You can't shake hands with a clenched fist. At the end of Hidden Solace, Athene made a promise: "I'm coming for you. Anything that stands in my way will be neutralised. Destroyed. It will be probability-manipulated out of the equation. Out of existence. It will be absolutely Sevened. Please, my precious Opal, hold on just a bit longer. I am on my way." The most powerful AI in the universe is coming for her friend.