Devendra stepped closer, his hand wrapped in a solid, black kinetic shield. He drove his fist into Vikram's chest.
The impact was devastating. Vikram's shadow shield shattered instantly, and the kinetic force sent him flying across the room. He crashed into the reactor's outer casing, the metal denting under his weight.
Vikram tumbled to the floor, his ribs screaming in pain. He coughed, blood staining the frost on the steel plates.
His vision was fading, the black disc of the sun above seeming to call to him. The cold was total, numbing his mind, his thoughts slowing to a crawl.
"This is the end of the Rathod legacy," Devendra said, standing over him. He raised his hand, the dark-matter cables on his back pulsing as he prepared to draw Vikram's bio-electricity into the Core.
"You will be the battery, Vikram," Devendra whispered. "Your nerves will burn, but your city will live in order."
Vikram closed his eyes, his breathing shallow. He could feel his Prana dying, the electrical current in his body fading into nothing.
Suddenly, a loud, metallic bang echoed from the entrance of the chamber.