On the day of the meeting, the families began to arrive in waves. First came the Cedars. Matriarch Ismene greeted me kindly, but several of her entourage clearly held loyalty to Theseus above their Matriarch, and their glares were spiteful. Olezhka growled whenever any of them got too close.

"How is the Implement treating you?" Ismene asked me.

I hefted the bat onto my shoulder. "Very well," I said. "It... fits perfectly, I guess. There isn't really another way to describe ...