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Mikey's trademark, ear-to-ear grin was well-hideen beneath his cotton-covered fake head as he counted the cash. The party turned out better than he expected, thanks to Goldilocks' aid. She sure knew how to pull some wicked moves on the rails of the back porch!

"So...is this your career job, or just a day job to pay the bills?" The young woman inquired as she opened up the back doors of the vehicle.

"Day job. To be honest, we're both lucky that today was a good day." The turtle shook his head. "You wouldn't believe what half my clients are like."

"Lemme guess--rich moms are half-sloshed, middle-class moms are too busy to even show up, and most of the kids are either spoiled brats or just plain bratty." She grinned and added, after he stared at her in shock, "That's the kind of crowd I've been stuck with most of my life. I didn't get to know any common folk until I was in middle school."

"Whoah..." The teenage male pulled off the fake head and set it inside the van. "So...you don't like being rich?"

"What good is money worth having if you're not use it wisely?" She quipped, shrugging her shoulder. Then, she sighed, green-blue eyes growing sad. "I lost my mom to the power of greed, and then my sis to the stuck-up business crowd that came from either Harvard or Yale. All I had left was Daddy... And now..." Her voice trailed off, leaving silence to hang thick in the air around them.

Mikey gently put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey...I'm sure he's at rest," He reassured her. "I mean, you'd expect him to be haunting around if he wasn't, right?"

That got a weak chuckle.

"Besides, I got a feeling that he's proud of ya--that he's lookin' down on ya from Heaven, smiling that fatherly smile of his. Sure, you may not sense him watching over ya...but I bet when you next compete, he'll have the best seat of the house!"

Goldilocks couldn't help but laugh at that. "I suppose you're right," she admitted, wiping away a few tears. "It's just difficult, trying to move on... Thank you, Mikey--" She stopped, though, as she took a closer look at her anti-grav skateboard. "...Waitasec...this looks like it's been cut! And..." She pulled out a pocketknife and carefully brought the round edge of a piece of metal out from beneath the wiring. Then, putting the knife away, she carefully pulled out the piece of metal.

And Mikey felt his blood turn to ice as he realized that the metal was actually an aikedo dagger.

The color started draining from the woman's face as she realized the truth. "...someone...attacked me..."

The turtle's ninja training automatically kicked in as he tried to sense any potential threats in the area. Meanwhile, his head was in a whirl. Someone was obviously following her, and was waiting for the right moment to strike. But who? And why her? If it's one of the Foot...

There--on the roof, to his upper left. The wind brought their stench to his nose, and their grey-n-golden outfits didn't exactly help them blend into their surroundings. They weren't the Foot--he knew that much. But they were definitely ninja from their stance and the style of their clothes. Either they were stupid enough to attack in the daylight...or they knew exactly what they were doing. And they seemed to have been waiting...waiting for the opportune moment.

~They've been staking us out the last few hours... Damnit! Sensei will crack my head with his cane for being so foolish!~ He scolded himself.

"Mikey...what do we do?" Goldilocks whispered in horrified shock, staring at the dagger as if it would come alive and lunge at her.

"...I know how to fight," Mikey replied, no longer the jokester he usually was. "I know what kind of guys that might be after ya. My dad's also my sensei, and he taught me well. But this isn't the best place for a battle."

"So, we run?"

"Until we either lose 'em, or find a place that gives us the advantage. Put the board back down and get in the front."

She quietly nodded, dropped the high-tech board, and quickly moved towards the front passenger seat. The teen quickly dumped his party gear, and then reached into a bag on the side for his real nun-chakus, gratefuly that he remember to bring his weapons along on this day. Tucking them into his belt, he closed the back doors, then carefully moved towards the driver seat, keeping his hands near his waist and his eyes and ears peeled. If he's lucky, he'll lose 'em before he reached the hidden garage. If not, then he'll call up his bros on the Shell Cell as he moved any fights to the sewers.

He knew one thing, though--he had to get Goldilocks Winters to the safety of his home.

