33A/N: For those who may have read the now-infamous IDW TMNT #44, this chapter's resemblance to events in that issue are PURELY coincidental, I SWEAR! Seriously, I had this chapter's events planned out long before I ever even started the story- it was originally supposed to be included in the Love Is Shell story over two years ago, but was (heavily) modified to fit this one instead. Anyway, for those who love Mikey, PLEASE don't hate me!
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Chapter Nine: Bleed For Me
Coyote leveled its weird ray gun at Michelangelo, who tried to roll under its aim, but was hit anyway. He came up looking disoriented, his face having turned an odd shade of yellow-green that didn't look at all normal. "Ugh, I think I'm gonna hurl, dude," he mumbled, staggering to his feet.
Leo and Angela skidded back into the gallery at that moment, with Goliath and Lex right behind them. "We're too late, guys- the sword is gone!" Lexington exclaimed as they returned.
Donatello turned to them with a stunned look. "You let Shredder get away with the Sword of Nowhere? There's no telling what he'll do with it!" He ducked as the robot shot its laser weapon at him, his eyes bulging as it blasted a deer sculpture made of glass crystal spheres to pieces.
"He escaped, but the sword was stolen from him by our former clan-mate Demona in the main gallery. She must have been waiting there the whole time; she grabbed it from your enemy before any of us even knew what was happening. She was gone through a busted skylight before we could even reach them, and in any case, we could not risk being seen by the people outside. The building is still surrounded by the police, but they will not remain outside much longer," Goliath explained, his tail lashing angrily, as he grabbed a bench and threw it at Wolf, before ducking behind the remains of a display of tengu masks in the middle of the room, to avoid getting shot at.
I snarled and grabbed for the robot's other arm as it continued firing at Donatello, trying to slice through the mechanism controlling the weapon with one of my fans, only to be slapped away like a fly. Hudson and Broadway tried to subdue the robot by sheer force, but it simply twisted its upper half and spun them away like a Quisinart. And still it kept firing those damned laser blasts. Angela rushed over to aid Bronx and Brooklyn, trying to rouse them, while Lex dashed behind an overturned Buddha.
Leo growled, and lunged at Wolf again, tackling him from the left while Raph did the same from the other flank. At first it looked as if they might overpower him, but a stray blast from Coyote caught the edge of Raph's shell, and he yelped in pain. The wolf-man used the distraction to punch him into a glass case holding several old suits of armor, and Raph fell into the display and looked dazed for a moment.
Raph turned to glance at the robot, and saw me trying to slash the laser's wiring. "Hey, watch where ya' point that thing, sis!" he yelled, before diving back into the fray against the genetically altered criminal.
"Sorry!" I called back. The giant death-machine raised its arm, pulling me off my feet, and I was forced to let go, or be grabbed by the other hand that was reaching for me. This was going nowhere fast, I realized, and fell back to try to think of another tactic. Donnie had taken up a defensive position behind a pedestal whose statue was now missing an arm, but he didn't appear to have any ideas at the moment that I could tell. So I decided to use the kunoichi's best weapon- distraction.
"Hey, Tin-Man! Did you forget to ask the wizard for a heart?" I yelled, dashing directly in front of the robot. "Or maybe in your case, that should be a brain!" I taunted, hoping it would take the bait.
"Orlene, what the Hell are you DOING?!" Donnie shouted, and even Mikey looked horrified. Honestly, I had no idea- I just hoped they would figure out a way to take it down while I had its attention. And oh, did I have its attention. It raised that funky ray weapon at me, and fired. I hit the floor to dodge it, but too late. A wave of nausea and dizziness washed over me, and I suddenly understood why Mikey had turned such a peculiar color. I felt like I'd gone on an all-night drinking binge with Casey.
"You lot have guts, I'll give you that," Coyote said in that strange metallic voice, which was none-the-less vaguely familiar. "But I'm through playing games. We've learned what we came for; it's time to cut our losses. Wolf, would you collect our friends and meet me outside?"
