A/N: Eclipse, Genevieve, Josephine, Johnathon, and Pollyanna belongs to GeekyCookie1. Maya belongs to MayanTheSerpentine. Mara, Zane, Calista, Cameron, Noelle, Tyson, Soren, and Isabella belongs to MariChat3.

Enjoy!

"At last, here we have the monster that Oroku Saki really is."

THE MUTANT TIGER was patiently leaning against a tree just before the fog while Razar was sitting on a large rock and FishFace was impatiently tapping his foot on the ground as the three of them continued to wait.

"Would you stop tapping your foot on the ground!?" Razar snapped, glaring at his comrade. "It's getting annoying."

"Annoying?" FishFace questioned with a scoff. "We're stuck in this kingdom because the fog won't let us leave. Why are we even here anyways?"

"Master Shredder's and Master Jake's treatments are done," TigerClaw informed. "Soren contacted me a few hours ago and say that they were on the way."

Razar raised an eyebrow. "I thought it was supposed their treatment was supposed to take a few weeks or months to finish, especially Master Jake's treatment with mixing Princess Briana's blood into the mutagen."

"That is what I believed as well." TigerClaw responded before picking up two scents in the air.

The three evil mutants turned towards the fog as it opened up, revealing the path in front of them. The first ones to walk through were Rocksteady, Bebop, Stockman-fly, Soren, Isabella, Cameron, Noelle, Tyson, and lastly, the newly mutated Shredder and Jake were the last ones to step through.

"Master Shredder! Master Jake!" TigerClaw glared at the three scientists. "What have you three done—"

"This is what we desired!" Shredder spoke. "With this new body, Splinter, his wretched turtles, Henry Hart, and Princess Briana won't..." he groaned in pain as he held his head, prompting Rocksteady and Bebop to help him stand.

"Master Shredder, with all due respect, we warned you about this," Isabella stated. "The formula is unstable, and you used it all."

"What!?" TigerClaw and Razar exclaimed in unison.

"You cannot venture into unknown territory as you are now!" Stockman-fly added, staring at his master's new body.

"As much as I'd hate to agree, I have to," Soren added. "Your body— both of your bodies need time to—"

"SILENCE!" Jake snapped, making all of the henchmen go quiet. "Father and I are better! Better than we were before! TigerClaw, what of the turtles, Henry Hart, and Briana?"

TigerClaw hesitated for a split second before he spoke up. "They reside in the Crystal Empire, Master Jake, being approached by Quill Sentry after our attack."

At the name, Jake couldn't help but smirk sinisterly as he chuckled darkly. "Well then, time to pay a visit to some old friends."

But as they discussed their next move, nobody seemed to notice that they hadn't been the only ones that entered through the fog as a few bushes and tree branches silently moved, figures that had followed them through the fog vanishing before they could get spotted.

👑👑👑

TO SAY THAT Briana had no idea what to feel was an understatement. For her entire life, a part of her has always dreamed about her parents and they were, but with all of the scenarios she thought of, she never considered the possibility of them being a king and queen— royalty. It was indeed true that she had dreamed about her parents and wondering who they were but at the same time, she kept all of her anger, sadness, loneliness, and the pain of abandonment locked down and buried deep beneath her walls, hiding how she felt about them with every scenario she's made up about them.

She did all of that to protect herself from feeling all of that pain— the very pain of believing that she hadn't— wasn't good enough for them and it was why her own parents had chosen to let her grow up without them. Despite dreaming about who her parents might be, Briana wasn't all too thrilled about the situation as she had no idea how to feel about any of this.

"...Bri, you good?"

Briana blinked, snapping back to reality where she found her siblings and friends staring at her, small hints of concern written in their eyes while they were all waiting in the castle's courtyard after the three evil mutants had left the kingdom.

She nodded slowly, pursing her lips together. "Yeah, I'm fine."

But none of them seemed too convinced and before they could ask again, the doors to the castle opened and they all turned towards it. In the entrance, Queen Twilight Sparkle stood there with her violet eyes remaining solely on Briana, staring at her eldest daughter for the first time since the day of her birth while Diana was standing next to her.

The one that she didn't get to see grow up.

Awkwardly, Briana couldn't help but pursed her lips together, biting the lower half of her lip as she stared back at the older woman herself— the one that was her mother—and glancing over at the younger teenaged girl that stood next to her every now and then.

And as the older woman slowly made her way towards her, the five mutant turtles, Henry, Kaz, Mara, Zane, Calista, April, and Casey couldn't help but glance over at Briana, as if they were waiting to see her reaction. Though, Calista could care less and wanted nothing more than to get it over with already.

Queen Twilight Sparkle found herself standing in front of Briana and directly into her sapphire blue eyes— the very eyes that resembled her husband's eyes. She gently reached her hands out and rested them on Briana's cheeks, holding her face in her hands while tears filled her violet eyes at reuniting with her eldest child after fifteen years before pulling her in for a hug, holding her firmly.

"You found us." Queen Twilight Sparkle said softly, her vision blurring with tears. Diana had finally moved at this point and at first, was a bit unsure, before she joined the hug as well.

And as much as Briana wanted to let herself enjoy this, the feeling of a motherly touch that she had never had before— the soft and warm motherly touch that would make any little kid feel safe and loved in the arms of their mother, but although Briana could feel her heart telling to give in to it, to let herself enjoy it, she could feel her brain—the logical side of her reminding her of all the pain she's buried deep down, reminding her of the abandonment that she grew up with.

