Black Avatare

10 | APPARITION

Unanse placed the tome in the shelf with veneration. "I hope you found that excerpt interesting."

"What happened in Meru?" Binara asked, trying to squeeze the curiosity out of her voice.

"That's not easy to decipher—since it's missing a piece and what remains is interpreted as Yama's battle against his inner demons rather than an external threat. He goes on to use the Asura's tools to defeat the demon and save his city."

"So the city in this epic is based on Hevana? What about Mount Meru?" She dredged up what she knew of it, which was scant. "I know it's all myth, but where is it supposed to be located?"

"Again, it's hard to decide where to draw the line between fact and fiction." A faraway look fell on the monk's face. "Mount Meru of legend has not been found, though there are one or two mountains that might have inspired it. These stories have exaggerated elements, and men of valor are imbued with incredible powers. But some pieces do align, corroborating snippets of information about the Great Haunting. History is fascinating, and those who sift through it are like detectives looking for clues."

"Is that what you're doing here in this library?"

"Indeed. I do try to understand these wonderful texts and see if they can shed more light into what is happening now." He gestured for her to follow him as he retraced his steps down the shadowed aisle. "You see, my parents are scholars in ancient Sinhalese, Pali and Sanskrit. I learned them as a child and at university before I was ordained a monk. That was thirty years ago."

Binara hurled a sideways glance at his ageless features. "I see."

"At that time, hauntings and supernatural encounters were low. I believe it was also because people reported them less. Ghosts came to be seen as illusions or mere superstition. Of course, cases started to rise ten years ago—the first time missing girls were reported."

Something surfaced from the depths of her mind, grasping and pulling, and she drew in a breath in an effort to rein it in. "What do you know of the Black Prince?"

"That's a broad question. Were you aware that we have a classification system for demons?"

"I—no, I wasn't."

He beckoned her to the mural they passed previously, and Binara observed the details in close-up. The figures were stylized, all done in black, white and shades of red. Some sections were faded, colors blending into the background under the muted lighting.

Unanse pointed to a lesser demon, baring its sickle-shaped teeth while holding a cobra. "That belongs to the Naruma class. All inferior demons, including those responsible for simple house hauntings, belong here. The demons' abilities and the danger they pose to humans may vary, but we assign them to this class based on the expertise needed to take them down. Most villagers have actually co-existed with some Narumas by offering bili and bali to appease them—which you probably already know."

Yeah, maybe the Yakadura should actually do something, so people don't have to endanger themselves. A colorful insult formed in Binara's head as usual, but now it glitched ever so slightly, which soured her mood. "Demons have to be hunted and sealed. No negotiations."

"Yes, but there were many instances when we Yakadura couldn't keep up with demand—especially when it came to low-priority cases in remote villages. So people made do." He resumed his walk. "Moving on...we assign a higher danger level to what we call the Mara class. This is a broad category tackled by our experienced agents. These demons are too malevolent to be appeased with offerings, though kings of the past had done so on occasion. After all, on the higher end of this spectrum, there are only a few documented cases."