Chapter Text
Death. Donatello Hamato has seen death before. The Kraang has left a lot of families incomplete. Gram-Gram died, Nardo almost died. Actually, they were all on the trail of death, he was just inching closer to it. It's improbable, actually. We can't stop death, it's only natural. No use in being upset because of it, but why? Why is he still upset, why does he keep having nightmares of the former? The gross textures of the tentacles, the slimy substance assaulting his senses, hugging his limbs, a bad type of hug. Down his spine, his spiny softshell. Gross. There's no use thinking about the past, as it already happened. We can only choose to recover.
Life. It's inevitable that it causes pain. But there's sometimes a bandage to subside the pricks. But a bandage cant heal a wound. Life definitely has it’s upsides, usually. But for now it's safe to say he'll be on this course for a while, fighting crime, patrol, his family, purple, and his tech. There's probably more he regularly does in life but that's all he can remember right now–
Donnie awoke with a weight slamming down onto him, making him tumble on his bed.
“Donnie wake up, we’ve got a big day ahead of us!!” He heard the familiar voice of someone who's unfortunately his twin that’s currently tackling him.
Nardo poked Donnie’s apparently big forehead to verify he’s actually awake.
“And what is this ‘big day', you speak of?” He questioned, rubbing his eyes, annoyed.
“Today I made some pancakes n' bacon!” Leo sat up, sitting next to him.
Donnie sighed, There was no way he was gonna get out of this. “Fine, Nardo I’ll be out in a bit.”
“Yeah you still need to get that mask on to cover that big forehead of yours.” Leo snickered.
“Like you can say anything, with that equilateral forehead of yours.” Donnie chuckled to himself, before starting to get up.
“Wha-” He closed his subway door on the confused slider, before he got to finish what he wanted to say.
“I’ll be taking my normal forehead somewhere else.” He joked under his breath.
Once he got closer to the salty wisps of bacon flowing through the hallway, signifying that he’s close. Not gonna lie, he’s a little excited- it is food he certainly likes this time.
When he slid open the car door to the kitchen he was greeted by the familiar cold hues of the place. Also, Mikey and Raph were seated at the table waiting for them to enjoy the food together.
“Glad you’re joining us, Dee!” Mikey exclaimed as Raph nodded, his eyes fixated on the food in front of them.
Raph was seated at the far left while Mikey was on the far right– kind of strange arrangement for them but ok. He took a seat, a space away from Raph so it can be reserved for his twin.
Leo soon joined them after, then they were finally able to eat. Surprisingly, Leo’s also a good cook, he's no Mikey, but still, pretty good. He still had to wipe down the bacon for grease, so he had to dock points for that. As he began to eat, he found himself fond of the lighthearted chatter that filled the room, he couldn't help but miss it. It’s like they barely have lighthearted times like these anymore. Leo and Raph’s arguing routine, the rise of crime, the S-word, the K-word, maybe even the Baron word. Also, the injuries and all, you know.
But– for now, he’ll enjoy this, while it lasts. He smiled, despite the thoughts. He was grateful for the lightheartedness in the conversation, even if his heart felt heavy, even if things weren't fully okay right now. Donnie grabbed a piece of a pancake, taking a bite, letting himself get lost in the playful banter of his brothers, giving input in the convo, if necessary.
Soon, everyone’s plates became empty, aswell as their appetite. Donnie bidded farewell to his brothers, retreating back to his lab for today, he needed to focus on his work.
As he was welcomed by the warm purple hues of his lab, Donnie slid inside, jumping onto his rolly-spinny chair, projecting himself to the front of his desk.
Distracted away from his thoughts and the outside world, he began to prepare for his New Beta Aquatic Battleshell. He swiped his hand on his desk, causing the half-finished tech he had yet to finish to tumble to the side, making sure he didn’t hit the essential stuff, which consisted of some scraps of elastomers, a can of epoxy resin, and his personalized violet CNC router, with an LED light outline. He couldn't resist the LED, it just finished the whole look!
He heard the soft whirring of his robotic friend, (Son?) Shelldon, just behind him, hanging on a shelf behind him, indicating that he just powered on.
