If there was one thing that Ishmael excelled at compared to the others in her division, it was parrying with large weapons that at times felt more like hunks of metal than actual great-swords. She supposed she had her previous ventures with Queequeg's harpoon to thank for that.

It had an unfortunate downside of making field-training feel like a drag. One day, she would find thrill in fulfilling contracts made by only the best-paying customers -- by guarding some important undercover Head, or maybe even the entrance of a Wing. But for now, she was stuck here.

At least you were there with her.