"A dimensional rip?" Binara's jaw fell open. "What the heck is that?"

Diyan surveyed her while the blue-white candlelight reflected off his eyes. "Not all demons can teleport to the human realm at will. Natural windows appear between worlds—small and unstable. That's how demons cross over. To transport an army, Mahasona needs something more."

"But what about you? And Raya?"

"I'm one of the few who can warp the fabric of space to create a window—when and where the barrier between the realms becomes thin. It takes considerable energy and skill to maintain it. The mark I put on you helped. It was like a beacon that made it easier to open a portal directly to you. Raya used it to take up station at your balcony. It's easier to imagine these windows as the two realms touching—holes you can travel through."

"So, like, mini wormholes?"

Diyan frowned. "Wormholes?"

Binara shook her head and recalled the battle at Natran. "Mahasona brought multiple demons to that artisan village."

"He's more powerful than ever. I believe that incident may have been something of a test run—at a smaller scale."

"The weather event!" She thought of the ominous cloud formation. "Those weird clouds were also there when I summoned you at Mai Mara Cemetery."

"Yes, two portals were active that night, and strong auras coalesced—mine and his, though he was possessing his dog at the time. Hence, the weather anomaly."

She sat silent for a moment, thoughts eddying in a turbulent mass. A gust of wind blew over the balcony, rustling leaves and raising goosebumps. The ever-present moon hung over them, its mellow glow barely penetrating the shadows. Both times she had come close to her nemesis, the sinister clouds were the warning sign, but she had no idea.

"I'm glad you're able to withstand teleportation so well," Diyan said, steepling his hands over his half-eaten plate. "In a way, it's not surprising, but..."

"How did you teleport me the first time at the cemetery?" She jogged down memory lane in light of the newfound knowledge. "I know the second time was Raya bringing me to your palace."

"Both times were actually me. I was particularly ill-prepared at the cemetery, because..." He paused. "Well, I did manage to get you away from there."

"But...what about Raya? At Natran, Mahasona lunged at me, and the bridge collapsed. Raya grabbed me and—"

"Raya's job was to keep an eye on you, though it was getting harder with your mark fading over time. When I realized you were in danger, I wasn't in a place to come to your aid. Raya was already there, so I possessed her to bring you here."

"You can do that? Possess Raya?"

"Raya and I share a mental connection." A smile flitted over his lips. "The same connection you hijacked thanks to my mark on your shoulder."

"Oh..." Her eyes widened when she remembered the trippy dive into the leopard's mind. "You used the mark to track me through Raya, but it kind of backfired at that moment?"

"Something of the sort."

Binara drummed her fingers on the table. "So Mahasona also has this mental link with his shadow wraith—the dog. He possessed it at Natran. I could see it in the dog's eyes. At the footbridge, he finally showed his true self to me."

"Mahasona might have done so because he didn't expect you to escape. Otherwise, he prefers not to show himself." Diyan frowned, and the tiredness about him became more pronounced. "He'd rather have humans focus all their efforts into hunting me down—based on an age-old misconception."

In the beat of silence that passed between them, Binara sensed a story that may have brought about that misconception. However, Diyan's rigid stance made it clear that he wasn't going to elaborate. It stoked the anger simmering inside, and she directed it at him. After all, he was hell-bent on keeping her imprisoned. The candlelight flickered in the wind, creating dancing shadows.

Binara drew in a steadying breath. "Do you have any idea how much time we have before Mahasona opens his dimensional rip?"

"When his preparations are complete, he'd most likely use a natural portal and amplify it. Such an endeavor would require him to draw power from his strongest followers." Diyan's frown deepened. "He would plan it just before the Perahera, since a purification ceremony of that scale would be a setback."

"Thanks for sharing that with me," she said, glaring at him.

He regarded her. "Why are you angry?"

"Didn't think you should mention that an entire demon army is going to attack Hevana? In two weeks?"

"What good will it do?" Diyan rubbed a hand over his face. "For one thing, you're in no state to fight, even if that was an option."

The fire inside bloomed until her very ears heated up—partly because he was right. "Like I said, you don't get to make decisions for me."

"How about you focus on healing? The ayurveda we have here is better than that in the human realm."

Since she couldn't think of anything else to say, she picked up the roti and started eating. Healing was indeed the fastest way to get what she wanted—except now, there was a deadline looming over her. Even if she was back to normal in a week, it was hard to imagine how she could possibly travel swathes of unknown terrain to Mount Meru and make it back—all in time to prevent Mahasona's attack. Binara sagged in her seat.

"Why do you fight?" Diyan watched her, his gaze softening. "Why did you choose to become a ghosthunter?"