“Good morning, Shelldon. Also, just to make sure, yesterday did you acquire the items I requested?” Donnie asked, still facing his desk.
“Yeah yeah, I all got it..” Shelldon mumbled, probably still tired, or starting up.
“All of it? Including and not excluding CNC lathes, Composite molds, and a hydroforming machine?”
“Yeahhh, they were all at Repo’s dumpster thingy.” Shelldon gestured a rotor to the pile of tech Donnie asked for in the corner of the lab. in his usual laid-back manner, but Donnie could tell it faltered a bit.
There were no scuffs or anything at all, like it was just ripped from the package.
“In mint condition too?” Donnie turned his head to look at Shelldon, who was fidgeting with his front rotors. “That’s really rare, considering these seem well kept, and I know that of course, Repo possibly couldn't know how to take care of such high maintenance materials.” He furrowed his eyebrows.
“I took care of them.. I looked up how to restore these then did it.”
“This looks brand new, Amazing work on restoring them to their original condition, Shelldon.”
“Thanks. I’ll be heading out now-” Shelldon darted out of the room before Donnie could say anything else.
Donnie didn’t bother to stop Shelldon, probably going to race around the house again.. Maybe that was why he was so ansty. He was powered down for like, 14 hours this time.
But for now he needs to get started. He looked up at his wall, which showed a poster for his big plans.
Hull design.
Propulsion system.
Control systems.
Life support systems.
Defensive and offensive systems.
Before he got started however, he made sure the lab had proper ventilation and that he had a first aid kit and a fire extinguisher nearby in case of accidents. He pulled up his CAD (computer-aided-design), double checking it. He gathered together the equipment and materials he would need before finally starting.
As he worked, Donnie's mind raced with possibilities. He thought about all the diverse scenes where he could equip this Aquatic Battleshell, exploring hidden underwater caves, advancing through enemy strongholds, maybe even going to the beach!
He could feel his excitement burning inside of him, as he set up the hydroforming machine, he loaded up the titanium, keeping it steady with the help of his spider-shell claws.
Titanium has a higher melting point than many other metals, so it would require higher temperatures to shape effectively. seeing the titanium which means that he would need to apply more heat to shape the metal, so he hopefully accurately attempted this.
After a quick view of the placements, he hesitantly turned on the hydroforming machine, after pulling out his phone to put on a timer for about 3 hours.
“Hey Siri, can you put on “Egoist” by Parsley Onunma?”
“Sure thing.”
He made sure his phone was connected to the speakers, because man he was in such a mood to blast music right now. If it wasn't for his soundproof walls, his brothers would be kicking down the doors.
He watched the machine with an excited yet attentive eye, as it molded the hull into his desired design, slowly bringing it to life in front of him. He faintly hoped Shelldon surely didn’t bring a faulty hydroforming machine for him to use.
He soon turned away after getting bored though, to focus on vibing to his music.
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– – – – 🟪 💜 🟪 —- – - –
His timer came off, to his surprise. Has it really been that long?
Turning off his music, he began to spin his chair forward to face the hydroforming machine. He wanted to see the finished creation from a more close up and detailed view, wondering if he got the time right for it to be in its intended form.
Before he could get a good look, his train of thought was abruptly stopped with a blinding pain upon his forearm. Taken aback, he impulsively grabbed at the source of the pain, but this just caused the burning sensation to intensify.
He fell backwards on his chair with a yelp, landing on his battleshell, which failed to break his fall. He had the thought to actually look at where this pain was coming from next. Lifting his arm up to his face. To his disturbance, he saw a size burn wound, completely flush. The gash was formed as a messy excuse of an oval covering his forearm. Most of the wound had a broken up puffy texture mixed with a pale yellow-ish goo substance? Ew. The rest was actively swarming with blood. The whole thing smelt foul, encapsulating in his lungs.
He began to sit up, making sure to keep his arm upright the whole time, still shocked and disoriented. Still confused with unanswered questions. Still trying to make sense of what happened.
With a jolt of shock, he remembered he had forgotten to turn off the hydroforming machine. He jumped to his feet, scrambling to the off button, still clutching his arm.
