A/N: Hey there! [: I found this little piece of work on my computer yesterday and decided to upload. I wrote this for a small competition, but I didn't send it. I've always had a feeling it wasn't complete. I'm thinking on a sequel, but I'm not sure.
It's a little bit dark and confusing story.
Rated T for safety.
Since I do not speak English fluently, if I make mistakes, let me know.
I do not own TMNT and its characters.
The Edge of Insanity
It all started a few days ago. No. The whole thing started in Central America.
He remembered the boiling hot air, the blazing rays of the sun, his salty sweat, his sore muscles, his dry tongue and a face. It was a human face. A black pair of eyes, a devilish smile, a deep, harsh voice that tickled his neck. Failure. He was a failure. He let the Devil's son move into his mind to dig up his biggest fears. He let the Devil's son ferret in his mind, dominate his thoughts and memories. He let the Devil's son take away his sanity.
After his return everything was fine, at least he and his family thought he was. He had a little quarrel with his hot-headed brother, though; apart from it everything happened as it had to happen. Wounds caused by the Devil's son started to heal and he slowly forgot about them, living his daily life.
And then… those wounds were ripped apart.
Savor the weakness Leonardo…
Feel the pain… feel my claws in you flesh…
Feel my frosty breath on your skin, feel it in your bones…
Watch as you slowly fall off the ledge of sanity…
I know you can hear me warrior…
You failed… failed them… failure…
It was three o'clock in the morning and Leonardo was unable to sleep. His body was soaked in sweat, his fists throbbed unbearably with pain. He had been beating the punching bag all afternoon in order to chase away the voices in his head. But he had failed. The punches getting stronger and stronger… and then the chains of the bag break away as if it would be the sound of the stitched wounds. A big thud on the ground… and the demon escapes from its cage to begin to eat him from the inside again.
Leonardo slowly got up and slipped out of the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water. He tried to be as quiet as he could, he didn't want to wake up his brothers and being worried by them. They didn't need to know about that. They didn't need to know about his greatest failure… about the Devil's son, who had been accidentally invited into his mind to destroy his sanity.
In the kitchen he filled a glass with cold water, but before taking a sip, he rinsed his reddened knuckles. The sound of the water was like a swiftly rushing river in the jungle. The river which was red… of blood… the blood that suggested what a huge mistake he had made.
Leo immediately closed the tap and buried his face in his hands. No, he had to stay calm; he mustn't loose his head… He reached for the glass to drink. However, the first sip was carried out in the sink. The water's taste was like the bitterness of his blood. Impossible, it was just water! He fearfully looked into the sink where his sputum was swirling, which was red. Blood. His own blood.
The blue-clad turtle recoiled. No, that's not true, you're imagining, Leo. Be reasonable! It's just a damn hallucination! The glass slowly slipped out of his fingers and hit the ground with a huge crash. Shards were flying in all directions. The crash was like those chains… No, pull yourself together, Leo! You're strong; you're not a failure… failure…
I know you can hear me Leonardo…
Can you feel my presence, your legs are shaking…
You failed; you let their blood contaminate the river…
Who will be the next? You brothers? Brothers? Brothers… brother… bro…
"Leo?"
Can you feel the liquid flowing through your veins? Your head is aching… wanting to explode…
Your brothers are going to die because of you. What kind of leader are you?
"Fearless?"
Are you mighty? Mighty? No, you're a failure Leonardo…
Failure… failure… failure…
"Leonardo!"
A violent accent pulled the blue-masked turtle back to reality. He wasn't himself completely, the view of the kitchen was blurred in front of his eyes, he saw nothing but shadows, leaves, blood, too much blood. No, it was not blood but a bandana and a pair of eyes radiant with emotion. Wait a minute. A bandana?
"Leo! Hey, you okay?"
"What?" Suddenly, every voice in his head creased, the pain disappeared. He once again found himself in the kitchen in a puddle of water, in front of him the now wide awake Raphael. The turtle in blue blinked in confusion a few times. He tried to gather his thoughts to be able to respond intelligently. "Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry," he muttered self-consciously. He was about to leave when his brother stopped him with a strong hand. Leo swallowed. Raphael was a hot-headed, stubborn brother and if he was concerned, it was really a big deal.
"I heard the crash. Somethin' ain't right," he growled firmly, but Leo just shook his head.
"Trouble sleeping. That's all. Go back to bed," he said simply and somewhat dismissively. He wanted to shove his brother away, but he was stronger. His muscular arm wouldn't let him just walk away as if nothing had happened.
"Something's wrong with ya'," Raph diagnosed coldly.
"I'm fine, Raph. Let me go," Leo hissed impatiently. He wanted to disappear from everyone. He felt his vision blur again. He shook his head to shoo the new hallucination away. It was as if someone would've drugged him. Had he been drugged back there? He wasn't sure; his memories were a blank in some places.
"Not until ya' speak," came the reply. But Leonardo didn't give answer since nothing had happened. Nothing important what was relevant for his brothers. He was fine. He could deal with that alone. He didn't need any help.
"There's nothing to talk about." He then just walked away, leaving Raphael among the broken glass' shards.
A/N: What do you think? Worth a sequel? Feel free to review.
Have a nice day! [:
~ GirlInASuit