"You know why." The scowl on her face didn't slacken. "Mahasona took my sister."

"It's all about revenge?"

"Yes."

"What was your sister like?" he asked. "If I may?"

"You may not." She stuffed roti into her mouth, eyes fixed on a firefly that twinkled its way over the balcony.

Diyan sighed and tucked into his food.

"Why do you fight?" Binara paused, hand poised over her plate.

He shook his head and went on eating.

"Fair enough." The food was no longer as enjoyable, and she swallowed the last mouthful.

"If it makes you feel better," he whispered, shooting her a glance, "Mahasona would attack in roughly four weeks from now."

She stared at him. "The Perahera is two weeks away."

"You forget that you're in Holmanloke. Time runs differently here."

Binara lowered her goblet of water. "What?"

"A day in the human realm means two days in Holmanloke."

"No way..." she murmured.

Diyan took a long drink. Binara just stared at him while her thoughts buzzed at lightning speed. It did make sense, since time was never constant. It warped and twisted, but that was mostly theory than a tangible phenomenon—until now.

"How do demons age?" Binara asked, her voice hushed. "You obviously age faster due to time being faster here. But I'm talking about the process of aging. Everything wears down with time."

"A demon lifespan is tens of thousands of years," Diyan said, his expression neutral, though waves of melancholy emanated from him.

"How is that even possible?"

"Demons can heal a lot faster than humans and even regenerate limbs and organs—like some animals in nature. They can recover from serious wounds after a long period of hibernation. This is why humans draw out their very life essence and seal it in urns."

The statement reminded her that she was actually conversing with a demon, and her stomach churned on cue. "How old are you? Without counting the two thousand something years you've been asleep?"

"That's in the human realm. Here in Holmanloke, it's been four thousand five hundred years."

"Right." Binara let out a whoosh of air. "Well, without counting that."

"For all intents and purposes, I'm eighteen." His expression eased, and his lips turned up at the corners.

"I mean, yeah, you look eighteen." She inwardly recoiled at the idea that he could be a thousand years old. "But how long have you been alive and up? Your mental age?"

He leaned forward. "The answer is still eighteen."

She blinked at him. "I don't understand."

"Binara, you forget that I was once a human. I died when I was seventeen and spawned as a demon."

"Then...you've only spent one year in Holmanloke?" Words tumbled out of her mouth. No wonder that map is so incomplete. "After fighting Mahasona, you went into slumber for thousands of years? And now that you're awake, you're—"

"Yes, I'm eighteen. Everything happened so recently in my memory."

Binara watched him as all traces of light-heartedness dissolved from his face. His larynx bobbled as he gripped his goblet and took a swig.

So insane. She slumped back against the chair while her brain tried to wrap around the mind-boggling scenario. So how did you die? What did you do to become a demon? The fact that he was once a human gave rise to a confusing tangle of emotions. It had never occurred to her that demons had a human past—nor did it matter. After all, their origins were so long ago, and horrific deeds caused them to reincarnate as demons. They were monsters in human form to begin with. Diyan completely shattered her idea of a demon, and she didn't know what to make of it.

Before she could say anything more, the door opened and a kinnara flew in. He went up to Diyan and hummed a series of words into his ear.

"I have a visitor," Diyan said, getting to his feet. "Excuse me, my lady. You can stay here and enjoy some dessert."

Binara stood up. "Who's the visitor?"

"Garuda."

When Diyan strode towards the door, she followed him.

He halted, hand on the door handle. "You're coming with me?"

"Yeah." She held her head high. I wanna hear what you're plotting.

"Very well then." He held the door open for her. "Good luck spying when you cannot understand the language we speak."

Oh, crap. She glared up at him as he fell into step beside her. He pretended to not notice, as cool as ever. Raya materialized behind them and trailed along.

"Where are we going?" she demanded.

"I'm going to my study." Diyan picked up pace. "You're going to your room. I'll get the kinnara to escort—"

"No."

He just sighed.

They met the birdman outside the study—a formidable figure in coppery armor and russet-brown wings. He said a word in greeting before his eyes darted to Binara.

She barely stopped herself from goggling at his face, which bulged out in a beak-like protrusion.

Diyan hastened to introduce her, though much of it was lost on her. His manner was formal, as if he was in a business meeting. Garuda shot her another look, and words issued out in rapid succession. She couldn't figure out if it was wonder or confusion on the birdman's face, and she decided it could be both.

She was about to say something in reply when Diyan talked to the kinnara who hovered next to the leopard.

The kinnara flew up to her, gesturing for her to walk. Diyan gave her a curt nod before turning on his heels. Both the demon and the birdman disappeared into the study while Binara scowled after them.