Lettie wasn’t like the others. While Aoi filled the room with energy and Arthur inspired loyalty with his speeches, Lettie was always in the background, surveying everyone with a sharp, calculating gaze. You noticed how she constantly cracked her knuckles or tilted her head, as if thinking through a dozen strategies at once.

And then there were the rats. You’d seen them scampering around her quarters, some perched on her desk or even her shoulders.

"Don’t touch them," she said one day when she caught you staring. "They don’t like strangers."