It was as if she could hear a voice from deep down inside of her, reminding her of the very reason why she had made her walls in the first place— to protect her from facing the pain she's had for her entire life.

To keep doing the very thing she's done her entire life— burying all of it deep down behind her walls to protect herself from feeling the pain she's always had.

So, despite the fact that her heart was practically screaming at her to give in to it— to let her emotions out, she didn't listen to it and out of fear, she listened to her brain instead— to the little voice inside of her that reminded her not to give in to it, to continue protecting herself.

So, that's what she did as she kept her arms at her sides, remaining still during the hug as she could feel the eyes of everyone else watching her carefully, as if they were all waiting for her to break apart and she hated it.

She hated how broken and lost she felt in that very moment because it was only reminding her of how she's felt her entire life.

Like the lost and broken little girl she's always been.

Like an orphan.

And when the hug was over and the two had pulled away, Briana kept her mouth shut tightly, not trusting herself to speak in case she couldn't stop the words from coming out, not even when the older woman— the one that was her mother, gave everyone a warm smile before speaking up, offering the castle to them.

"Come inside, all of you."

👑👑👑

EVERYTHING ABOUT THE castle felt strange to her, like she didn't belong there. No, she knew that she didn't belong there— not in a castle when her entire life was spent growing up and living in the lair within the sewers of New York City. She might've been born a princess, but she knew nothing about being one or how to act like one. Not to mention, she just learnt that she now had a younger sister. Although Briana didn't have anything against Diana, but she didn't know anything about being a big sister, not when she had been the little sister her entire life.

What if she'd turn out to be a terrible big sister? What if she'd turn out to be a terrible daughter? What if she'd turn out to be a terrible princess?

Everything about her life was changing and Briana was terrified about it.

"...Briana?"

Once again, Briana found herself snapping back to reality as she blinked, realizing that eyes were on her. "Um... what?"

"We're together, finally," Queen Twilight Sparkle stopped for a second, letting herself take a deep breath. She didn't enjoy the fact that she had no idea how to approach her own daughter. "And I can't help but think you're not happy about it."

For a split second, Briana felt a twinge of guilt washed over her. Was it really that noticeable that she wasn't quite sure of what to feel? She pushed the guilt away and shook her head.

"I... I am. It's just..." Briana started, looking between the Queen and Diana. She froze for a second, unsure of what to do and before she knew it, her lips were moving before she could even stop herself. "Here's the thing: I've dreamed about meeting my parents for my entire life, wondering about who they might be. But no matter what the circumstances are, it doesn't change the fact that for fifteen years, I only knew one thing: that my parents sent me away."

"We did that," Queen Twilight Sparkle explained. "To give you your best chance."

But Briana shook her head, seeing a different view in her own mind. "You did it for everyone because that's who you are: leaders, queens, kings, heroes— and that's great... and wonderful... and amazing, but... it still doesn't change the fact that for my entire life," she gestures to her friends and siblings before she kept going, "despite having them in my life... I've always been... alone."

"But if we haven't sent you away to Yoshi, you would've gotten captured by Saki— or someone worse."

"Or maybe not," Briana added. "You don't know what would've happened or how things would've turned out because... nobody does, and nobody ever will."

The silence in the room turns thick with tension in the air and again, Briana hated how she could feel everyone staring at her, like she was about to break down in front of them and she knew that if she didn't get out of that room fast enough, there was a high chance that she would.

Briana swallowed the lump feeling in her throat as she closed her eyes for a second before reopening them. "I... I'm gonna go."

And so, Briana hastily walked away to get away from the prying eyes that she could still feel watching her every movement. She had no idea where she was going as she moved into the hallway and walking up the stairs, but she just knew that she had to get away from everyone. She found herself walking through the hallways until she walked past a room where the door had been peaked open, as if someone had been inside of it earlier.

She tried to ignore the curiosity, but Briana let out a small sigh before walking towards it, slowly pushing the door open a bit more and stepping inside of the room, only to find that it was a nursery. The only difference was that it wasn't just any nursery and it definitely wasn't Diana's nursery, given that she was thirteen now.

It was her nursery.

Again, Briana swallowed the lump feeling in her throat as she slowly walked over to the crib that stood in the middle of the room, a unicorn mobile hanging over it. A rocking chair sat still in the left corner of the room and a couple of bookcases around the room that held a few stuffed animals on the shelves. There was a dresser in the right corner of the room that she assumed was filled with baby clothes inside of it— clothes that she hadn't wore but most likely, Diana had.

Briana remembered how back when she was a baby or a lot younger, she used to share a room with her brothers and sister. She was fine with it, despite the few arguments that had happened because Michelangelo had touched Raphael's stuff, but at the end of the day, sharing a room with them made her feel safe and loved. It wasn't till that they were all a bit more older where Splinter had given them their own bedrooms that Briana had to admit that having her own space and being able to hide her diary without worrying about her brothers and sister finding it was nice.

That's when she saw it.

A machine— a portal; the very one that had no doubt sent her to Splinter in the very first place was resting on the other side of the nursery. The wires of the machine had been severed and cut, leaving no way for the machine to be used again. She walked over to it, resting a gentle hand on it while she couldn't help but wonder how that very machine could send her to the sewers in New York City.