"No problem, boss," growled the aptly-named Pack member, breaking away from the fight with Leo and Raph to toss first Hyena, then Jackal over his shoulder. He held them with one enormous clawed hand as he leapt straight up and caught the edge of the hole in the ceiling, launching himself up through it. Angela finally managed to rouse Brooklyn and Bronx back to consciousness, and Hudson and Broadway had recovered from being flung into the wall, but they were busy ducking for cover at the moment.
"Oh, no you don't, ya' overgrown toaster!" Mikey exclaimed, getting between the robot and his exit. "Ya' gotta' go through US first!" Alarm bells went off in my head, and I rushed toward the two, hoping to divert the robot's attention from my teammate. He was far too close to the thing for my liking. Unfortunately, the robot continued firing lethal laser blasts all around the room, leaving no way for anyone else to get close to it. Leo and Raph had ducked behind the doorway, while Goliath picked up a piece of the Foo-lion's head that had been shattered earlier, and threw it at the robot's head. Coyote simply swatted the missile out of the air, and ignored him. The big gargoyle grabbed a spear from a shattered display, and heaved that at the machine as well, but it merely struck the armored back and splintered.
"Very well, then. So be it," the metal monster said flatly, pointing its vertigo-ray at Mikey again. He dodged the first blast, but was struck by the second. He stumbled back to his feet, shaking his head to clear it. I saw the behemoth stalk toward him, and realized- too late- the danger he was in.
"Mikey, get back!" I shouted frantically. He finally shook off the vertigo, but didn't move out of the way in time to avoid being snatched up in the thing's huge clawed hands. It lifted him up off the floor easily, its oversized claws gripping him tightly by his shell. Mikey struggled to free himself, but to no avail- the robot was simply too strong. Michelangelo tried pounding at the machine with his nunchaku, cursing angrily, but did little more than leave small dents in the surface of its armor.
"I've had enough out of you green freaks. Goliath, since you're here, I thought I'd remind you what happens when you meddle where you're not wanted. Perhaps in the future you'll remember that there are consequences to your actions. Let's hope your new friends learn that lesson better than you have." And with that, it began to squeeze the hapless turtle in its grip.
Coyote squeezed hard with both "hands", causing Mikey's eyes to go wide as it began to slowly crush him. He pulled frantically at the giant metal claws, still cursing, but to no avail. Then I heard a sickening crunching sound, and he let out a scream unlike anything I'd ever heard. It reminded me vaguely of the shriek of a dying deer or rabbit as it is caught by a predator. Michelangelo's eyes rolled back, and he went limp in the thing's grip. The nunchaku in his hands fell to the floor with a thud and a clinking of chains.
"NOOOO!" "MIKEY!" The screams of horror came from four throats at once, as Leo, Raph, Don and I all heard him shriek, and rushed toward him at once. I was closest, and reached him just as the robot criminal dropped his body to the floor and launched itself up into the air to follow its companions out through the hole in the roof. Donnie reached him next, skidding to a stop on his knees, reaching down to check his brother's condition. Mikey's shell was badly cracked, with four wide fissures running along its length, two of them near the edges, and two closer to the middle, roughly along the joints of the scutes . A few smaller, thinner cracks radiated out from the larger ones, some horizontally, others at odd angles. The joints between the bridge and carapace were snapped, as well, and there was even a long fracture down the centerline of his plastron and two cracks running across the joints between the two middle pairs of plates. The powerful robot had shattered his shell almost completely, and had left him to die.
"Oh, God- Donnie, is he-?" I stopped, unable to finish the thought. "Please say he's not-" I pleaded, looking over the damage. Mikey's carapace had been cracked open like a walnut, the dark red and white of the tissues and organs beneath showing through. It didn't look good. He lay on his side where he'd fallen; whether he was unconscious or dead was unclear. Donatello leaned down to listen carefully for the sound of his breath, and placed his fingers against Mikey's neck to check for a pulse.