He glanced at how the machine had done. The mold fused with the burnt titanium, looking like a deformed mess. The acrid smell of a burning disaster. Maybe if he had remembered he could’ve saved it. But he can’t worry about the effects of his actions right now. He has a wound to hypothesize on.
His gaze reluctantly went back to the strange wound. There's so much blood. Donnie was horrified to see that his hand that was grasping around it had a mixture this yellowy muck mixed around the festering wound. It pooled around him, some splattered around the floor. So much for the carpet.
His brain keeps replaying the events in his mind, trying to find what went wrong. Where did this wound come from? How did it get so infected? What is that yellow substance? How will he deal with this?
He hastily looked up, not wanting to see it anymore. The acidic smell radiating from it was already enough, it was too overwhelming.
Disgusting.
Donnie picked up his phone from the floor, which read 12:14 am. Putting it back in his pocket, he made sure to check for any intruders outside his door, peeking through the door crack he made for himself.
Seeing the perimeter was clear, before sighing.
Before he did this, Donnie went back to his lab to get paper towels under the wound to prevent any unwanted spilling, not pressing directly on the wound so it doesn’t hurt anymore than it already does. Next, he made sure to erase all traces of the wound, wiping down every liquid that apparently came from his body.
Going back to the cracked door to check again, before taking a few steps out, making sure to silently close the door shut.
He set both of his arms behind his back in case if anyone came they wouldn't immediately see his wound.
Donnie started to speed walk to the medical room, speeding up anxiously by each step, ignoring the intense throb in his right forearm. When he arrived he made sure to take in everything that he could possibly be of use to him.
As he barged in, his gaze snapped towards was your generic medkit— the boring off-white with a bold, satisfying X plastered on the middle, the one you can't miss. He could use that, if it has what it usually has. Wipes, bandages disinfectant- whatever its called. He could just take some bandages and a wipe and then maybe he could just take care of this himself. His brothers won't have to know anything– he won't cause them the trouble. It would be too complicated to explain, actually. He didn't even know what was going on himself.
They might even think he's doing this to himself. It's not like he can come up with a cover story or anything. He’s such a terrible liar that they’ll think he's hiding something else, if he told them the absolute truth they won't even believe something so strange, so impossible happened. Maybe he actually did accidentally hit his forearm on the titanium sheets that were currently melting? I mean, It did look like a burn wound that would explain the whole thing. Maybe the adrenaline stopped him from noticing the cause? But he was turned away vibing to Egoist. Who cares, he doesn't know right about now. He needs to stop zoning out.
Donnie’s eyes snapped back into attention of his surroundings, recollecting what he was doing. Yeah, he was currently getting medical help by himself right now..
He snatched a medkit for himself, hoping no one would notice, then dashed to his room, trying to do this as fast as possible. He made sure to lock down the lab, and his room for extra measure. He can't really risk anything right now.
Donnie rushed to his bed, settling down after sitting up on the corner of his wall. He made sure to get out the antiseptic, hoping it would help. It was weirdly a green liquid, with the brand ‘cool mike’ on it marked in black. It was shaped like those strong mouthwashes that always made him cry.
Enough about that though, he made sure to prep for the pain that was about to come. This wound was obviously infected, so it's gonna hurt when it burns off the bacteria. If that's how it works? He doesn't really know to be honest.
Donnie sucked in a breath as he poured the antiseptic, making a burning sensation shoot through his senses. The pain he was dreading to experience once again started. It was aching at him to stop, but he had to stay strong. He can’t risk any infections. Donnie’s heart was racing, as his limbs began to visibly shake at the pain currently gnawing at him.
The bottle soon became empty, but the burning still continued, yet more dull as it bubbled up the bacteria. After a while, it stopped, and Donnie made sure to wipe up the now dried blood and yellow liquid. Then he made sure to put as much bandages he could to bound the wound in tight. Wounds with tight pressure heal faster, right? He thinks so anyway.
After everything this morning, he was mentally and physically sore, so he flopped on his bed and put on a song. I mean what else was he supposed to do?
“Siri, play ‘Fool on the planet’ by The pillows.” His voice weary and more monotone than before.
“Of course.”
This time, he didn't choose to blast it, he just put on his favorite plush royal blue wireless headphones that he stole from Leo and faintly played it in the background as he zoned out.