The Wolf Brothers (ONC 2020)

Chapter 11: Trapped

Raph woke to complete silence, a dull throbbing in every muscle.

He groaned, rolling onto his side, his shoulder pressing against rough stone. It took several moments to realise he'd pried his eyes open, because the space beyond was just as frighteningly dark.

He could see nothing, not even the hand he brought within an inch of his face. But something must have seen him, because he felt needle-like claws drag themselves down his arm, and a small set of jaws latch onto his shoulder.

Raph cried out sharply, rolling away from the shadows, only to find himself in the clutches of others, clawing at his chest, his neck, his arms, his back. He heard his bandage tear, sliding from his body, and leaving his chest bare.

Panicked, he tore himself from the shadows' grips, trying to push himself to his feet. But he barely got higher than a kneeling position, before his head struck solid rock, and he collapsed again with a wince, stars dancing before his vision. They did nothing to keep the shadows away. One grabbed his arm, and another wrapped itself around his ankle. He clawed it off, and scrambled away on hands and knees, his throat tightening.

Light. He needed light!

Before his panicked mind could even consider a way to achieve this, he stumbled over something significantly more malleable than the rock floor, a familiar groan rising up in the darkness.

"Theo?" Raph gasped, but before he could say more, a shadow grabbed a tuft of his hair and yanked him backwards.

"Get away from me!" he roared tearing one from his shoulder, and swiping at another that tried to sink it's teeth into his ribs. "Get away!"

"Raph?" he heard his brother stir, seemingly quick to catch onto the situation. "Raph, hold on I'm - ow!" The audible thwack of a head against the stone ceiling sounded out as Theo must have tried to stand. "Bloody Hell!"

Raph tried to call out, again, but another shadow coiled around his throat, cutting off his words with a sputtering squeeze. One hand slapped desperately against the ground, while the other tried uselessly to pull the shadow away.

There was a hacking wheeze, somewhere nearby, and he saw a familiar dull glow trace his brother's silhouette, the first light of hope. Moments later, Theo had coughed up a small ember, barely the size of his thumbnail and, glancing around, he threw it in Raph's direction. It bounced to a stop beside him, and the shadow around his throat recoiled, pulling away and letting him draw in a gulping breath.

By the time he'd pulled himself into a seated position, drawing his knees to his chest, Theo had coughed up a larger ember, and threw that to him, as well. Raph snatched at it, almost hungrily, the warm light chasing the shadows away. He couldn't keep himself from shaking. That had been close... too close...

Theo shuffled towards him, his gaze filled with a hard concern.

"You right, little bro?" he asked, scanning him over, and wincing every time he found a new set of shallow cuts carved into his skin. Raph nodded, but didn't meet his brother's eyes, staring focused at the ember. "Here, mate."

Theo slid the jacket over his head, before holding it out to him. Raph took it begrudgingly. It was way too large on him, sleeves hanging several inches past his wrists, but at that moment, he couldn't care less. As long as the shadows stayed away...

"Where the Hell are we?" he murmured, glancing warily around. The ember's light clashed against an exceedingly low, stone ceiling, walls surrounding them to form a misshapen room about ten feet in diameter. He couldn't see an exit.

"'Hell' might just be right," Theo growled, sitting back on his haunches. It was then that Raph noticed her, lying behind his brother on the far side of the room.