"Hey," Briana turned her head around to see Kaz slowly stepping into the room before moving to stand next to her. "You okay there?"

"I... I don't know." Briana admitted.

"Yeah, I can get that," Kaz said before looking over at the machine. "So, this is it? The machine that...?" He let himself trailed off.

"That sent me to Master Splinter when I was a baby? Yeah," Briana said as she nodded slowly. "I guess it is."

Kaz took his eyes off of the machine and moved them onto Briana, who still hadn't looked away from the machine, but for a split second, he saw something flashed in her eyes for a second before it vanished.

Anger.

Anger that wasn't directly to him, but anger that was directly at this very room, her mother, and at herself— something that Kaz could understand all too well. After all, he held some anger inside that was directly at himself and his own father.

But he wasn't the one that he was focused on right now.

"It's okay to be angry, you know," Kaz said. "I mean, I'd probably be angry if I was in this situation too."

Briana bit the bottom half of her lip, taking her hand off of the machine and finally looking away from it. "I'm not angry, really," she tried to denied. "I just... I'm confused."

"Maybe, but I can see the look on your face. You're angry too, you're just trying to hide it," Kaz said. "I get that, because I do the same thing sometimes too."

Briana glanced up at him, letting her eyes met his. "You do?"

Kaz nodded. "Yeah," he admitted. For a split second, he hesitated on telling her since the only other person who knew about it was Casey, but he decided to go for it since he trusted her. "When my parents divorced, I was so angry with my dad but I was angry with myself too— I still am sometimes. I blamed myself for their divorce, thinking that it was because of me or I did something to make my dad leave. At first, I tried to push everyone away because I was afraid that maybe they'd end up leaving me too, like my dad did. I even tried to push Casey away, but of course, his stubborn ass wouldn't let me." He smiled softly at the smallest hint of a giggle that left Briana's lips at the last part he say. "The point is, I know you're angry and I'm sure you've been hiding a lot of how you're feeling since you were kid, even from your brothers and sister, but I want you to know that you don't have to hide it from me. If you need to yell at someone or do anything to let it out, then you can with me. You can trust me."

Briana could've swore that her heartbeat skipped a beat from within her chest at his words. She did trust him, with everything she had, she really did. It wasn't Kaz or anyone else that she didn't trust.

It was herself, she was the one that she didn't trust.

"I do trust you, I do," Briana answered honestly. "It's not you or any of the others that I don't trust, it's... me. I don't trust myself."

"Why?"

"Because I..." Briana trailed off for a second and before she could even register it, the words were leaving her lips before her brain could even realize and stop them. "Because I'm so, so angry. I've been angry for so long, wondering how my parents could choose to let me grow up without them but now, I'm seeing all of this—" she gestures to the nursery around them. "And... I'm scared now because it's like... they gave up everything for me and I'm scared. I'm scared because what if I do let them in and I'm not what they pictured or wanting and in the end, they'll just leave me. I'm scared because... what if I end up all alone again. I'm scared because what if... what if..."

"What if Leo, Henry, Raph, Donnie, Mikey, and Clips leave you?" Kaz finished gently for her.

Briana nodded, her vision blurring with tears— tears that she fought with all of her strength to keep them from falling. "I... I'm not good at this. I don't know how to be a big sister or— or even a princess. I..." she looked up at Kaz. "I'm not used to someone, someone that's not Leo, Henry, Raph, Donnie, Mikey, Clips, or Master Splinter— putting me first. I... I'm sorry."

"Hey," Kaz said as he softly wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into his arms and letting her buried her face into his chest just as the tears beginning to slip from her sapphire blue eyes. "Don't apologize, you don't have to apologize for feeling this way. Everything's gonna be okay."

As Kaz stood there, he kept his arms around Briana for the hug and held her while letting Briana keep her face buried in his chest as she held onto him as well, silent tears slowly making their way down her face.

But neither one of the two realized that her mother— Queen Twilight Sparkle had been listening to the whole thing with her own silent tears in her violet eyes.

👑👑👑

"SO, SOME FAMILY reunion, right?" Michelangelo attempted to joke, only for the others to look over at him with unamused expressions on his face. Raphael even reached over and smacked the back of his head.

"You seriously gotta find better timing." Raphael said.

"Or she could just not be a big baby about this." Calista muttered under her breath.

Henry's ears pricked at her words and he glared deadly at her, clenching his fists while fighting back the wolf that thrashed inside of him, growling angrily at her.

Diana, on the other hand, had been staring in the direction that Briana had left in with a small frown on her face before looking back at everyone else. "Is she...?"

"She'll be okay," Eclipse said. "If there's anyone that could break through to her, it's Kaz."

"Especially now that they, you know," Casey snickered as he and Michelangelo started making kissy noises while the others rolled their eyes at them.

"Hey, Ana."

Diana smiled at the familiar voice and turned around to see a teenaged boy with tanned skin, light brown hair, and silver eyes. He was wearing a long-sleeve black shirt, dark grey jeans, black sneakers with white laces on it, and a black beanie on his head. He also had a golden pin on his shirt that has the symbol of a crystal star on it that symbolizes his loyalty to the Crystal Empire.

