“Sorude!” said Aru, blocking him with Vajra. “We’re supposed to be on the same side.”
Heartless-Aiden made a weird grunt, which Aru took to meanMy bad. Can’t really help it.
Aru steadied herself, preparingfor his next blow. When it came, Aru fell to the ground, just like Hanuman had taught her in combat practice. Aiden roared, ready himself to plunge his blades straight through her. At the last second, Aru rolled out of the way. Aiden snarled. He tried to lift the scimitars to strike again, but they were stuck in the damp sand.
“I want you to know we’re still friends,” she told him.
Then shewhacked him on the head with the lightning bolt and Aiden slumped over, unconscious.
Takshaka was struggling to control the arrow. Brynne had picked up the bow and was holding it behind her back.
“Meenakshi!”he yelled. “Where are you?”
The Heartless were going haywire. Hundreds swarmed in all directions. Aru extended Vajra in front of her and sent out pulses of lightning to confuse the zombies.Mini cast an invisibility shield over them, and a fiery tornado—courtesy of Brynne—flashed in a wide circle around Mini, Hira, Aiden, and Aru. Anyone who got too close received the heel end of the magic sneakers Brynne had chosen at the Warehouse of Quest Materials.
“Now?” she asked Aru.
Arunodded, breathless. In a rush, the fiery tornado collapsed. Lady M stormed out from behind Brynne, herface a mask of fury as she shoved past the confused Heartless.
“There you are!” said Takshaka, relieved. He bowed his head a little and held out the arrow. “Please, take it.”
She grabbed it from him and nocked it on her bow. “It’s about time!” she snapped.
“Make them obey!” Takshaka pleaded.
Lady M held the arrow up in the air, and the Heartless froze in place. Then she pointed it in frontof her, in the directionawayfrom the dome over the labyrinth. As one, the Heartless turned and began marching.
“What’s going on?” Takshaka asked, panicking. The scales on his tail flashed a vivid red.
Lady M’s eyes widened as she shook the arrow, which sent the Heartless scattering in all directions. “I don’t know! Th-they must have tampered with it!”
“Duck!” shouted Mini.
Aru and Brynnecrouched down as Mini’s mirror dome spun back to her hand, now flat as a discus.
A new shriek joined the din. “Impostor! Thief!”
Another Lady M—this one truly monstrous, bent-over and bloodied, with huge tusks protruding from her bottom lip—pushed her way through the drifting zombies.
Takshaka, thoroughly confused, looked back and forth between the two demonesses. “H-how?” he stammered.
“Youfool!” rasped Lady M. “They had a shape-shifting rakshasi working with them!”
Hira had started transforming back to her real self: a frightened rakshasi clutching the bow and arrow.
Aruhad to act quickly. This was the final part….
The last step.
The cruelest step.
Aru glanced at Aiden still unconsciously slumped next to his stuck scimitar. He—and all the others—would stay that way if shedidn’t finish this.
Lady M now looked exactly like the monster from the stories. Aru wished that the sight of her this way made things easier, but it didn’t.
Mini reached out and grabbed Aru’s hand, as if she knew exactly what Aru was thinking. Brynne knocked Takshaka back with a blast from her wind mace. Hira threw the arrow to Aru, who caught it one-handed. At her feet, Vajra transformed intoa hoverboard, and Aru zoomed fast, holding out the arrow. Lady M’s eyes widened. At the last second, Aru turned her face away….
But her arm kept moving.
