Chapter Text
Many years ago, there was a boy who came from an apocalyptic future. It was overrun by these horrible monsters who called themselves “The Kraang”. When all hope seemed lost, the boy was sent to the past by his sensei to do one task. Find the key, stop the Kraang. And that is what he did. But soon after, he had to return to the future. The new future that he created.
Soon, the whole world heard news of this mysterious time traveller. And the world would call him: the Lost Warrior. Quickly after, a prophecy about him followed. One day the Lost Warrior shall be reborn far from home. But on the first day of summer in 2044, he shall return home and take his place once again as the Savior of the World. Just as planned.
The date was December 16th, 2028. The time was 2:35 PM. Down in the Hidden City was a yokai named Cosmic Wonder. He was holding a galactic watch, waiting patiently for his husband to come with the package. He should be here any minute— ah, there he is.
A raven yokai came in, carrying a small blanket.
“Hello, my darling.” Cosmic smiled. “Is that who I think it is?”
The raven unwrapped the blanket to reveal a small baby: “In the flesh. Was born only half an hour ago, just like you said.”
Cosmic took the baby, smiling evilly at it.
“Hello, little Junior.” Cosmic cooed. “Look who finally made it to the right time period. Come now, we must haste.”
The two yokai went into the Hidden City tunnels, making their way to a field. Black poppy flowers were scattered across with a stone circle in the middle. Cosmic sets the baby down in the circle.
“Tell me, do you know Junior’s new name?” He asked.
“Well, with no Cassandra around during the birth, it isn’t Casey.”
“Oh, I know dear. What fool would I be if I didn’t?”
“And here I thought you liked my humor.”
“Oh, such a dramatic bird you are. Did you learn the new name though?”
“The parents named him Xander.”
“Oh, Xander… such a poetic name for the little boy. And no one even knows that yet. A pity it’ll take until June 20th of 2044 for even his family to realize that.”
Cosmic tapped on the baby’s chest twice. Out came a small glowing green orb, the baby’s soul. Cosmic then pulled out a petal of a black poppy from his jacket.
“When I add this petal, little Xander will remember being Casey in fifteen years. And after that, he’ll run off to New York and we can start planning the merge.”
“Do you think the Emperor of Time will try to stop this?” The Raven asked.
“The Emperor of Time is a soft hearted fool. Even if he did find out about our operation, he couldn’t and wouldn’t do anything about it. Given both the fact no one visits him and that he holds pity towards time anomalies, we’ll be just fine.”
The petal was placed upon the small soul. It soon started to absorb the petal, turning the soul from green to black. There was a small mystic explosion just a second after. The two yokai weren’t harmed, but there were poppy flowers everywhere now. The soul returned to the baby, and they began to cry.
“There, there, little Junior.” Cosmic comforted as he rocked the baby. “You’ll be fine for now. You won’t feel the pain until later in your lifetime.”
“Shall I return the baby to his family now?” The raven questioned.
“Of course. Good departures, Junior, and may you live a peaceful life until the day you turn 15.”
-x - x - x - x - x-
Xander shot up in a cold sweat. What… the hell was that dream? Or was it a nightmare? Or maybe both? Can you have a dream and a nightmare at the same time? You know what, focus on that later. He tried to process what he even dreamt.
It started in some apocalyptic wasteland. Giant pink brains overran the place, but there was a resistance. That resistance was led by the mutant heroes, Mad Dogs, back in New York, and Xander was part of that. In fact, he grew up in the resistance. He was also kind of family to the Mad Dogs. Like a nephew-son kinda thing.
Then came the moment where the resistance lost. But Sensei Leonardo didn’t give up. He gave Xander a mission to go to the past. Find the key and stop the Kraang. Then he found the Mad Dogs when they were teenagers. Together, they all succeeded in stopping these monsters and saved the future… What the fuck?
Then after some time he was sent back to the future. The one thing that weirded Xander out the most was everyone calling him Casey. That’s not his name though. His name is Xander. It’s always been Xander, where the fuck did Casey come from? He never met a Casey. So why were people in his dream calling him Casey?
“Xander?” a voice spoke. He turned to see Angel, his twin sister. “You okay, dude?”
“Y-Yeah, I’m fine.” Xander answered. “Just… a really weird dream.”
“You sure it was a dream and not a nightmare? Cause you were making a lot of noise last night. Like, you were crying, whimpering, even mumbling about some key.”
“Honestly, I’m not sure. I mean, the beginning felt like it was, but it kinda went from nightmare land to… very weird dream territory.”
“If that’s what you say. Anyways, time to get up. We can’t be late to birthday day.”
“Birthday?”
“Our birthday, grandpa.”
Oh right. They were turning fifteen this year.
“If you’re gonna call me grandpa, I’m calling you grandma.” Xander said.
“Whatever old man.”
“Just hand me my leg, you fossil.”