"He's alive, but I don't know for how long. This is BAD. VERY bad." He turned his sibling carefully onto his stomach, which must have jarred Mikey back to semi-consciousness. Mikey began to whimper softly, his eyes squeezed shut and jaw clenched in pain. He began to tremble uncontrollably, making soft whines that reminded me of a whipped dog. "He's not going to make it if we don't get him out of here and mend those fractures." Donnie looked up at Leo and Raph, who had both rushed over right behind him, and now knelt beside him with worried expressions.
"Don, is there ANYTHING we can do?" I asked, looking up at him hopefully. On the floor by my knees, his brother was making pitiful whining sounds that were more animal than human. It was both disturbing and worrying. Mikey had gone a much paler shade of green than his usual deep malachite hue, and his body shook so violently that his teeth began to click together. "Donnie! What's wrong with him?!" I cried, suddenly more afraid than ever.
"He's having a seizure! His body is going into shock!" Don yelled back, leaning in close to feel his brother's pulse. His frown deepened and he looked at us and shook his head worriedly. "His pulse is erratic! Oh, God- this is NOT good…."
"Is- is he gonna' make it?" Raph asked, his hands fidgeting fretfully with one sai.
"I- I don't know, Raph. His shell is badly cracked, and there could be internal damage or bleeding. But I don't have the equipment or the expertise to determine that- or to fix it if there is." He sounded defeated and lost, his voice breaking.
Leo took command, in spite of the obvious concern in his eyes. "We have to get him out of here and back to the lair. We can figure out what to do for him there." He sheathed his swords, and motioned for Goliath and his clan to go ahead. They moved closer instead, coming over to lend whatever help or comfort they could.
"Leo, we can't move him! Any stress on his shell could crack it worse than it already is!" Donatello warned. "He needs to remain flat, or we risk these cracks widening into his spinal column. If we move him, he could be paralyzed, or even die!"
"He's right. Even if it doesn't crack worse, carrying him through the sewers with such a severe injury could risk infection. He might contract something simple that could still prove fatal in this condition," Lex added, moving next to Donnie.
"We can't just leave him HERE!" Leo argued. "Those cops outside will be here any minute, especially once they realize the Pack escaped, and we'd better be gone by then, or every nightmare we've ever had about being caught is going to come true. We HAVE to risk it! NO ONE gets left behind!"
I felt Mikey's pulse, as he continued to tremble uncontrollably. "Guys, he's really cold!" I alerted them. His skin was clammy to the touch. I grabbed a large linen kimono from a smashed display nearby and draped it over him to try to keep him warm. "He's getting worse. We need to do something NOW!"
"We could make a stretcher and carry him out on it," Brooklyn suggested. "And Broadway and I could take it to the clock tower. The rest of you could meet us there. It's safer and cleaner than the sewers."
Leonardo seemed to latch onto that. "Okay, you two do that- Don and I will head back to the lair to get medical supplies. Donnie? Will that work?"
Don shrugged. "I'd prefer to use our infirmary, but Lex is right. If we try to transport Mikey through the sewers, we could risk him getting a serious infection. The tower will do."
Leo nodded in agreement. "Alright, the four of us will take care of Mikey. The rest of you- get that sword back!" He paused, and stooped for a moment to pick up Mikey's fallen weapons, tucking them into his belt. It amazed me that even amid the worst possible situations, somehow he always managed to remember even the smallest details, like removing all traces of their presence.
"You got it bro," Raph growled angrily, glad to have something to do. It was clear he wanted paybacks for what had happened to Mikey, as well.
"Leonardo, for what it is worth, I am sorry for what has happened to your brother. Rest assured, we WILL make those cowards pay for what they've done," Goliath promised, holding out his hand. Leo took it, nodding. There seemed to be some unspoken communication that passed between the two leaders, born of their shared burden. Goliath knew how hard the blow of seeing his brother near death had hit Leo.
"Just make sure you get the sword back. It's more dangerous than you can imagine." Leo replied. Goliath bowed slightly, turning to glance at Brooklyn and Broadway as he strode past them. He frowned, and turned back to speak to the group.
