Twisted Roads – Twisted Horror Stories by Matthew Tonks

Behind Your Eyes

It lets out a cry of anger, driving its huge, pulsating arms down. Its fists connect with the ground viciously, as a crack splinters off from the impact point, rushing through the ground like a bolt of lightning towards him.

He watches as the earth beneath him cracks. He leaps sideways as it jerks upwards like a dagger, trying to tear into him. He spins around quickly, crouching on the ground and baring his teeth.

“You have to do better than that if you want to stop me,” he hisses, rushing towards it. Leaping from the ground, he sends a powerful kick to the beast’s face. It makes little to no impact, and the beast smiles as it swipes him away effortlessly.

“Days go by—weeks, months, years even—I stand as I am, unchanged, unmarked. While you, you give these things all you have, even risking your life. Why?”

“If you have to ask, you’ll never understand, brother,” he says, getting to his feet uneasily.

His brother laughs. “I take it I hurt your feelings. Wasted, are we on these? Come back with me, let us be who time designed us to be. Let’s not be swayed by the meat.”

“That’s why you’ll never understand. They’re not just meat; they’re living, breathing beings—beings who love, dance, laugh. Things we used to do, back in the old days before you grew jealous of all this.”

“Don’t mistake my power for jealousy, brother. I agree that the old days are done. We are no longer those who knelt beside him; we are the rulers, we make our choices, and all follow. If only one of us must return, then it will not be you,” he says, tensing his muscles and taking a powerful step forward.

“Go. I’m not coming back either way. I’ve found my place here.”

“What, with her? The human?”

He stares at him for some time, trying to read his brother’s mind, but finds his thoughts blocked.

“What have you done, brother?”

“I’ve done nothing yet. Come with me. Come home and I will continue to do nothing,” he says with a wry smile.

He clenches his hands into fists, his lips curl into a sneer, and his feet dig into the ground, readying himself for impact.

“Your last mistake. I have let you be for far longer than I should’ve. This is for the best, my brother,” he says as the gigantic behemoths charge forward. They crash into each other violently—fists, blood, legs, and knees fly left and right as the two battle for minutes, hours, and then days, until finally, they both stand weary, beaten, and bloody, unable to find enough strength to finish the other.

The beast laughs. “Hasn’t this always been the way? His two favourite sons, made in his image, from the purest thought and the deadliest nightmare, were we born. Your woman, she’s dead by now. Why don’t you come home?”

“Where is she?”

“Does it matter? She is long gone, like all the others. Come with me, brother, this place is not for—”

“WHERE IS SHE!” he screams, his eyes glowing white-hot with light.

He laughs uneasily, surprised by his brother’s anger. “Back where it all began, brother. Back where you laid with the vile woman for the first time, and where I too laid with her as well,” he says with a snarl.

“NO!” he screams as his hands glow brightly. He drives one last powerful punch into the beast’s stomach, splitting it open.

As his brother falls defeated, his light extinguished, he jumps powerfully into the air, clearing miles in a single leap. He comes crashing to the ground with a devastating impact but is unharmed. Then he leaps again and again until he lands a few feet from a tiny, run-down farmhouse. Without stopping, he rushes to the doorway, which hangs from its hinges. He moves quickly from room to room, calling out her name. Finally, he finds her naked, bloody body at the foot of her bed. At once, he is at her side, cradling her weak, fragile form. Slowly her eyes open, and tears run down his face as she smiles weakly.

“Is it over?” she asks.

“It’s over thanks to you. Now rest up; you’ll be okay,” he says as he runs a hand through her blood-soaked hair. She laughs softly.

“You still haven’t got this lying thing down yet. Your eyes give it away,” she says, closing hers.