"That's right, all the heavy industrial work that goes on here will be relocated to the underground complex, and we'll be taking out all these factories."
Well what will happen to the area here, how are the taxpayers going to feel about having their money used to relocate a bunch of factories that would seem to be perfectly well off right where they are?"
"Pretty happy, I think, once they see what we have in store for the area. You know, of course, about the new laws we'll be introducing next week?"
"The anti pollution laws."
"We're not just sending heavy industry underground, we're cleaning it up, and if it won't stay clean, then we're shutting it down."
"What about people's jobs?"
"I think it's about time the air we breathed was more important than jobs, but anyone who loses factory jobs as a result of anti pollution laws can expect some retraining by the government, and a new job, cleaning up. With the exception, of course, of the factory management, who can expect to be spending a lot of their time in court, explaining their careless attitude to everyone else's property."
"Everyone else's property?"
"The air, the water,
the earth. That is our common wealth. Our new laws seek to protect
the people that breathe, eat and drink. Everyone benefits."
***
Not everyone agrees with Dolittle's simplistic ideals, though. Shredder and Hideo watch the interview as it is televised. "That is the one you should fear, Oroku; the politician. She is your enemy; her ideas are your enemies."
"How can talk harm me?"
"Not talk, ideas. Leaders like her empower the people, instill in them confidence and a sense of self worth. She knows how to give people knowledge of the old ways, to keep them close to the earth."
"I thought you did not believe in the old ways."
"I believe in the old ways, they are what I want to destroy. They are what spoil my sense of order in the world. Central Park must die and she must die."
"An honourable death for a politician? That would be unnatural. Better she should live a twisted lie."
"There would be a certain ironical amusement in seeing one such as her turned against the old ways; to see her as a tool of the destruction of the Park."
"You are obsessed with that park."
"Does the prospect of its destruction dwell upon you, Oroku?"
"I don't understand why you want to destroy something beautiful."
"Because it is
beautiful. Because
when people see parks and trees and animals, the elemental self within
them rises up. Let there be no beauty. Let there be no reminder
of the old ones. These people shall belong to you in body and in
spirit."
***
It was fully dark as April left Channel 3. She made a detour to a nearby pizza shop on the way to her car. As she stopped and fumbled for her keys she heard a noise behind her. She stopped and listened. The noise stopped. She turned and was confronted by a man, looming over her. He bellowed at her and she screamed, her arms flinging open and pizzas flying through the air. She managed to keep a grip on one pizza though, and used it to bash the man over the head. "Idiot! Moron! Bozo!"
"Hi, April, hey you should really watch it you know. You could got mugged or anything out here. And you could really ruin the pizza. doing that with it." Casey picked up the dropped pizzas, hoping that since they were still in their boxes they would be relatively intact.
"You actually coming with me to see the guys?"
"Sure. Why else did I bring this?" He held up a hefty looking torch.
"That's very X-Files of you. But I thought you were afraid of the sewers."
"Casey Jones is afraid of nothing. I do not like enclosed places. That does not make me afraid, it is just a personal preference."
April held the torch
while Casey finished picking up the pizzas. "Well then, let's
go."
***
Donatello was dazed but unharmed. He rubbed dirt out of his eyes. It didn't help, it was still totally dark. He could hear vague sounds of water dripping and movement. "Hey, Mike, the next time you make a tabasco chilli pizza..."
"I know," came back Michelangelo's voice, "leave off the oregano. Hey, how many pieces are you guys in?"
"I dunno," said Donatello. "As soon as I find my head, I'll be able to count up the bits. Hey, let me get some light in here."
Leonardo and Michelangelo both yelled at once: "Don't light a match!!!"
A moment later the dim light of a torch illuminated the turtles' den. Then Donatello was suddenly blinded by a brilliant torch shining in his eyes. "Ow!"
"Oops," said Casey. "Sorry. Didn't realise we were here. Who put the lights out?"
"Not us!" said Leonardo. "Master Splinter! Are you ok?"
Leonardo, Donatello and Michelangelo all dashed to Splinter, who was lying flat on his back, though still in the lotus position, breathing deeply, and with his eyes closed. As they approached him, he opened one sly eye. "The reed is a wise plant, for it knows that to survive the storm it must bend with the wind. I am uninjured. And you?"
"Ready to party," grinned Michelangelo.
"Fighting fit," said Donatello.
"I'm as mad as hell," said Leonardo. I have a feeling what happened here was no accident. It could easily have something to do with those Foot warriors Mike and I saw. I'd like to find out more about what they were up to. Want to come help me round them up Raphael? Raph?" He peered into the dark. Raphael wasn't there.
Donatello shone his torch around, its dim light making little impression on the gloom. "Raph?"
"C'mon, Raph, this is no joke, man," said Michelangelo, beginning to sound a little worried.
April called him. Casey shone his brighter torch into all the dark areas of the den. "Hey, man, if you're down there, I'm not gonna come looking, you know."
"He's not here," said Donatello finally.
"Oh, no, do you think he's been totally blown away?" said Michelangelo.
"You think the explosion totally vaporised him?" said Leonardo, feeling appalled.
"Nah," said Donatello, not sounding very convinced.
"That would be most unlikely, my son," said Splinter.
"Explosion?" said April.
"The lights went out," said Leonardo, "and Raph went to light a candle, and all of a sudden..." he flicked his hands in an expansive gesture.
