User blog:Leofan13/A Clash of Two Worlds: Chapter Eleven

Thanks to everyone who has shown an interest in this story. It means a lot to me. Here's the next chapter for your enjoyment.

Chapter Eleven: So Close Yet So Far

"Mommy, I love you," my young son said, wrapping his arms around me in a tight hug that only a child can give.

"I love you, too, Mommy," my older son added, hugging me from the other side.

"My sons, I love you very much," I replied, feeling warm inside and returning their hugs. I looked up to see my husband crossing the room to join us. "And I love you, too," he said, kissing me softly on the lips. His touch was electric as it pulsed through me. Right here in this moment, there was nowhere else I wanted to be.

Suddenly, there was a flash of white light and then it went dark. I found myself alone in an empty house with only a symbol on a swatch of fabric to keep me company. The sound of chilling laughter filled the air. Light flashed again and I saw only one thing, a raised claw with sharp metal spikes at the end. I tried to scream, but I couldn't...

Donnie was carefully observing the two sets of vitals on the monitor in his lab. He looked down at his notes and added a few more. He quickly looked up when the beeping started.

"Huh?" he gasped. With furrowed eye ridge, he noticed that one set was stable. He breathed a sigh of relief. However, he noticed that the other set showed an elevated heart rate. "That's not right," he said to himself. He turned to face the rest of the room and saw that I was visibly shaking and covered in a cold sweat. "Maybe she is having another nightmare?" Donnie wondered, knowing that there was nothing he could do for an elevated heart rate and that he'd have to wait for my heart rate to return to normal. Watching the rapid rise and fall of my chest in between breaths, he decided that that coupled with the cold sweat meant that I was under some kind of stress. "We have all been through a lot," Donnie mused. "Still, I should try to make her more comfortable." With that, Donnie exited his lab in search of a washcloth and a bowl of cool water.

My heart rate slowly returned to normal and I began to stir. I cracked my eyes open only to shut them again. Ugh, it's so bright in here, I thought to myself. ''C'mon, it's just like waking up from a dream. Try again.'' I attempted to open my eyes again, but this time I let them flutter open. "Where am I?" I wondered as I gazed upon my surroundings. There were monitors and a computer set up on a desk. Tubes and wires were everywhere. I noticed a lot of them were in me. I tried to move, but a sharp pain in my ribs seared through me. "What happened to me?" I grimaced. "I remember a window...the Shredder...and charging at the Shredder...but not much else."

I suddenly got the sense that I wasn't alone. I looked around the room again. "Hmm, monitors...computer...tubes...wires...Leo...Leo?!" I gasped. "What happened to him?"

Looking at Leo, I was heartbroken. He looked so fragile, so helpless. He lay very still. His breathing was normal from what I could tell, but he was a mess. His left shoulder and arm were wrapped in a bandage. I remembered that Shredder had slashed him when Leo was trying to save me. He also had bandages wrapped around his plastron. I had no idea why those were there. He had a split lip and the side of his face was swollen to twice its normal size. Sadness washed over me. This was all my fault. I had practically begged the Turtles for their help. If I hadn't gotten them involved, then Leo wouldn't be hurt right now.

It was at that moment that Donnie returned. In one hand, he held a bowl and in the other he held a washcloth. I felt relief at the sight of Donnie. At least I knew now where I was and that I was safe. Also, I knew that Leo was safe, too.

"Oh, good. You're awake," Donnie said with relief in his voice. Then he added, "I thought I'd try to make you a little more comfortable." He crossed the room and set the bowl on a table near my bed. He dipped the washcloth in the bowl, wrung it out, and proceeded to dab lightly at my forehead. He repeated this several times. The cool washcloth felt good against my skin.

"Donnie...this is nice, but I'm fine...really," I began. Donnie gave me a knowing look, the kind of look one gets when being cared for by a parent. It's the I-know-you're-going-to-be-fine,-but-I'm-going-to-do-this-anyway-for-your-own-good look. I continued, "But Leo, he's..." I was at a loss for words. "What happened to him?"

