Part 3!! Y’all ain’t ready for this… It ended up longer than expected.
@endlesslogo tagging you so you don’t miss the action
CW for graphic descriptions of shape shifting. Seriously…reader discretion is advised.
They found him. How the hell do they keep finding him?! No matter how well Leo blends into the shadows, slip into their blind spot, or even climb a tree to get away and rest, they keep finding him! Well, “they” as in other creepypasta-looking monsters. Since he lost the two that first chased him, more have found him. Why can’t they just leave him alone?!
Leo had himself pressed high in a tree, trying to catch his breath. Below, three creatures circled his tree, each one uglier than the other. They clicked and rumbled to one another as though deciding how to get him down. One leapt up against the trunk. The tree shook as it tried clawing its way up. It let out a raptor-like shriek when it inevitably failed. The tree shook again when a second one tried as well. Leo blew out a breath as it, too, failed. They chattered amongst themselves, and Leo can’t help but smirk.
“Run out of ideas?” he called down. The second one who tried to climb shrieked at him. He hissed back. Leo wriggled on his branch. “Guess you’ll have to give up-“
The tree shook violently. Leo clambered to stay on his branch and whipped his head down. The third one was shaking its head as though it had just ran into something. The others cheered, and the first one started backing up. Guess they weren’t out of ideas.
Leo held firm to the tree and looked around. Most of the trees looked like they had brittle branches at this height. He eventually spotted one that seemingly could hold his weight. Only one way to find out. He waited for the next freak-of-nature to run into the tree. He held tight as the trees trembled, and he hopped on to the break he was sitting on. His toes curled around it, and he steadied himself with the trunk. He have a quick glance down to see one of the other ones all ready to charge. Better do this quick. Leo zeroed in on the branch he’s aiming for, braced, and leaped.
The bark dug into his hands; the branch below the one he grabbed collided into his knees. Leo grunted in pain and carefully pulled himself up, placing his feet on the branch below. The monsters shrieked in offence. He stole a glance down. He’ll have to move faster if he wants to get away from these things. He stared ahead at the next tree. Time to Tarzan it. Leo squatted on the branch he’s standing on and jumped. Don’t break don’t break don’t break- He landed on it with ease and used his momentum to launch toward the next one. He kept going, silently moving from one tree to the next. It didn’t matter, though. They’re following right behind him.
Fortunately, he’s faster, and it didn’t take long for them to become small. Leo glanced back and smirked.
Leo’s heart and stomach lurched. He scrambled for a grip as he fell, but he only managed to hit every branch with everything else. The ground knocked the wind out of him when he finally found it. He didn’t get a moment to recover before the shrieks of doom got him moving. Leo stumbled to his feet and charged forward. So much for the monkey life. He took a quick look back and pushed himself to go faster. His heart thudded in his head, nearly drowning out the gaining screams. Damn it, he wished he had his swords.
Something catches his foot, and Leo meets the ground once more. He snapped his head around. They’re catching up. Catching up fast. Leo’s eyes scanned the forest floor in quick succession. His eyes zero in on a big long stick; he lunges for it. He springs to his feet just as the monsters catch up. The three of them stalk around him, hissing and clicking. Leo stood his ground with the stick held out in front of him as though it were his old odachi. His eyes darted to each one. One rumbled and snapped at him. Leo swung the stick in its direction, forcing it to back away. One of them slipped behind him. Leo turned his head slightly to keep an eye on it. He turned his back forward at the slightest movement from the other two in front of him. Their bodies tensed. Leo tightened his grip on the stick.
“Alright, fuglies,” Leo slid his feet apart, “let’s dance.”
The monster on his left lunged. He deflected its jaws and swung at the second creature lunging at him. The stick cracked across its face, sending it flying. The monster behind him leapt on to his shell and dug its claws into him. Leo hissed; he grabbed hold of his stick with both hands and brought it over his head. The freak chomped down on it. He flipped it off his back, earning a yelp from it. He jumped back as the first one lunged at him again. He raised his stick again; its teeth latched onto it, and the monster pulled. Leo stumbled a bit but regained his footing to pull back. The beast growled and dug its teeth deeper into the wood. Leo’s eyes widened as the stick began the splinter. He yanked hard. Movement caught his eye; Leo released the stick and leapt back just as the second monster came into his field of vision. It landed right where he had been. He backed away as it turned toward him with a growl. The one that had his stick snapped it in half with a loud CRACK. The third one had gotten back on its feet and stalked at him alongside the second. Leo’s heart pounded in his chest. Shit. This can’t be it for him. This can’t be how he dies.
His ears began to ring. His vision blurred; pain dully thumped in the back of his head. Static muddled his thoughts as the ringing grew louder. Time slowed his movements and the approaching monsters’. The pain and ringing suddenly got sucked away out of his head. The monster in front leapt at him. Leo threw his arms out as it knocked him over. He pushed against its neck; it snapped its jaws at his head and clawed his plastron. Leo let out a strained sound as it pushed down on his arms, getting its rotten-smelling mouth closer to him. Leo turned his head and shut his eyes. A tear slipped out of his eye.
