Her gaze lingers on the blade of my scythe. She issues the command, and the members of the old Guard close in on Lyon’s team, summoning their magic. Light flares, dispersing through the room, until the last of Lyon’s Guards is reduced to ash.

Gaia’s magic roars. A howling wind whips debris around the room. Stucco crumbles from the walls and bits of fallen plaster bubble off the floor. The air grows thick with dust.

My eye rakes the room, searching for Kai. She knew about the magic’s curse. Maybe she knows how to stop this. I spot her huddled beside the pews as plaster falls around her. Above her, a chunk of the ceiling creaks and breaks loose. She screams, throwing her arms over her head as the giant slab falls.

“No!” I lunge for Kai as it speeds toward her. “Stop!”

Everything goes still. Silence falls like a scythe.

My ears ring, the world outside them completely devoid of sound. Breathing hard, I look around me. It’s as if the room is submerged under water. Particles of dust and plaster hover motionless in the air. The surviving members of the old Guard stand utterly still, like living mannequins posed around the room. Kai’s mouth is frozen in a soundless scream, the fallen section of ceiling suspended in the air above her head.

With cautious steps, I walk out amid the debris, afraid any sudden movement might break the spell. My shoes are silent on the broken glass. Reaching out with a finger, I prod a piece of plaster where it hangs in the air, but it doesn’t budge. I weave through the room, around people standing still as statues.

The second hand on the clock doesn’t move.

I stare at my trembling hands. At the smoke-tarnished staff. A breathless laugh wheezes out of me.

I am Time. And Inevitability. Two of the greatest powers in the universe.

And the world is collapsing around me.

My laughter becomes panicked, almost hysterical. I turn in a circle, taking in the destruction. Gaia’s soul is a motionless whorl of light above my head. It doesn’t so much as blink, but I’m certain it will tear this place apart if I can’t find a way to control it.

I drag my hand through the plaster dust in my hair. I don’t know how to fix this. I don’t know what the staff is capable of or the limitations of my new magic. How the hell am I supposed to stop this earthquake she’s started? I don’t know how it all works or what to do next. Or . . .

What to do next . . .

The eye.

I lower the scythe, tearing at the sash around its head, my fingernails catching on the velvet as I struggle to loosen the knot. A choked sound escapes me as the fabric pulls away, revealing a gaping hole where the crystal should be.