CHAPTER 44: TORTURED POEMS

Continuation—

Camila’s voice grew quiet and haunted.

"When I tried to get closer, when I tried to see her face— she vanished." She glanced away. "And then I heard his voice."

Darren didn’t move. Instead he shifted, looking more inquisitive— like he needed more details.

"Whose voice?" he asked, though he already had a hint on who’s voice it was.

"Venom," Camila said. "He whispered to me, Darren. He said... ’Find her’... or I will.’"

The weight of those words made the night colder.

Darren’s voice dropped. "If he said that... then the hybrid... she must be important to him."

Camila nodded. "The old scriptures say a hybrid would be born only when a devil procreates with an angel, and we’ve seen such only once in all lifetimes. A being with access to light and shadow. A being capable of awakening seals— even breaking them. She is the key."

Darren’s expression hardened. "The key to what?"

Camila looked him dead in the eyes as she made it known.

"To Venom’s freedom and to his destruction."

Darren exhaled slowly. "You think she’s alive now? Or somewhere distant?"

"That I don’t not know, but I fear— if she’s alive, we have to find her before he does."

Darren took that in. "Then we have a race against time we can’t afford to lose."

Camila nodded. "Exactly. So from now on, we move differently. We train differently. And we trust no one— not even those closest to us. If Venom has already sent someone to find her, that means he’s closer than we expected."

She paused.

"I suspect Venom has eyes within the academy..." She paused then continued "...he is after my relic. And if he truly does get his hands on it, then she’s in danger."

Darren turned back toward the forest lights below.

"We find her before Venom does," he said.

"That is the point..." Camila agreed. "...But we do it quietly."

Darren glanced at her. "And what happens... when we find her?"

Camila looked back out over Euphoria, eyes narrowing— not in fear, but resolve.

"When we find her," she said, "we choose what she becomes. A weapon or A protector. Because one thing is certain..."

Her voice sharpened like a blade.

"She will decide the fate of this world."

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

[The Angel’s Wing—]

May returned to camp with a brightness in her steps that none of the girls had seen in days. Her energy moved ahead of her—sharp, restless, and bursting like lightning trapped in human form.

The Demon Slayers were finishing last-minute adjustments to their weapons and gear, cause they were about starting combat skills anytime soon.

The sky above Euphoria had turned a more deeper shade of violet compared to hours ago, as clouds moved lazily past the crescent moon, and the forest around them hummed with unknown life.

Soda was the first to notice May approaching. "Well, well, look who finally decided to show up," she said, tossing a piece of rope over her shoulder. "Girl where the heck have you been? You’ve been missing all day..."

"You guys are NOT going to believe what just happened," May cut in, practically glowing with excitement.

Seven pairs of eyes turned to her. Valkyrie straightened from where she was examining her blade. Jasmine folded her arms. Tekna paused her work on a mechanical trap. Rain lifted her head. Lily squinted her eyes with second hand embarrassment. While Suki looked a little intrigued.

Suki flicked her tongue thoughtfully against her teeth. "Girl spit it out, we don’t have all the time in the world for your games..."

May dropped her bag to the ground and raised both hands. There was fire in her gaze— not literal flame, but something close, an inner blaze that had found oxygen. "Watch this," she said, voice low.

She inhaled.Then exhaled

And the air shifted.

The wind seemed to pause— just for her as May stepped forward and focused. Her fingers began to shimmer with light, a deep violet energy threading through her veins like constellations in motion. The very space around her vibrated, and the grass beneath her boots flattened in a perfect circle.

She traced a round shape in the air. Opening a strange portal. A ripple spread— soft and fluid like water, but it wasn’t water. Reality itself was bending.

"What the hell..." Soda whispered.

The ripple opened wider, warping like liquid glass until it formed a vertical oval—it was unstable at first, then suddenly sharp and defined.

Inside the portal was not darkness— but color. A sky burning with sunset hues, Mountains in the distance, Floating islands drifting above silver rivers, Massive crystalline trees shimmered in the wind like galaxies frozen in time.

It was a whole different world. A world that no one knew existed.

A world that May had just created from a picture.

"Holy shit," Lily breathed.

Rain blinked slowly, She was mesmerized. "She did it..."

Tekna stepped closer and scanned the portal with cautious awe. "There aren’t even detectable coordinates. This isn’t a portal to a place— it’s a portal to a constructed dimension. You built this."

May smiled hard, trying not to lose her composure. Sweat glistened at her temples from the strain, but her voice came steady. "Yeah... I did, but from that picture over there."

