Sleeping Death

Twisted Shadows

Gonna have at least one more chapter after this. Might need two to wrap it up nicely.

————————

Leo knew his brothers backwards and forwards. He knew them physically, emotionally, and spiritually. He prided himself on being able to distinguish them through only silence and meditative focus. If it weren't for that—he wouldn't believe that the thing standing in front of him had ever been or could ever be his brother.

Instinctual self-preservation was telling him to retreat or recoil, but he couldn't do that. This—this thing—this twisted mass of shadow and smoke...was his brother. The mass of darkness swirled and curled, forming a vague shape. It was the shape of a horrific monster. With a giant head and a gaping maw it snapped it's feral jaws. Its eyes and mouth were the same color as Goolem's: that bright, smoldering glow, harsh and brighter than any jack-o-lantern that had ever been.

Emotion surged inside of Leonardo. He shot forward, towards his brother. Raph was dying. Raph was being absorbed by this monster! There had to be something he could do to. He had to reach his brother.

He had moved too fast. Feeling the action was a threat to his master, Goolem screamed like a banshee.

The Goolem's screeching howl made Leo throw his arms over his head, covering his ears. It shook the entire room. Leo's vision began to blurr.

"Enough," Raph's voice ordered breathily.

The inhuman wail ceased. Goolem retreated obediently to the door. Leo toppled to his knees, still clutching his head. A cold current of air swept around him. He looked up and reached out to grab his brother. His hand went straight through the shadowy substance. He gasped, standing slowly.

Vanishing briefly as he stepped into the shadows, 'Raphael' reappeared, his shadowy shape a rather fluxing echo of the one he had in life.

Leo veered closer, more slowly, this time. The Shadow of his brother did not resist him. Again, he tried to touch Raph, expecting his hand to pass through. His breath caught when it actually landed upon a shadowy shoulder. His blue eyes fixed on the position, watching the way the eerie dark substance seemed to billow around and even through his fingers.

Raph's facial features were obscure, indistinguishable in this form, apart form his eyes and mouth, but despite the lack of eye-ridges, Leo could still perceive that his brother was glaring harshly at him.

"Shouldn't be here, Fearless."

"Where is 'here'?"

Raph shrugged.

Leo's hand lost contact and slid through the shadow. Already, the blue-masked turtle missed the contact, but he kept that to himself for now.

"Not sure."

"Why are you—um—?"

"A monster?"

"That's not what I was going to—"

Raph scoffed. "Like it's that much more of a monster than I already was."

Leo's hand shot up to grab Raph's elbow, but—to his frustration—it went straight through yet again. "You're not a—"

"Don't you know what a monster is, Fearless?"

"Just because we don't look like humans and we're misunderstood doesn't make us—"

"Not what I meant."

Leo's face crinkled in confusion.

The shadowy form of Raphael twisted into something else. Leo slid back, horror-struck.