"Hey, John," Diana greeted her best friend. "Everyone, this is Johnathon but I call him John. He's my best friend, but he's also my personal guard."

"A personal guard?" Zane asked.

"Who would've been Bri's if she was here?" April asked curiously.

"Well, technically, it was supposed to be Jake, but then, you probably know..." Diana explained. "But after Jake left, Cameron became a knight so, I guess, technically, it would be him—"

Mara couldn't help but snort, nearly choking on her laughter. "Cameron? I'm sorry, but that dude is way too obsessed with Bri."

"He's not exactly the noblest either," Henry added. "Not to mention, he's a sexist too."

"Obsessed?"

"He calls Bri 'his princess' and pretty much acts like she belongs to him," Leonardo explained. "It's like she's a piece of property to him."

"He pretty much hates all of us too," Casey said. "Though, mainly Kaz, but that's because Cameron sees Kaz as his rival, who's trying to take Bri from him."

Donatello rolled his eyes with a scoff. "As if, it's obviously that Cameron doesn't stand a chance."

"Yeah, dude, Bri's been in love with Kaz since she met him," Michelangelo said, clearly not seeing Cameron as a big threat despite not being a fan of him. "I wouldn't worry too much about him."

"Yeah, if only Bri didn't trust him," Henry added. "She's the only one who does and that's cause she thinks Cameron's her friend."

"She'll figure it out," April said. "She has to see his true colors."

Calista rolled her eyes as she muttered under her breath. "I wish everyone here would see yours, girlfriend-stealer."

Once again, Henry's ears pricked as he narrowed his eyes at Calista. He was about to open his mouth to said something, but someone else beat him to it.

The Aeon crystal around her neck glowed slightly as April glared darkly at the teenaged girl. "You got something to say, Diaz?" She snapped bitterly while the others, even Henry, blinked at the sudden bitterness in her tone.

Calista wasn't expecting the teenaged girl to respond back and was taken aback at first before shaking it off and sending a quick glare at her before smiling quickly, giving off her best fake smile. "Of course not, O'Neil."

John couldn't help but snorted lightly, sliding his hands into his pockets. 'That is the most obvious fake smile I've seen. She's clearly threatened by her.' He thought secretly to himself.

"Anyways..." Diana said, deciding to get rid of the sudden tension between the two teenaged girls and spotted four other figures walking over to them. "Finally, there they are."

Everyone looked over to see three teenage girls walking over— and Raphael happened to recognize one of them as the girl he met during the fight with FishFace. One of the teenaged girls has black hair, yellow eyes, a white short-sleeve shirt with silver stars on it, black jeans, a leather jacket with spikes on the shoulders, and black boots.

The second one had red hair, light green eyes that were shielded by her black glasses, a long-sleeve white shirt but her sleeves had been rolled up halfway, black leggings, and white boots.

Lastly, the third one had blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She was wearing a white shirt that had short-sleeves, a blue skirt that had a few white stars lined at the bottom half of her skirt, and white sneakers.

But Raphael couldn't help but let his emerald green eyes focus on the one that he recognized from before. "Wait, it... it's you."

Despite the others looking confused, the teenaged girl only gave him a friendly smile. "Me again. I was kinda hoping to see you again."

And for some reason, Raphael couldn't help but agree with her as his eyes met her indigo purple eyes.

"Uh, did you two meet already?" Eclipse questioned.

Raphael snapped back to reality at his sister's question. "Uh, kinda. She gave me a hand during the fight against FishFace."

"Well, everyone, those are my friends; Maya, Josephine, Pollyanna, and Genevieve," Diana introduced. "Pollyanna also happens to be my lady-in-waiting and Josie technically Briana's lady-in-waiting."

"Lady-in-waiting?" Michelangelo asked curiously. "What's that?"

"A lady-in-waiting-- or court lady is a female personal assistant at a court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking noblewomen—"

But before Donatello could finish explaining to his brother, there was a sudden scream that came from outside.

👑👑👑

EVERYONE REGROUPED WITH both Kaz and Briana outside of the castle while the citizens of the kingdom were quick to run to try to find a place for their safety while three evil mutants standing in front of the group.

"Greetings, old friends." TigerClaw said, a devilish smirk on his face as he stared at them.

"Oh, come on!" Raphael complained, a groan leaving his lips. "You guys again!?"

"Oh, we're the least of your concerns, amigos." FishFace stated, a low chuckle leaving his lips.

The three evil mutants moved out of the way and for everyone else, their eyes widened in horror while gasps were heard at the two newly mutated enemies that stepped forward.

"Uh... please tell me that's not... them." April commented.

"Holy chalupa..." Michelangelo gasped.

"That's... that's just gotta be another one of his freaky clone monsters, right?" Eclipse asked.

Donatello gulped, in a fearful tone. "No, I... I think that's really them."

Henry clenched his fists at the two mutants. "It's them, alright."

"Come on," Leonardo stated to his friends and siblings. "Let's take them down."

Immediately, everyone went to attack the three evil mutants and the two newly mutated enemies. Although TigerClaw, FishFace, or Razar were no challenge, it wasn't the same case with the newly mutated Shredder or Jake.

"Dudes, we can't beat them! They've turned into some kind of Super Shredder or Jakestiltskin!" Michelangelo said.

