The Kingdom of Copper (The Daevabad Trilogy #2) - S. A. Chakraborty Page 0,205

cry from some distance away.

They paddled awkwardly through the water. Ali had to turn away from the sight of the door pushing through the thick clutter of bodies, his fellows in uniform, too many of their faces familiar.

This isn’t real. It can’t be real. But it didn’t feel like one of his visions. There was no alien presence whispering in Ali’s head. There was just bewilderment, grief, and carnage.

As they neared the ruins of the Citadel, the remains of the toppled tower grew larger, rising from the lake like a lost island. A shattered section of its exterior shielded the few dozen warriors who’d gathered there. Some were curled around themselves, weeping. But Ali’s gaze immediately flew to the ones who were fighting, several soldiers fending off a pair of thin, wraith-like creatures whose tattered shrouds clung wetly to their wasted bodies.

One was Lubayd, swinging his sword wildly. With a disgusted cry, he decapitated one of the leering creatures and kicked the body back into the lake.

Ali could have wept with relief. His best friend, at least, had survived the Citadel’s destruction.

“We found the prince!” the Ayaanle soldier at his side cried. “He’s alive!”

Lubayd whirled around. He was there by the time they arrived, yanking Ali to his feet and throwing his arms around him in a tight hug.

“Ali, brother, thank God …,” he choked out. “I’m sorry … the water came so fast, and when I couldn’t find you in the room—”

Ali could barely manage a response. “I’m all right,” he croaked.

A scream cut the air, a plea in Geziriyya. “No, don’t! God, please!”

Ali lurched to the edge of the ruined tower, catching sight of the man who’d cried out: a Geziri soldier who’d managed to make it back to the beach only to be mobbed by the skeletal beings. They surrounded him, dragging him to the sand. Ali saw teeth and nails and mouths bearing down …

And then he couldn’t watch, his stomach rising. He spun back around as the djinn’s guttural cry was cut short.

“They … are they—” He couldn’t even say the word.

Lubayd nodded. He looked shattered. “They’re ghouls. It’s what they do.”

Ali shook his head in denial. “They can’t be ghouls. There are no ifrit in Daevabad to summon ghouls—and certainly no dead humans!”

“Those are ghouls,” Lubayd said firmly. “My father and I came upon a pair devouring a human hunter once.” He flinched. “It’s not a sight one forgets.”

Ali felt faint. He took a deep breath; he couldn’t fall apart. Not now. “Did anyone see what attacked the Citadel in the first place?”

Lubayd nodded, pointing to a thin Sahrayn man rocking back and forth, his arms wrapped tightly around his knees. “He was the first one out, and the things he’s saying …” He trailed off, looking nauseated. “You should talk to him.”

His heart in his throat, Ali approached the Sahrayn man. He knelt at his side, laying a hand on his shivering arm. “Brother,” he started softly. “Can you tell me what you saw?”

The man kept rocking, his eyes bright with terror. “I was keeping watch on my ship,” he whispered. “We were moored over there.” He pointed to the ruined pier where a broken Sahrayn sandship had been driven up onto the shattered docks. “The lake … the water … it spun itself into a monster. It attacked the Citadel. Ravaged it, pulling what it could back into its depths.” He swallowed, shaking harder. “The force of it threw me in the lake. I thought the curse would kill me … When it didn’t, I started swimming … and then I saw them.”

“Saw what?” Ali pressed.

“Warriors,” the man whispered. “They came racing out of the lake on the backs of smoky horses with their bows drawn. They started shooting the survivors and then … and then …” Tears were rolling down his cheeks. “The dead came from the water. They swarmed my boat as I watched.” His shoulders shook. “My captain …” He started to weep harder. “They tore out his throat with their teeth.”

Ali’s stomach plummeted, but he forced himself to peer through the darkness at the beach. Yes, he could see an archer now: a racing horse, the glimmer of a silver bow. An arrow went flying …

Another scream, and then silence. Fury surged through Ali, burning away his fear and panic. Those were his people out there.

He turned to study the ruined Citadel. And then his heart stopped. A ragged hole had been punched into the wall facing the