His eyes snapped open. A yelp sounded, and the weight on him is suddenly gone. Leo stared up at the beautiful sight of chains. Mikey.
Leo quickly sat up and twisted around. A big grin spread on his face, and tears pricked at his eyes. Not only Mikey, but also Donnie stood behind him with angry, defensive looks on their faces.
“Guys!” Leo exclaimed. Mikey’s chains snapped back to him, and he charged at the monsters. Donnie slid in next to him as yelps and shrieks sounded. He fiddled with his vambrace.
“You hurt anywhere, Nardo?” Donnie asked. The tears kept welling in Leo’s eyes. His throat hurt. Leo shook his head.
“Nah, nothing too bad.” Leo gazed up at his twin, the biggest, dopiest smile on his face. “You found me.” His voice caught in his throat. Donnie glanced at him and shrugged nonchalantly.
“Of course,” he says matter-of-factly. “It doesn’t actually take as long as the movies show to trace a call.”
Leo’s heart swelled, and he yanked Donnie into a tight hug. Donnie returned it with a pat on his back.
“Hey!” The twins turn to see Mikey running back toward them. “You’re not gonna have a reuniting hug without me!” Leo grinned and extended out an arm. Mikey dove in; the three of them held each other until Leo forced himself to pull away.
“We can’t stick around here,” he says as he stood. The other two stood with him. “More freaks like those will no doubt be on their way here.” Mikey and Donnie nodded. “So! How’d you guys get here? And where’s Raph?”
“We came in the turtle tank,” Donnie responds.
“Raph’s waiting for us there!” Mikey added.
“Perfect. Lead the way, mis hermanos!” With that, the three of them went on into the woods. He couldn’t believe it. They finally found him. He’s going home! Leaving this awful place! He could burst with joy complete with rainbows and sunshine! Sayonara, freaky monsters. Adiós, creepy forest. See you never!
Leo’s cheeks hurt from grinning. He bounced with every silent step he took while following his brothers to wherever they left the turtle tank and Raph. Man, he can’t wait to see Raph, hear his worry and reprimand for being an idiot. It’d be pure music to his ears.
A faint ringing emitted. Leo perked up, slowing his pace. He scanned around the trees.
“Leo? Everything-“ Leo shushed Mikey. The ringing sounded again. Leo stalked forward in pursuit. The noise grew louder, and he soon stood before a phone booth. He frowned and huffed in disbelief.
“What is it, Leo?” Mikey came up behind him and peered around. Leo gestured to the booth as the phone continued ringing.
“Talk about creepy,” Donnie muttered beside him. The three of them stared as the phone kept ringing. Leo smirked.
“I’m gonna answer it.” He moved toward the booth.
“Did this place take your common sense?” Donnie fulminated. “It could be a trap!” Leo waved noncommittal at him before opening the booth.
“Relax, Don, it’s not like the phone is gonna jump me.” He flashed a shit-eating grin and hopped inside. A hand caught his elbow; he turned to see Mikey with a worried look on his face.
“Come on, Leo, it’s giving me the creeps,” he pleaded. “Besides, Raph’s waiting.” Leo gently shook off his younger brother’s hand.
“It’ll just be a second, bro.” He closed the door behind him. The teen lifted the phone with a flourish and pressed it to his tympana. “Thank you for calling Leonardo’s Never-ending Nightmare, soon to be ending, how may I help you?”
“Well, I’ll be darned. It did work.”
The floor fell out from beneath him. His blood ran cold. He stopped breathing. His heart pounded in his head.
“-knew it would go through! But, man, you were right, Don, this is freaky—”
“Donnie?” The name barely passed his lips.
“I’m here, Nardo,” the unmistakable voice of his twin emitted through the phone.
“Raph’s here, too!” says the unmistakable voice of his older brother. “You okay, big guy? You sounded awfully chipper earlier. Something wrong?”
Leo couldn’t speak. He wanted to turn and to look at the two brothers behind him, but at the same time terror kept him still.
“Wh- h-“ He gulped down a boulder. His mouth twitched up. He forced a laugh. “This- this was just a trap. A trick from this place. Hehe.”
“Donnie’s right behind me. With Mikey! And Raph’s waiting in the turtle tank! You’re a way for this place to trick me, to make me doubt! Haha!” Leo’s entire body trembled.
“Leo…we’re not there,” Donnie slowly says.
“And Mikey’s in the kitchen,” Raph added.
Leo’s pounding pulse drowned out Donnie’s reprimanding. The phone slipped from his ear as his head turned over his shoulder. The Donnie and Mikey behind him stood still, their faces stone. His hand slowly pulled the door open.
