Dasun let out a yelp. His brother tripped and fell. Nim unfolded what looked like a spear with dangling limes.

"What the heck was that?" Sandun whisper-shouted, scrambling to his feet.

"Poltergeism." Nim adopted a battle stance. "Noob."

The sudden quiet pierced them as loud as the window slam. Binara crouched, eyes darting as she aimed the flashlight all around, but it revealed only a sliver in the all-encompassing darkness. She bit down on the phone to hold it in place while she drew a protective rune on the floor. The chalk slipped from her fingers, its pitter-patter mimicking her heartbeat. She grabbed it and resumed scrawling.

"How are we gonna save the old man?" Dasun steadied his voice. "Do you think he's possessed?"

"Shuddup." Binara shot him a glare. "Trying to focus here. And there's no 'we'."

"Actually," Nim snapped, spinning around and grabbing the door handle, "I don't know about you, but I'm getting out. Demon ain't afraid to take on all of us, so this is a tad bigger than what I signed up for."

No matter how hard he pulled, the door wouldn't budge. He let out a string of expletives.

Dasun looked from one to the other. "Guess we're saving Grandpa."

Binara started reciting verses under her breath and scrawled more lines on the floor. Sandun said nothing, though his larynx bobbled.

Suddenly, the cupboard doors swung open, sending contents flying.

All four of them ducked. The clatter was deafening, rattling Binara to the core. Sweat broke out on her brow as she uttered more verses, which seemed to have done nothing but anger the entity. At least, the protective circle was complete. How the heck is it hiding its presence?

Her frantic eyes landed on a half-open doorway. The house was just too small to have more than one room, which meant that the old man was inside. She launched into a sprint.

"Where the hell are you going?" Nim shouted.

Binara ignored him. She lunged through the doorway.

In the middle of the room, a burly man sat cross-legged on a cushion. His eyes were closed, as if in meditation. He was strangely familiar. Binara froze as recognition streaked through her mind.

"Agent Aponso?" she croaked, trying to come up with a scenario that could explain this absurd turn of events.

He was not in the suit anymore—instead, he wore a band-collared shirt paired with cargo pants. Just then, the others thundered in, with Nim at the lead. Bewilderment flashed over their faces as they assessed the situation.

The man that Binara knew as Agent Aponso opened his eyes and surveyed them. "Hello there."

"What's going on here?" she demanded, trying to catch her breath.

He got to his feet. The cushion sighed as the weight eased. He approached the old window and flung it open. Light streamed in, making everyone squint.

Before anything more could be said, a clacking sound rent the air, followed by the thump of sneakers. Saumya entered an instant later, with Piumi at her heels.

"Four of them this time," Saumya said briskly, one hand brushing away some dust on her dress. "Thanks for doing this, Rodrigo."

"Not a bad lot at all." A half-smile adorned Rodrigo's face, and his eyes lingered on Binara, who just stared dumbfounded. "As much as I love being examiner, duty calls."

"Oh, yes, of course. I'll take it from here."

He strode out of the room, boots thudding on the earthen floor.

Nim turned to Saumya, a frown contorting his features. "What is this? What was—"

"This place isn't bad, is it?" Saumya adjusted her glasses with an index finger. "Perfect for the purpose."

"I don't understand," Sandun said. "You caught the ghost?"

"There's no ghost. What happened was just a bunch of tricks and illusions. Of course, this wouldn't have been possible without Manju."

The child stuck his head in, grinning from ear to ear.

Yet again, words failed Binara. The revelation appeared to have a similar effect on the others.

"No wonder I didn't..." Binara finally said, shaking her head. "So this is—"

"Yes, this is the trial." Saumya smiled. "And congratulations—you pass. The four of you are our new rookies."

"Wait, but we didn't actually do anything," Dasun said. "I mean, there wasn't even a ghost to begin with."

Saumya walked on, motioning for them to follow her along the forest path. "The purpose of the trial is to assess basic suitability—we train you to become Yakadura."

"And what criteria count for suitability?" Binara asked. "What's the purpose of the trial if it isn't designed to be an achievable objective?"

"Number one is to assess your readiness to take on the supernatural. As I said before, this job isn't for the faint-hearted. Second, you need the sight—if you cannot see, then your job is going to be infinitely harder. All four of you were puzzled by the lack of a supernatural presence, which demonstrated that you do possess it. Third, we observe your willingness to act as well as your reactions when faced with the unknown. In this line of work, there's much we don't know."

"The...sight?" Binara's stare bored into the woman's back. "All of you have it?"

"Yes, what did you expect?" Saumya expertly avoided holes on the road while her wedge heels grated on dirt and rock—as if it was perfectly normal to be heading into the forest in business casual wear.

A beat of silence stretched out. Wind whistled through the trees, which closed in on them, until nothing but the road was visible. A monkey screeched up in the canopy, which all but cut off the daylight. Binara drifted into her inner world, mulling over what she had learned. She struggled to wrap her brain around the fact that she was in the presence of multiple people who could see ghosts.

"Wait, what about that man—Rodrigo?" she suddenly asked. "He was—oh."

Saumya looked over her shoulder, eyebrows raised. "Yes?"

Binara shook her head and recalled the meeting with the "CID detectives". The Yakadura had actually visited her, and she had no clue. She sucked in a shaky breath. There was one more niggling question she needed the answer to.

She fell into step with Piumi, who eyed her with surprise.

"Back at the restaurant, you asked me about..." Binara lowered her voice and hesitated. "You mentioned a Black Prince encounter."

"Wasn't just any encounter," Piumi whispered back. "You survived intact."

She was silent for a heartbeat. "How do you know about that?"

"I know more than you think. That drunk in the bus..." Piumi giggled. "His face! That was so funny."

