"Seriously, Donnie? These things again?"

Donatello arches an eye-ridge at Raphael, a confident smirk on his lips. "Trust me, Raph, these are our best option. It'll save us time."

The five mutants stare at the bat-like flying contraptions set before them. Destiny is most intrigued by them, admiring the harness and the fans mounted at the peak of the wings.

"You guys used these before?" she asks.

"Yeah, Donnie made them to help us infiltrate TCRI a year or two ago during that Technodrome incident," Leonardo says. Destiny's eyes widen slightly in awe and he looks to Donatello. "We haven't used them since, but we have our reasons."

"Getting airborne is the hard part," Donatello says. "We used the Turtle Rocket last time."

"It. Was. Boss," Michelangelo says with a fist-pump. Raphael turns a little greener at the thought.

"There's only four pairs, so someone will have to pair up," Donatello says. "I can make a few modifications to the harness and adjust the wing strength, but it'll work. I'll just need some time."

"Okay, you do that and we'll double check the plan," Leonardo says. "As for pairing up, how about Destiny comes with me? Any arguments on that? No? Good."

Destiny arches an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"It makes the most sense. You're lighter than us plus the harnesses were made to fit a more bulky frame," Donatello says, tapping his shell once.

Destiny glances at Leonardo, then shrugs. "Alright, fair enough."

"I'll get to work," Donatello says. As the others start for the door, he calls, "I'll let you know when it's ready!"

-----------

"Oh...my...word," Destiny gasps.

The cold air sends her curls into a flurry around her face, forcing her to spit some of the locks from her mouth. Whenever she does that, the Turtle Glider wobbles in mid-flight and she gets a swift reminder of how high off the ground they are. She can see most of New York City with ease and while part of her is ecstatic, the other feels unsteady.

Beneath her, Leonardo spares a brief glance over his shoulder to where she's been fastened to his back. "You okay up there?"

"Just trying not to die."

"You can just hold me tighter."

Despite the small "hmph" that he hears, he's more focused on the fact that he can feel her tightening her grip on him. Destiny adjusts her hold slightly as her head falls to just below his neck, allowing her a glimpse of his wide smirk.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" she accuses.

"Maybe a little."

"Coming up to TCRI!" Donatello calls from Leonardo's left flank before pulling slightly ahead, closely followed by Raphael and Michelangelo.

"Dudes, I love flying!" Michelangelo whoops, stopping to do a figure eight.

Raphael shoots a grin towards Leonardo and Destiny. "How's the extra weight, Leo?"

"One more comment about my weight and I will turn this formation around!" Destiny retorts, making Leonardo laugh.

They swoop close to the double-pronged peak of the TCRI building. They bank and circle the perimeter, Donatello searching the smooth edges for any vantage point. He gasps and perks up abruptly, earning the attention of his family swiftly.

"Open window on the starboard side!" he calls. After a brief look of confusion from his brothers, he sighs. "Right, the right side. Port is left, starboard is right, we went over this!"

"Why not just say that?" Michelangelo asks.

"Forget it."

They glide into the correct position and prepare for landing. Destiny shuts her eyes as the glider wobbles yet again, her hold getting a little snugger.

"Good evening, m'lady," Leonardo says in a nearly perfect imitation of Captain Ryan's voice. "We have reached our destination at the TCRI building in iconic New York City. Please keep your arms and legs wrapped around your extremely dashing captain as he prepares to land."

"Oh, shut up," Destiny grumbles despite clinging to him like a lifeline.

"It's currently a brisk November day, forecast calls for snow later this week—"

"Leo, I swear to God—"

"You love me."

"Not right now, I don't."

He laughs yet again. "Brace yourself."

He releases the straps on the glider, dropping both of them through the open window after the others. The four pairs of wings drop to the floor and while Destiny tries to pull her windswept hair back into some semblance of order, the turtles fold up the wings into a compact backpack and slip them onto their shells. With that, the mutants head out.

They reach the sleek, winding hallways and Donatello immediately heads in the direction of Sarina's cell. The rest follow, Destiny sniffing the air and keeping an eye on every corner. As they reach the correct hallway, she frowns.

"Guys, I don't smell her anywhere," she mutters.

"If she hasn't left the cell since she got back, the trail could be gone," Leonardo suggests.

"Then how do we find her?" Michelangelo asks.

Destiny mutters something to herself and shuffles off, sniffing around the entire length of the hallway while the turtles resort to watching her. Donatello is the only one who keeps going, eventually reaching Sarina's cell at the end of the hallway.

He can see it now. It'll be just like the first time when he and Destiny arrived. He'll peer inside and there she will be, sitting at her desk, scribbling away in a journal, but she'll be different in the best way. She'll be pensive, maybe a little melancholic, but her face will light up when he knocks on the glass and waves to her. He'll get the doors open and she'll be in his arms in a second. She'll be home.

