Leap of Faith, Part Two: Into the Light

Chapter Thirteen

It was not an easy fight.

At first, after Donnie had disabled the lights, and as the Knights' security forces came rushing in, Leonardo thought that they might finish it soon; from what he'd seen of the other guards in this facility, the challenge of beating them would not have proven to be too great. However, the Knights themselves soon began filtering in, almost shadows themselves in the darkened room. They didn't seem to like fighting in the darkness, and Leo could hear one of them yelling into a phone or mic or something: “Turn up the lights on level....” He followed the man's voice, and prevented him from continuing his request: darkness was one of a ninja's greatest allies.

Leo and Donnie had moved closer together, and were soon standing shell to shell. “I want to find Bishop,” Leo said, parrying a clumsy thrust by a security guard. “He knows where she is, I'm sure of it.”

He slashed at two more Knights, who fell at his feet. “That usually isn't a problem,” Donnie replied, “Bishop likes to find us.” He and Leo somersaulted into two Knights at once, then hurried towards the sounds of Raphael and Michelangelo engaged in battle closer to the door. It was a little easier to see here, since outside of the room was lit, and Leo found himself searching each man's face for one that was familiar. He saw Jacob, whom he'd seen the night that he and Miranda had met, and watched him be cut down by Raph, who seemed to be enjoying himself.

Just then, he heard Donatello call his name. He made his way to his brother's side, and they managed to take out most of the guards surrounding Don with a few well-executed spins. “Leo, it's that one! To the left,” Donnie said, slamming his bo into a lunging Knight. “He was calling someone named Sullivan to get here!”

Jesse? Leo thought. He felt rather than heard a presence behind him, and ducked just in time to avoid a nasty slash from behind. He whirled around, and met his attacker.

“Jesse Sullivan?” Leo snarled, feeling his emotions boil to the surface at the sight of Miranda's ex-boyfriend, who even now smiled smugly at the Turtle before he landed a powerful blow to Leo's body.

“In the flesh, reptile.” He lunged at Leo, and the fight began in earnest. “You know, besides not being a freak, I have something that you'll never have.” Hunter managed to land a kick to Leo's plastron, knocking him back for a moment. “Mira's a beautiful girl, and I know what makes her tick-can you say the same, turtle? Have you ever made her sing for you? I have...”

This was where the battle got tricky. Jesse was a formidable foe, faster and stronger than most of the other Knights, his fighting style oddly similar to Bishop's quicksilver-like karate. But it was not that, Leo could have handled a little Bishop clone any day, but for the fact that as he fought, he began to graphically and vividly describe his relationship with Miranda. At least she must still be alive, with the way he's talking, Leo thought, landing a blow of his own. He tried to tune out the man's voice, but images of Miranda kept distracting him, causing him to take more hits than he was landing. He heard Raph call his name, and knew in the back of his mind that his brothers had seen his situation and were trying to come to his aid.

“C'mon Leo, shut that guy up!” Mikey called out. Leonardo glared at Hunter and took a defensive stance.

“None of that matters, Sullivan. As long as there is breath in me I will fight for her, so come on.”

He came, and Leo fended him off, hoping to eventually wear him out. But...

“John's making so much more of her,” Hunter continued. “He's made her like me, like him. One day, she and I will own this city, and she'll think of you even less than she does now. You know,” he grinned at Leo, his teeth glowing strangely in the darkness. “She forgot about you so fast....she was in my arms before I knew it. And I can only imagine what she let John do to her. He has that effect on women.”

“Dude, you seriously need to shut the fuck up!” Mikey yelled, leaping away from his foes and landing a severe blow to Hunter with his nunchaku.

“For once, Mikey's right!” Raph said, lunging at the head Knight with his sai. Stunned, Hunter turned to Leonardo, his eyes purple and glowing in the darkness just before he sank to his knees at Leo's feet.
Leo could hear that the battle was over; Donnie and Raph were now finishing off the remaining Knights, Mikey stood beside him, waiting to follow his brother's lead. Leo bent to regard Hunter, now coughing and clutching his side where Raph had struck him.

“Finish me, reptile.” His voice was weak, and he looked frightened at Leo's scrutiny. He looks like a kid, Leo thought, A stupid kid, but a kid nonetheless. Quite harmless.

“Why should I show you any mercy, after what you've just told me?” Leo asked quietly.

Jesse was silent for a moment. “I don't want her to end up like me,” he whispered at last, looking down at the blood pooling in his hands. “I just did what I thought was best for us.” He pointed up, not at Leo, but outside, towards the roof of the main building before dropping his head. “But I would never have come for her. I would have left her to him......There should still be time to find her.”

“Guys, we need to get to that building!” Leo shouted, pointing at the central structure of the Cathedral tower. Donnie nodded and pulled out their climbing equipment, and the Turtles rushed out of the room. They made their way outside to a secondary rooftop.

“Oh shit, look!” Mikey cried, pointing towards the very top of the massive tower. Leonardo felt fear clutch painfully inside him as he looked up to see a feminine form that could only have been one person, standing on top of the railing. He couldn't see her face, but could make out her dark hair whipping around her head with the wind. And he could see another figure, a tall, dark one that, even now, was stepping slowly over to her. His eyes narrowed as anger coiled within him.

“Come on, Leo!” Raph yelled, shoving him out of his trance. “Let's get going!”


“Leave me alone, Bishop,” Miranda said, fighting the tears that were straining to distort her vision and weaken her resolve. “Just let me go.”

Bishop moved closer to her, standing beside, his hands on the rail. “I'm glad that you're here-it shows a certain level of....development that I was hoping for. You can feel it, can't you? The strength building inside....soon you and I will bring justice upon all of those 'trespassers' that plague our world.” He lowered his glasses and smiled at her as she edged away the tiniest bit. “You father would be so proud of you, right now. All that work he and I completed-it's all come to fruition with you.”

“Shut up!” she cried, shutting her eyes at last against the chilling winds. A particularly strong gust came up and nearly knocked her off, but her hold remained.

“Come on, Miranda,” he said, his voice quiet, soothing. He placed a hand on her waist and began to move it in small circles. “You don't want to do this. Let me help you.”

I don't need your help, she thought, her eyes still closed. I just want Leonardo. That's it. Her eyes opened, and her gaze fell on four small green figures clambering up the side of the tower. She shifted her grip on the building slightly as she replied. “I don't care what you and my dad did together, I don't care how much money or power you have, and I don't care about how any of that affects me. I will not let you turn me into a weapon, like you did to Jesse. You loose, John.”

Her hands fell away from the building, and Bishop didn't have a chance to grab her before she threw herself off of the tower, and into the hands of fate.