The Book That Shocked Her
1046 Words
Morning sunlight poured across the towering structures of Heroes Academy.
Across the academy campus, students had already returned to their daily routines.
Combat training.
Flight simulations.
Energy practice.
Speed drills.
It almost looked like everyone had forgotten the terrifying incident that happened at the Technical Department.
Almost.
Because reconstruction workers were still repairing the destroyed building T.L had nearly torn apart with her overwhelming power.
Steel walls were being rebuilt.
Burn marks scrubbed away.
Shattered glass replaced.
The academy was trying to move on.
But not everyone could.
Inside one of the student lounges sat Ava, James, Shine, Lacy, Louise, Clarence, Lena, Kennedy, and Jersey.
The atmosphere felt unusually empty.
Ava groaned dramatically, dropping onto the couch.
“Training sucks now.”
Shine raised an eyebrow. “Why?”
Ava folded her arms.
“Because T.L isn’t here.”
Her voice softened slightly.
“It doesn’t even feel like school anymore.”
James leaned against the wall calmly.
“Relax,” he reassured her. “Merson, Schizzel, and Kaiden already went to the orphanage looking for her. I’m sure they’ll come back with something.”
Ava’s face relaxed a little.
“Yeah…”
James slowly looked away from everyone and whispered quietly—
“I hope.”
Ava narrowed her eyes immediately.
“What did you say?”
James straightened awkwardly.
“I— um—”
“I don’t know if this relates to T.L…”
Everyone turned toward Lena.
“…but there’s something I never told you guys.”
The room slowly became silent.
Ava pointed immediately.
“Please fast-forward the guilt part because I already regret making her cry like a hundred times.”
Lacy nodded awkwardly.
“Same.”
Lena sighed softly before continuing.
“After the party… I went to see T.L.”
Everyone listened carefully.
“She wasn’t really in the mood to talk.”
Lena paused.
“But during our conversation… she mentioned wanting to leave the academy.”
The room went quiet.
James slowly looked down.
Ava’s expression dropped instantly.
“For good,” Lena finished softly.
Kennedy frowned.
“Okay… so what’s the point?”
Lena ignored him.
“I wanted to calm her down, so I took her somewhere peaceful.”
She paused dramatically.
“I took her to the Heroes Library.”
Jersey blinked.
“Wait… there’s an actual library in this school?”
Lena stared at him.
“Yes.”
Kennedy laughed.
“I thought Heroes Academy was fully digitalized. You know… holograms, screens, futuristic stuff.”
“Exactly,” Jersey added. “I didn’t know people still read actual books here.”
Lena inhaled deeply in frustration.
“Kennedy. Jersey. Let me finish.”
Kennedy raised both hands.
“Okay, girl. Continue.”
Shine and Lacy chuckled quietly.
Then Lena continued.
“We sat together in the library for a while. T.L actually thanked me for bringing her there.”
A small smile crossed Lena’s face.
“She said it felt peaceful.”
Everyone listened quietly.
“I picked a random book from one of the shelves and handed it to her.”
Lena’s expression slowly changed.
“She held it at first… then suddenly dropped it on the table.”
Clarence frowned slightly.
“But then,” Lena continued carefully, “when she tried touching it again…”
Everyone leaned forward.
“The second her fingers touched the cover—”
Lena snapped her fingers sharply.
“She pulled away immediately like her entire body got electrocuted.”
Louise’s eyes widened.
“What?”
“I thought she was joking,” Lena said quickly. “Because when I touched the same book, nothing happened to me.”
James crossed his arms.
“What happened after that?”
Lena swallowed nervously.
“She laughed about it at first. T.L even made jokes…”
Her voice lowered.
“But then her speech started slowing down.”
Ava sat upright instantly.
“She looked dizzy,” Lena continued. “Really dizzy.”
The memory clearly disturbed her.
“And before I could even react…”
She paused.
“T.L collapsed.”
The entire room froze.
Louise covered her mouth.
“She fainted?”
Lena nodded slowly.
“Yes.”
Clarence suddenly looked shocked.
“Oh…”
Everyone turned toward her.
“That explains it.”
Shine frowned.
“Explains what?”
Clarence crossed her arms thoughtfully.
“When medical brought T.L back to our room that night, I honestly thought she was drunk or exhausted. She slept almost the entire night.”
Lena shook her head.
“No. She fainted.”
Ava’s eyes slowly widened as she thought carefully.
“Wait…”
She looked directly at Lena.
“What day did this happen?”
“The party night,” Lena answered immediately.
Clarence’s eyes widened instantly.
“And the next day…”
James slowly completed the sentence.
“…was the training incident.”
Louise stood up suddenly.
“Oh my God.”
Everyone looked toward her.
“That explains her sudden power explosion.”
Silence filled the room again.
Then Louise asked carefully—
“What was the name of the book?”
Lena frowned, trying to remember.
“I don’t fully remember…”
She closed her eyes briefly.
“But it started with ‘LAT’… something.”
James narrowed his eyes.
“LAT?”
“Yeah,” Lena replied. “Something division… first division maybe. I didn’t really pay attention to the title.”
A strange tension slowly filled the room.
Kennedy stood immediately.
“Well now I want to see this creepy electric book.”
Jersey pointed dramatically toward the door.
“To the mystery library.”
Lacy rolled her eyes.
“You are so unserious.”
“But he’s right,” James said firmly.
Everyone turned toward him.
“If that book has anything to do with T.L’s powers…”
His voice lowered.
“…then we need to find it.”
Ava stood immediately.
“What are we waiting for?”
“Let’s go,” Shine agreed.
One by one, they all hurried out of the lounge together.
Fast.
Curious.
Determined.
Their footsteps echoed through the academy hallways as they headed toward the hidden library deep within Heroes Academy.
And somewhere beyond ancient shelves and forgotten archives…
The mysterious book still waited.
- Writer
