Chapter 11: Whispers Only I Can See
It has been five months since my father's death. Five months since we lowered him into the earth and pretended to "move on." The world pretends to heal fast, but scars have a way of bleeding when no one is looking.
Mom… she has been doing better. She resumed her nursing work and even reopened her little drug shop. Seeing her smile again made me feel lighter, like I could breathe again. The baby in her womb was healthy, and my sisters did their best to support her—cooking, cleaning, laughing, filling the house with noise instead of grief.
But me?
Something was wrong with me.
These last few months, I've been seeing things. Strange, twisted things no one else can see.
People being torn apart in alleys by creatures that didn't belong in this world. Shadows with teeth, wings in the night sky, whispers in languages I shouldn't understand. Sometimes I would wake up sweating because I felt something staring at me.
And the worst part?
Only I could see them.
I tried telling Mom once. She looked at me like I was losing my mind. Fear filled her eyes, and she dragged me to the doctor. He checked me—heart, head, everything normal. His only advice?
"Maybe see a therapist."
But Mom whispered something else. "You need prayers."
Prayers.
I didn't want to burden her anymore, so I kept my mouth shut. Instead, I learned to deal with the fear alone. The eyes of those creatures haunted me every time I saw them. Cold. Empty. Hungry.
And the questions kept stabbing at my brain:
Why am I the only one seeing this?
What are they?
Is this why Joseph told me to be careful?
I was drowning in those thoughts when a soft hand tapped me back into reality.
"Darling, you haven't touched your food. Hope everything is alright?"
It was Mom. She looked at me with her usual worried eyes. I quickly snapped out of it and lied, "Sorry ma, I was just thinking about my project at school."
"Don't worry," she smiled warmly, sitting across from me. "As long as you're prepared, you won't fail. Believe in yourself."
Of course, my sister Sharon couldn't resist.
She chuckled. "Mom, don't think too highly of him. He might fail. I didn't even see him preparing at all."
"Speaking of the devil…" I muttered. Sharon might be short, but her tongue was sharper than a blade.
Luckily, I had a backup. Melody, her twin, leaned forward with that mischievous grin of hers.
"Look who's talking. Don't forget your last project—you and your friends built something so crooked the teacher thought it was a prank. Divine had to help fix it for you before you embarrassed yourself."
Sharon's face instantly turned red.
"Shut up, Melody!"
Mom sighed, cutting us off before the battle escalated. "Enough. End of argument. Let's eat. Divine, lead us in prayer."
"Yes, mummy," we all echoed.
I prayed, we ate, and afterwards, I grabbed my bag and headed to school, leaving my sisters behind.
I arrived at 7:45. The classroom was chaos—students panicking about their projects, papers flying everywhere. I ignored the noise and walked straight to my group's table, where Precious, Rejoice, Emmanuella, and Felix were waiting.
"You're late!" Emmanuella snapped the moment I sat down. "We've been waiting for you."
Felix jumped in too. "Didn't you say 7:30?"
I raised my hands in surrender. "I'm sorry. But I brought the project."
I placed it on the desk. The room went silent.
It wasn't just a project. It was a small, glowing model—tiny gears, crystals, and wires pulsing faintly with light. Something far beyond high school level.
"Whoa…" Rejoice leaned in, eyes wide. "This is amazing, Divine. You're a genius."
My heart skipped at her words. Rejoice's praise hit harder than anyone else's.
Miracle frowned, scratching his head. "But… how do we even explain this? We planned Plan A, but it failed. This—this looks like something else entirely."
I nodded. "This is Plan B. What I built is a miniature energy recycler. Imagine a system that takes wasted energy—heat, sound, light—and recycles it back into usable electricity. Infinite power from what we throw away daily."
The group stared, jaws dropping.
"That's… genius," Emmanuella whispered.
"I can't believe you made this overnight," Miracle added.
Felix just muttered, "You're insane. In a good way."
I shrugged, trying to hide my smile. "Let's just see if the teacher approves."
Precious placed a hand on my shoulder. His eyes were steady. "Don't worry. We've already passed this semester with this."
For once, I believed him.
The bell rang. We settled into our seats. While the teacher prepared, I found myself staring at Rejoice again—her laughter, her brightness. She was the complete opposite of me, an introvert drowning in shadows.
I'll tell her during summer, I promised myself. I'll tell her my feelings.