Angel grabbed Xander’s prosthetic leg and handed it to him.
“I’ll be in the kitchen, see ya there.” Angel said then left.
Xander sighed and grabbed a clean liner. He put it on then proceeded to put the prosthetic on. After making sure it was secure and no air was remaining inside, he grabbed some clean clothes and went to the bathroom. He did what he needed, combed his hair and put the clothes on. His head started to pound. He opened the cabinet mirror to grab pain meds.
As soon as he grabbed it and closed the mirror, the lights started to flicker. It went out for a few seconds then came back on. Xander’s reflection changed, then the lights went out and came back again. Xander jumped at that. For a split second, he… he looked like how he looked in his dream. Long hair, hockey mask, apocalyptic apparel… maybe he’s still waking up.
“THANOS!” a voice yelled.
“IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!” Another shouted back.
Xander shook his head and took the medicine. He left the bathroom and was almost ran over by his younger brother and twin.
“THIS IS HARASSMENT!” Thanos shouted.
“THE ONLY HARASSMENT HERE IS YOU MESSING WITH THE ELECTRICITY, YOU TINY PULP!” Angel shouted back.
Thanos ran into Genesis and began to climb him.
“She’s trying to murder me!” Thanos claimed.
“Well, if the seven year old stopped messing with the power box, no one would try to murder you.” Genesis informed.
“That little gremlin ruined my toast.” Angel glared.
“Oh no, your toast is ruined. Such a shame we can’t grab the bread in the fridge and make new toast.”
“Who’s side are you on?”
“The side of reason. Seriously though, Thanos. There’s a reason we child-proofed the power box.”
Thanos pouted: “But what if—”
“Ah ah ah, no. You are giving everyone in this household a heart attack.”
Mom came in, wiping her hands on a towel.
“Okay, everything is back to normal.” Mom said. “Thanos, we are gonna have a talk after breakfast.”
“Busted.” Xander whistled.
The family went to have breakfast. There was small chatter between the family, but Xander was silent. He didn’t feel chatty right now. He was more focused on trying to wake up more and forget the dream he had.
“Xander?” Dad spoke. “You alright, kid?”
“O-Oh, yeah I’m fine.” Xander answered. “Just had a weird dream, that’s all.”
“What was it about?”
“Nothing really. Just apocalypse, time travel, the usual weird dreams. I’ll forget about it later.”
“That sounds interesting.”
“It sounds like the Lost Warrior!” Thanos beamed. “Maybe you’re having a dream about them!”
“Right, because I’m a total nerd about the Lost Warrior.” Xander smirked.
“Hey, I’m not a nerd!”
“I never said that you were. You’re the one who just outed yourself.”
Angel and Genesis stifle a laugh while Thanos glared angrily.
“He has a point though.” Dad pointed out.
“Woooooow.” Thanos said. “Not only does my brother attack me, but my own creator? And here I thought I was loved.”
“You are loved, you little goobering pest.” Angel said.
Xander flinched at that. Wait, why did he flinch?
“You good, Xan?” Angel asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” He quickly answered.
“You… just flinched.”
“I shivered. There’s a difference.”
“Boy, it is warm in this house.”
“And? It’s still winter time, I’m probably shivering from the cold winds outside.”
“I just said it’s warm inside.”
“Irrelevant.”
Breakfast continued and soon finished. The twins prepared to go outside while Mom and Dad talked to Thanos about messing with the power box.
“Alright, birthday kiddos.” Genesis grabbed the keys.
“We are fifteen.” Xander stated.
“You’re a kid until you turn eighteen. Anyways, I’m going to take you both out for a nice beach walk. There’s a small surprise there.”
“Is it a car?” Angel asked.
“Ha, no. You need to get a license first.”
“Worth a shot.”
The three got in Genesis’s car and started heading to Lincoln City Beach. It was a pretty chill morning. Humans and yokai were walking through the streets, half being tourists and half being people who live here. The beach has always been quite the attraction along with all the nearby stores.
The car was parked, and they exited the car. Not too many people were out on the beach yet. The three made it to the dock… something caused Xander to stop for a moment.
…
“Unca Don?” Small Casey Jr said. “What’s that?”
“Hm?” Donatello turned to where the child was pointing. “Ah. That is the ocean.”
“What’s an ocean?”
“A whole body of saltwater that covers three quarters of the earth.”
“Why’s it red and purple?”
“That would be the fault of the Kraang and environmental change. It wasn’t always like that.”
“What did it used to be like?”
“… Blue.”
“Like Master Leonardo’s mask?”
“Yeah. Like Leo’s mask.”
…
Xander was hit in the head by a volleyball.
“Watch where you’re aiming, asshole!” Angel shouted.
“Sorry!” One of the volleyball players shouted.
“You okay?” Genesis asked, immediately checking for any bumps on Xander’s head.
“Gene— Gene, you don’t have to inspect my head.” Xander informed.
