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are lit by dim halogen lamps.  It is… an extensive labyrinth, but if you are careful you can find your way to the center, to the final arena.  There is no other exit but this one.  The hunters are already down there, at their positions, waiting."
    "Got it," Nina said.  "And of course, along the way there are things I've already seen in my visions: bear traps, trip wires, concussion mines and other nasty surprises."
    Rakesh gave a hopeful smile and handed the crumpled note back to her, mouthing the words: Thank you.  And then he said simply: "Good luck."
     

 
    SEVEN
    Inside the well andpast the ancient-looking granite slab, which the guards closed wordlessly behind her, she found her way down a spiral staircase into a cellar and to the back, to a door that opened into a cramped tunnel.  There she stood for a long time, almost losing track of the minutes, as she focused her thoughts, projecting her consciousness until feeling the familiar loss of self .  As if everything she was became a droplet of pure water falling into an ocean, merging with the larger whole, experiencing everything, being everywhere.
    -But only taking in and truly seeing what she was concentrating on, where she directed her thoughts.  For a brief moment she could see it all – through the twisting passageways, the dimly lit chambers with high alcoves where hunters perched with night-vision goggles and laser-sighted weapons, all the way through the maze, past the ancient Hindu crypts, past once-sacred grottos and tall underground obelisks, to rooms filled with contemplative statues of gods and goddesses in meditative repose.
    Nina smiled inwardly, wondering if this ability of hers, this power of sight – was exactly what the Hindu mystics aspired to, at least one piece of it.  She knew she'd never march along the same path in her designer sandals that Buddha strode in his, not by a long shot when it came to humility, restraint and self-sacrifice. 
    But at least she had this going for her. She could, at times, truly see.   And right now, she had seen enough.  All the way through to the final atrium.  The last chamber – an immense arena, as promised.  With an elite squad of hunters, armored and carrying cruel iron weapons, probably hoping she got through the rest of them so they could have their chance. 
    But of course, as she suspected, there was no reason to get that far.  None at all.  In the center of the arena was just a trick.  A sacrilegious one at that, Nina thought with a chill.  In place of Shiva's statue, they had glued the feet of what seemed to be a plastic Ken Doll.  Barbie's beau, shirtless and wearing only briefs and sunglasses, arms raised awkwardly up in the air. 
    Some joke.
    Nina shook her head as she pulled out of the trance.  Other players, even psychics, might have fallen for it, seen only the rough outline from a distance and believed they were close to the prize.  She wondered if in the past they even might have let contestants get close enough to touch it, only to be crushed by the truth – that there was no escape.  No winning this game.
    She stood up and slung the pack off her shoulder as she walked forward a few steps, eyeing the walls and the ceiling, looking for the most strategic spots.
    Probably doesn't matter, she thought .   With the amount of C4 explosives she had purchased from the black market dealer, she was pretty sure that no matter where the charges were set, this whole section of the tunnel – the only exit – was coming down.
    -And sealing all the hunters in their own tombs.  She wasn't sure if air was being circulated through this place by some other means or if anyone could come and dig them out in time.  Sure it was likely, but then again… A girl could dream, couldn't she?  Of them all suffocating to death, or resorting to cannibalism to survive.
    Fifteen minutes later, charges set, she knocked on the door to the Taj Mahal sub-level.  The surprised guards opened it