CHAPTER 27: WHISPERS!

[The Dormitory — Val and Soda’s Room]

The rain had stopped hours ago, but the cold weather still lingered on everybody. The dormitory was unusually quiet on nights like this.

The faint hum of the ceiling fan, the soft flicker of lamplight, and the low murmur of crickets outside the window gave the room a fragile sort of peace. It was the kind of silence that usually brought comfort— but tonight, it felt heavy.

Valkyrie sat on the edge of her bed, With her hands resting loosely on her knees. Her eyes were distant and uncertain, lingered on the floor. The others were gathered around— Soda lounging against a pillow, Rain cross-legged on the carpet, Tekna fiddling with her bracelet, Lily perched on the windowsill, May and Suki sharing a blanket on the couch, and Jaz flipping idly through a magazine she wasn’t really reading.

The faint scent of vanilla candles filled the air, and for a moment, no one spoke. They were all waiting for Valkyrie to say something— anything. Especially for the fact that she and bulb defeated one of Venom’s minion

Finally, she lifted her gaze. "It kept saying my name."

Her voice was quiet, almost a whisper, but it was enough to draw everyone’s attention. Soda looked up first, her brows furrowed.

"The demon?" she asked.

Valkyrie nodded slowly, as her fingers tightened together. "Yes. Over and over again. Like it knew me...from...somewhere"

Rain exhaled, her normally bright expression dimming. "That’s... creepy. I mean, demons usually attack at random, right? They don’t just call people by name."

Jasmine tossed her magazine aside. "Unless it’s got a personal grudge. Or maybe someone sent it after you."

The words hung in the air like a curse. Valkyrie’s eyes flickered briefly toward the floor. "That’s what I’ve been thinking," she murmured. "It didn’t just want to destroy the place— it wanted me."

Lily leaned back against the wall, her tone more cautious than curious. "But why you, Val? I mean, you’ve never even had an encounter with this demon right?."

"Yes, It doesn’t make any sense..." Valkyrie replied softly. "And that’s what scares me."

Suki adjusted the blanket over her knees. "Maybe it mistook you for someone else?"

"No," Valkyrie said, shaking her head. "It looked right at me. Its eyes... it was like it recognized me." She paused, her throat tightening. "And before it attacked, it said something. Something I can’t get out of my head."

"What was it?" May asked, with a hush voice.

Valkyrie hesitated. Her voice trembled slightly as she recalled the words. "It said, ’Child...of uhm...it called me a hybrid, what does that even mean?.’"

The room fell silent. Even the fan’s soft hum seemed to fade into the distance.

Soda’s mouth parted slightly, her usual easy humor gone. "Hybrid? What’s that supposed to mean?"

Valkyrie shook her head again. "I don’t know. But it said it like it was... fact. Like it knew something I didn’t."

Tekna, who had been quiet until now, spoke up, her tone was low but firm. "Maybe it’s trying to mess with your head. Demons lie. They twist the truth to make you doubt yourself."

"That’s what I thought," Valkyrie replied.

Rain’s gaze softened. "Val, maybe it was just a coincidence. You’ve been under a lot of stress lately..."

"It wasn’t a coincidence," Valkyrie interrupted, her voice sharp for a moment before she softened it again. "I could feel something when it spoke. Like... something inside me responded."

Her words drew a shared glance around the room.

Soda set her pillow aside and moved closer, sitting beside Valkyrie on the bed. "You mean like... energy?"

Valkyrie nodded faintly. "Yes. My energy... it flared up. I wasn’t even trying to summon it. It just... reacted."

Suki bit her lip. "Maybe that’s why it called you a hybrid. Maybe it sensed something different in your energy."

Valkyrie looked at her hands, remembering the battle— the surge of light that had exploded from her when she blocked the demon’s final strike. She hadn’t been trained for that kind of power. She didn’t even know where it came from.

"I don’t even understand my powers," she said quietly. "I’ve tried to control them, to study them, but sometimes it’s like they have a mind of their own. Like they’re not... entirely mine."

Jaz leaned forward slightly, her tone more analytical. "Could it be that your magic’s mixed? Maybe you’ve got traces of two different origins— angelic and something else? Just like sky?"

The word angelic seemed to echo faintly in Valkyrie’s mind. For a moment, she remembered Principal Camila’s words during training— how rare, and how dangerous hybrids were.

"Camila said hybrids were myths," Valkyrie said. "That they couldn’t exist anymore. That balance was too fragile."

Soda snorted softly. "Yeah, and demons were supposed to be locked away forever too. Look how that turned out."