"Hudson, Angela- get Bronx and come with me. We will hunt down Demona and the Pack. Raphael and Orlene will join us in the hunt. Lexington, go with Leonardo and Donatello; when they reach the clock tower, stay with them to help. While you three care for Michelangelo's injuries, send Broadway and Brooklyn to meet back up with us. I will keep an open com-link so they know where to find us." The others all nodded, and took up their positions. Goliath paused for a moment before furling his wings around him and heading back the way we had come. "And one more thing- let Elisa know what has happened. She may be able to help."
Broadway and Brooklyn traded a glance; Brooklyn shrugged, and they began to hunt around for something to use for a stretcher. Broadway ran into the Hindu art gallery, and a few moments later, the sound of something heavy being broken came from that direction. He came back holding what appeared to be the seat of a stone bench.
"Here, we can carry him on this!" He supplied helpfully, setting the slab down on the floor beside the nearly unconscious Michelangelo. "See? All we have to do is secure him to this, and we've got our own care flight!" He was obviously pleased with himself, and even Leo seemed mildly impressed by his ingenuity, or perhaps it was his strength.
We set to work shifting Mikey carefully onto the slab face-down, using a pair of grapple lines to tie him to it for the trip. He whimpered softly as he was moved; the sound nearly broke my heart. But something was bothering me, and as we carried him back down the stairs to the basement, I realized what it was. I paused, and finally voiced the thoughts that had been swirling around in my head.
"Wait," I said, watching the three biggest gargoyles lead the way with Mikey in tow.
Everyone turned to see why I'd called a halt. "What is it?" Leo asked.
"I was just thinking- maybe YOU should go with them to find the sword, Leo. I would be of more use helping Donnie. My hands are smaller, so if there's any delicate work that needs to be done, we'll need someone with the manual dexterity for it. Besides, I wouldn't be much good in a fight against flying or physically enhanced opponents. I want to help Mikey. You're stronger and a better fighter, anyway."
Both leaders traded concerned looks, and Leo finally sighed and nodded. "I hate to admit it, but you're right. Alright, you go with Don, and get whatever he needs. This is the sort of thing a kunoichi is trained for, anyway, so it makes sense for you to go. Don is in charge- do whatever he says, understood? I know you'll do whatever you can for Mikey- and I don't need you distracted by worrying about him in the middle of a battle. This solves both problems. Alright, let's go."
We carried Michelangelo through the short passage to the grate down into the sewers, for the short distance to the storm grate the gargoyles had entered from earlier. I followed behind Donnie and Lex as we parted ways with Broadway and Brooklyn, who tied the improvised stretcher to themselves and began to climb up the nearest building to get enough altitude for gliding. Everyone separated to their appointed tasks, and the three of us headed as fast as possible to the lair to retrieve Don's medical kit and duffle bag. We ran as fast as we could go through the sewers, with Lexington bounding along behind Donatello through the maze of tunnels while I brought up the rear.
We reached the lair in record time, and Lex paused only long enough to marvel appreciatively at the cozy hidden abode while Don and I dashed straight for the lab and workshop. Lex quickly joined us, as we hastily began hunting for anything that would be useful in our task. The first things he grabbed were his laptop and veterinary medicine books, while I yanked open drawers of gauze rolls, medical tape, needles, and antibiotic ointments and pain relievers, dumping them all into his duffel bag. It was while Donnie was digging through his salvaged hospital equipment that the full brunt of things hit me.
"Donnie, what if we can't fix this?" I asked, trying hard not to cry at the psrospect of losing the one who meant so much. "Do you know how to repair a cracked shell?"
He paused, a look of deep worry etched on his face, so fearful that I wondered if he had lost hope. "I know how to fix it in theory, but there are so many variables to consider- like if there is any internal damage like bleeding, organs crushed or punctured- not to mention I don't know if I have the proper medications for something this serious. I have some Tramadol for the pain, but I'm worried about infections, side-effects, and long-term healing. It would take months to repair that kind of damage, and even then, there's no guarantee it'll ever be strong enough for even light sparring afterwards!"
