The Crime Fighter Collection

by Matthew J Gilbert (retail)

  One by one, the Turtles emerged from the base’s reentry pool. They shook the water off their shells and found themselves inside a high-tech room that resembled a spaceship. Blinking lights, otherworldly machines, and alien symbols were all around them. They had made it inside the Kraang’s underwater facility!

  But the celebration would have to wait. Raph looked through one of the porthole windows just as a gigantic shadow passed by it—the sea monster!

  “That thing is back,” Raph announced. “How are we gonna get out of here?”

  “We’ll worry about that later,” Leo decided. “Right now, we’ve got bigger fish to fry.”

  “I don’t think we’re gonna find a bigger fish than that,” Mikey said with a smirk.

  The other Turtles shot him a look, groaning loudly.

  “What?” Mikey protested with a smile. “C’mon, that was good. You gotta give me that one!”

  The more they spoke, the more suspicious April became of her new friend Harmony. She couldn’t put it into words. This girl she’d just met seemed to want to know an awful lot about her personal life and her friends.

  Something isn’t right, April noted.

  The girl would have to crack eventually. Right?

  “So, what brings you to New York?” April asked.

  “I’m with my dad. He’s here trying to close an old deal,” Harmony answered with hesitation.

  “Oh, what does he do?” April asked, covering her nerves by prepping her chopsticks casually.

  Harmony paused, taking a moment to word her answer. “He’s in kitchen utensils. Knives, mostly.”

  April logged another mental note: Father works with knives.

  Before April could ask another question, Murakami delivered their dishes, a trail of steam following the meals all the way from the kitchen.

  Harmony gave Murakami a traditional Japanese bow and said, “Idatakimasu,” which meant “Let’s eat!”

  Mental note number three, April thought, this girl was raised in a traditional Japanese household.

  April noticed that Murakami was also impressed by Harmony’s traditional ways. This girl knew her Japanese customs.

  Out of respect, April mimicked her friend and paid respect to Mr. Murakami with a bow and an “Idatakimasu” of her own.

  Harmony eyed April’s dish with a strong curiosity. Pizza gyoza? They looked like normal dumplings to her. “All right! Let’s see what these pizza pot stickers are all about.” She scooped one off of April’s plate and polished it off in one bite. “Best. Dumpling. EVER!”

  “I know, right?” April said.

  “Now you try mine.”

  Harmony slid her bowl over. It was a thick, murky liquid with something barely visible at the bottom. Is that meat? April wondered.

  April scooped up some of the soupy broth.

  It smelled salty. It smelled gross. It smelled familiar.

  “What is it?” April asked.

  “Soupon nabe,” Harmony said. After a moment, she translated. “Turtle soup.”

  April’s eyes grew wide as she put it all together. She knew exactly who this was. Her name wasn’t Harmony. It was …

  “Karai!” April gasped.

  “In person,” Karai grinned.

  Panic hit April. Her heart was pounding. She had no time to lose. “Uh, I gotta go,” she stuttered. She tried to make her way to the door, but Karai grabbed her skillfully with one swift move.

  “I was thinking you’d come with me, April O’Neil. My father would love to meet you!”

  April struggled to break free. “Let go of me!” she cried.

  Hearing the commotion, and sensing his friend was in danger, Murakami took action. He grabbed a pot of boiling hot soup from the stove and threw it. The steaming liquid went airborne and splashed all over Karai!

  “I am so sorry!” Murakami said, pretending it was an accident. He blocked Karai’s path, which allowed April enough time to break free and head for the street.

  April crossed to the opposite corner and took out her T-Phone to dial the Turtles.

  The Turtles moved carefully through the Kraang’s underwater facility, gracefully somersaulting onto the rafters overlooking the main control room. They saw a group of Kraang-droids working below.

  “Okay,” Leo whispered to the others, “we have to be quiet.”

  “Do you have to say that every time?” Donnie whispered back. “We’re ninjas. We know how to be quiet.”

  Then, as if on cue, Donnie’s T-Phone rang.