"Kaboom!" added Michelangelo.
"Methane," said Donatello.
"You-thane?" said Casey.
"Sewer gas. I think if we check, we'll find all our breather pipes have been blocked off and we've got a room full of sewer gas."
"And we're breathing all this sewer gas?" said April, looking as if she had suddenly encountered a very bad smell.
"It won't hurt you," Donatello shrugged.
"No. It doesn't hurt people. It just totally vaporises them, right?"
"I think the explosion probably knocked Raph into the water," said Leonardo.
Donatello and Casey both lit the canal with the beams from their torches. It was an ugly place. Dead things and rubbish floated by, occasionally rotting rubbish from the bottom bubbled to the surface, carried up by the gasses of its decay. The turtles looked glumly at each other.
"There's miles of it," Donatello said finally.
"The sooner we start looking the sooner we find him," said Leonardo.
"You want me to look down there in the dark?" said Casey.
"I'll protect you," said April, giving him a shove.
They followed the tunnel, finally reaching the part where Leonardo and Michelangelo watched the foot warriors at work. Leonardo gestured to Casey to shine his torch on the blocked pipes while he dug at them with his sword. "Wish we'd known what they were doing. None of this would have happened."
"How were you to know?" said Casey.
"They were foot warriors. On our territory. It couldn't have meant anything but trouble."
"What are you supposed to do?" said April. "Fight everyone that comes near the sewers in case they're Foot?.
"Those guys were Foot and we knew it. We just let them waltz in here and do what they like. Raphael could be dead."
"Bingo!" came Donatello's happy shout. A moment later the lights came back on. Donatello was standing by the now repaired cable.
"How'd you do that without shutting off the power?" said April.
"I did shut it off, see?" He indicated a heavy duty power switch.
"Let's make tracks," said Leonardo.
They jumped down into the canal where the water lapped around their ankles, and there was a sudden noise like a roar of thunder. Another explosion.
"Surf's up!" bellowed Michelangelo.
Everyone except Michelangelo and April leapt to safety. Even as Michelangelo reached out to help April and threw her out of the way of the sudden flood, he was caught by the crashing first wave of the flood and knocked off his feet. "Total wipe out!" he managed to gurgle as the wave dragged him under. He was carried by the force of the water, repeatedly surfacing and then dunked, unable to do much more than get air every so often. Casey unwound a rope from his middle and Donatello threw the end to Michelangelo who grabbed it.
"Mikey!"
But before either of them had a chance to take up the slack, Michelangelo was slammed into a wall, and a second wave flooded down upon them, though this one had a sinister green glow. It swept Michelangelo under and a moment later he came up spluttering. "Get me outa here, guys, this water is seriously grossing me out."
April, Casey, Leonardo and Donatello, all hauled on the rope and get him out, still smeared with the green goo.
"What is this?" said Leonardo wiping the goo with his hand and trying to flick it away.
"I don't know," said Donatello, "but it sure shouldn't be down here, and coming on top of that flood like it did gives me a very bad feeling."
"You think somebody's trying to dirty up the sewers?" said Casey.
"I think somebody just pulled the chain on us," said Leonardo.
Michelangelo scraped at he green goo as they walked, flicking it into the sewer canal where it floated with an oily, malign look. He began to stagger, the further they went, the more Michelangelo legs seemed to be turning to rubber.
"Are you ok to walk, Michelangelo?" said April finally. "You look as if you're trying to rap dance in a bowl of jello."
"I don't feel so good. I wanna go home."
Donatello and Leonardo walked each side of their brother. "It's ok, Mikey," said Donatello. "We're here. We'll get you home." Donatello and Leonardo each put their arms around Michelangelo and tried to help him walk, but the green goo smeared on them and they too became affected, though not quite so badly.
"I don't feel so good either, do you, Leo?"
"No. Me either." He flicked a gob of the green stuff off.
"You mean it's kind of queasy, being green?" said Casey. April punched him in the arm.
The sewer tunnel wavered unpleasantly in front of Donatello's eyes. He tried to keep focussed. "No prizes for guessing where all this came from."
Michelangelo had shut his eyes against the squirming torchlight. Every time he saw the green goo it made his stomach churn. "So tell me, dude, does knowing Shredder's back make you feel any better?"
"Sure," said Leonardo, "look, he's even laid out the green carpet, right back to his place."
Down the length of the sewer, the sudden deluge had vanished but traces of the green remained clinging the walls.
"Just follow the green slime," said April.
"I don't think we should go anywhere till we've washed this stuff off," said Donatello.
"I just hope wherever Raphael is, he managed to avoid that stuff," said Leonardo quietly.
***
But he hadn't. Far down the sewer, Raphael was tumbled over and over by the flood. He struggled weakly, but he had taken the full force of the methanegas explosion and along with battering and bruising he had been concussed. The water swept him along, semi-conscious. A moment later he was overwhelmed by the green stuff, forced under the water, choking in it, just as Michelangelo had. Then with a sudden rush, the water, green stuff and turtle all came flooding out of the sewer onto a beach. Raphael lay supine and awkward on his back. He had a sudden fear of being stranded there in daylight like a sea-turtle ready to be carted away by whoever happened along the beach. It took a huge effort, but he was able to flip himself over and rise to his hands and knees. That took all his energy though, and a moment later he flopped face down onto the sand, unconscious.