Chapter Fourteen
"The city's newest vigilante seems to be carrying out a private war with one
of the city's largest gangs." April gazed seriously into the camera. "According
to witnesses, the Ronin attacked a group of Purple Dragons that were robbing a
conveyance store. This is the tenth witnessed skirmish between the Ronin and the
Purple Dragons."
April stared at the papers on her desk. Pennington knocked once and charged in. "April . . . what's wrong?"
"Nothing. I was just thinking."
"It always trouble when you think. What new story should I be looking out for?"
"I'm worried about the Ronin."
"That's a current story. You're slippin', April."
"Does she have any idea of what this campaign of hit-the-Shredder could result in? Does she even care? Has hate driven all other concerns out of her mind?"
"What brought on this sudden pity session?"
"The Shredder has to know about her. And she's not making him happy."
The Shredder hissed as he turned off the television set. "Damn that interfering ninja!"
The Foot Clan ninja bowed respectfully. "Shall we eliminate her, Master?"
"No. No, she may prove useful in my overall plan."
"Aren't you guys just a little bit tired of this?" Mike frowned as they stopped on the roof of a building.
"You'd feel bad if the Ronin turned out to be a bad guy," Leo prophesied.
"I don't think she is a bad guy."
"You're just bummed because you and Allie had that fight." Mike's face lost expression with Raph's words.
Donnie frowned, "Why did you bring that up for?"
"What'd I say? Oh, I'm sorry, Mikey."
"For what? You didn't start the fight."
Raph lapsed into silence as Mike moved away from them. "Cheered him up a whole lot," Donnie muttered.
"I feel sorry for him. I can actually understand how he feels."
"Raphael actually understands how someone else feels? Mona must be having a better influence than we thought."
"Don't try to be sarcastic, Donatello. It doesn't suit you."
"Looky who we found," the Purple Dragons dropped and gathered around the Turtles. "The Shredder will be proud of us."
"Only if you manage to stop us," Leo growled as they settled in their stances.
"Big talk, shell-back. Let's see ya fight."
Five Dragons circled around Mike. "Come on. I need something to shake me out of this bad mood." He punched out a Dragon. "It might as well be you guys."
Raph flipped backwards and landed on a raised portion of the roof. "How many in the crowd can do that?" One Dragon lashed out with a baseball bat that Raph leaped over. "I guess he can't." He leaped over the bat again. "Maybe you oughta see a shrink for that jealous streak."
Donnie threw a Dragon back with his bo. "I don't want to hurt you." Another Dragon rushed forward and Donnie thrust his bo into his stomach. "But if you keep coming, I'll have to."
Leo paced with the leader of this rabble of Dragons. "I'm going to earn my bandanna with your shell," the Dragon sneered.
"The only way you'll get it is to take it off my dead body."
"That's the whole idea." The Dragon pulled out a pair of sais and twirled them.
Suddenly, the rooftop was overrun with people. A girl grabbed hold of a Dragon and spun him away. Then she body-slammed the other two away. Mike punched out the one he was grappling with. "Who are you?"
"I'm a Bloody Mary," the girl hissed. "What's a matter with you? You some sorta sexist pig that won't accept help from a woman?"
"Nah, I just like to know who to thank."
A lithe Hispanic boy in a red jacket slid a knife into a Dragon's thigh. "Take care of that, amigo."
Donnie frowned, "You didn't have to knife him."
"I could have placed it in his ribs. I did him a favor."
Raph grinned as the rope extended from a burly figure and yanked down three Dragons. "This is my kind of party!"
The leader of the Purple Dragons pulled back from his fight with Leo. "Dragons retreat!" Soon, the roof was a mass of fleeing people and then the Turtles were left with a girl and four boys.
"Does anyone else know what just happened?" Leo demanded.
The girl stepped forward. "I guess you boys deserve an explanation. I'm Mary, leader of the Bloody Marys. That's Scar, leader of the Ghouls." She pointed to a lanky twenty-year-old with a scar that extended across his bald head, across his face, and down his neck. "That's Tony, leader of the Red Angels." The teen in a red leather jacket nodded. "The guy with the goggles and the hardware is Sights, leader of the Head Hunters." He continued his analytical stare of the Turtles. "And Marcus in the black hood is the leader of the Brothers of Death."
"You guys hate each other," Donnie announced, perplexed. "Why help us?"
Tony grimaced, "Because we hate the Dragons more than we hate each other and the Ronin worked out a treaty between us."
"No more fighting between us until the Shredder is one of New York finest. One of the unknown dead." Marcus was the only one who howled at his joke.
"The Ronin told us to watch out for you," Sights muttered, his goggles hiding his eyes. "She doesn't want anything to happen to you four."
"That's nice of her," Raph muttered.
"Thanks for your help," Leo said, trying to keep their attention away from Raph.
"It's what we're supposed to do." Mary linger as the other left the rooftop.
"Besides, green has always been my favorite color."
Allie flipped through her notebook. "You'll never learn anything if you don't bother to read it."
She looked up to see Dan settle into the desk next to her. "I'm not in a learning mood today."
"And this is your favorite class. What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
"Allie, you have never been able to lie to me convincingly. I know I can't see through you that well, so it must be that you never put your heart into it. What's wrong?"
"Me and Mike are having some problems, okay? And I'm a little depressed because there is nothing I can do about it."
"You and Mike having problems. That's inconceivable."
"It is not inconceivable; it's happening right now."
"You know what I mean." Dan sighed, "Look, I've known you a long time and I've known Mike a long time. And one thing you two have in common is if you both want something, nothing is going to keep you from it. If you both want this relationship, you'll work it out."
"I hope you're right."
"You want me to talk to him? On your behalf or something?"
"Thanks for the offer, but it's not necessary."
"You gonna be okay?"
"I'll be fine. You know me, always the survivor."
"A survivor, Miss Baker?" Professor Dale set a leaflet a stapled papers and a scantron on her desk. "Let's see you survive with these classmates and that grade."
"I made a C!" Dan exclaimed. "I passed! What did you make?"
Allie looked up, dazed from her scantron. "I got an A. I wasn't worried about it, but I never expected an A."
"There was only one A for the entire class," Professor Dale announced as he began to write the grade spread on the chalkboard.
"I'd keep quiet about that grade, Allie," Dan whispered.