"Divine," Precious whispered, tapping me.
I blinked. "What?"
"You were zoning out. I called your name like five times."
"Oh… I didn't hear."
He leaned closer, his tone low. "I need to tell you something later. You're the only one I can trust."
Before I could reply, the teacher entered, and Precious clamped his mouth shut.
I frowned. Something's wrong with him. I know Precious too well. Something's up.
---Meanwhile, elsewhere in the city, a woman dashed across rooftops—Rebecca, a katana on her back, her cloak trailing behind her like a shadow. Her eyes burned with focus.
Her palm glowed suddenly, and a circle of light appeared—an ancient hologram. Symbols of fire and scripture spun inside it, forming a communication sigil.
"Rebecca, are you there?" a voice echoed through the circle.
"I'm listening," she replied curtly.
"Be careful. The Sin you're tracking—it's behaving strangely. Observe, don't engage. Not yet."
Rebecca's lips curled slightly. "I know. But its hunger is different this time… like it's evolving."
"Exactly why I warned you. Just watch it."
"I heard you." She closed the sigil, and silence returned.
She stood still for a moment, scanning the streets below. Then—her veins lit red, glowing faintly beneath her skin. A smile crossed her face. "Got you."
She whispered an incantation, words heavy with divine weight:
"Open, Gate of the Righteous. Blossom before me."
A golden flower bloomed in midair, petals unfolding into a spinning circle of light. Like a portal from another world, shimmering with sacred fire. She stepped through.
The other side was horror.
A woman crouched over the body of a child, gnawing at flesh like it was bread. Blood dripped from her lips as she chewed.
Rebecca's grip tightened on her katana. "I thought you creatures fed on souls. Now you eat bodies?"
The woman turned slowly, her head jerking like a broken puppet. Her lips stretched into a smile.
"Ah… a Defender. Took you long enough."
"You're slow," Rebecca replied coldly.
The Sin chuckled. "Tell me… do you really think your Almighty approves of what you're doing? You call it justice? Punishing us, hunting us?"
Rebecca didn't answer. Instead, she drew a small cross from her pocket, its silver surface glowing faintly.
The Sin sneered. "We are God's true servants. We bring real justice. Humans are filth, and they must be punished."
"Justice? From a monster like you?" Rebecca's voice was sharp. "What do you know about justice?"
The Sin smiled wider. "Seems like I struck a nerve."
"You did."
The Sin laughed. "Then may the Lord have mercy on our sorrow—"
Suddenly, a black hand burst through her chest from behind. She gasped, choking, as her heart was torn out.
Rebecca froze, stunned.
The killer stepped forward—a black-cloaked woman. Pale eyes. A smile too calm to be human. Rebecca recognized her instantly.
The Black Lady.
The same ghostly figure who had been following Precious.
"Greetings, Defender," she said softly. "Protect the boy before we claim him ourselves. If we do… you know the consequences."
Before Rebecca could react, the Black Lady dissolved into thick black smoke.
Rebecca's hand trembled on her katana.
Her whisper carried into the silence:
"…Divine."
---
Back at School
The closing bell rang. Precious and I walked out together.
"So after all that effort, we still placed third," Precious muttered.
"Well, third isn't bad," I shrugged.
"Not bad," he smirked, "but it should've been first."
"Maybe next time."
We reached the school gate. That's when I felt it—an aura. Cold. Heavy. Dangerous.
A woman stood there, dressed in black, a wide hat covering her eyes. She smiled at us.
Precious's lips curled into a grin—too wide, too sharp. Like a psychopath. He walked straight to her.
They spoke like old friends.
My chest tightened. Fear crawled up my spine.
Then she turned her head toward me. Her smile widened.
"Don't be afraid, Divine. I'm still your friend."
Her voice was calm. Gentle. But it chilled me to the bone.
I whispered to Precious, "Do you know her?"
"Yeah," he said casually. "She's my friend. But… she's a ghost."
My blood froze.
The woman's eyes locked on me. Her voice slid directly into my mind, bypassing Precious entirely:
"Divine, son of Sohwo. The one who will bring judgment to this cruel world. Don't fear. Your time of retrieval is not yet. But… I will be back."
Her form dissolved into smoke.
Precious blinked at me, unaware of what she had just said.
I stood frozen. Shaken.
For the first time in my life, I realized… I wasn't imagining things.
And worse—whatever they were… they already knew my name.