Sin Sewer is the second story in Black, White & Green #3.
Appearing in Sin Sewer[]
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Minor characters[]
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Synopsis[]
In an alley somewhere in New York City, a disguised Raphael meets with a woman named Esmeralda. She had been sending messages through the sewers to get his attention. Esmeralda explains that her younger sister Jade is being held against her will by their parents. Though Esmeralda tried to free Jade when she escaped, she failed. Jade has tried to escape on her own, but now they are holding her in a prison. Esmeralda’s parents did business with lowlifes, which afforded them an upper-crust lifestyle. Having heard about Raph and his brothers, Esmeralda hopes that he can help her free her sister. Raphael agrees to take on the mission.
When Raph reached the building being used as a prison, he could imagine his brothers being held there. The rain is pouring down and guards stand outside as Raph further imagines Leo, Donnie and Mikey held there with no one caring about them. Imagining these things makes Raph do something Master Splinter always begged him not to do, he led with his anger.
Raph took his anger out on the guards, pummeling them with his fists, avoiding their gunfire, and destroying their weapons. He didn’t care who they were, to him they were bad and he was good and anything else he shut his mind to. As far as he was concerned, he was there to rescue a girl and anyone holding her was a monster.
Walking through a hallway of the building, Raph encounters a mountain of a man. As Raph takes punch after punch, he thinks on how his father told them that their weapons weren’t who they were, they were extensions of them. Tools to direct their skill and strength into. As the man stomps down on Raph’s chest with his booted foot, Raph thinks how he never had as much skill as his brothers – but he always had the most strength.
Slamming a foot into the back of the guard’s knee joint and then flipped up and over the man, kicking the man’s chin. He tells the huge man that if he had any respect for him, he would have called for backup the second Raph walked in. With the man down for the count, Raph continues on his search for Jade. However, the next room he enters is a large vault, and Esmeralda is already there with a crew of other women. They are raiding the place of the jewels stored there.
Raph asks about Jade, and Esmeralda admits she doesn’t have a sister. She is stealing her inheritance and is sure her parent’s insurance will pay for what Raph did. Raph is confused and she explains that she’d heard about the Turtles and that he was the proud, angry one. She knew he was the one who would fight the world’s “bad men” while she and her crew took the treasure. Raph realizes that she played him, and she says if it makes him feel better, he can always give those men his cut of the haul. Esmeralda also suggests he leave before men with heavier firepower show up. As Raph stands with his head hanging, Esmeralda and her gang make their getaway. On her way out, Esmeralda tells him that if he decides he wants his cut, they’ll be at an airfield not far from there. Her parting shot is to tell him that being a bruiser is what he’s meant to be.
Raph speaks about the fact that Esmeralda had told him a story he wanted to be a part of, one that was black and white, where he was good and his shortcomings made him even better. Standing at an entrance to the lair, he says that he acted like a tough guy, but he doesn’t want to be one because tough guys always die alone. He is a ninja, part of a clan and he needs his clan to help him clean up his mess. He then asks if they will help him.
At the airfield, Esmeralda and her gang prepare to board a plane. She spots Raph and tells the gang to make sure everything’s secure while she meets with him. Esmeralda asks if Raph is coming or going. Raph says that he was thinking about joining up because he needs someone smart to tell him what to hit. She responds that’s flattering and he says credit where it’s due, that she played on his insecurities. But then, he says, she expected him to be too embarrassed to own up to them.
There is the sound of fighting and then all four Turtles are together, standing over Esmeralda and her gang, who are all tied up. The bags of loot are on the ground next to them, though Michelangelo has donned a couple of necklaces, a ring and a crown. Raph then tells Esmeralda that if she did have siblings, she’d know that being embarrassed around them comes with the territory. His brothers were very happy to help him. Donatello, who is wearing several watches, adds that the jewelry flatters their complexions.