"We need a veteranarian, and an x-ray machine or an MRI." Lex commented absently, looking around at the various projects Don had lying scattered throughout the room.
"What we NEED is a miracle!" I replied, flustered by the lack of anything stronger than Tylenol in the cabinets. "Don, where do you keep the prescription meds? I know you have some here, but I can't find anything."
"It's in the locked cabinet. I was worried that some of them might be addicting if we use them too often, so I decided to limit access. The key is in a magnetic case on the underside of my desk." He replied. I rushed over to search for it, and sure enough, it was right where he'd said it would be. With key in hand, I quickly opened up the locked cabinet, and was greeted with a dizzying array of medications.
"Okay, what should I take?" I asked, hoping Donnie knew what he had in there. "Where do you even get all this stuff?"
"You really DON'T want to know," he responded, and I realized it was probably all pilfered. Ninjas, I thought with mild annoyance. Donnie continued almost absently, rattling off several names. "The Tramadol, ketamine, tobramycin, dexamethasone, codeine, and amoxicillin, and, um, grab the norepinephrine." He turned to Lex. "Could you grab that arm cuff over there by the exam table? And there are some bags of blood stored in that mini-fridge. We may need them. There should be some tubing and a pump on that cart over there, too. Put them in my bag, please."
"You keep blood in your refrigerator?" Lexington asked in disbelief. "Good thing Broadway isn't here, he'd think you were a vampire!" He said with a nervous chuckle, as he began carefully removing bags.
"Relax, it's ours. I always keep a supply on hand for emergencies. I make sure we all donate a pint every two months, just in case. Occupational hazard."
Lex frowned in worry for his new friends. "We've never had to worry about things like that. We regenerate during the day in our stone sleep. Usually our injuries heal in a day, sometimes two or three if it's serious. We can't regenerate lost limbs, but as long as we're in one piece, it'll heal."
I glanced from the gargoyle to the turtle, and saw the shadow of doubt and fear that fell over Donatello's face. I could relate. But then the scientist in him seemed to take over again. "I wish WE could heal that fast. Lex, would it be okay if I took some samples from you guys to study your biochemistry? If I could isolate the factor that allows the regenerative ability, maybe we could use it to heal injuries faster. What I wouldn't give for that!" He sighed, and I found myself agreeing with him completely.
Lex shrugged, and began to stuff more medical supplies into the bag. "I don't know, Goliath might not approve of that. The last time someone took samples from us, they made evil clones of us! Anyway, I doubt you guys would want the trade-off of turning to stone every day." Lex replied, pointing out the obvious down-side of their method of healing. "Besides, we don't really have time to waste on trying to study it. Your brother needs help NOW."
Don winced at the reminder, and looked distraught. "I KNOW that! It's just- I don't know how we're going to save him. If there's any internal bleeding or organ damage, then…." He shook his head, looking at me with damp eyes. I went over to him, wrapping my arms around his wide shoulders. He hugged back, and I could feel him shaking slightly, fear of losing his youngest sibling taking its toll.
"Don't worry, Donnie. I have faith in you. We can do this." I wished I felt as certain as I tried to sound, but I knew that the prognosis was grim. As much as I hated to admit it, we really DID need a miracle. "Now, come on- let's get back to the tower and save Mikey." I couldn't help noticing he was reluctant to end the embrace; I suspected he had needed the comfort more than he was letting on.
"Too bad we don't have access to a full medical facility with all the latest advances," Lex said, placing the last of the supplies in Don's duffle bag. "Hey! Maybe we could take him to the zoo! They have some of the best veterinary equipment anywhere, right? And at this time of night, there wouldn't be anyone around!"
Donnie shook his head again, sighing. "No good. There are still security guards, cameras, and locks to deal with. Too risky. Still…. Oh, what I wouldn't give for one of those magic healing spells from one of Mikey's video games!" He graoned, and I had to agree with his sentiment. If ONLY….
