The dark stone corridor opened into the cavernous reservoir beneath the Gateway of India. The air here was below freezing, their breath turning to thick mist.
The black, stagnant water of the cistern reflected the vaulted stone archways. In the center, suspended by heavy cables, the inverted pyramid of the **Tenebrous Transmitter** hummed with a violent, unstable black light.
On the central metal platform, standing directly under the core's energy beam, was **Javed**.
He had his hand wrapped around the collar of a comatose Mr. Desai, who was suspended over the glowing black center of the pyramid.
"You're late, Rathod," Javed laughed, his gold-lined mask reflecting the black light. "The Grid is fully charged. Devendra Malhotra has already initiated the blackout. We only need the old man's resonance blood to lock the frequency."
"Javed, stop!" Vikram yelled, running onto the stone walkway.
"Watch the water!" Rahul shouted from behind.
The black water in the reservoir began to bubble, rising in tall, frozen spires of ice-cold shadow. Three Vow Wraiths stepped out from the spires, their shadow swords forming in their hands.
"Kill the kids," Javed commanded.
He willed the dark-matter chains around Mr. Desai to release. The old gym owner fell directly toward the glowing core of the transmitter.
"No!" Vikram screamed.
He willed his Prana to ignite at maximum voltage, his body turning into a blur of blue electricity. He lunged from the stone walkway, jumping across the five-foot gap of black water to reach the central platform, his right hand outstretched to catch Desai before he hit the energy well.
A Wraith jumped into his path, his shadow blade swinging.
*Recall,* Vikram's instincts willed. He willed a basic spatial shift, his body appearing behind the Wraith, but the spatial friction sent a sharp pain through his head. He ignored it, driving a hard punch into the Wraith's temple, throwing him into the reservoir.
He reached the edge of the platform, his fingers grabbing Mr. Desai's collar just as the old man's boots touched the black light of the core.