Jake, or newly named 'Jakestiltskin' by the orange masked mutant turtle, chuckled lowly, a sinister smirk forming on his face. "You know, for the first time, he's right."

Bits of dark green psionic energy formed at the tip of his fingertips before Jake waved his arms in opposite directions, a magic blast shooting out from his body and sending them all crashing to the ground.

"It's about time that we get to feast on their bones." Razar said, chuckling softly to himself.

Just as the group were about to get surrounded, Razar was suddenly kicked across the face and sent flying away from the group before falling onto the ground and rolling to a stop. A fist was thrown into TigerClaw's face that sent him stumbling back before crashing onto the ground while FishFace was grabbed from behind and thrown into a wall before falling onto the ground.

"You idiots can't seem to go a second without getting attacked or killed, can you?" Derek questioned in a teasingly tone, standing next to Scott.

"How did you guys get past the fog?" Donatello questioned as they all stood up.

"We followed them through," Scott said. "And just a heads up, we didn't come alone."

"You know, since you guys are in desperate need of help." Derek added teasingly.

As if it was on cue, the familiar bodies of Bebop, Rocksteady, Soren, Isabella, Stockman-fly, Cameron, Noelle, and Tyson were all knocked down onto the ground as the Mighty Mutanimals, David, Natalie, Daniel, Karai, and Splinter stepped forward while the guards also joined as well.

Mara smirked. "Now, this seems like a fair fight."

Casey smirked as well. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's do this!"

Both sides charged at the other, the fight starting up once again. "You... you've become everything you loathe— everything you hate! A mutant!" Karai spat at the man that she had thought was her father.

Super Shredder let his eyes fall onto her, his expression softening as he focused directly on her. "My daughter... please! I did this for you! To destroy our enemy! The monster who took your mother's life! Hamato Yoshi!"

"Is he serious right now?" Zane muttered to Briana.

For some reason, Derek didn't know why but he felt his eyes move to look over at Karai, a pang of sympathy washing over him at the words that had left his lips. Although he didn't believe the new mutant, there was a hint of understanding in his eyes when his eyes landed on her.

"You're insane! You are the monster!" Karai exclaimed at Super Shredder. "You've lied to yourself so much, you've come to believe an entire dream!"

"Silence!" Super Shredder exclaimed. "I was there! I saw what happened! The night he took your mother's life— with Flash Sentry and Quill Sentry helping him! I... I... I saw it!" For a split second, he seemed uncertain of what he was saying, almost as if he didn't know what to believe anymore.

As the fighting continued, none of them stood a chance against Super Shredder (and Jakestiltskin) as they were all beaten down. Transforming into her mutant snake form, Karai attacked next as she lunged at Super Shredder, wrapping her tail and lower body around his waist, lashing out at him with her fangs and snake arms. However, his entire body suddenly felt incredibly cold, too cold for Karai to hang on any longer, leaving her own shoulders open for Super Shredder to grab and slam her into the ground repeatedly until she lost consciousness.

Then, both Henry and Leonardo tried to attack from both sides of him with their respective swords, only for Super Shredder to merely swiped his arm to knock them both down, pinning them to the ground with his foot.

"Tell your master I have my daughter back! If he desires to see her one last time, come to the darkest mountains in this region!" He stated before stepping off.

The group of heroes recovered as the two newly mutated enemies, along with the rest of their goons gathered together before Jake waved his hand in the air, allowing the Foot Clan to vanish in a puff of green smoke. As the new information was still setting, Splinter remained back for a second while an all-too familiar man moved to stand next to him.

"It's been a while, Yoshi," Quill spoke up. "Wish I could say that it was under better circumstances."

"As do I, old friend."

A small frown formed onto his face, knowing that their reunion would have to wait since they had more pressing matters on the hand. "I see Saki hasn't changed a bit," Quill said with a small sigh. He then turned to face the mutant rat, a look of determination washing over his face. "He say the darkest mountains and I know them better than anyone. How about we go rescue your daughter?"

Splinter smiled softly at his friend.

"Thank you, Quill."

👑👑👑

WITH THE KINGDOM being protected by the guards with the help of the Mighty Mutanimals, Daniel, Natalie, and David, everyone else had made their way to the long and narrow mountain pass that Quill had lead them too. April grabbed onto her Aeon crystal, closing her eyes. "They're here," she confirmed, opening her eyes. "I can sense them."

"Stay vigilant. The Shredder is clearly baiting us into a trap." Splinter said as the group made their way through the pass, sticking close together.

"Sensei, Derek say that you guys followed them, but how did you guys find them in the first place?" Leonardo asked.

"The night before, I believe I heard the same voice that Briana has been hearing." Splinter revealed, getting all of their attention.

Briana looked curious by his words. "You heard it too?"

Splinter nodded. "Briefly, but I did."

"So, sensei hears this weird song, and the next thing we know is that Shredder and Jake are here as well," Donatello said, thinking it through. "TigerClaw say that he, FishFace, Razar got in because of Jake's magic so that's probably how the rest of them got in."

"You know, this whole thing is pretty crazy." Michelangelo commented.

"At this point, our entire lives are crazy." Kaz added.

