Aru Shah and the City of Gold - Roshani Chokshi Page 0,91

in its own fist, then back at Aiden’s empty hand. With a nod, the warrior tossed the sword to Aiden, who caught it one-handed.

“Shah?” he asked, glancing at Aru.

Wordlessly, Aru touched her lightning bolt to his blades and a jagged burst of electricity clambered up the metal.

“Okay, what about my glow-up?” demanded Rudy, holding out a pocketknife. “HELLO?”

The Nairrata army banged their swords against their shields as the first row of the Sleeper’s army neared the golden platform. As one, the soldiers turned to face the Pandavas, and Aru could feel them waiting for her command.

Her mind whirled through the tactics Hanuman and Boo had taught them over the years.

The enemy was coming in from three sides. Their position was too dangerous. Aru wanted to keep the Sleeper’s army in her line of sight, and there was only one way to do that.

Brynne met her gaze, and they exchanged a silent understanding.

“That’ll be messy,” said Mini, reading Aru’s thoughts.

“What will be messy?” asked Kara.

“You’ll see,” said Aru. “Brynne, tell Hanuman and Urvashi. Then get ready.”

In a flash of blue light, Brynne transformed into an eagle. She winged up to Urvashi, then soared down to whisper in Hanuman’s ear. He turned to Aru and nodded in approval.

Aru raised her lightning bolt high over her head. Let them come, she thought.

“Now?” asked Brynne.

“Hold…”

This close up, Aru could make out the details of individual soldiers coming their way. She saw the thick scar twisting across the face of a lion-headed rakshasa. A stunning dark-skinned yakshini smiled wide, revealing broken teeth.

The Sleeper’s army was composed of beings both monstrous and beautiful, all of them united under his promise to “end the tyranny of fate.” For the longest time, Aru had thought that her pity for these people meant that she had no right to fight them. But then Aru pictured the families in the Otherworld cowering in corners of the Night Bazaar, living under a state of emergency that had ruined their lives and terrorized their every thought.

Aru may have understood what the Sleeper was fighting for, but she didn’t like how he was doing it, and that determined the side she stood on.

“Now!” yelled Aru.

Mini lunged, casting her Death Danda directly in front of Aru. Purple light surged across the golden floor and extended into the sea. The Sleeper’s troops cried out as it shot a direct line through their battalion, forcing them to scatter as water sprayed up in fifty-foot-high sheets. Hanuman roared as he bent down and gathered up soldiers in his arms, flinging them to one side of the ocean. Brynne charged forward as an elephant, herding other warriors into the same area. She trumpeted loudly, and a third of the Nairrata swarmed after her.

Golden swords clashed against spears and shields. The combatants’ feet glowed with a fuzzy enchantment to keep them from sinking into the water, and the nearer they got to Aru, the louder their footsteps sounded, until it was as if someone had unstoppered a thunderstorm right next to her ears.

“I need some kind of sound blast,” Aru shouted to Rudy over the din. “Something that will knock the enemy back!”

“I got’chu, Aru,” said Rudy. He rummaged through his backpack, then hauled out five bright-orange crystals and hurled them into the sea. Noise like the buzzing of a thousand insects filled the air. The Sleeper’s soldiers ducked, flailed, covered their heads, and ran from the sound, leaving one section of the ocean empty and calm.

“Good work, Rudy!” said Aru.

He grinned. “I’ll stay on noise control!” Rudy shouted. In a blink, he morphed into his naga form and slithered into the water.

Now the Sleeper’s army was gathered on one side of the sea, like a hand fan slowly closing.

Step one complete, thought Aru. Make sure we’re not surrounded.

In the sky above, Urvashi began to beat a new rhythm, knitting up the ocean to shield them from rear attacks. Aru thrust Vajra upward, and lightning crackled around her, illuminating the chopping waves. At her gesture, the Nairrata army surged forward, grappling with the Sleeper’s troops.

Aru scanned the melee, steeling herself for the sight of the Sleeper’s silhouette weaving in and out of his army, or the unmistakable sound of Boo’s flapping wings. But neither materialized. That was for the best, thought Aru. Now she could take her next step without distraction.

Step two, surround them.

Aru heard the clip-clop of hooves as Brynne, in horse form, galloped up to Aiden and nudged him. He climbed astride her back and, with one