"What?" Binara's eyes almost popped out of her sockets. "You were tailing me?"

"Correct. That was my mission."

"You're Bubbles?"

"You catch on fast, Ghost Slayer Girl." A grin spread over Piumi's face. "I didn't think you'd actually join us."

Her stomach twisted. It was all too much to take in. She was so preoccupied with the Black Prince that she was completely unaware of an actual human shadowing her. This ungainly creature had bested her. She wanted to pull her hair out. The twins threw her a glance, obviously curious about the hushed conversation.

"Even if the Yakadura found my identity after the incident—I'm thinking you have access to police records," Binara muttered. "How did you find me on Ghostly Times?"

"That's actually my work." Piumi puffed up her chest. "I'm pretty active there, and when you posted about the Black Prince survivor, I had a hunch it might be you trying to divert attention."

Binara said nothing as she quickened her pace. Piumi might as well have pushed her into the Ranwali River. She inwardly shrank—nothing but a bug caught in the rapids. Her chest tightened, caving under the pressure, and she resisted the urge to sit down. Thankfully, her floundering heart pumped enough blood to keep her head from swimming.

"Hey, what's that?" Dasun pointed, eyes glued to the wilderness ahead.

Within seconds, the object gained definition. Narrow steps, hewn out of rock, loomed up from the mist, and elaborate guard stones stood on either side, depicting a nature spirit. The steps led up to a cluster of old-fashioned buildings, sheltered under outspread boughs. The most prominent was an octagonal shrine that sat precariously on a rocky outcrop. More steps and pathways snaked up the compound, partially hidden with foliage.

"Welcome to Yakadura HQ," Saumya said, motioning for them to follow as they paused to soak in the sight. "This is the western side—the primary entrance opens into the main road."

"You built this?" Sandun asked, his stare slowly panning up. "I've seen images online, but this looks way bigger in real life."

"No," Nim said brusquely. "It's a forest monastery."

"Correct," Piumi hastened to reply. "This used to be a monastery, but during King Rajasinghe's reign, this became the Yakadura HQ."

"I see you've been spending some time in the library," Saumya said, at which Piumi flashed a sheepish smile.

They walked over the moonstone slab and started climbing. A cool breeze blew on Binara's face, and she gulped in air, which helped to clear her head. Her eyes skimmed over the makara balustrade that flanked the steps. She couldn't help wondering what fortifications the Yakadura had in place. She brushed aside drooping leaves, wet with dew, and observed a trail that may have led to a meditation cabin.

"Quite a few monks actually joined the Yakadura for the protection of the people," Saumya went on, her pace relaxed. "The Yakadura even performed in the Perahera, which used to be grander than it is today. Dance and acrobatics were big back then. Now, we focus on martial arts—"

"Do you still take part in the Perahera?" Binara asked, trying to sound casual as her inner eye conjured up the flamboyant street procession.

"Yes, indeed. We help organize it. So little time, and we need it to be big this year on account of the black cloud hovering over the city. It has always been an annual cleansing and a beacon of light against the darkness."

Gears turned in Binara's brain. She knew the organizers of the holy festival to be high-ranking monks and the custodian of the old royal palace. So the Yakadura's influence spreads over the Sangha and ancient royalty? That's insane. Wonder adorned the faces of her companions—except Nim, who looked as insufferable as ever.

Soon afterwards, they arrived at what resembled a bigger version of the cemetery shelter. As she took in the wooden columns in the verandah, it occurred to her that this might have been a sermon hall.

"Come on in," Saumya said, throwing open the double doors, as ornate as the rest of the stone, brass and woodwork.

The hall within contained an assembly of individuals—nine in total, overseen by a man in old-fashioned attire. A Buddha statue in lotus posture dominated one end of the room, while urns and vases decorated the crevices. It was evident that they had walked in on a physical training session. Multiple duels carried on uninterrupted, with moves that were obviously derived from angampora—the martial arts of the ancients.

Binara wrested her eyes from the sight and hastened to follow Saumya, who strode up to the man. The drape that protruded from his midriff amplified his heavyset build. The male trainees in the room also wore Nilame pants, but those were of a modern style.

"Kids, this here is Agent Tennekoon," Saumya said, gesturing at him.

"More rookies for me?" Tennekoon asked in a low baritone.

"Oh, yes. Eager to start as well." Saumya cast a glance at Nim and Binara in particular. "Agent Tennekoon will be overseeing your training and preliminary missions."

Everyone tensed. Binara stood up straighter.

Saumya turned to the man. "Thank you for releasing Piumi for the trial. She was very helpful."

Piumi beamed. "Glad I could help."

As soon as Saumya left, Tennekoon took a minute to scrutinize them, finger running over his short beard. "You will report here every day at seven o'clock. Your hours will vary, depending on your assignments, and you should be on call if you're needed. Saumya will send you your contracts later today. Meanwhile, let's get to the fun part. Nothing like early morning training."

Nim spoke up, "What's the first mission?"

"Impatient, are we?" He let out a chuckle. "You'll find out soon enough. I believe hands-on field work is crucial to learning the ropes. Besides, we can do with all the help we can get these days."

The twins exchanged looks while Nim just watched on, one hand popping a piece of bubble gum into this mouth.

Binara contemplated the words, her skin prickling with anticipation. Even buffaloes have to put in effort in times like this. Piumi's revelation rankled like a porcupine sting, but in that moment, she latched on to this giant leap forward. She had effectively gained admission to the Yakadura—opening the doorway to all the information they had on the Black Prince. As if that wasn't an achievement by itself, she would be diving headfirst into the cases.

"So," Binara said, folding her arms, "when do we start the first mission?"