A stranger in a Strange Land
They fly about halfway to the city passing over a lake where something splashes jumping from the water matching talen's speed, it was a school of.......mermaids?! They wave as they jump from the water and talen waves back, “I still can't believe this place....”
he reaches down letting his hand streak the water as Talen flew enjoying the cool clean feel of it, Talen smiles and with a flap she goes higher heading for the village. Once flying overhead Leo got a good look at it's citizens, and they all looked like Anthropomorphic versions of every Mythical creature in the book, and he did seem to see every one of them; Unicorns, Pegusi, Dragons, Griffins, Hippogriffs. Even some Japanese creatures like the Kappa, Tanuki, Bakeneko, Inugami.
There were even those that his own brother Don would call Cryptids; Lochness, Big Foot, The Kraken, though that kind of made him look like Cthulhu, the whole shebang would have been if it had Bat wings and a dragon's tail. He noted that the Griffins he saw were of a variety of predatory bird and cat; Tigers, Lions Leopards, even cheetah and Ocelot, with Owl, Eagle, Falcon, Hawk being the predominant predatory bird, though he swore he saw some vulture and crow-winged griffins as well.
The Hippogriffs were just as Varietized in the horse department, some of the males even had different horns from Ram to Bull, even Goat's horns. He glances up looking at Talen, and he noticed a significantly huge difference between her and the other Griffins; she had a feline face where all other griffins had the Avian face.
Talen finally lands Leo in front of a hut built into the roots of a Gigantic tree, one bigger than the one he'd even perched in to survey, in point of fact he'd realized that a patch of what he thought might have been almost half an acre of trees would in point of fact be this “King” tree.
Talen pulls the curtain that served as a Door back letting Leo inside and she follows him, “Mama papa, i'm home” from the back, a big burly Griffin comes walking out, bronzed fur, a big thick lion's main served as the “hair” his wings big enough they dragged the ground behind him, his eyes a blazing gold color, “Welcome home sweet-pea. Who's you're friend?”
Talen open a hand before Leo, “I found him in the jungle, Gaule and his troop were about to kill him, he's a Terran” Leo stood up straight and proper as his 19 years of training had ground into his being, the large parent griffin looked him over impressed with such propriety, “What's your name Son?” Leo swallows back his nervousness, “Leonardo--” he squeaked, then clears his throat bringing his voice back to normal
“My name is Hamato Leonardo” Talen holds back a snicker. Not that she could blame Leo, her father is quite intimidating, the larger alpha male pats the Young terrapin's shoulder, “Come, let's have dinner Leonardo, I can hear your stomach growling. Opal! Another place at the table! We have a guest!”
Out of the back a female Dragon comes walking out, it was enough of a shock seeing Talen's father, her mother however was a White Dragon with a pink mane creasing her head and down her neck and back, her wings were pearlescent in color with the scales being like bird feathers in how they grew, being of a a very pale blue color,
“well isn't he a cutie, welcome to our home young man. I Can't wait to get to know you more” Talen chuckles with Leo still being nervous. He never stayed nervous like this for very long, so why was he being so affected by this place?
During Dinner Leo explains what happened to him with the Puzzle Box, the Crystals, himself and his brothers being flung to apparently all corners of the multiverse, yet again, though he wondered, by the way they talked it sounded like he was on another planet rather than an alternate dimension.
Opal looks at her mate with some concern as the griffin in question strokes his mane while in thought, much the same way splinter tended to stroke his small thin beard, he pops another piece of meat in his mouth eating it, “well now, that is an interesting story, and very familiar”
Opal nodded, “The Star Crystal Mirror of Atlantis, that artifact has such power, I didn't think it was real though, or affected worlds that were not alternate Dimensions. Given the boy is a Terran” Leo shook his head and finally asked, “What do you all mean by Terran anyway?? I assumed it mean land-based animals for this world, since there's plenty of them, but then those monkey guys called me a Terran too, even though they live in trees they don't have wings so.....”
Opal nods, “Forgive the rudeness young man, Terran is the name we give to anyone that comes from the Milky-way Galaxy because they have planets that are habitable by terranovans, or what you might call Humans” Leo blinks, even with this world, they had a concept of humanity.
Talen explained that the Star Crystal Mirror was an Atlantean artifact that allowed the wielder to view multiple worlds, though they had all believed it was only within the multiverse, as in alternate realities or dimensions, nothing like other planets.
Later after Dinner as Leo looked outside at the night sky he ends up scoffing to himself, again with Atlanteans, or more in specific terms for himself, Y'lintians, again with them, as if trying to enslave mutated humans or raise Y'lintas wasn't enough, they obviously had something to do with the artifact or piece of it especially if this Star Crystal Mirror is an Atlantean trinket.
It could also be Leo's only way home, that is if he could find someone here that would know how to use it, “You're thinking too loudly” Leo almost falls over from being startled, “Talen?” She scoots up closer to the blue-banded turtle and sits next to him.
He finds himself Admiring her beauty again, her hazel fur, the dark brown mane that makes up her hair, her feral yet gentle Gold eyes, her wings, her finger poking his beak, wait what, “You're doing it again, every time you get that look on your face I can tell you're lost in thought. What's on your mind?”
Leo blinks for a moment, Only raph or mikey have ever been able to read him like that even when he was a master of the poker face, he lets out a heavy sigh, “My Brothers......that mirror had flung us all to different points in the known multiverse probably the known universe for all I know, and I have no idea where to start looking for help to try to get back home other than finding a similar artifact like that thing or even a transport artifact like the puzzle box....”
“I'm supposed to have enough answers with my brother Donatello being there to confirm or clarify if whether or not i'm right or wrong....but now I feel totally utterly and indisputably clueless” Talen watched him as he sank his head into his hands, clearly he was worried and concerned for his family and their safety, she felt she had to help him with it. Talen takes hold of Leo's hand holding it
“Leonardo, I can help you get home to your family, and I'll do everything that I can to make sure it happens.” if you were to ask him about this moment, Leo wouldn't be able to answer you clearly, his heart, brain and senses all shut off the moment Talen took his hand into hers
“I promise my friend” she stands up placing a hand on his shoulder offering some reassurance and walks back into her home to prepare Leo's bed, Leo, the turtle in question, kept his gaze fixed on Talen's form until she rounded a corner and vanished completely from his sight.
He would swear that whole time he was not breathing at all, since at this point when he did take a breath he felt like he'd been holding it for days, what was happening to him? Why did he suddenly feel like he was turning into pudding whenever she talked or looked at him? What was eliciting this sudden shut-down of all mental function?
He couldn't honestly say what it was, but it did feel familiar to him, either way it wasn't a bad feeling, rather he enjoyed it, he enjoyed being near her, in this world, away from New York, Bishop wanting to Dissect himself and his brothers, Karai Pursuing a misplaced vendetta against himself and his brothers.
He even enjoyed the fact he wasn't going to be leading anyone or anything for the time between when he's there and when he has to go back, he just hoped he wouldn't have to go back too soon.
