The patch of absolute nothingness hung in the air before us like a wound in reality. Staring into it made my eyes water and my mind rebel—there was simply nothing there to perceive.

"How do you create life from nothing?" Luna whispered, her dual magic crackling nervously around her fingers.

"I do not know," I admitted. "But we have to try."

"Fifty-five minutes remaining," the Void Empress announced cheerfully, settling into a throne that materialized from shadow. "Do try to be creative. I ...