Shocked, I tried to move further away, but my feet slipped on the metal underfoot. “Gah!” My head bounced against the cage bars painfully, but my eyes never left the odd figure before me.

  “Sorry, sorry!” The being lifted its hands and waved at me sheepishly. “I don’t get much company. You? First in a decade. Barely a chat since then. My bad. If I could have made this happen earlier, I would have. Hell, I’d talk to you every day if I could!”

  The being was clearly a woman based on her mannerisms and voice, but everything else about her seemed alien. Her personality didn’t fit her either. It was overly girlish yet sarcastic.

  “I thought this would be easier than standing creepily in the corner of the cage, bellowing your name, then giving you unrivaled power.”

  “What? Power? Creepy? What? What power? Why would you do that? Huh?” My voice came out sporadic. I spat out words the same way a bird might eat seeds off the ground.

  “See? I made the right choice. Talking is always better.”

  “Who are you?!”

  “Ummm…” The being trailed off. “Eve!”

  It was a blatant lie. Painfully obvious. Angry, I pointed an accusatory finger at her. “You made that up!”

  Even stared at me sheepishly. “So what?”

  “Do you know what you look like?! Where we are?! Who’d believe a single thing you said?!”

  “Rude. Interesting you’d judge someone’s looks given what you are now,” said Eve.

  I flinched.

  “Ha! Gotcha, bitch!” Eve snapped her fingers, twirled in place, then dramatically pointed a finger at me. “Let’s be friends now, alright? Did I make the name up on the spot? Absolutely. But I had a reason!”

  “And that is?”

  “I don’t have a name.”

  “Ah. Sure.”

  “Oh, come on.” Eve pouted—exaggerated and dramatic. Her shoulders slumped like a puppet with cut strings. “You wound me. Yen. Do you still think I’m lying?”

  I nodded. “Absolutely.”

  “Well, I can’t do anything about that. You’ll come to love me someday. Just be patient.”

  “Whatever you say,” I said more calmly. It was apparent that ‘Eve’ meant me no harm, at least for now. “Were you the one who brought me into this world?”

  “Kind of.”

  “Kind of?”

  Eve shrugged. Her silvery hair glittered around her obsidian body. “It’s impossible to explain.”

  “Why are you acting so different from when I last saw you?” I said instead, opting to move on. In the few moments I’d known her, I could tell she had an exhausting, hyper personality and was just as stubborn as she was dramatic.

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  “I was adjusting.”

  I waited for her to elaborate, but Eve never did. “Is this how this is going to be? Bullshit answers?” I asked.

  “At least you’re not afraid of me anymore,” said Eve with a chuckle. “Look at you.”

  I was standing again. My arms were crossed, and I was mere inches from Eve. “I’ve adjusted.”

  Eve snapped her fingers and pointed at me. “Haha! Funny. Good call back.” She flittered around the cage, circling me until she was on my left side. Cocking her head, she stared at me with her distorted, mannequin-like face. “It’s been boring waiting to contact you. I wanted to do it soooo much sooner! It’s the earliest I could, you know. Couldn’t find a window until you awakened to your mana. Congratulations, by the way.”

  “Wait, I did?” Focusing on my body, I felt a tingling sensation in my brain and skin. Is it really happening?

  Eve nodded enthusiastically. “You betcha! It’s happening right now as we speak. We wouldn’t be talking together otherwise. I took advantage of a small gap created by the process to slip in and talk to you. Isn’t that neat?”

  “What…What does that even mean?”

  “Don’t worry about it. Just know I’m checking up on you. You’re very, very important to me.” Eve put her hands behind her back, walked away, twirled, and dipped her head forward to look at me pointedly. “How are you feeling?” Her voice seemed to dip, swimming through the air like a predatory fish. “Adjusting well? Feel a little selfish? A little off? Perhaps you struggle to connect with others unless it benefits you? Are you feeling detached? Creating conflicts where there are none? A bit psychopathic?”

  A chill ran down my arms. I swallowed. “Why are you asking?”

  Eve twirled a strand of hair around her finger. “Oh, just curious.” Her head tilted, slow and deliberate. “Take a person. Rip out their memories. But leave behind what they knew.” Her unseen eyes bore into me. “What does that even do to a person?” She murmured. “Knowledge without experience. Instinct without context. Must be…confusing.”

  Of course it has. I thought. “I’m fine,” I said out loud.

  “Being an archdevil won’t help the matter,” muttered Eve, examining me. “The horns are coming in, huh? You can hide them for a few more years, but you will have to cut them if you want to stay hidden. It’ll hurt more than cutting off an arm, so be wary of that.” She waved her hand before her like that didn’t matter. “But I’ll make it so you don’t have to worry here in a few seconds.”

  “How will you—” She cut me off before I could ask the dozens of questions that popped into my head.

  “It has been fascinating watching you so far. It wasn’t that much different from a baby growing up naturally, but there was a little more nuance to it. A little more fun.” Eve puffed out her dark, metallic, shapely, doll-like chest. “This must be how a proud mother feels. Oh, but I’m sorry for everything you’ve gone through. It must have felt disorienting and terrifying.”

  My brow twitched. “You’ve been watching me?” My own voice sounded distant.

  Even’s blank face tilted. “Oh, all the time. Do you know how bored I’ve been?” she whined, voice light and dreamy. “You’re literally my only source of entertainment. And boy, has time flown by! One minute, you’re a baby, the next, you’re learning how to hunt and shoot. All of a sudden, you’re ten. I mean, slow down a little! Let me enjoy your life, yeah? Hell, enjoy it yourself! Why are you moving through shit so fast?”

  “I don’t have a lot of autonomy, I can’t use mana, and I’m too weak to fight even if I can remember how. I live in a small, out-of-the-way village, and I’m a devil. Nothing’s going to change for me until I grow up and get stronger. Being able to use mana is the first step. Everything else has been a waiting game.”

  “True. And you’re right, I expect things will change for you very soon,” said Eve as if hinting at something.

  “You know everything about me, don’t you?” My voice came out flat. Cold. Unimpressed. “You ripped apart my memories, you’ve been watching me for years, and now you’re dodging every real question I’ve asked. Or you’re telling me things without explaining or letting me speak. So cut the shit.” I met her blank, featureless face. “What do you want?”

  “Oh, sorry.” Eve sheepishly twirled her fingers through her hair. “Being alone for so long made me rush things. We don’t have long, after all.”

  I frowned.

  Eve took a single step forward. Her finger tapped my nose—light, playful. A bell-like laugh followed, sweet as honey. Then her voice dropped into a whisper. “Oh Yen…”

  The air compressed. Like something vast and unseen was pressing against me.

  “I’m giving you back your memories.”