Then, the group walked through the final part of the pass before coming to a stop, stepping out into a large clearing to find something horrifying in front of them. All around them were large identical several photographs that both Splinter and Shredder shared; one photograph was of Splinter, Shredder, Flash Sentry, and Quill dressed in ninja gear, another one was of the four men when they were kids, a third one was of Tang Shen holding baby Miwa, and the last one was of a helmetless and human Shredder gently holding a teenage Karai by the shoulders.

However, as his eyes stared at the last photo, Derek could feel a bubble of hatred and anger growing in his stomach, which surprised him since he hadn't dealt with the Shredder for that long to hate him.

"Um... what is all of this...?" April looked visibly disturbed as everyone else.

"Geez, you guys weren't kidding when you say that this guy's crazy." Scott said.

"This is all kinds of weird." Casey commented.

"More like psycho." Henry said.

"They say hell is composed of fire and brimstone, but that is not true." Super Shredder's voice echoed everywhere, causing the group to tense up as they drew what weapons they had and circled around each other. "In reality, the deepest pit of the inferno is actually cold and dark, and that place is reserved for traitors, a fitting place for a rat such as yourself! You betrayed me! You took Tang Shen away from me, and then you steal my daughter!"

"Yeah, he's clearly the same as always." Quill mumbled under his breath, rolling his eyes at the words that left his former friend's mouth.

"Show yourself, Saki!" Splinter demanded.

Henry's nose pricked at a scent in the air and his eyes widened. "Gasoline!"

Suddenly, a long trail of fire blazed through the pass that they came out of before, stretching all around them, setting on the photographs and surrounding everyone in a massive ring of fire.

"You turned her against me!" Super Shredder's voice continued to echo. "You brainwashed her! Karai is my daughter!"

"How many lives can you tell yourself, Saki!?" Splinter called right before the sound of a familiar scream fills the air.

The group turned towards a single and narrow path that only leads down a darkened cave where the only source of lights were the flames along the side.

"Just wait till I get free, Shredder!" The sound of Karai's voice along with a snake-like hiss was heard.

"Karai!" Leonardo called.

"Miwa!" Splinter was the first to run into the cave.

"Sensei, wait!"

Quill ran after his friend but before anyone else could follow the two men, TigerClaw, Razar, FishFace, Bebop, Rocksteady, Soren, Isabella, Cameron, Noelle, Tyson, and Jakestiltskin blocked their path while their grips tightened on their respective weapons.

👑👑👑

THE TWO MEN then entered a large cavern to find several large photographs of Tang Shen hanging from the ceiling where Karai was being held by her arms, struggling to get out.

"Father!" Karai spotted her father as the photos caught on fire. "It's a trap!"

"I will not leave you!" Splinter called.

"Behind you!"

At the same time, the two men whipped around as Super Shredder approached, dragging his claws along the cavern walls. "Saki, what have you done?" Splinter questioned.

"I have molded myself into perfection, rat man," Super Shredder growled. "Look upon me and know fear."

Quill glared at the man as the three got into a defensive circle. "You know, it's a shame Tang Shen isn't here to see the monster that you really are, and do you know why she isn't here?" He questioned. "Because you killed her that night, Saki. You did, all because you just had to act like a big baby because you weren't getting what you wanted."

Super Shredder growled as he glared at him. "Silence! I want her to see you two fall. Then, finally, your brainwashing will disappear, and she will remember that it was I who raised her, it was I who made her who she is. I sacrificed everything for her. Out of absolute love!"

Quill scoffed. "It's not love if you have to kidnap and force her into staying with you, Saki. Whatever shred of humanity died the night that you killed Tang Shen."

"He's right," Karai spoke to Super Shredder. "Your transformation to a monster is complete."

For a split second, it looked like those words from Karai hurt as Super Shredder closed his eyes. But then, he opened his eyes and turned to slash at the two men with the spikes growing from his hands. Both Splinter and Quill dodged the strike— Splinter strike his arm with his cane while Quill took out a kunai knife and stabbed it into Super Shredder's shoulder a few times. Splinter slammed his cane into Super Shredder's face, breaking the cane into pieces.

Super Shredder grabbed Quill and threw him into Splinter, sending the two crashing back into the wall before moving to kick them.

👑👑👑

BACK WITH THE others, everyone was fighting off against Jakestiltskin and the rest of the Foot Clan goons as Michelangelo avoided Razar's slash before leaping to try and lash out with a kick toward his mutant nemesis, but Razar caught his foot in his jaw before throwing him to the ground and pinning him down with his claws.

"I've always wanted to see a turtle without its shell!" Razar said.

"You wanna see me naked? Weirdo!" Michelangelo exclaimed.

"Down boy!" Donatello called, swinging his staff into the mutant dog and sending him flying through the air before crashing into the wall.

At the same time, Henry blocked Jakestiltskin's sword with his twin swords, jumping over the blade when he attempted to swing at him. Then, both of their swords clashed against the other when Jakestiltskin swung his sword at him and Henry blocked it again.

"My pathetic cousin might've deleted what we've had on the brain worms and I might have your baby brother's life in my hand, but I have another way of making you follow my commands." Jakestiltskin commented with a smirk.

Henry growled as he glared at him. "Try whatever you want, but it won't stop me from killing you before you even get the chance too."

Jakestiltskin only gave a maniacal laugh. "Oh, that's the spirit, Henry. But in this case..." he smirked devilishly. "All I need is your heart."

