The Grand Aegis Center looked like a diamond dropped into a gutter. Thousands of elite citizens, dressed in silks that cost more than a Sector 9 apartment, stepped out of anti-grav limos.
High above, the Null-Pylons hummed, invisible waves of radiation scanning every guest's DNA for an R-nex ID chip.
"The scanners are live," Silver-Tongue's voice crackled in Kai's earpiece. He was parked in a van three blocks away, hacking into the local grid. "If you step into that light, the Pylons will fry your Grafts before you can blink."
"We're not going through the light," Kai whispered.
He was standing in the sewer directly beneath the ballroom. Beside him, Vantablack was a literal puddle of shadows, her form shifting and bubbling. Mina was disguised in a stolen waitress uniform, her light-bow compressed into a tiny silver brooch on her collar.
"Vanta, now," Kai commanded.
Vantablack didn't speak. She flowed upward through the drainage pipes. Her Graft was unique—because it was "Absolute Dark," the Null-Pylons, which searched for active energy signatures, couldn't see her. To the scanners, she was just a "hole" in the world.
She reached the ballroom floor, emerging from a shadow beneath a buffet table. With a flick of her smoky wrist, she placed a "Void-Patch" (a gadget Silver-Tongue built) onto the base of the nearest Pylon.
Click. "First Pylon is looped," Silver-Tongue reported. "You have a six-inch 'blind spot' in the security grid. Move!"
Kai and Mina scrambled up the maintenance ladder. They emerged into the kitchen, the heat and smell of roasting meats a sharp contrast to the sewage.
"Mina, get to the server balcony," Kai said, his eyes scanning the room. "I'll draw their attention. Once the 'Black Ledger' starts playing on the big screens, Vanta and the others will blow the doors."
"Kai," Mina grabbed his arm. Her eyes were wide. "Look."
In the center of the ballroom, standing on a stage of pure light, was Malice. He was holding a glass of champagne, laughing with the Mayor. But he wasn't alone. Surrounding him were the Sovereigns:
Iron-Cloud: A woman whose skin was living metal.
Pulse: A speedster whose footsteps sounded like thunder.
"They're all here," Mina whispered. "It's a trap, isn't it?"
"Doesn't matter," Kai said, his Null-Void beginning to hum. "A trap only works if the prey is scared of the hunter. We're here to kill the lights."
Suddenly, the music stopped.
Malice turned his head toward the kitchen doors. He didn't look surprised. He looked like he had been waiting for a guest to arrive. He tapped his microphone, the sound booming through the hall.
"You know," Malice said, his voice smooth as silk, "I always admired the persistence of a cockroach. They don't know when they're beaten."
The lights in the ballroom turned a blood-red. The doors locked with a heavy, magnetic thud.
"Kaelen Vance," Malice smiled, looking directly at the kitchen wall. "Why don't you come out and show everyone that 'Truth' you're so proud of? I've got a live audience of ten million people waiting to see you fail."