Sweat dripped down the side of his face. Droplets rolled from the tip of his nose, moistening the dirt at his feet. Brianna spoke again, but this time her voice hummed with persuasion. “If you don’t act now, evil will win. Millions will die. People are counting on you. Those who love you know what’s best. You must not be afraid, Henry. Concentrate on your wand. It will not let you down.”

He knew she was right, of course. Besides, if he failed … he’d be dead. Not a comforting thought, but superheroes didn’t save the world without taking chances.

He focused. Hard. He pushed every other thought from his mind but one. He let himself go.

Coralis reeled from a jolt of power the likes of which he had never felt. With a massive effort he channeled that energy into his wand. The uranium in the walls around them began to glow brighter until suddenly the chain reaction fired.

The uranium wanted to explode. Coralis couldn’t let it. He cried out in agony as he fought to contain the explosion and reshape its energy into a shield. The earth shook beneath their feet. Chunks of rock fell all around them, but the walls held fast as the streaks of uranium fused together. When he reached the limit of his endurance, at the moment he would cross from living to dead, he released the power.

The effect was magnificent. Bright green light illuminated the tunnel as the power surged out in all directions, connecting molecule to molecule. The light flooded through the mine shaft in an instant to race outward into the valley and beyond the uranium-rich Navajo Nation.

Infrared images from space would later reveal a subterranean network of veins that glowed like molten rock and would be mistaken for volcanic activity—stumping scientists for decades.

It continued to spread beyond the borders of states and into Mexico, where it collided with the energy of the evil moon that Dai She had released.

And the two forces collided at the precise point where a young boy named Randall would feel the full impact.

Malachai had seen enough. He turned his back on his son and ran. The fissure he had seen earlier had widened to more than a foot. He had no doubt the tunnel would collapse, entombing Dai She … and the map! He skidded to an abrupt halt, nearly stumbling into the path of the crystal pillars. To lose the map would be devastating. To go back for it would almost certainly mean death. Malachai cursed his son—his biggest failure—then continued to run.

As he reached the mouth of the cave, he heard the final cry of a terrified man.

“Father!”