Page 53 of Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes

“It’s fromThe Matrix.”

Kara frowned. “It’s from a rectangular array of quantities?”

“No, it’s this movie where—”

“You’re stalling, Shah,” said Aiden. “What are we doing?”

Aru felt everyone’s gaze on her. She spun Vajra around her fingers, then took a step forward.

“We’re going in.”

“Wait,” said Kara loudly.

They turned to look at her.

“I can’t,” she said.

“Why not?” asked Aru, shocked. “Don’t you want to come with us?”

Hurt flashed across Kara’s face as she pointed at the sign. “It saysWelcome, Pandavas.I’m not a Pandava.”

Aiden frowned. “Well, neither am I, I’m technically—”

“A Pandava adjacent, I know. But I’m not even that,” said Kara quietly. “I’m no one. I know it won’t let me in. Watch.”

Before anyone could stop her, Kara bounded up the steps. She turned sideways as if ready to bust down an invisible door, but the moment her foot met the threshold, a force threw her backward. Kara tried again…and was thrown out once more, this time all the way to the courtyard.

“See?” said Kara shakily. “I told you.”

“Kara, we—”

“We had a deal,” said Kara, not looking up at them. “I promised to give you the name of the weapon the Sleeper wants.” She took a deep breath. “Ask Kubera for theantima astra.”

Once Kara uttered the name, Aru heard a clap of thunder. She looked up and saw a dark cloud intrude on the previously pure-blue skies of Lanka. On the horizon, the sun flared red for a second. In the courtyard, the fruit trees withered and then immediately sprang back to life. A gust of wind carrying snow blew past them, leaving a trail of quickly melting frost in its wake.

Brynne held her hand to the air, the wonder on her face turning quickly to wariness. “That was our…our…”

“Soul dads,” breathed Aru, studying the patch of sky where she’d seen the thundercloud. There was no sign of it now.

Their soul fathers, Indra, Vayu, and Yama, never communicated with them. At least, not directly.

Mini looked at the trees, once brown and now a healthy green. “What does that mean?”

“It means they recognized the name of the weapon,” said Aiden. “What is it?”

“It’s a piece of the Brahmastra, the most destructive weapon in the world. It’s like some sort of cosmic missile,” said Kara. “After the last war, the gods destroyed it, but a sliver survived. Even that tiny piece is capable of destroying all godly weapons. And without your weapons—”

“We won’t be able to fight back,” finished Aru.

She held Vajra a little closer to her. Was it just her imagination or had her lightning bolt trembled a little at the wordBrahmastra? Aru tried picturing what life would be like without Vajra and shuddered. Without her lightning bolt, she’d be so…ordinary.

And yet, as soon as Aru had that thought, she remembered Boo perching on her shoulder, affectionately nipping at her ear.You are so much more than the weapons you fight with, child.

Once, Aru had thought that was true.

But that was before Boo had betrayed them and gone to the Sleeper. Evenwiththeir weapons, Boo hadn’t believed in them, and if the Sleeper destroyed Vajra and the rest, then nothing the Pandavas did would make a difference.

He would win.