Legends Between Worlds- 3- TMNTxKFP

Legends Between Worlds


The Outsiders PT2

Usagi

The travel to the Valley of Peace was a long one but it was worth it in the end. Upon walking through the last patch of bamboo forest and pushing aside the stray branches that blocked my view, I found myself looking upon a village colored beautifully by the warmth of the sun and adorned with the airs of tranquility. Conversation and laughter greeted my ears as I walked through the town's tall entrance way, much like when one entered their family home during a festive gathering. There aren't many places like this in Japan... and the ones that are are well hidden and known to only a small few.

I must have been staring in wonderment for quite some time because, before I knew it, a slight tug the leg of my hakama (1) alerted me that someone smaller in stature wanted my attention. I glanced down immediately. A fully grown female rabbit-- I could tell by the wise eyes and fully developed face-- that stood a few inches above my knee looked back up at me with a gaze of fascination and curiosity. I definitely wasn't in Japan anymore; I never knew my own race could be so small in build...

"Hello there traveller," She started sweetly, lifting up a basket full of freshly picked apples for me to see, "May I interest you in a free sample? They're the best apples in the Valley."

"Um... no thank you. I-" I started but she cut me off before I could finish further.

"Perhaps some direction then? You don't seem like you're from around here, dear."

I blinked, laughing nervously while adjusting the kasa(2) that rested snuggly on my head, "Is it that obvious?"

"I'm afraid so, yes," She chuckled, "It's not often we get travelers from other lands. Even so, we welcome ever new comer looking for a quiet life with open arms."

I smiled at her kind tone, "Thank you very much."

"Are you looking for the Jade Palace?"

I blinked again; this woman was very observant for a humble street merchant, "Um... yes, actually. How did you know?"

"It's not that hard to guess. You look like a warrior-- a kind one at that. Normally, warriors that come to our village with peaceful intent seek it out for instruction. Sometimes, they are looking for refuge. Most times, they are summoned. Would you like me to point you in the right direction?"

"Yes, please."

She nodded, turning around and pointing one of her tiny fingers down the intricate tiled pathways before me, "After you hit the end of this path, make a left and you should see the steps leading up to the palace. You can't miss them."

"I see," I said, bowing my head respectfully to her, stating my thanks before I made my way to my final destination.

She was spot on, of course. I was a warrior seeking out the Jade Palace... but not for teaching in the martial arts, nor for sanctuary; I had been called here.

Normally, I don't repsond to summon from foreign lands. After all, why would I travel overseas and miles away from my home to come to an unfamiliar and uncertain land?

But this one... this one was different.

As I continued to move forward, I reached into my travel bag and pulled out worn, carefully folded piece of parchment paper; one can tell that it had seen many days of cross-sea travel. Within the crinkles and folds of the parchment resided a letter, written to me, specifically asking for my presence and my aid at the Jade Palace. All that aside, it was the name of the sender that startled me the most.

The paper in my hands felt physically weighted with the accomplishments that that name held... for EVERYONE all throughout Asia. How could I possibly decline? It was an honor after all. That name was the neatly added acknowledgement needed to ensure that I would come to China.

I suddenly stopped, realizing that I had reached the foot of the seemingly endless set of stone stairs that apple vendor was talking about.

...

Heh. That woman had failed to mention that the palace was at the top of a 10,000 foot mountain. Then again, all the locals here were probably used to the journey to the top.

... I hung my head.

I suppose the journey wasn't quite over yet...

---

Raphael

"Ugh... why......?" I groaned in pain, my eyes opening up slowly only to find myself staring at a very unfamiliar ceiling... and where else could I look anyway? Everything else seemed to hurt too much to move. Hell, I think even my shell had bruises.

Just as my vision began to adjust and I tried to get a grip on my surroundings-- not matter how small of it grip it was--  a cool cloth came down on my face gently, dabbing carefully. Huh... someone was in the room with me and, luckily, it seemed like it was someone who didn't want me dead... but, based on the condition I was in, someone else had probably tried and damn near succeeded.

God, what the hell happened? Was I jumped? If that's the case, I hope the other guy was breathing out of a damn tube...

"Welcome back to the land of the living."

Huh? That voice sounded familiar. Very familiar actually.

"... Leo?" I croaked, attempting to turn my head towards the sound of my brother's voice but, instead, I ended up regretting it. A sharp pain shot up my neck like lightning, quickly stopping me and causing me to strangle out a grunt. I shut my eyes tightly, waiting for the suddenly pain to go away. Man, I haven't been this badly injured since the last time I took on the Shredder with Leo, Mike, and Donnie.