A few of them chuckled lightly, but it faded quickly. The atmosphere remained tight, uncertain.

Rain reached over and placed a hand on Valkyrie’s arm. "Hey. Whatever you are, hybrid or not, you’re still you. You saved people back there. That’s what matters."

Valkyrie looked up at her friend’s reassuring smile, managing a small one in return. "Thanks, Rain. I just... wish I knew what this all means."

"You will," Soda said confidently. "We’ll figure it out. Together."

There was warmth in her voice, and for a moment, Valkyrie allowed herself to breathe a little easier. But the uncertainty lingered, dark and heavy beneath the surface.

Lily crossed her arms. "You said it kept calling your name, right? What if this demon was sent by someone who knows you? Someone from... your past?"

"My past?" Valkyrie repeated quietly. "I don’t even remember much from my past. Everything from that is just..." she hesitated, frowning—"fog."

Tekna tilted her head. "Maybe it’s time to ask Camila. If anyone knows, it’s her."

"Maybe," Valkyrie said.

***********************************************

[Principal Camila’s Office —]

The corridor outside the principal’s office was dead quiet, save for the low hum of the building’s night lights. Inside, the faint click of drawers filled the silence.

Stephenie moved with nervous hands, rifling through neatly stacked folders, eyes darting every few seconds toward the door. Her movements were fast but clumsy— papers rustled too loudly, a pen rolled off the desk and clattered to the floor. She froze, with her breath caught in her throat.

Her pulse raced, cause she shouldn’t be here. But she couldn’t leave empty-handed.

She pulled open another drawer, scanning for the envelope she’d overheard Mr. Ohio mention earlier— the one that supposedly contained files on supernatural assignments. If she could find it, she could report back before morning. Her hand trembled as she brushed aside sheets stamped with the academy’s crest. And then

BAM!

The light flicked on.

"Searching for something, Stephenie?" The voice slid across the room like a blade.

Stephenie jerked upright. Camila stood by the door, arms crossed, her expression unreadable but sharp enough to make Stephenie’s chest tighten. The principal’s heels clicked softly as she stepped closer, each sound louder than the last in the suffocating silence.

"Principal Camila! I... I didn’t see you there, HAHA..." Stephenie stammered, words tripping over themselves. She fumbled to close the drawer, forcing a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. "I was just...uhm...helping tidy up before morning. You know, making sure everything’s in order."

Camila tilted her head slightly, her gaze sweeping over the open drawers, the scattered papers, the half-moved folders. "How thoughtful," she said slowly. "But I don’t recall assigning students cleaning duties for the principal’s office."

Stephenie laughed awkwardly. "Oh, I just thought...well, since you’ve been busy, I’d lend a hand...?"

"By rummaging through restricted documents?" The laughter died on her lips.

Camila’s voice wasn’t raised, but it carried weight, like it was dangerously controlled. She stopped a few feet away, resting one hand on the edge of the desk. "I’ve noticed you hanging around my office a lot lately. After hours. Care to explain why?"

Stephenie’s mouth went dry. Her mind scrambled for excuses. "I...I was just curious about the new deployment list. You know... the one for upcoming missions. I thought maybe I was on it and..."

Camila’s eyes narrowed. "Those lists are classified. Students aren’t supposed to see them until they’re finalized."

"I know," Stephenie said quickly, with her voice shaking. "I just got ahead of myself. I didn’t mean anything by it." She took a small step back, her palms slick with sweat.

Camila studied her for a long, quiet moment. The only sound in the room was the faint buzz of the fluorescent light above them.

Finally, the principal straightened. "Go back to your dorm, Stephenie," she said coolly. "And next time, try curiosity in class— not in my damn office."

Stephenie nodded too fast. "Yes, ma’am. Of course." She tried to laugh it off, waving her hand nervously. "You know me— always curious... I’ll just, uh, get going now."

She brushed past Camila, nearly tripping over the rug in her rush to leave. The door clicked shut behind her, leaving a hush in her wake.

Camila stood still for a moment, staring at the disarrayed desk. Her eyes drifted to the drawer Stephenie had left open— the same one that held correspondence from the Council. Slowly, she closed it, her expression unreadable.

But something about the encounter lingered in her mind— the way Stephenie avoided her gaze, the tension in her shoulders, the faint echo of guilt behind every stammer.

Camila turned toward the window, watching the faint glimmer of moonlight against the academy grounds.

Stephenie wasn’t just curious.

She was hiding something.

And Camila could feel it in her bones— whatever it was, it wouldn’t stay buried for long.