit form he was safe from falling.

Leo closed his eyes, expecting an impact, but a faint voice in the distance caught his attention. 

"Leo!"

"Leo!!"

No. There were several voices.

"LEO!"

The slider opened his eyes and found a blinding light coming from above. When his vision adjusted to the light, he clearly saw the mystic projections of his brothers.

They were calling for him.

All three turtle projections extended their hands to reach out to their falling brother, all three hands fusing into one single hand that changed color: from red, to orange, to purple, to red… But there was still one missing.

"Guys…" Leonardo breathed. He was so happy to see his brothers that his eyes got filled with tears, "GUYS!"

He extended his hand to try to reach them to no avail. They were too far away, and he was falling fast, deeper and deeper into an empty void of darkness. He couldn't take it anymore.

He was sick of falling.

Using all his strength, and concentrating all the love he felt for his brothers, he freed his Ninpō, and it came out stronger as ever, creating a huge projection of mystic blue energy that was desperately trying to reach out for his brothers.

Both sides were using all their might, all their will, and all their love to get a hold on each other. Now they were getting closer. Leo wasn't feeling like he was falling anymore, in fact, he now felt like he was rising.

He let out a powerful cry that echoed in the thick darkness.

Finally, both hands got a hold on each other, holding tight. In a flash of light, both hands fused and became one huge green hand. Leo couldn't contain his excitement.

"Oh yeah!!" The slider shouted with pure joy while being consumed by a white light.

Leonardo gasped for air, as he felt life come back to him, eyes wide open. He looked at his body: all the bruises and injuries were gone for real, and so was the pain, all thanks to their mystic powers. And he wasn't in that empty place anymore.

I did it! He thought. His red and yellow stripes radiated an intense glow, and he wasn't the only one. There, right before his eyes, were his brothers, all three of them, alive and glowing just like him.

"LEO!" They all exclaimed.

Mikey was the first one to pounce on his brother, then it was Donnie, and then April.

"Leo! We missed you so much!" Mikey said between tears.

"Don't you ever do that again!" Donnie said, also with glassy eyes.

"You scared us half to death!" April said. Leo just let out a laugh.

"I missed you too, guys."

When they all stepped aside, Leo finally got to see his father standing before him with watery eyes and a stuffy nose.

"Dad!" Leonardo exclaimed, arms open wide. He had missed Splinter's hugs so much.

"My son!" Splinter greeted him, hugging him back. He gave him the biggest hug he had ever given. Tears of happiness were rolling down his face, "I'm so happy you came back."

"It wasn't just me, Pops," he turned to see his brothers, "They showed me the way back."

That's when he noticed that Raph was standing right there, behind them all, as if he was hiding. Splinter helped Leo up, and the slider walked a few steps until he was face to face with his older brother.

"Hey, bro," he greeted.

"Leo, I…" Raph had a lump in his throat. He wanted Leo to wake up, and now he was fully awake and healed, but suddenly he felt as if he had forgotten everything he wanted to say to him, "Please forgive me for everything I said before, for everything I did. It wasn't fair for you. I'm sorry I pushed you. I was so blinded by my fears that I forgot the pressure you’re under when you’re the leader." 

Leo gave him an understanding smile and put a hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Hey? It's okay now," he then wrapped Raph into a hug that caught the latter by surprise. The oldest turtle hugged him back, holding him tight as if Leo was going to disappear at any second. He could feel the warmth of his body, he could hear his breathing. He was alive. He was there.

"I love you," he said with a trembling lip. Tears of joy stained his red bandana.

"I love you too, big bro."

Leo was so happy to be there, genuinely happy. He couldn't contain tears of happiness at seeing his family safe and sound. He needed them, and they needed him. Slowly, Leo and Raph let go of each other.

"How did you find me?" Leo asked.

Donnie let out a nervous laugh.

"We obviously followed your trajectory when you were falling, and it definitely had nothing to do with a subcutaneous tracker I put on you. Nuh-uh." 

Leo raised an eyebrow and smirked. Boy, he'd missed his brothers.

"Leo, was Draxum here?" Mikey asked, a finger pointing to the purple root wrapped around the slider's left arm. He lowered his head.

"Yes, he was here. He was the one who saved me."

Raph was surprised but grateful. He remembered that time at the Great Nexus Hotel when the Baron had thrown Leo off the roof, and now he had saved him from a deadly fall. Who would have thought?

"He sacrificed himself to protect me from the Krang," Leo could just imagine the scene of Draxum being infected.

"Don't worry, son," Splinter said, "Once all of this is over, and all the infected are back to normal, I'll thank Draxum for having saved your life."

Leo gave him a grin, but suddenly he realized there was someone he hadn't seen yet.

"Wait, where's-?"

Casey approached to where Leo was. He had turned away from the others because he didn't want to ruin their moment, even when he was dying to run and hug his sensei with all his might. Now it was his chance.

"Mast-! I mean! Leo!" The young warrior ran up to Leonardo, hugging him tight. Leo hugged him back, "You have no idea how happy I am to see you!"

"It's good to see you again, kid," Leo said, patting Casey on the back. He had truly missed him, and now that he saw everything the poor kid had gone through, he understood him better. 

"I was so worried, I thought you were… I thought I had lost you again," Casey's face denoted guilt. He felt responsible for everything that happened to Leo, "I'm so sorry I forced you to do what you did. I just… didn't know what to do, I felt lost. I shouldn't have pushed you into thinking you had all the answers."

Leo smiled at him, sympathetically.

"Don't blame yourself," the slider said, "We all made mistakes, but we're still alive and that's what matters. We survived and we're gonna use this chance to make things right, and we're gonna do it together."

Everyone nodded, determined. Casey then took out the blue katana he had found before, and handed it over to Leo.

"I think this belongs to you."

The slider took it and saw his reflection on the blade, and he could see it clearly. He was going to fix everything, but not by himself. He had his family with him, and together, they'll make up a plan to defeat those stupid creatures.

"I'm sorry, sensei. I’m afraid the other one is still missing."

"It's okay, Casey," Leo answered, "I'm sure we will find it eventually."

The red-eared slider then wielded his sword above his head, while the light coming from the hole on the ceiling illuminated him.

"It doesn't matter what comes, we'll always rise to the challenge," Leo said, his eyes and sword sparking blue mystic energy, "Now let's go and kick some Krang ass!"

Everyone cheered and wielded their weapons above their heads as well, then they all got out of the warehouse, straight to where the Technodrome was.

Leo was so proud of his team, his family. He loved them, he needed them. And he knew the feeling was mutual. They were gonna fight for their home, and they were gonna succeed.

Together.