I sat beside her, and for a moment, neither of us spoke. We were both assessing, measuring, trying to determine what the other was capable of.
"You're stronger than I expected," she said finally. "The reports I received suggested you were barely functional. Low power, operating carefully."
"Yes, my plans changed."
"I can see that." She turned to face me directly. "What happened?"
"Does it matter?"
"It matters if this new plan is something that threatens the balance we've worked to maintain."
I met her eyes. "I'm not killing people for power, if that's what you're asking. I'm not sacrificing innocents or making deals with demons. I'm just... reclaiming what was taken from me."
"And what was taken from you?"
