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In her face, he saw nothing but primal, unsated rage.

In that moment, Kato knew that he couldn’t save his brother’s mate. He wouldn’t be able to keep that promise.

As the doors closed and she stepped outside of them, Kato lifted both hands—and gave her a double-fingered send-off.

Because fuck damsels, that’s why. No gratitude, even after he went through all this trouble to protect her.

Through the doors, the ever-narrowing gap between them, he saw her smile. She lifted a hand, either to wave or—

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Chapter 70

As it turned out, time magic was efficient at corralling large groups of easily manipulated creatures. Taly could see that now that the Queen was no longer following along behind her unraveling her spells.

The harpies floated frozen overhead, mangled wings splayed open, bodies tilted downward—caught mid-plummet.

But the courtyard below was empty now.

The people who had been there—those she’d watched die—were now safe, tucked away behind the double doors at her back.

Power howled through her, raw and untamed. Not just magic—it was the weight of eternity, pouring through her veins.

It was endless possibility screaming to be unleashed.

Ten minutes. That’s all this second chance had given her. She would use it well.

Gold swirled around her hands as she speared two fingers into the space in front of her. The air bled light, opening like a glowing seam. Reaching into that pocket of nothing hidden beyond time and space, she produced a long, heavy rifle.

Taly had begun building her arsenal six weeks ago.

Time mages were weak. That had been Azura’s most important lesson. They couldn’t hurl fireballs or lightning or sic plants and minions upon their foes. Nor did they have the raw physical strength of a shadow mage. Even worse, their spells were costly. A prolonged battle would leave them aether-starved and vulnerable.

Which is why time mages had learned to cheat.

And why Taly had decided she needed to be very well-armed. To find a purpose for these inter-dimensional storagerifts other than preserving tea and pastries and a spare change of clothes.

Speaking of which—she pinched the air over her head and gave a quick tug. In an instant, her festival robe was replaced with sleek fighting leathers.

Reaching into another rift, she pulled out a bandolier loaded with shells grouped by color: red, green, white, and blue. Carnage in every color of the rainbow. Magical rounds, packed with crystals set to ignite on impact. A powerful weapon, though not nearly enough to take out a harpy. Even dead and resurrected, their skin was hard like iron.

Good thing she had her B.A.B.I.E.S.

Another rift opened, and a perfect crystal sphere dropped into her palm.

BlankAethericBubble-IntegratedExothermicSystem. BABIES. Or, as Skye so aptly put it, a big-ass-bomb.

He’d seemed concerned when she showed him the prototype. Alarmed when Kato helped her build it. And then maybe a few extras… By the time her cache reached a hundred, he’d been so visibly disturbed, she’d promised to stash them in a pocket universe so far out of reach, she’d need his help to retrieve them—placating him with the idea that his moralizing presence would be there to save her from her own worst impulses.[vi]

But today she didn’t need his help. She had more than enough aether to retrieve them on her own.

The idea was simple. Each orb contained a small amount of shadow crystal primed to detonate. And since shadow crystal conducted raw aether, the energy it released upon ignition could assume the properties of anything magical it encountered.

Like ice—from the bandolier, she picked a shell filled with blue powder.

Behind her, frantic whispers filled the Swap as people shoved for a better view. Faces pressed against windows, marveling at the harpies—suspended midair, wings spread but motionless.

And at her—the one who had trapped them there in a bubble of frozen time.