"Don't move. Your injuries were sustained from being severely paralyzed. Your pressure points were attacked. Luckily, the people that took us in were able to reverse it."

"Well...,” I croaked out hoarsely, hating the sound of my own voice, “Least I’m alive.”

“Yeah...” He sighed, worry obviously in his voice. Heh, mother hen.

After a few seconds, allowing the waves of pain to fully subside, my eyes slowly opened again. My momentarily blurred vision was able to catch a blob of blue and light green leaning in close to my face. When I was able to see better, those blotches of color became more focused. I was able to make out my brother’s narrow eyes that always seemed to shake you up, no matter how confident you thought you were. His face, although obviously recognizable, was bruised a bit; two purplish areas stood out the most to me. They were swollen, slightly throwing of the symmetry of his face. His lip was busted too; damn, someone must have gotten a few decent punches in on his face.

Now, I don’t know many who are able to land a blow on Splinter Jr. over here-- let alone his face-- but whoever did this to him really gave him a run for his money.

“... Ya look like hell...,” I croaked again, offering a half-hearted smirk.

He shook his head down at me, chuckling, “If I look like hell, then you must look like death warmed over.”

“Feelin’ like it,” I coughed out a laugh, “Where the hell are me anyway? What happened ta us?”

He shrugged, “I’m not entirely sure where we are... I know we somehow ended up in a different dimension. If I were to guess which one, based on those who saved us, I’d say Second Earth.”

“Ya mean where that rabbit is?”

He gave me a dull expression, “Usagi, Raph. We’ve known him for five years now. Take some effort into remembering his name.”

“Yeah, whateva.”

He rolled his eyes, “As for what happened to us, I’m... not entirely sure. All I know is that we were attacked. I take it that you don’t remember anything either.”

“Nah. Just a whole lot-a hurt,” I grimaced, feeling another twinge of pain from inhaling too much. God, it felt like my ribcage was getting ready to crack open...

“I’ve been meditating on it for a while but, so far, I’ve been coming up empty. So far, I can only gather that we didn’t forget due to a beating or because of trauma. We’ve dealt with way worse and we’ve been able to recall every detail like it happened yesterday.”

“Okay... so what’s different about this?”

“Well, I think--” He paused suddenly, narrowing his eyes before suspiciously glancing over his shoulder. I couldn’t see what he was looking at but I did know what that look meant: someone was listening in on us.

He turned back to look down at me before continuing on, this time in Japanese, “I think someone locked our recollection of that night away.”

I blinked, a bit confused as I put together my words to answer. I wasn’t an expert at speaking the language, like Splinter Jr. over here, but I could keep up, “Uh.... W-- ahem...-- W-what do you mean locked away?”

I still got it.

Leo smiled, glad that I got when he was going, “Someone doesn’t want us to remember... at least for the time being. Everytime I try, I feel blocked, restricted.”

“So... someone messed with our heads or somethin’?” I growled out, feeling my blood boiling for a fight, despite the fact that I couldn’t really DO anything at the moment.

“Yes, that’s what I am saying,” He sighed, “I have a feeling that whoever it was wanted us to end up here for some reason or another. Whatever that reason may be-- or even if it’s a malicious reason or not-- is a mystery.”

It took me a moment to get everything he said. He was talking a little too fast for me... the showoff, “Wa...Was it the person who attacked us?”

He paused for a moment before shaking his head, shrugging at the same time, “I’m not too sure. All I know for sure is that we are stuck here... I just wish there was someway we could tell Master Splinter and the others where we were. We would have get in contact with the Ultimate Daimyo.”

“Ya can’t do that?”

“I could but it would be a bit risky. As you can probably gather, we aren’t entirely trusted here. I don’t blame them, of course, but it makes things a little difficult.”

“Yeah...”

“If I can slip out without being noticed long enough to send a message to the Daimyo, then that should work.”

I gave Splinter Jr a confident grin... although it was kind of a pained one, “Sounds like a plan.”

He nodded, leaning out of my range of sight. He dropped the Japanese; I guess the eavesdropper must’ve taken their leave already, “You should get some rest Raph. You really do look like an inch from death’s door right now.”

I chuckled but then I abruptly stop when I ended up stretching something I shouldn’t have as a result, “Y-your bein’ dramatic, Fearless. I’m probably a foot away from death’s door. Don’t get it twisted.”

“... Not funny Raph.”