That's when it happened. Donatello had been pacing in his agitation, a sure sign that he was both distraught and working frantically to solve the problem in his head. He suddenly stopped in his tracks; he froze for several long breaths. A peculiar expression came over his face then, and he rushed back over to the bag and yanked his laptop out, flipping it open and turning it on faster than I'd ever seen him do. "Oh, please still be there…!" He breathed, hope lighting up his eyes for the first time since Michelangelo had been injured.
"Donnie?" I asked uncertainly, wondering what was wrong. I watched in confusion and curiosity- knowing Donnie, an idea had just struck- as his fingers flew over the modified keyboard, his eyes glued to the screen. A moment later, his face lit up, and he leapt up with a loud whoop of elation.
"YES! It's still at the hospital! All we have to do is go in there and get it! By Darwin's beard, I've GOT IT!" He crowed triumphantly. He dashed over and grabbed Lexington, picking up the diminutive gargoyle by his middle and swinging him around excitedly. "Come on, we need to get to the tower and get Mikey ready, and then one of us is going to have to go to the hospital and get the device! I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner!" Great. Now he was babbling, and making zero sense.
"Wha…?!" Lex asked, utterly confused. I wasn't exactly in the loop, myself. "Uh, what's he talking about?" Lex queried, turning to me expectantly. I shrugged and gave him a puzzled look.
"You've got me," I replied, shaking my head in utter confusion. "Hey Don, you want to maybe clue us in? Got WHAT, exactly?" I asked, huffing exasperatedly. I glanced over at his computer, and was further puzzled to find an archived Channel Six video article of one of April's old reports. The date on it was nearly three years old. It looked like a press conference, but I didn't recognize the middle-aged man who was talking, nor the odd-looking "gun" lying on a table in front of him. There were a few paragraphs below the video, but I was too far away to see more than a headline that read "New prototype device is a medical miracle", and the date.
"Okay, what's this?" I asked him, pointing to the open web-page.
"It's the miracle you were talking about!" Donatello exclaimed, finally putting Lex down, as if that were all the explanation needed. When he saw our dumbfounded faces, he rolled his eyes and continued. "A few years ago, April did a report on a new prototype laser surgical device at the Metro Hospital. It's the most advanced healing tool in the world- it could heal Mikey's shell in minutes! It's EXACTLY what we need- and it's still there!" He finished, straightening with a wide grin and putting his hands on his hips in a victorious pose. "Of course, the hard part will be getting our hands on it. After Shredder tried to steal the prototype, both it and the second one that was built to replace the stolen one were locked in the hospital's high-security vault by the head administrator after we recovered them, and now they only take them out for use on the most severely injured patients. Someone has to go to the hospital, get into the vault, and borrow one of them. But first we need to check on Mikey and make sure he'll survive long enough to get it to him. So, what are we WAITING for? Let's GO!" He was starting to sound impatient now, and didn't even wait for a response before he closed the laptop and shoved it back into his duffle bag.
Lex and I traded glances, and I could see that the young gargoyle was still doubtful, but at least it was something. "Okay, but how are you going to get it?" He asked bluntly.
Donatello turned to stare sqarely at me, and grinned wickedly. I knew that look, and on him, it meant trouble. "It's elementary, my dear Lex! That's where SHE comes in! Our kunoichi is going to do what a kunoichi does best- use the art of deception to get the administrator to open the vault, and then she's going to steal the Medilaser!" My jaw fell. Oh, boy, he's finally lost it, I thought….
Xanacorp Tower-
David Xanatos sat staring at the video feed from Coyote intently, scowling at what he saw on the robot's recording of the encounter in the museum. So, the gargoyles had enlisted outside help from some mutant band of vigilantes? And who was the mysterious man in the armor and helmet who had interfered with the Pack's attempt to steal the sword? From the size and ferocity of the creatures with him, he was no stranger to genetic engineering. Interesting.
