She no longer wore robes. She was outfitted as she had been when first he had met her, in tight black leather that somehow left her sex ambiguous. Her Soulcatcher costume, she called it. She hadnt bothered with the helmet yet.

She set her tools aside, looked at him with mischief in her eyes. You sound depressed. The voice she chose was merry.

I am depressed. Stand up. She did. He peeled away the leather around her neck. Its healing quickly. Ill remove the sutures tomorrow, maybe.

Will there be much scarring?

I dont know. Depends on how well your healing, spells work. I didnt know you were vain.

Im human. Im a woman. I want to look nice. Same voice but less merry.

You do look nice. He did not think before he spoke. Just making a statement of fact. She looked nice in the sense that she was a beautiful woman. Like her sister. He had become very conscious of that since she had changed her style of dress. That left him nagged by low-grade guilt.

She laughed. Im reading your mind, Croaker.

She was not, literally. She would not be pleased with him if she was. But she had been around a long time and had studied people. She could read books from a few physical clues.

He grunted. He was getting used to it. There was no point trying hard to hide from it. What are you making?

Armor. Well be healed enough to go soon. Well have great fun.

Ill bet. He felt a twinge in his chest.. He was almost healed. There had been none of the complications he had expected. He had begun taking forced exercise.

Were the gadflies here, love. The chaos factor. My beloved sister and the Taglians know nothing about us. Those clubfooted Shadowmasters know Im here but they dont know about you. They dont know what youve accomplished. They think Im a nuisance floating around in the dark. I doubt theyve entertained the notion that I could be restored.

She rested a hand on his cheek. Im more basic than you think.

Oh?

Change of voice, businesslike, masculine, at odds with the invitation. I have eyes everywhere. I know every word spoken by anyone who interests me. A while back I arranged for Longshadow to be diverted while Howler visited Spinner and cut Longshadows webs of control.

Damn! Hell hit Dejagore with everything.

Hell lie low and pretend hes unchanged. The siege costs him nothing. Hell be more interested in improving his position in relation to Longshadow. He knows Longshadow will destroy him when hes no longer useful. Well have fun. Well poke around and make them chase their tails. When the dust settles, maybe therell be no Longshadow, no Shadowspinner, no Howler, just you and me and an empire of our own. Or maybe the spirit will move me some other direction. I dont know. Im just having fun with it.