"Things are always changing." She doesn't say it to be dismissive. It's a fact of reality, in their world as much as any other. She's not nearly as old as him, but she's lived long enough for most human careers to have become short. And she's grown used to the idea that as long as she can manage not to die, she'll outlive most regimes. "Sometimes they change faster than others, but..."

She shrugs. "I do wonder if you're not overestimating the depth of Sylvia's control. She had a lot of influence. Still has some. But she's not quite the boogieman some people make her sound like. She's still just human."