Then, Jakestiltskin used his strength to push Henry back and used one hand to move his sword to block both Henry's twin swords, keeping him busy with keeping his sword away from him. Then, he smirked as he reached his free hand out.

"No!"

Briana managed to push Henry out of the way in time, just as Jakestiltskin's hand plunged into her chest.

"NO!" Henry and everyone else called out in unison, horrified looks on their faces.

Jakestiltskin chuckled lowly. "Oh, you're so predictable— and pathetic. Don't you know? Love is weakness."

But when Jakestiltskin tried to pull her heart out, he couldn't as he was unable to pull his hand from her chest.

Briana, on the other hand, felt her eyes widened as in that very moment, she stood up straighter. "No. It's strength."

Then, before another word could be said from anyone, a wave of magic blasted from Briana's body, pushing Jakestiltskin away and knocking him— and the rest of his goons out, and away from the others. As the others ran over to her, Briana's eyes were still wide and this time, a small hint of panic was in them. "What was that?"

"You know, that's a good question, but we're gonna have to figure that out later." Eclipse said.

"Come on, we don't have any time to waste!" Leonardo called as they all ran down the same path that Splinter and Quill had ran down, hoping to catch up.

👑👑👑

"YOU ARE DERANGED, Saki!" Splinter told him as he avoided all of his attacks the best he could. "But I can help you! We can end this fight!" He backed against the wall and shot toward the side to avoid the crushing blow as Super Shredder's fist punched through solid stone.

"Now that I am your master, you will do anything to stop this!" Super Shredder stated as Splinter leapt away, but right as he landed, Super Shredder punched Splinter away, grabbed him by his tail as he soared, and slammed him on the ground repeatedly before throwing him away.

"You were always ungrateful, huh, Saki?" Quill questioned angrily as he slammed his foot across his face, causing Super Shredder to stumble back. "You just couldn't be happy with what you already had, couldn't you? But I mean, you always were the biggest loser out of all of us when we were kids." He leapt back to avoid one of Super Shredder's blows.

Super Shredder charged at him, raising his claws but Quill kneed him hard in the stomach before grabbing the back of his head and slamming it into the ground. While he was recovering from the attack, Quill leapt back and landed next to the mutant rat, helping his best friend stand up.

"We can't keep fighting him like this, Yoshi," Quill stated. "The moment we're exhausted, he'll kill us."

"You're right..." Splinter said, showing him the smoke bomb he pulled out. "Stay close to me."

"It is time my revenge comes to fruition!" Super Shredder jumped, ready to deliver the killing blow, but Splinter threw a smoke bomb into his face, blinding him long enough for the two of them to escape.

"COWARDS!" Super Shredder shouted, running after them. "FACE ME!"

Karai struggled against her shackles, switching to her snake form and using her tail to pick the locks. She dropped from the shackles, turning fully human again as she flipped and landed on the ground. "Don't worry, I'm on my way."

"Karai!"

She turned around and spotted everyone else entering the cavern as they ran over to her.

"Where's sensei and Quill?" Leonardo asked.

"Down the tunnel, Shredder went after them." Karai told them.

"Well, let's go! We gotta help them!" Mara said.

"Do we?" Calista mumbled underneath her breath, earning a glare from Henry and this time, even one from Derek and Scott, who had also heard her.

"Guys, wait," Karai said, stopping them. "He's just too powerful. Splinter and Quill together couldn't stop him."

"What if she's right?" Donatello asked. "I don't have access to my lab equipment so I can't cook up any retro mutagen."

"Even if we could, it'd be weeks before it'll even be ready." Briana added.

"We don't have to beat him," Henry said. "For now, let's just get sensei and Quill out of there. We can figure out a plan once everyone's safe."

April tried to reach out with her powers again as she grabbed onto her Aeon crystal. "I can sense them... somewhere... deeper underground. I think I can track them."

"You think?" Calista muttered underneath her breath again.

"It's better than you doing nothing, Diaz." Henry said lowly to her only, as he didn't want Mara hearing him.

Calista didn't respond but sent a glare his way. Henry, however, wasn't fazed by it and kept his own glare on her. Not wanting to let him have the last word, Calista opened her mouth to said something else but stopped when she heard two low, animalistic growls in her direction and turned her head to find both Derek and Scott glaring at her, their eyes glowing yellow. Clenching her fists tightly at her side, Calista closed her mouth and pursed her lips together, hating the sight of the victorious smirk on Henry's face since he won this round.

Then, the group took off running again with April leading the way this time.

👑👑👑

"SPLINTER! QUILL! I know you're here!" Super Shredder shouted, his voice echoing throughout the entire area. He leapt from ledge to ledge and toward a stone island as he continued. "It's not just muscle and blades the mutagen gave me, not even my own superior magic. I can hear you... I can smell you."

"Sorry, Saki, but I don't swing that way." Quill's voice echoed as he leapt at him from behind, slamming a fist into his back and sending Super Shredder crashing toward the ledge on the left side of the chasm. He turned back, only to find that Quill had vanished.

"So, you do not fear me," Super Shredder continued. "You were leading me into your own kind of trap."

"Stealth is the ninja's greatest weapon. Something you seem to have forgotten, Saki." Splinter's voice was next to be heard as Super Shredder looked upward to find several rocks falling alongside the mountainside toward him. He braced himself and took the impact, as the rocks rather destroyed the ledge he was standing on, causing him to fall.