“I do in case you got a bump or bruise on your head. You can get a concussion, you know.”
“From what?”
“The ball!”
“It didn't hit me that hard, I’ll be fine.”
“Yeah, I’ll believe it when I see it. Angel, sit Xander down while I grab the med scanner.”
“Got it.” Angel said.
Angel got Xander to sit down on the sand as Genesis went to grab the med scanner. The young teen sighed and fell back.
“You’re not blacking out, are you?” Angel asked.
“No, I’m laying down annoyed.”
“Well, you know Gene.”
“Yeah, but I swear I’m fine. I’ve been hit harder than that ball, even got knocked out by a hit harder than that ball.”
“Woah, woah, woah. When did you get knocked out and who is the bastard I have to punch?”
“Angel, it was a girl.”
“Okay, who is the bitch I have to punch and when did this happen?”
“You’re not punching anyone, it—”
Xander thought for a moment. He’s… never been knocked out actually. Except for in the dream by Commander…
“… It happened in the dream I had.” Xander sighed.
“You dreamt getting knocked out?” Angel raised an eyebrow.
“Like I said, it was a weird dream.”
“Don’t scare me like that you dumdum.”
“I’m more glad that I didn’t have to convince you to not punch a random stranger.”
Angel blew a raspberry. Genesis soon came back with a med scanner. He started to set it up.
“Alright, Xander if you’re not dead, sit up.” He said.
“I still don’t think this is necessary.” Xander said.
“And I think ‘too bad’, you could’ve gotten hurt.”
“Aren’t these things usually inaccurate?”
“Not these ones because they were actually tested with medicals backing up the result. Plus, these are literally from Genius Built Co.”
Xander perked up at that.
“And why are you wearing Genius Built apparel!? That’s trademarked.”
God, why does this dream keep coming back? At this rate, he’ll probably never forget that dumb dream.
“Oh.” Genesis clicked. “Jesus Christ. Uh, Xander, is there something you wanna talk about?”
“What are you talking about?” Xander questioned.
Before Genesis could answer, he was tackled by a little gremlin.
“THANOS ATTACK!” The gremlin cackled.
Angel and Xander turned to see their parents coming up.
“Oh shoot.” Mom facepalmed. “I forgot to stop for the cake.”
“It’s alright, dear.” Dad said. “We can still pick it up, it’s just a few blocks away.”
“I can get it.” Xander quickly volunteered. “It’s at Salty Caramel, right?”
“Yeah, do you want one of us to come with you?” Mom asked.
“Nah, I’ll be fine. If I get in trouble, I’ll call.”
“Alright. Walk safely, careful of the fog, head straight for the bakery, and keep a look out for a cake under my name. Okay?”
“Got it. I’ll be back in a few.”
And Xander quickly fled. He made his way to the sidewalk and started heading towards the bakery. The walk was quiet, people walking pass. Jeez, this is a lot of people. Well, there’s always a lot of people. That’s not new. Why was it bothering him though? It never did before. So why was it now?
The anxiety of the crowd gradually got bigger until he quickly ducked into a random store. He took a deep breath.
“Hi, welcome to Salty Caramel.” The clerk at the counter smiles. “What can I get for ya today?”
Oh shit, he actually ducked into the right store.
“I’m here to pick up a cake.” Xander cleared his throat, coming up to the counter.
“Of course, what was the name under?”
“Anastasia Quill.”
“Got it, I’ll be right with the cake.”
…
“Mama?” Young Casey spoke.
“Hello, my little warrior!” Cassandra said, picking her son up. “Already finished training with Raphael?”
“Mmhmm. And, and I wanted to ask you something.”
“What’s up schimgin?”
“Why’s my middle name Anastasia?”
Cassandra’s face turned from surprised to sad. She sat down, holding her son in her lap.
“Casey, you remember when I told you you’re adopted?”
“Mmhmm.”
“Well, before I adopted you, I knew your birth mother.”
“You did?”
“Yeah. She was the fiercest warrior I’ve ever met. But… then there was a Kraang attack and she asked me to take care of you.”
“Why? Did she not want me?”
“Oh, Casey. She loved you more than anything in the world. She just… didn’t have enough time. So, to honor her, I gave you her name.”
“Her name is Casey too?”
Cassandra let out a laugh.
“No, kiddo. Your middle name is your mother’s name.”
“Woah. I’m named after both my Mama’s?”
Cassandra smiled. “Yep. You are.”
…
“One cake for Anastasia Quill!”
The clerk plopped down a box with a birthday cake. It snapped Xander back to reality.
“U-Uh, thanks. H-Have a good day.”
The clerk smiled then went off to help a new customer. Xander took the box and left. He took a deep breath and shook his head.
“Calm down, Xander.” He muttered to himself. “It’s just a dream. You’ll forget about it by the end of the day. It’s not like it’s taking over your life.”
Then continued the day trying his best to celebrate his 15th.