He isn't surprised at catching her. Surprise isn't a thing he does. He does change his pattern now that he found her, planting himself directly in front and looking down at her. Close enough that she's within the radius of whatever makes her feel like she irrevocably lost everything that matters.

"Your glamour is broken, your weapons spent. One final time, will you surrender, die, or flee?"

Sadde has lost everything that matters, so who cares?

But she's won one thing. "I won the war," she says in a defeated rasp, slumping down onto a seated position on the ground. She wonders if she can use her own blood to close the wound. Worst-case, she dies, and it's not like she has anything to live for anyway, is it?

She's gotten too used to glamour. Blood is a great power source, but most magic isn't just an act of will. At least the blind swing wasn't deep enough to actually kill her.

Conquest looks down at her slumped body. "You never even landed a blow."

She would laugh weakly if there was anything worth laughing for. There isn't. "I said war, not battle, you useless lump," she says, dully. "Your seat of power is destroyed."

He goes still.

"The Astrologer. And she's still there. Come with me. You are not permitted to die now. If you have anything to say you may speak."

He scoops Sadde up in one enormous arm and starts moving. To appearances he's just walking, but it's faster than anyone on foot should be able to move. Much like when he marched her around the city. With each step, the oversized musket in his other hand swings close to her face and back away.

"I hope you realise humans mostly don't get a choice on whether they'll bleed out if they have a huge open wound," she says casually and a bit drowsily.

"You will live long enough that I can preserve you as my captive." (Despite claiming to want her alive, he does nothing to staunch the wound.)

They reach the seat of his power quickly, the Eye of the Storm following behind. Former seat. Smoke rises from the building, and the two guards usually posted are completely absent. There are Others trickling out the door, each one rushing out and looking around them like prey animals. Conquest stares for a moment, then bellows "Thompson! I have your co-conspirator! Cease this, and come out!"

"Why the heck do you actually think she's still in there, that would be the height of stupidity."

"She used the practice not five minutes ago, and it was coming from my domain. A third attempt. News came to me once I listened for it. Or did you think showing you to my city and telling it whom I sought was purposeless?"

"Five minutes is enough time," she says, shrugging, then winces as this stretches the rendered muscles.

It could have been, but a figure walks out the front door. She's loaded down with items— the LED network she showed Sadde before, now joined by objects rescued from Conquest. A few weapons, a small fire spirit that Sadde last saw trapped in a jar, the telescope that was Doug's old implement. Doug himself is nowhere to be seen.

"There's been quite a lot of fire," says the Astrologer's voice. "Building ransacked, trophies destroyed. You must have lost a lot lately. Can you even still keep us from being noticed?"

Conquest stops himself before speaking, then turns to Sadde. "Very well. You played a weak hand well and put up a struggle." She might notice that her wound is no longer bleeding, though closing would be too much to hope for.

She lets out a bitter laugh but does not deign to answer. He could kill her right now, but it wouldn't matter anyway. Why would she even want to unseat the Lord? What was it that she wanted? It all feels so distant now, she has no idea why she'd ever want to do anything again...

Yeah, he forgot just how impairing that was.

He takes a large lump out of his monstrously sized jacket and sets the undead terrier bogeyman down a small distance away. It barks, but its legs are too bound to flee.

Once the captured weapon is out of the way, he speaks again. "I am prepared to reconsider your offer."

—oh. Oh. Oh, she won. She won, right! And... she needs to remember what she won... "You're prepared to reconsider it, are you," she says, dryly, trying to get her wits back. "You can start by putting me down so I can make sure I'm nowhere near that blade."

He sets her down and steps back. 

“Your offer. Your victories to become mine, and my power and position to be shared with you.”

She quickly steps over to Diana, then twirls around to face Conquest again and twitches in the direction of folding her arms before deciding this is a bad idea for now. "What's the catch? Are you surrendering, then?"

“Not surrender. I could simply kill you, make no mistake. But turning an enemy to an ally can be a victory, and you have shown yourself capable enough to be worth it. So, I consider it.”

And also you just lost everything and need all the power you can get, she doesn't say. "Fine." She looks at Diana to see if she has anything to say about that.

“Are you really going to go through with this? I know it came up, but— You know what, yes. I think you should. Even though he’s the furthest thing from family it does make a certain kind of sense.

Not to mention that just walking away might not be an option anymore.”

”Indeed not.”

Sadde twitches again when she unconsciously moves to try to fold her arms and keeps them firmly at her sides. "This system is about letting people know enough about you to fear you but not enough to know how to stop you. I travelled back in time and helped invent money. I created a new Seal that I plan to use to replace Solomon's. I keep having to keep all my sources of power a secret." She focuses on Conquest again, now, this time talking to him. "It's about time I have something that will make people believe me when I say I'm kickass. Getting the Lord of Toronto as my familiar sounds like just the thing."

Okay do not wobble dangerously you did not lose that much blood you're just fine just hold it up a little bit longer.

“You do have much to gain. And much of that was impressive. I hope all of you heard that declaration.” He turns to look at the assembly of practitioners trickling in as fast as they arrive from Morningside Park. “But I have terms of my own.”

"Of course you do."

“I face challengers sometimes. When that happens, you will defend my throne as though it were your own.

Second, you cannot live forever. Before you die, either voluntarily or when faced with some enemy you cannot escape, you will eventually agree to become my host. Some part of you will survive and I will not be left bodiless.”

"I will agree to that if you agree to swear by and bear my Seal."

“Not to seek to conquer unprovoked any who have taken the same Seal?” He audibly capitalizes it. “A light burden, while there are so few it protects. I will hold to that so long as you and our bond survive, and will endeavor to keep that from being cut short.”