Their skin began to bubble. Their plastrons cracked. Leo’s breath caught in his throat, trapping a scream. He watched wide eyed as their bodies bloated and grew. Their skin split, and a pus-like liquid leaked from the wounds. Donnie’s eyes bulged and popped out; Mikey’s rolled back and dropped into his mouth. Leo pressed himself against the back of the phone booth. Their skin tore further from the splits, revealing a hard, dark body underneath. Their limbs dropped from their filleted bodies with wet thumps. Multiple, long spindly legs replaced them. Leo stared in horror as the imposters underneath grew in length. Segments of their bodies popped out behind the previous followed by another pair of legs pushing out from the new segment. “Donnie’s” mouth opened wide, and a pair of giant mandibles pushed through. “Mikey’s” produced huge jaws filled with mangled, sharp teeth. His eyes dropped down to the ground amongst his limbs. The monsters reared back and fixed their attention on him. They screeched and lunged.
Leo dove out of the booth and darted left just as the Donnie centipede crashed into the booth. Glass sprayed out, a few grazing into him. His eye catches a moderately sized piece, and he swipes it from the ground. Leo barrelled through the trees with the sound of the giant centipedes crashing through and shrieking following behind him. He brought the shard of glass into view. He thought back to when he transformed the pair of trowels into swords. Maybe… As he ran, dodging trees left and right, he concentrated his ninpo on to the shard. The glass glowed blue. Come on, come on.
His mind fizzed and buzzed. Leo shook his head; in the corner of his eye, he sees the glass start to fade. No no no- He pushed and dragged through the fuzz while somehow still dodging trees. The light sputtered and flickered. Come on, come on! He swiped the shard through the air repeatedly. Nothing.
“Get out of my head!!” Leo grabbed a low hanging branch, pulled it back and released when the Donnie imposter’s horrific face got close enough. It shrieked and reeled back as the branch snapped across its face. The static in his head fizzled away; he smirked. The shard glowed bright in his hand. He spun around and slid to a stop. He swung out the shard, and it morphed into a katana handle. The light elongated to a point before shattering into glinting metal.
Leo narrowed his eyes at the Don-imposter as it shook its head vigorously. It turned back to him with a snarl. It crawled closer toward him. Leo stepped back a bit. The Donipede hissed at him. He clutched his katana with both hands. It felt great to finally have an actual weapon in hand. It’s like he’s regained some semblance of control over his situation.
The Donipede stalked around to his right; Leo side-stepped to the left, his stance low. His eyes darted around. Where’s the other one? A snap sounded behind him, and he dove out of the way just as the Mikeipede burst out of the brush with a roar. Its jaws snapped closed inches from his foot. Leo rolled and slid on his knees. The monsters turned toward him, hissing and rumbling. The Mikeypede roared again and lunged. Leo shot to his feet and deflected its jaws. The blade cut into the monster’s flesh; pus-like liquid seeped from the wound. The Mikeipede screeched at him in rage. It lunged with a new ferocity. Leo scrambled back to avoid the mouth full of jagged teeth. He dodged right, making the centipede freak eat dirt. He swung his katana down on it. A mass slammed into him, knocking the wind out of him. He lost his grip on his katana, and it skidded across the forest floor. The Donipede pushed him through the dirt with its giant mandibles. Leo spat out dirt that entered his mouth as he tried to pry the monster off him. It then lifted him up high into the air. Leo kicked and pushed against its jaws. It squeezed a little harder, earning a grunt of strain from him, and slammed him down into the ground.
Leo gasped, his eyes wide. He laid there in a brief daze, but it was enough for them to move in on him. The Donipede reared up and positioned itself on top of his legs. The Mikeipede came around its side. Leo blinked a few times and tried pulling his legs out from under it. His heart began to pound. He pulled and pulled to no avail. He couldn’t help but glance up into the ugly mug of the thing keeping him trapped. If it had a proper face, he’s sure it would be smiling. The Donipede raised its head and let out a shriek. Possibly a triumphant cry.
It choked midway through. Leo stared at it in confusion. Crunching and squelching emitted. The Mikeipede staggered away in alarm. A green spear of light pierced through the Donipede’s body. It shrieked and writhed. Leo caught a glimpse of a hooded figure as the bug monster backed away. He scrambled to his feet once freed. The spear retracted with quick succession. The figure hopped off and swept around it in a crouched stance. Leo swung his head around until he caught a glimpse of his sword. He staggered toward it as another scream of agony came from the Donipede. Leo grabbed his katana and spun around just as the centipede wearing his twin’s face fell. His heart thudded in his chest; he watched the figure yank their spear of light out of the fallen monster. They turned toward him. Leo dropped into a fighting stance, swallowing dryly. The figure reached up and pulled back their hood. Shock rocked through his body.
I drew a sketch of what the monsters that chased Leo up a tree look like, since I neglected to write a description of them 😅