But he didn't fall too far as Super Shredder dug his claws into the rocky wall, halting his fall before he leapt up and climbed back on top of the large rocky island. By then, both Quill and Splinter had revealed themselves and swiftly moved either around or above Super Shredder, striking at every possible way to find a weak spot. However, it didn't last for long as Super Shredder grabbed the both of them by their throats, slammed them both together, and then slamming them onto the ground.

"Heh... you know, Tang Shen would hate you if she was still here." Quill spoke out, only to get slammed onto the ground again.

"A pity..." Splinter grunted. "Tang Shen... is no longer here... to see..." Super Shredder continued to beat the two, kicking both of them hard or pushing them near the edge. "How evil... you truly have become." Super Shredder's only response was a roar as he continued to beat two of his enemies that were once considered his best friends and brothers.

"Now... finally... my nightmares of your proud, leering, loathsome faces will finally end! And the only one I'd have left to get rid is Flash Sentry!"

"Finish us... yes..." Splinter said, a tone of acceptance in his voice. "But Miwa... will my live on. My daughter... mine!"

Quill gave out a weak scoff. "If you think that... you can beat my little brother, Saki... then, you're even more deranged than I thought. The three of us know... that Flash, my baby brother, was always... a better fighter... than you." He kept going as he glared up at the mutant. "And he's... not the only one... that'd stop... you."

But then, right before Super Shredder could strike, his right arm began to twitch and violently change size, shrinking as he cried out in pain, being forced to let the two men go. "What is happening... to me!?" He slammed his arm repeatedly against the wall to try and beat out the pain.

"Saki..." Splinter got his attention as his adoptive brother turned to face him. "The mutagen... it is killing you!"

"Be silent, rat!" Super Shredder slashed his claws at him, but his movements were more sluggish, giving Splinter and Quill the chance to avoid it by leaping from the ledge to another stone island.

"Super Shredder's kicking Sensei's tail and Quill in!" Michelangelo's voice called out as Quill spotted his eldest niece arrive onto the scene with the others, but they were all too far away to help out.

"Quill!"

"Sensei!"

"Father!" Karai called out. Right as they tried to run forward to catch up, Foot Bots jumped down and blocked their path.

But in order to keep them safe, the two men leapt back to another stone island to lure Super Shredder away.

"You must listen, Saki!" Splinter tried to reason one last time, but Super Shredder simply leapt in pursuit like a rabid animal, forcing the two to retreat even further.

"I need nothing from you both!"

Both Splinter and Quill were thrown down toward a ledge that stuck out below the bottomless chasm. Super Shredder landed in front of them and quickly stomped down on Splinter's right leg, crushing it and keeping him from running away while Splinter's scream echoed throughout the chasm.

"You will die!" Super Shredder loomed over him. "And then, all of your loved ones!"

Quill looked back to where his eldest niece was fighting against the Foot Bots with the others, desperately trying to get over to them but there were too many Foot Bots for them to get past. Then, he looked back over at his best friend and closed his eyes for a second, knowing what his next move was going to be.

One of his best friends; Hamato Yoshi had protected his niece and raised Briana as if she was his very own for his entire life without question. If sacrificing his own life meant that Splinter would go back to his family— to his children, then so be it.

Quill Sentry would gladly lay down his life for him.

"Yoshi, you did your part, leave the rest of this fight to me," Quill said as he opened his eyes to gaze down at the mutant rat. "You still have people who need you. Your sons, your daughters." He gave him a small smile. "Just make sure everyone gets home safe and... tell Twilight that I'm sorry."

"What are you—"

Before his best friend could finish, Quill grabbed Splinter and tossed him to safety, throwing him onto a different stone island from him and Super Shredder. Then, he pulled out a hidden kunai and threw it to a small cluster of bombs that Splinter had set up earlier and the explosion was enough to shatter the ledge that he and Super Shredder were on, much to everyone's horror.

"QUILL!"

Super Shredder attempted to leap away, but Quill scoffed. "Oh, no, you don't!" He grabbed his former friend and brother, pulling him back down with him. "We're dying together, Saki!" And with that, both Quill and Super Shredder vanished into the darkness below.

"QUILL!"

"NO!"

More Foot Bots appeared, throwing shurikens at them that everyone dodged. With Raphael and Henry helping Splinter to his feet, the group ran back towards the entrance they came out of and straight into the tunnel. The moment that they got into the tunnel, both Derek and Scott pushed a large boulder to seal off the exit and stopping the Foot Bots from following.

"He... there's no that Quill's gone, right?" Zane asked.

"That drop is at least a thousand feet down," Donatello said. "Even he couldn't survive a fall like that."

Briana didn't say anything as she turned her head away from the group, biting the bottom half of her lip as she fought back the urge to cry. It was strange; she only just met the man that was her uncle and although she wasn't sure of how to feel about suddenly meeting her family, she couldn't help but feel the sudden grief that was overwhelming her.

Suddenly, before anybody could say anything, the boulder exploded, knocking them all back. Everyone looked up to see the Foot Bots being led by Stockman-fly, Bebop, and Rocksteady.

"Aw, sewer apples!" Michelangelo cursed.

"This is the very start of Oroku Saki's path to becoming the monster that he is, and it only gets worse from here."