The girls turned their heads, Tekna grabbed the picture as they all peeped from it to the portal. "Oh..." Tekna said still in awe.

Valkyrie stared...not just impressed, but measured and evaluating. "How long? How long have you known you could do this?"

"I’ve been practicing since we got here," May said, dropping her arms as the portal slowly closed behind her with a quiet hum. "I didn’t want to say anything until I could actually control it."

Soda walked a slow circle around her, eyes narrow but impressed. "So let me get this straight... you can now open portals to anywhere you imagine or seen perfectly well?"

"Anywhere I focus long enough," May confirmed. "I can’t hold them too long yet, and opening large ones drains energy. But I’m getting better."

"Better?" Jasmine echoed. "Girl, that’s not better. That’s lethal. Do you know what we could do with that on missions?"

"It changes everything," Tekna said, already mentally building strategies.

"Transportation, stealth, rescues—immediate battlefield advantage," Suki nodded.

"Oh we’re going to abuse the hell out of this skill," Soda grinned darkly.

May exhaled slowly, her chest rising with slight pride. She tried to look collected, but she couldn’t stop the corner of her mouth from lifting just a little higher than usual.

The thrill of progress, the thrill of power— sat beautifully on her shoulders.

"Where were you, anyway?" Lily asked, finally curious enough to break the moment with a question that had weight behind it. "You disappeared since morning."

May hesitated not too long, but long enough for the girls to notice.

"I was training," she said.

"With who?" Soda asked instantly. "Because that doesn’t look all... like solo progress."

May’s jaw tightened. She tried to brush it off and reach for her bag, but Soda slid in front of her with a devilish grin. "Come on now. Spill."

May sighed.

"I was training with Iyo."

Silence dropped like a blade.

A full beat passed before Soda burst into laughter so loud it startled a flock of silver birds from a nearby tree.

"YOU were training with Iyo?! Hold on— wait...THE SAME IYO you swore last night was a walking headache?" Soda leaned over, clutching her chest dramatically. "The same Iyo you promised to strangle with your bare hands if he came near you again?"

May rolled her eyes. "Don’t make it weird. It’s not that deep."

"Oh no, sweetheart, it was already weird," Soda cackled. "I just want to make sure we’re all appreciating the level of hypocrisy we’re witnessing here."

"We’re not doing this," May groaned.

Valkyrie stepped in before Soda could fire another round. "So Iyo helped you unlock this?"

May shrugged. "I don’t know if ’helped’ is the right word. He just... pushed me hard. Got me past some walls in my head. I didn’t think he’d take my training seriously, but he did. I’ll give him that."

"So now you like him?" Lily teased.

"No," May snapped immediately. Then softer: "But maybe I don’t hate him as much as I thought I did."

Suki’s voice cut in coolly. "Maybe people aren’t always what we assume they are."

May nodded a little. "Yeah. Something like that."

Jasmine smirked faintly. "Growth looks good on you girl. I’m proud of that."

Before May could reply, she noticed someone new standing just beside their circle— she was quiet and observant, waiting for acknowledgment.

May blinked, surprised. "Didn’t know we had company."

Ball lifted a hand in a small wave. "Didn’t mean to interrupt. Was Just watching. That was... impressive."

May studied her with open curiosity. "Ball, right?"

"Yeah."

"I’m May."

"I know," Ball said, lips curving slightly. "Sky talks about your squad a lot, and Jasmine mentioned you earlier."

Soda squinted at her. Valkyrie didn’t react. Lily and Jasmine exchanged a look. Tekna raised a brow. The mention of Sky still felt like a loaded weapon dropped into a room.

May broke the moment before it became tense. "So you’re with us now?"

"If you’ll have me, why not? I like your group" Ball replied simply.

May looked at Valkyrie. And Valkyrie nodded once. That was enough. "Then come on, come stay closer with us..."

"Really...?"

"Yeah..."

Ball stepped closer and the group made space. just enough to mark her as present, but not yet a confirmed member of their crew...

Then a voice cut through the air from behind them.

A voice as sharp as authority itself.

"Ladies...why am I not surprised to find this much noise coming from your direction?"

They all turned.

Principal Darren stood there, arms crossed over his chest, his expression unreadable beneath the cold iron of command.

"It’s time to take the lights out...we have a long day ahead of us, and you’ll need your strengths for this one" he said observing them for a bit as he turned to move on. "By the way, Nice skills May..."