  The Turtles gasped in unison, their eyes bugging out at the Kraang-droids, who were now staring right at them.

  “Ooh, that is embarrassing!” Mikey said with a chuckle.

  The army of droids picked up their blasters and opened fire, unleashing a barrage of energy bolts that scorched holes in the wall behind the Turtles. The ninjas scattered.

  Donnie cartwheeled for cover and answered his T-Phone. It was April.

  “April, hi, it’s not a great time!” Donnie said, barely dodging a hail of laser blasts.

  “Donnie! Karai’s after me!” he heard April say.

  “What?!” Donnie shouted over the sound of ricocheting blasts. “I’m sorry,” he told her, trying to sound cool and composed. “We can’t get there. But don’t worry. Stay calm!” And then, in a sudden, frantic voice, he added, “And run! Run for your life!”

  Don’t stop.

  That was what April told herself as she hung up her T-Phone and sprinted toward a crowd on the street. After turning a corner, she looked back and gasped. Karai was right there, in hot pursuit!

  April panted. She was getting tired. She needed a set of wheels! Up ahead on the street, she saw her chance: a pizza guy was getting off his moped to make a delivery—

  April knew what she had to do.

  “Hey!” she called out to the pizza guy, distracting him. “Is that pizza for April O’Neil?”

  “No,” the pizza guy said, looking down to check his delivery label. “It’s for—”

  But before he could finish, he saw April steal his moped and take off! “Hey! What are you doing?!” he yelled.

  “I’ll bring it back! I promise!” April shouted over the engine. She knew she shouldn’t have stolen that guy’s ride, but this was a life-or-death situation. I’ll make it up to him, she swore to herself.

  Karai caught up to the pizza guy, who was yelling about a girl who’d just stolen his moped. The corners of her mouth turned up in a smile. She relished a good chase as much as the next ninja. If her opponent wanted a high-speed race, she’d get one!

  Karai disappeared into a darkened alley and hopped aboard her Dragon Chopper, which had been stashed behind a Dumpster. She strapped on her helmet and kick started her sleek motorcycle, gunning the engine. She peeled out, a curlicue of tire tracks in her wake, nearly running over the pizza guy as she sped onto the street. With this kind of horsepower, she’d catch up to April in no time!

  A few blocks ahead, April hit a traffic light. She checked her rearview mirror. No sign of Karai. She breathed easy for a second, thinking she’d lost her, when—

  Something made a deafening screech right behind her. She turned to see the Dragon Chopper hopping over a taxicab at high speed. Karai was closing in!

  April was shaking. She released the brake and ran the red light. Horns blared as she cut off an oncoming truck, nearly causing a three-car pileup. She was so scared that she didn’t see Karai’s Dragon Chopper gaining on her, tracking her moped’s every move.

  Karai revved up alongside her, swinging at her with her fist. She couldn’t connect, so she sideswiped April with the front of the Chopper, bumping April’s moped onto a crowded sidewalk. April maneuvered through an obstacle course of fruit stands, hot dog carts, and pedestrians.

  As April held on for dear life, she saw a wall up ahead. It got closer and closer. Bigger and bigger.

  She jackknifed the moped, stopping inches before she would have crashed. Then she hit the gas, slingshotting the moped ont
o a side street.

  That was a close one, April thought as she heard the asphalt crack behind her. She checked the rearview again—

  It was Karai! Her Chopper’s front tire had come down in a hard landing. She was still in hot pursuit.

  Ahead of April a big delivery truck was slowly backing down the cross street, almost blocking traffic completely. She’d be stopped cold in a moment, and if that happened, she’d be doomed.

  But there was a narrow gap between the truck and the corner of a wall. It was barely a foot across—and shrinking with each moment.

  Luckily, she was driving the smallest moped on the market. She revved the engine. The needle on the speedometer vibrated at top speed.

  This moped might barely be able to get through, she thought. If only I can get there in time—

  April’s adrenaline kicked into overdrive.

