HIGH SCHOOL RETURN OF EMILY

CHAPTER EIGHT

Both of them were staring… not at her face, but at her *arm*.

A strange, glowing light had emerged—faint but visible—spreading slowly from beneath her skin. It flickered like a brand not of fire, but of something *older*… something *f*******n*.

*"Impossible,"* Havana hissed, backing away slightly. *"That mark... it shouldn’t exist. Not on a human."*

Emily blinked, looking at her arm in confusion, not understanding.

*"Please…"* she still cried softly. *"I don’t want this… I didn’t ask for this."*

Lucian finally spoke—his voice low, like cracking stone.

*"This is trouble."*

Then suddenly—*a violent gust of wind* erupted through Gehenna. The flames bent backward. Shadows trembled. The earth groaned beneath their feet.

And all at once—*they knew.*

He was coming.

A massive presence filled the realm. Every spirit, every demon, every lost soul stilled in submission.

*Bael* had arrived.

The highest commander of Gehenna. The one who ruled above Havana, Lucian, and all others. A being of terror and authority. A being who *only* revealed himself when the balance of the realms was at stake.

A towering figure stepped into the clearing, cloaked in black smoke and fire, his face hidden beneath a twisted crown of molten bone. His presence alone bent reality.

*"All hail Great Bael,"* Havana and Lucian said in unison, bowing deeply.

Emily, still on her knees, stared up—shaking—unsure whether she was about to be destroyed… or spared.

Bael said nothing at first.

But he looked furious.

And his eyes were locked *only on her*.

*“Havana… what have you done?”* Bael’s voice thundered across Gehenna, *shaking the very ground* beneath them. Flames along the walls flared wildly, and the shadows recoiled in fear.

Emily clutched her chest, her breath shaky. Even as a soul, the weight of Bael’s presence pressed down on her like gravity. She had never felt so small… so helpless.

Havana didn’t flinch.

*“I’ve done nothing,”* she replied sharply, folding her arms across her chest.

Lucian turned toward her slightly, shooting her a silent, warning glare—*a “know your place” kind of look*—but Havana dismissed it without care, her expression smug.

*“It isn’t *my* job to identify the ones marked by God,”* she added, raising a brow. *“Blame the Watchers. Or whoever’s left with that pathetic duty.”*

Bael narrowed his eyes, smoke curling from his shoulders as his aura pulsed with rage.

*“Now you’ve learned to talk back to your master, is that it?”* he growled., did u really want to get us into trouble with God ,he thundered

Emily winced, her hands shaking

Havana didn’t back down. Her tone remained cool, but now it carried a razor-sharp edge of disrespect.

*“I thought *you* weren’t afraid of God.”*

*Silence.*

A deadly silence.

Bael’s fury exploded like a storm held too long. He turned his burning gaze on Havana, his eyes blazing with wrath. The air twisted, and suddenly—*her throat began to tighten*.

Havana gasped, clutching at her neck as invisible hands choked her. Her heels scraped across the stone as she tried to pull away, but there was nothing to grasp—*no attacker*, just Bael’s will made manifest.