She had successfully disarmed her trainer Udit within ten minutes in the next training session.

Talia sat back with a triumphant smile on her face, watching the girl fight gracefully. It was evident that she had definitely gotten better at wielding a sword and was showing progress.

That meant it would be soon enough that Talia would get to see her plan reach completion.

The training lasted longer that day with Mona able to disarm Udit over and over again. With each time she disarmed him, he would strike even fiercely but the child tolerated it, knowing her target.

When at last she was allowed to retreat to her room, Mona was thoroughly exhausted and collapsed on the plain bed, sleep overcoming her soon after.

She hadn't even changed out of her training suit as she drifted off to sleep exhaustively, unaware that Talia had followed her to her room.

The woman's sharp emerald eyes softened at the sight as she cautiously sat down beside her sleeping figure, taking off the shoes and the heavy belt from the child's waist. Her hand brushed back the brown tresses from the girl's face, looking down at her innocent yet fatigued features.

Her fingers gently rested on her forehead, reflecting on the fact that her features in no way resembled her sister Nyssa. Unlike dark curls, tanned skin and fierce emerald eyes, the child had soft brown tresses, a pale complexion and bright blue eyes.

It was no wonder she had taken after her father.

In a sense, it was better that Mona didn't look like her mother or else she would have reminded Talia much more often of her sister who had stood up against her for the rank of the Demon Head. If that had been the case, it would have been very difficult for Talia to let her live for so long.

But as she was so different from Nyssa, Talia had decided to give her a chance even though she had her doubts that the girl could be a threat if she chose to rebel against her as well. However, so far Mona had been rather obedient and she had not regretted her decision of sparing the child.

She had spared her because she had wanted to use her as a pawn in the lethal game of chess she was devising to ensure that her power and rank remained only within her hands. But as time was passing, she was finding herself conflicted towards Mona.

Was she really a pawn she could easily forfeit in the game or was she slowly becoming something more? And worse still, was forfeiting her going to be as easy as she had thought?

There were times when Talia felt an inexplicable tenderness towards the girl. Times such as the current situation when she would remind her of her only son that she hadn't laid eyes on in so long. 

And whenever she would remind her of Damian, it would make her somewhat reluctant to keep going with the motive she had in mind for the girl. No matter how unbelievable it seemed for a heartless woman like her, deep down there was a yearning to lay eyes on her son again, to embrace him and to bring him back home. 

With Mona around, that yearning had gotten stronger because she was a constant reminder of how things could have been if Talia had never let Damian go to his father. If she hadn't left him with Bruce, Damian would still have been with her, training to be a better warrior just like Mona was undergoing currently. Seeing her get trained reminded her strikingly of the times she had trained Damian herself.

She hadn't seen Damian ever since she had left him in Bruce's care. At first, she was sure that it would be for only a matter of time until she would be able to reclaim her League from Deathstroke. What was supposed to be a temporary stay for Damian became permanent as the boy clearly refused to return to her when she had gone to take him back.

But by then she had somehow come to terms with it. Her son had chosen his father's side and though it had bothered her immensely initially, she had slowly but eventually accepted it.

The last time she had seen Damian, he had been adamant on giving up his status in the League. Still she had told him that she would wait for him because he couldn't change the fact that he would be the successor to the League of Assassin's after Talia.

Though she knew very well that her son had no interest in being the successor and as her hand gently stroked Mona's forehead, she decided she would no longer need to keep him bound to that responsibility.

She could release him from that burden at last.

Taking one last glance at the sleeping child, she retrieved her hand and stood up, leaving the room shortly after. A lot of things had to be taken care of and as the Demon Head herself, she had to make sure that nothing went astray from her plans.

***

Damian was more than just shocked to receive the message from his mother. The first thought he had was that his mother wanted him to return so she was trying to contact him, and it only made him want to throw the envelope away.

But he didn't, knowing that it would be better to know exactly what Talia wanted instead of keeping themselves foolishly in the dark.

He was fingering the sealed envelope as if it contained some explosive that would detonate the second he would break open the seal.

Cassandra was sitting in front of him, her gaze calculative as she eyed the envelope as well. The rest of their siblings were silent too.

At last Damian tore open the seal and took out the piece of parchment, eyes skimming over the words rapidly.

"What she say?" Cassandra asked at last when Damian folded back the parchment and closed the envelope but had been very silent.

A tiny frown was evident on his face and the others could see that he was pondering over whatever he had read.

"Everything okay?" Tim mumbled and Dami simply handed him the envelope, knowing that he understood Arabic and would know what was written inside, unlike the others.

"My mother has agreed to let me give up my rank in the League," he spoke up, voice slightly strained, "she would no longer pressurize me to be her successor or to look after the League in her absence."

Silence had washed over the room until Richard spoke up, "oh... Isn't that a good thing?"

"Maybe. Maybe not," Dami's brow furrowed, "I can't believe she did that."

Tim had read the entire message and handed it back to Damian, blue eyes narrowing as he pondered on it as well, "why do you think it's so unbelievable? Maybe she realized you would never willingly take up your rank and agreed to release you of it."

"No," he shook his head, frown deepening, "if she has released me from being her successor, that means she has found someone else to replace my rank. And I don't have a good feeling about it."

"Aw Dami, do you mean there might be another baby demon we haven't met yet?" Jason teased however none of them laughed.

In fact, Tim stiffened, uncertain blue eyes locking with Dami's speculative green. "Another successor, you mean?"

"It seems so," he replied.

"I don't like the sound of that either," Steph mumbled, eyes flickering towards Tim for she had noticed his sudden change in behavior. Cassandra nodded her head towards Steph too, in a silent sign of telling her that she had noticed it as well.

Just as suddenly as he had stiffened, unease radiating off him, Tim had abruptly become unreadable as all signs of emotion shut off on his face.

"What are you going to do then? Talk to her about it?" Tim asked after a short pause, though that once his tone was regulated, no sign of the previous unease lingering in it.

"I might," Damian nodded, "but I have to let Father know first."

Damian left the room with the envelope in hand as he went in the direction of Bruce's study. Even though Richard was right that it was a good thing Talia had agreed not to force him to be her successor, still something felt dreadfully askew about it.

He felt as if his mother was up to something and being one of the very few people who knew Talia Al Ghul on a deeper and personal level, he knew that whenever she was up to something, it seldom ended well for anyone but herself. 

***