  Don’t stop, she told herself. Don’t stop. She gunned the engine, held her breath, and hoped for the best—

  She did it! Keeping the moped steady, she made it around the truck before it blocked the street completely. She had made it to safety, leaving Karai in the dust.

  At that very moment, as his brothers were caught in a firefight with a squad of Kraang-droids, Donnie was trying to call April back on his T-Phone. He was in a total state of worry, oblivious to the blaster fire that whizzed all around him. Leo attempted to reason with him in a firm but calm tone. “Donnie, focus! April can take care of herself.”

  “Against Karai?” Donnie asked in a frenzy. April barely knew how to throw a punch, and Karai had nearly taken out a Kraang spaceship on her own! “Are you kidding? I’ve gotta help her!”

  “You’re not gonna be much help if you get blasted in the head!” Leo yelled.

  “Whoa!” Donnie shouted, ducking an energy bolt that nearly scorched his scalp. “Good point!”

  Time to get my shell in the game! Donnie thought, charging into battle with his brothers.

  Leo broke through the Kraang first, his katanas slicing and dicing through two droids at once. Donnie was right behind him, unleashing his bo staff at the last second for a surprise attack. The backup bots never knew what hit them. And just as two remaining Kraang-droids were about to open fire, their titanium bodies hit the floor, thanks to Mikey’s sweet sweeper kick.

  “That’s a twofer!” Mikey bragged, gratefully bowing to an imaginary crowd like a rock star finishing a sold-out performance. “Thank you. And thank you. And thank you.”

  Two Kraang-droids suddenly appeared behind Mikey, readying their blasters, and Raph rushed into action. He vaulted himself into the air, surprising the bots with a nose dive–style sai strike. He skewered them to the floor before they could squeeze a trigger. They were nothing but scrap metal now.

  “How many times have I told you no celebrating until the fight is over?!” Raph scolded Mikey.

  “How many times have I told you I assumed it was over?” Mikey retorted, jabbing Raph with his finger. Raph grabbed Mikey’s hand and squeezed. Hard.

  Mikey screamed.

  Donnie couldn’t believe this! Were they really having an argument now? He got between them before it got any worse. “Children! Children! We have got to go.”

  “Um, have you forgotten about a little something called completing the mission?” Leo said, reminding them all why they were standing in the middle of an underwater base in the first place.

  “But April’s in danger!” Donnie insisted.

  “If we leave now, the Kraang will poison everyone in New York,” Raph reminded him. “Which, last time, I checked, includes April!”

  “Think, Donnie! How do we take this place out?” Leo asked.

  Donnie scanned the control room around them, trying to concentrate on finding a solution. How were they going to destroy this facility? He needed a hint, a sign of some kind.

  “The chemical is highly explosive,” Donnie said.

  “How do you know that?” Mikey asked.

  “Partly because it has hydrocarbon on its outer ring,” he explained. “And partly because of that sign,” he added, pointing at a picture on the wall.

  They all looked up. There was a warning diagram showing a Kraang exploding out of a droid body.

  Donnie swiped a blaster from one of the bots lying motionless on the floor. “Raph, you think you can get this blaster open for me?”

  Raph spun one sai with a wicked smile. “With pleasure.”

  “But before you do, be careful you don’t—”

  Before Donnie could finish, Raph stabbed the weapon, peeling off half its metal casing with one swipe. Donnie winced and shut his eyes. He nervously peeked a moment later.

  “Oh, good, we’re still alive,” he said with a sigh. He fiddled with the blaster’s wiring. “Now I’ll short out the power supply and leave it by the chemical tanks. It’ll overheat and the whole place will go boom.”

  Once the blaster was ready to detonate, Donnie and the other Turtles got into position. Leo and Raph ran across the room, directly under the chemical tanks, which were mounted to the ceiling. If Donnie was going to plant the explosive up there, he was going to need a boost.

  So, like gymnasts prepping for a routine, Leo and Raph locked arms, forming a launching pad. Donnie sprinted toward them, vaulted off their arms, and propelled himself through the air. He arced over the room, getting some serious hang time, and planted the blaster perfectly.