The illusion shatters as soon as he sees the cell. It's been stripped bare except for a bed and a journal. He stares helplessly for a second before moving to the panel and punching in the last code he used to get in. After a few tries, the door slides open and he enters. It's like entering the room of someone who's recently died, like he's intruding on the property of something private, but she isn't gone. She can't be gone. If she's gone, how is he ever supposed to tell her everything that he wants to? There is so much he needs to tell her.

He goes to the bed and picks up the journal from where it's tucked near the smushed pillow and rumpled blanket. There's doodles and aimless wonderings inside, written by the hand of someone desperately trying to occupy themselves. His throat tightens up and he clutches the book to his plastron, squeezing his eyes shut.

She isn't gone, he repeats to himself. She isn't gone. It can't be too late.

"Wait, I smell something!"

He jerks as he whirls around. Destiny is right near the cell, kneeling down with her face aimed so close to the floor that she might as well be lying down. Her tail starts to wag and her head snaps up, a spark lighting in her gaze.

"It's faint, but it's there. I can find her," she says.

"Then do it!" Raphael urges.

She takes off down the hall. Donatello tucks Sarina's journal into his belt and takes off after his brothers, hope bubbling in his chest. Destiny is laser-focused, moving like a machine with her nose angled to the floor. Donatello has to admit, he finds her funniest when she's like this. It's like all the human goes out of her and she becomes almost completely animal. The only thing keeping that from being true is the fact that she doesn't drop onto all fours and creep along the floor like that.

Donatello frowns a little. His imagination is very active sometimes.

Destiny stops abruptly and, without so much as a verbal warning, herds the turtles into the nearest open cell as if they're sheep. Leonardo starts to speak but she places her fingers over his mouth, shaking her head. They wait. It feels like longer than it is before they hear the telltale sound of droid footsteps.

"Kraang, Kraang feels that which is known as glad to be almost done the preparations for that which is known as dimensional transport," one says.

"Yes, Kraang. Kraang agrees with the statement made by you," the second replies. "Kraang will be in the place that is home in the time unit that is...soon."

"Kraang will have to complete that which is the final transport."

"Good thing that Kraang is on the way to that place now."

Their voices fade down the hall, allowing the five teenagers a moment to relax. Raphael pokes his head out of the hiding spot, jaw clenching as he cracks his knuckles, and Destiny's head appears above his.

"Good riddance," he growls. "The less I see of their squishy mugs, the better."

Destiny's tail lashes. "I'd bet my Canadian quarters that they're the ones who could lead us to Sarina."

Michelangelo's head appears beneath Raphael's. "Dude, stop betting your reindeer coins. Those are special."

Donatello pops out over Destiny, one finger raised. "Caribou, Mikey, not reindeer. We have been over this." He looks down the hall and pouts his lip slightly. "As for the Kraang, it's likely that they're heading to the portal at the top of the building."

Leonardo steps out of the hiding place and observes his stacked teammates with an arched eye-ridge and crossed arms. "So, how about we follow those two before the trail goes cold?"

Destiny uses Raphael as a springboard to leap out into the hall, giving her nose a quick pinch and a brush before wiggling it. "I've got this."

She bounds away and the turtles give chase yet again. They duck into hiding spots whenever the need arises, Destiny keeping a sharp ear out for the pair of Kraang. Eventually, they watch as the aliens disappear into a set of sliding double doors. Donatello moves to the keypad and attempts to open it, but it denies access to any non-Kraang.

"I could hack it," he suggests.

"We could also go through that conveniently placed vent," Michelangelo says. He points to the grill of a vent embedded in the wall only a few feet away from the door.

"Mikey's plan is go," Leonardo agrees with a nod.

Raphael makes quick work of the vent cover and they climb inside. When they pop out the other side, they find themselves in the rafters of an all-too-familiar room. There's a giant Kraang portal in the centre of the room. Some Kraang brains in hovering flyers work at computers while others in droid bodies linger by a large cluster of everything from wooden crates to cages. One of the cages holds nothing but a pale girl in a white jumpsuit.

"That's a lot of Kraang..." Michelangelo mumbles.

Raphael reaches for his sais. "We can take them."

Leonardo holds out his arm, halting his red-masked brother's movements. In the second of waiting, there's a whirring noise and the portal comes to life. The transport pad is doused with purple, galaxy-filled light. From her cage, Sarina's expression morphs with desperation.

"This isn't going to be easy as we thought, huh?" Destiny asks.

"You're absolutely correct," Donatello agrees, a slight tremble in his tone.