Chapter Ten: The Sense Of Evil
Michaelangelo sat cocooned in a corner of the Nursery, his knuckles white, either from clasping the blanket around his shivering frame or from the biting cold. He could no longer tell which, not that he would have cared in the slightest. He was no longer able to feel his skin; a dull throb was threatening to cease up his jaw if he continued to hinder his chattering teeth. A shuddering breath escaped his body in hazy coils; pulling his frayed defence tighter around himself he glanced over at Donatello.
Donatello remained frozen, bathed in the pale glow of several monitors, the only signs that betrayed his awakened state were the almost ritualistic ways he feverishly checked and double-checked the equipment. Surrendering to his annoyance only to tap the machine and frown. He ardently scribbled notes in an uneven spiral notebook, which desperately clung on to its pages with all its might. Another shiver ran through Michaelangelo’s body, snaking its way up his back, jolting towards his shoulders.
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The bats seemed to be appearing at an alarming rate, their constant clicking had reached a deafening level. Several candles, which had been lit since their arrival, guttered in the swirling currents of air created by the hundreds of black skinned wings. Leonardo persisted to scour the room in a desperate attempt to find their entry point. Raphael crouched low to avoid the ongoing assault as the bats continued to hurtle a round the room. “How are they getting in?” Leonardo looked up from searching under the bed. “Not a window is open, there are no holes or lose bricks to be found, not even a crack.” Leonardo let out a frustrated sigh. “Its just not possible.” Raphael glared at his brother, the flashlight still shaking slightly in his hands.
“We didn’t imagine them Leo.” He had to raise his voice to be heard above the chattering din.
“Are you sure you’re not dreaming?” Leo rubbed his forehead with the back of his hand as his fatigue began to get the better of him.
“Think about what you just said for a second.” Raphael snarled pointing to his head, he was getting more irate by the second.
“Maybe we should see how Mike and Don are.” Leo ventured.
“Good idea!” Raphael enthused as he struggled not to make a break for the door.
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Michaelangelo’s eyelids began to feel like lead shutters, it was a battle just to keep them open. He blinked away his blurred vision and tried to focus on the still motionless Donatello. It was no use, before he knew what was happening, he had begun to slip into the dark peaceful realms of unconsciousness.
“That’s odd.” Donatello’s voice halted Michaelangelo’s travels.
“Huh what?” Michaelangelo mumbled as he stiffly shifted his weight.
“The temperature in this room has been a steady constant all night, yet just now it dropped several degrees before recovering.” Donatello tapped the thermometer and glanced over his notebook. “Maybe it is a fault with the equipment.”
“Hmm maybe.” Michaelangelo groaned, trying to get comfortable by wriggling down into his blanket. A noise wrenched him from his dreamy thoughts of sleep. The monitor display was full of static, the picture began to jump and distort. Immediately Donatello began to bang on the side of the malfunctioning display. Suddenly the picture vanished leaving only a small white dot in its place. “Must be the damp interfering with the wiring or maybe the connections.” Donatello turned the monitor around and began to jiggle the wires sprouting out of the back.
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Raphael grabbed the doorknob and twisted it, but nothing happened. He tried again causing the door handle to rattle in his desperation. The noise in the room was beginning to intensify as the tumbling black mass continued to swell. “It’s stuck!” Raphael yelled clawing at the door’s handle. Leonardo quickly shoved his brother out of the way. “Here, let me!” But the door held fast, refusing to yield to the fraught attempts to open it. “You’re turning the handle the wrong way!” Raphael grabbed hold of the handle again as a new surge of panic began the numbing crawl up his legs. “I am not!” Leonardo cried as he started to wrestle for control of the door. Before long terror had taken a strong hold of the brothers, balling their fists they started to pound relentlessly on the door.
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The atmosphere in the Nursery rapidly changed, an unexplained sense of fear gripped the two brothers. The over whelming feeling of panic twisted deep inside their stomachs, slowly squeezing their courage from their bodies. Something evil something unseen was there. A deathly cold wind blustered through the room, emitting a low blood-chilling hiss as a choking burning smell filled the room, embracing the terrified pair before finally vanishing without a trace. The monitoring equipment sputtered back to life as the room slowly became calm once more. “What the hell was that?” Michaelangelo stared wide-eyed at his equally astonished brother.
“Well.” Donatello softly coughed into his clenched fist. “These old castles do tend to be a bit draughty.” A frantic hammering interrupted him before he could finish rationalising the experience further.