  “There,” Donnie said as he dropped to the ground. “In about ninety seconds, this whole place is gonna blow.”

  Satisfied that their mission was nearly complete, Leo gave the go-ahead. “All right! Let’s move!”

  Donnie redialed April on his T-Phone. He heard her panting when she picked up. “April, what’s your status?”

  “Could … be … better!” he heard April yell.

  “Okay, we’re on our way,” he assured her. “We’ll be there soon.”

  The Turtles ran back to the only exit in the entire facility: the reentry pool. All they had to do was jump in, swim back to the Sub, and they’d be home free.

  But something was wrong. The water was rumbling. Something big was coming through the watery portal. A long, snakelike neck emerged from the pool. Towering over the Turtles was a scaly amphibian beast with rows of sharp fangs.

  It was the sea monster!

  “Uh, actually, there might be a slight delay,” Donnie said into the T-Phone.

  They were trapped!

  The Turtles darted around the room, desperately trying to dodge the sea monster.

  The creature roared, thrashing its head around the facility like a monstrous wrecking ball.

  How can things get any worse? Leo wondered, watching the sea monster almost eat Raph like a snack.

  As if on cue, Donnie seemed to answer that unasked question. “We’ve only got thirty seconds before that blaster explodes!”

  “Uh, guys, any ideas?” Leo asked.

  “Let’s see,” Donnie began. “We’re cornered by an amphibious sea monster in an underwater base that’s about to blow up.” Donnie paused for a second, then threw in the towel. “I’m out!”

  Time seemed to slow as Leo watched the beast smack Raph down like a rag doll, its tentacle-like neck taking Donnie off his feet in the process. Leo felt like there was nothing he could do. He wasn’t going to be able to bail his bros out of this battle.

  But just as Leo was about to give up all hope, he heard an earsplitting war cry. He turned to see Mikey jumping into action.

  Mikey unleashed the chain from his nunchucks, swinging it around the sea monster’s snout. The beast reared its terrible head, pulling the chain forward. Mikey hung on for the wildest ride of his life!

  Leo joined Raph and Donnie as they cheered Mikey. He was like a rodeo rider, using all his strength and balance to stay on top of the creature and fight its wild bucking like a pro.

  Mikey sat on its head, enjoying a bird’s-eye view of the room. And even though he was being jostled like crazy, he spotted a tiny lever.r />
  Mikey had a feeling it was important.

  He took a deep breath and jumped. In one fluid motion, he caught the lever, switched it off, and tumbled to the ground. The reentry pool doors slammed shut, snaring the sea monster in a giant steel trap!

  “Woo-hoo! That was fun!” Mikey exclaimed, breaking into another victory dance.

  “Mikey! That dance better not last more than four seconds!” Donnie shouted.

  Mikey grooved for three seconds, then used that final second to somersault after his bros and swim out to safety toward the Sub.

  The Kraang underwater base vibrated uncontrollably and finally exploded, sending a shockwave through the water that was so strong, it thrust the Turtles through the Sub’s hatch.

  Behind them, the facility crumbled to the seafloor, kicking up an aquatic sand cloud that blanketed the destruction in a watery, milky fog. After a few moments, the depths of the river cleared, leaving the fish and the seaweed around it unharmed.

  New York City’s water supply was safe … for now.

  Inside the cockpit of the Turtle Sub, Raph confidently remarked, “Hey, that wasn’t such a chore, now was it?”

  Donnie brought the navigation systems up online. “Great,” he said with relief. “Now we can get back to April and—Oh no. Are you kidding me?!”

  They all went to the Sub’s porthole to look out. A massive figure swam rapidly toward them.

  The sea monster. The Sub looked like a bath toy compared to the enormous beast.

  Inside, watching the monster through the periscope, Leo pleaded with Donnie. “Can you make this thing go faster?”

  “Of course I can,” Donnie said, pressing a button. The Sub’s emergency booster rockets roared to life—and flew away on their own, zipping through the East River like runaway torpedoes.