The first few miles resulted in normal mid-afternoon traffic for the Bronx, including a few fender-benders. Mikey didn't relax, though he was sorely tempted after the fifth mile. His Shell Cell was right next to his left nun-chaku. He glanced over to see Goldilocks gripping her pocketknife in one hand, and a palm-size can of Mace in the other. She was nervous, and a bit scared...but she was ready to lash out at anything--or anyone--that would come after them.

"Hang on, babe," Mikey kept saying every now and then. "If we're lucky, we'll lose 'em before we reach the garage."

"I hope your right, Mikey," she replied the third time as they were taking a short-cut through a wide alley. "I'd really like to get away from these--AHHHH!!!" She suddenly screamed as the van was suddenly knocked into the wall but a huge gust of wind. Glass shattered and went flying through the air. Thankfully, the van hit the wall on the left-rear corner, but that still meant that Goldilocks couldn't get out on her side.

Mikey shook his head to get the tiny shards of glass off of his head, and was about to brush off the rest of his body when he saw the wind condence into a shape. Actually...several shapes. Each one began a grey-n-gold-colored ninja, each of them armed with either ranged, or very quick melee weapons.

Without taking his eyes off of his foes, he whispered out of the corner of his mouth: "Take cover in the back, and use your board as a shield."

"You sure?" She whispered back.

"Pretty sure. Donny--my bro--can fix the damage later." He unbuckled himself, and then carefully stepped out of the wrecked automoble, keeping one hand near his weapon at all times. "All right, just who the shell are you guys, and who's your insurance agents? I sure ain't gonna pay for this wreck!" He quipped, trying to sound as tough as his "Psycho" brother.

One of them stepped forward. "Your ki is similar to ours. The wind flows as deep in your veins as it does in ours. We can teach you to unlock your power, to harness it to the greatest extend. Under our guidance, you will become one with the wind. Join us, and we will not harm the Staff Guardian."

"...Staff Guardian? What are you guys talkin' about? I dun see no Staff Guardian!" Mikey protested, hearing the young pro skateboarder move out of her seat and into the back.

"She is the Staff Guardian, and your presence indicates that you are one of her sworn protectors. If you join us, then you have our word of honor that she will be unharmed--and that your fellow Guardians will be treated with humanity and respect. We are but one of five branches, and each branch will suit each of you protectors. We will give you the training you need, as well as a safe place to stay, and all the resources you'll need. Surely, as an outcast of society, you would welcome this invitation to a safe, accepting place within an honorable clan--"

"If you guys are truly peaceful and honorable, then why the shell did you strike at her board, and then try to kill us by crashin' my ride?! And if you guys were true ninja, you wouldn't be pullin' this s**t in broad daylight--and definitely not where there's a high probability of having witnesses!"

The speaker rocked back in surprise, silenced by the accusations, and seemingly insulted by that last comment or two..

"Y'know what I think?" Mikey went on to say. "I think you just want this so-called Staff and the power it wields. And I also think that the only person who could wield it without gettin' themselves fried is my dear lady friend. Thus, if you guys really want that staff used for your advantage...you'd do anything to get her. BUT--" He raised one finger. "You gotta keep her alive and as unharmed as possible in order for her to use it properly. Of course, that don't mean that you ain't allowed to rough her up a little.

"And THAT, my friends..." He pulled out his weapons and began twirling them as he fell into standard start-of-battle position. "...is something that I'm not gonna allow!"

"...you are a fool. You are but a mere novice compare to us!" The leader--at least, the speaker seems like one--sneered at the ninja reptile.

"Well, at least I will die with honor!" However, part of his brain wasn't feeling so cocky: ~Ohgodohgodohgod--I'm gonna die! I'm actually gonna die!~

((Author's Note: Will Mikey survive this fight? And if so, will he be able to get Goldilocks back to his secret home? And who are these ninjas, and what exactly is this Staff that the girl supposedly has? The answers lie...in the next chapter!))