Donnie wore a sad expression as he looked at his fallen brother. Then, looking back at me he said, "We all took a beating in our fight against the Shredder, but Leo took it the worst..."

*Flashback*

(Author's note: Hopefully, I have made this clear enough. I've discovered that flashbacks are not easy to write. So here are some directions. The words in italics are Donnie's as he tells what happened. The rest is the actual flashback. And now, as you were.  Enjoy!)

"What is she doing?" Donnie asked.

"Something's wrong," Leo replied.

We all saw that you took a leap at the Shredder...

Shocked, Leo cried out, "Lauradane! Don't!"

''We were all a little excited after you had connected with Shredder and he let go of your little son; well, all of us except for Leo. He knew that something was up. He seems to have a sixth sense about these things. When Shredder grabbed you, Leo got really tense.''

"We've got to help her!" Mikey exclaimed.

"I hope you're happy, Leo," Raph growled, glaring at his brother. "We should've never let her go in here alone."

Leo was determined to make this right...

"SHREDDER!" Leo shouted, his eyes narrowing. "Let her go!"

''Shredder demanded to know where Sensei was. You had refused to tell him, which I thank you for, but now Shredder threatened to kill you. We thought that maybe we could call his bluff...''

"We'll never tell you anything, Shredder!" Donnie spat back at him.

"Very well, then," Shredder replied, raising his sharp claw once again.

''Leo seemed to anticipate what was going to happen and jumped in the way of Shredder's claw with his own swords to take the hit in an effort to save you, as you already know. This only angered Shredder who shoved Leo hard to get Leo off of him.''

''We all couldn't believe what Shredder did to you. However, this also distracted Leo and Shredder took this opportunity to attack Leo, slashing him in the shoulder and arm leaving a large jagged gash.''

''Leo cried out in pain which spurred Raph to action. Then Mikey and I quickly joined in. Leo was having trouble fighting because of his shoulder. He heard you cry out and went to you. I thought that he had said, "I promise," at one point, but then before we knew it he was coming back to us. He had found his swords along the way and once he reached us we continued the fight.''

''That's when everything went horribly wrong. Leo was determined to save your family after talking to you. However, he also knew that Shredder was a major obstacle so he decided to use a divide and conquer tactic. Leo ordered Raph, Mikey, and I to go and free your family. Leo said that he would handle Shredder. I had a bad feeling, but followed Leo's orders anyway. We headed off to rescue your family and left Leo to defend against Shredder.''

''Leo and Shredder began to battle. Shredder had raised his claw and Leo had drawn one sword since his injured shoulder and arm prevented the use of his other sword. Leo and Shredder locked claw and sword. Leo pushed Shredder's claw off of him. They continued their battle through the clash of metal. However, since Leo only had use of one arm it didn't take long for Shredder to gain the upper hand as Leo quickly grew tired. Shredder knocked the sword from Leo's hand. Then he grabbed Leo by the arm and yanked him up causing Leo to yell from the pain. Leo tried to defend himself from the attacks, but Shredder was able to dodge a worn out Leo. Laughing, he kicked Leo so hard in his plastron that you could hear the ribs crack. Leo fell to his knees clutching the front of his plastron as blood dribbled from his mouth. Then to top it off, he kicked Leo in the face, knocking him out. Shredder was about to finish Leo off when Raph came running. Mikey and I quickly followed. Raph threw his sai at Shredder's claw, piercing the skin around it.''

"We have to get out of here!" Donnie yelled. "Raph, grab Leo! I'll get Lauradane."

*End Flashback*

I was stunned. Never before had I known anyone so selfless as to risk their own life, to the point of near death, for me. When he wakes up I'll have to let him know how grateful I am to him, I thought. He saved my life. "Come on, Leo," I whispered. "Please wake up."

To Be Continued...