Okay ladies and gents. This may very well be a controversial chapter. I redirect you to the first chapter's disclaimer. I am in no way making light of or slandering any beliefs. Remember this is fiction..and beyond that, just one look at the internet could tell you there are some people out there who believe in stuff just like this.

The room was dimly lit. No lights were on, but the thirteen people there were illuminated by the glow of the candles everywhere. Seated around the table, no one uttered a word as they all stared at the man at the head of the table.

His eyes were closed and the candlelight gave his salt and pepper hair an odd glow. It was almost like there was a halo around his head. The others around him, four women and eight men, waited anxiously for him to speak.

The man trembled with the emotional and physical exertion of his task. His mouth moved, but no words came out. The woman seated closest to him reached out and took his hand. She was always a strong connection for him. She was also his wife.

"Dennis?" she whispered softly. "Are you with us? Can you hear me?"

Dennis Cole, age 50 and leader of the Word of Truth, licked his lips. His voice was hoarse. His eyes opened but he wasn't looking at anyone. He was focused on his vision. The spirits spoke to him. He said they spoke to him often and told him of things to come. He knew his time was running out. His followers' time was running out. They had to complete their mission or the earth would die. They were given a chance to avoid the horrors that were coming. To give everyone on earth a chance at redemption. But to do that, they had to move quickly. Satan's time was coming.

"We…must kill him." He trembled again, so terrified was he of his visions. "The mother is gone, but the boy lives on. He must be destroyed."

Carolynn Cole squeezed her husband's hand. "How are we to kill him? Is he still weak?"

There was a pause and the only sound was Father Cole's raspy breathing. "His power is still weak. He is still…vulnerable. More vulnerable now that he is alone."

"But he is not alone," Carolynn gently refuted. "There are reports of strange beings helping him. Are these things demons?"

Father Cole shook his head. "No…no they are…they are…"

"What are they? Were they sent by Satan himself?"

The other followers shifted uneasily. They hadn't been prepared to face demons. The boy and his mother were enough of a challenge.

"They are ignorant of what the boy is. They do not know he is evil." Father Cole shook his head violently. "They are not human. They are not demons." His eyes fluttered closed and he voice dropped to a whisper. "They promised him protection. If they will not hear the Truth, they must be destroyed as well. To find them, we must look below."

The Lair

Splinter followed Leonardo from his room and looked at the boy lying on the couch. "You say his mother has been killed?"

Leo nodded standing just to Splinter's right. "Hai Sensei. Whoever these guys were wanted them both dead."

Mike grinned at Splinter impishly from his place in front of the couch. "Can we keep…"

Raphael covered his mouth. "I think you've overplayed that one, Mikey."

Splinter glanced down at the boy with a look somewhere between sympathy and regret. "He is not injured?"

Don was busy checking the boy gently for any signs of a wound. "No, I don't think so, Master. The mom grabbed him when she was shot. I think all of this blood.." He cringed just noticeably. "…is hers."

Leo folded his arms watching Don. This kid must've been exhausted to sleep through everything.

"Were you seen?" Splinter looked over to his oldest son. The question was a familiar one. They've all heard it before, but it wasn't one that had been asked recently. Since they'd been going to the surface frequently and they weren't novice ninja anymore, Splinter very rarely asked the question. He trusted his sons more to keep to the shadows and reveal themselves to no one .

Leo blinked at the question and found himself at a loss for words momentarily. He couldn't help but feel stung at the implication. "No, Sensei," he said slowly. "The alley way was dark."

"Did the boy see you?" Splinter asked clarifying his question. If the boy had seen nothing, it would be easier to return him to the surface.

Mike looked away. "Uh…"

All eyes turned to him and he looked up. "LEO told me to!" he defended himself.

Leo sighed. "I told him to bring the kid, Master." He ignored the self satisfied look Raphael was giving him.

Splinter studied his son. "Why would you do such a thing, Leonardo? Surely the police would have been able to help him."

Raphael smirked not really listening to the reasons Leonardo was offering. For once, he had been right and he couldn't wait to rub Leo's beak in it. He looked at the kid and his eyes widened. He could see the boy clearly as ever, but there, superimposed over his face was an image. The image of a skull. It was like the skin and muscle had been torn away from skeleton. Raph blinked and looked again. Still there. The skull seemed to smile at him; an evil glare. He rubbed his fists over his eyes and opened them again. It was gone.

"Raphael?"

Raph looked over at the worried voice of his sensei. He almost expected to see the skull on Splinter, but he didn't. He saw only a gentle concern on the rat's face.

"Are you alright, My son?"

Raphael nodded silently still trying to get himself together. "Yeh…yeh m'fine. Was justa…thinking."

He looked down at the boy again. Nothing. Did this mean that the kid was going to die? Raphael did not believe in visions, at least not like this. He sometimes got bad feelings. Sometimes it seemed he could almost taste danger, but that was part of his ninja training. This was different. He didn't sense any danger, just some kind of uneasiness.

"I think it is best we return the boy to the authorities," Splinter said drawing Raphael's attention again. "He may have family that will be looking for him."

Mike's shoulder's slumped. "Awww…"

Splinter glanced sharply to Mike. "The fact that he has seen one of you should not be too difficult to overcome. A child who has been through such an experience often makes up stories of…heroic rescues."

Mike smiled sheepishly repeating. "Leo told me to."

Don nodded somewhat relieved. "I'm going to do some checking. Maybe find out what his name is and where the best place would be to take him." Maybe find out who wants him and why.