New Demon Who Dis?
Aru Shah had a gigantic lightning bolt, and she really wanted to use it.
But if she used it now, she risked attracting the herd of zombies currently swarming through the Night Bazaar.
“This is the worst Saturdayever,” moaned Mini, clutching her celestial weapon like a teddy bear.
While Aru’s soul father—the god of thunder—had gifted her a lightning bolt named Vajra, Mini’ssoul father—the god of death—had given her an enchanteddandastick named Dee Dee.
The two of them crouched beneath a table by the Frozen Yogurt and Dreams stand, watching through the gaps in the wood as Otherworld citizens ran screaming, dropping grocery bags, or, in the case of one bull-headedrakshasa, walloping a zombie over the head with a tote full of tomatoes.
Overhead, a loud announcementblared:
“ATTENTION, ATTENTION! WE HAVE LOCATED AN UNWANTED DEMONIC PRESENCE IN THEAREA.PLEASE EVACUATE THE NIGHT BAZAAR. ATTENTION, ATTENTION …”
Aru hated sitting still. But their job here wasn’t to fight, but tofind… because somewhere in the Night Bazaar was a thief who had raised the Otherworld alarm and probably let in all these zombies.
Unfortunately, that thief was also her newestPandava sister.
Which meant that, just like Aru and Mini, she was the reincarnation of one of the five legendary demigod brothers from Hindu mythology. Hours ago, they’d seen her carrying a giant bow and arrow just as Boo, their pigeon mentor, had said,That was your sister.
“Aru!” whispered Mini.
“Shh! A zombie might find us—”
“I think … I think one already has …” said Mini.
Aru turned aroundjust in time to see a pair of pale hands flip over the table they were under. Bright sunlight and moonlight washed over them from the half-day-half-night sky overhead. Aru blinked against the sudden brightness. She couldn’t get a good read on the zombie’s features, even as it snapped off a table leg (the stand howled, “HOWDAREYOU!”) and brandished it at them.
Aru probably should’ve been scared,but she had a fearsome weapon, and she knew how to wield it.
She flung Vajra as if it were a javelin. The lightning bolt zapped the wooden peg out of the zombie’s hand, and he pulled his arm back, stung. The entire yogurt stand tipped over on top of him.
“Run!” said Mini.
Vajra zoomed back into Aru’s hands and she took off.Aroundthem, the Night Bazaar had fallen into chaos. Storefronts hadbeen toppled, and while most of the shop owners had evacuated, the displays kept fighting. An enchanted flower stall turned its pumpkin vines into a row of exploding jack-o’-lanterns, and the kitchen appliances section summoned an army of wooden spoons to beat a group of zombies over the head. When some of the intruders spilled a bowl of glass beads and started slipping and sliding on them, ayakshastoreowner hollered, “YOU’LL PAY FOR THAT! NO SATURDAY DISCOUNT, EITHER!”
“That zombie is chasing us!” Mini yelled at Aru.
Aru glanced over her shoulder. Sure enough, the same zombie stalked after them, shoving aside the feral grocery carts that were anxiously zooming through the Night Bazaar.
“Why doallzombies lurch?” asked Aru. “Is that, like, a universal zombie thing?”
She castVajra like a net, thinking that would stop him, but the electrified mesh slipped right off, and he stepped over it. Aru frowned. Maybe her aim wasn’t as good when she was running … but Vajra had never failed as a net before. Vajra bounded back to her, transforming into a bracelet that wound around her wrist.
Mini skidded to a halt in front of the entrance to the frozen pizza and enchantmentsaisle. A herd of grocery carts, packed tightly together in fear, blocked their way.
“There she is!” said Mini.
At the end of the aisle, Aru caught sight of the other Pandava girl. Thethief. She had shifted into a blue wolf and was carrying the large bow and arrow in her mouth as she ran.
“Hey!Stop!” yelled Mini.
Butthey couldn’t chase after her. In front of them, the grocery carts hissedand zoomed back and forth like a pack of angry cats. Behind them, the zombie lurched ever closer.
“Can you make us invisible?” asked Aru. “Maybe we can slip past him?”
Casting a shield of invisibility with Dee Dee was one of the new powers Mini had learned in Pandava training. Except she wasn’t that good at it yet. Mini waved her danda stick in an arc, creating a force field around the two ofthem—but it immediately flickered and died.