He studied the strange mutant turtle-men and their ally, a human girl whom he swore he had seen somewhere before. The mutants were ninjas- he was certain of it now. Their fighting style, their weapons, the way they had managed to sneak into the museum under the very noses of the police- it all pointed to one thing. But who were they? Friends of Goliath and his clan, obviously. David wondered how the two groups had met, and when. He didn't think they had been together long, although they seemed to work well together. He decided it might be profitable to learn more about these new players in the game.
There were four of them, he noted, unless one wanted to include the blonde girl- though she was clearly the least experienced of the bunch. The one in blue appeared to be the leader. He felt a minor twinge of guilt- an unfamiliar emotion- at the horrendous injury of the orange-banded one, but it couldn't be helped. "So, Goliath, it seems you've made some new friends. Ninja mutants, at that. I wonder where they came from…." He leaned back for a moment to contemplate the possibility of turning this encounter to his advantage. It was unfortunate that Demona had shown up, to be sure. No doubt she had her own agenda, one that would prove detrimental to his future plans, if she was up to her usual brand of chaos. He closed his eyes, trying to remember where he'd seen that girl. She was the key to finding these vigilantes, he was sure of it.
He heard a news update from the television on the wall behind him, giving the latest details on the museum heist and the apparent fight that had taken place and demolished several priceless relics in the Asian art galleries. Xanatos sighed. It was always a terrible tragedy to lose such valuable artifacts of history- more so since he understood the true worth of one in particular which was now somewhere out there in the city, being used for who knew what nefarious purpose by a vindictive and vengeful gargoyle woman. He turned his chair to glance at the television, and his gaze narrowed when he saw the reporter. It was that gorgeous red-head again. April O'Neal.
Xanatos sat up swiftly, a memory suddenly striking like lightning. The girl! He had seen her not two months ago, during an ill-fated interview the O'Neal woman had been filming at the Stock-Tronics laboratory. The girl had been taken hostage by the same man who had been at the museum tonight, and those same mutants had appeared then, too. He clicked off the video feed from Coyote, and opened up his net access to make a quick search for the incident. In moments, he had found what he wanted. She was a camera operator for Channel Six, assigned to work with O'Neal. This was getting more intriguing by the minute. He stroked his beard thoughtfully, considering his next move. A few moments later, he smiled smugly, having formed a plan.
He opened up the intercom link from his office to his assistant. "Owen, a moment, if you would, please?"
"Of course, sir," came the calm, even reply, and true to form, the tall, clean-cut blonde man in glasses entered the office entered a few seconds later. He walked with a no-nonsense gait, his face a mask of emotionlessness. Xanatos managed a slight smirk, knowing who was really behind those glasses. If nothing else, Puck- or Owen as he was called in his human guise- was a consumate actor. As his personal assistant, he made for a loyal and reliable aide, but more than that, Owen was predictable and never had any qualms about following even the most questionable orders.
"You requested my presense, Mr. Xanatos?" He asked in his usual stiff manner.
"I'd like to make a donation to the Metropolitan Museum to repair or replace the artifacts that were damaged in that attack. To that end, I want to set up an exclusive interview with that lovely red-head from Channel Six. Miss O'Neal, I believe her name was?" Xanatos sais smoothly; Owen nodded almost absently, making several quick notations on his iPad.
"Will there be anything else, sir?" He queried, and Xanatos had to hand to the man- he never batted an eye. He played his part admirably.
"Yes. I'd also like you to make some inquiries about that young camera operator who was with her last time. The blonde girl. Discreetly, of course. I want to know who she is, where she came from, everything you can dig up. She is connected to this incident, and I want to know how. That will be all."
"Yes, Mr. Xanatos, sir," Owen said, nodding as he left. David stood and walked over to the large window overlooking the city. Yes, indeed. Things were starting to get very interesting down in the city, and that pleased him immensely. He hadn't wanted to admit it, but he had been getting a bit bored, what with the reality of fatherhood and married life setting in. As much as he loved Fox- if that's what it was- he craved excitement and challenge. This was one he couldn't resist.