Feeling a bit guilty, Ed had gone to his room to change out of his pajamas while his knights did the dishes and got the steeds ready. It didn't take him long, but both knights and the new girl were in the stables when he arrived. As usual, Teddy was rambling about something no one else would care about. Least of all a Callian, proud of their ignorance.

  Circling cautiously, Bunny inspected the steelhead closely. It was a two-wheeled vehicle meant for one or maybe two people, with one person sitting behind the other. Mentally comparing it with the closest object she could think of, Bunny decided it was like a fat, comfortable bicycle with an engine and round mech-infused antigravity crystals instead of wheels. A specialized tool in hand, Teddy attached the hack for her to ride in.

  Her annoyance growing, Bunny could see why Eddy had said Bugaboo talked too much. Teddy had lectured for a solid five minutes on why a hack was called a hack and never, ever a sidecar, except by bloody pumpkins who didn’t know their arse from a hole in the ground. The joke was on him; Bunny hadn’t known enough to call it a sidecar before, now she knew to call it a sidecar to teach him a lesson. The lesson was don’t be a boring nerd.

  After finishing his lecture on proper nomenclature for a sidecar, Teddy moved on to discuss the merits of thermoregulator couplings and their relationship to the magicade combustion cylinder. More boring words Bunny didn’t know and didn’t care about. There was only one question she actually wanted the answer to, and she had asked it several times. Why was it called a steelhead, and which part was the head? She sniffed at it as a new question formed in her mind. Why was it called a steelhead if it didn't actually contain any steel?

  She ignored the two horse-like creatures in the stable: the large white enbarr destrier and the smaller gullfaxi palfrey. Both were common enough creatures,s and Callie was known as a top breeder of such beasts. Bunny could smell the magic the pair were infused with and bred with. It was easier and cheaper to enhance animals than inanimate objects magically, so travel usually involved some riding creature such as these, except for the Mechmians, of course. They had a great distrust of anything they didn't program and create.

  Callie bred most of the best mounts for export, including several breeds of gullfaxi and enbarr, but what Callie was truly known for was its collection of chimeras. Being “Blessed” themselves, hippogriffs, kirins, longma, and the like were favorites of the Callian people. Non-Blessed animals, such as the pair in the stable, naturally disliked the upper-predator caste werewolf. Luckily, the girl was lower-prey caste. A thought crossed Ed's mind – how had a lower-prey girl become a berserker? It didn't make sense; then again, neither did the girl's reaction to the steelhead.

  The chrome, rich blue, and deep black steelhead had shown no reaction to her at all. It was like Teddy, dead inside and boring. Despite Teddy occasionally whispering or mumbling to it, the steelhead thus far had shown no signs of life. It was made of some sort of metal, with a built-in saddle and a mech engine. As directed, she wiped down the chrome-colored pipes, so they shone merrily.

  “Bunny still doesn’t know where the head is on this steelhead,” Bunny loudly complained again as Teddy completed attaching the hack. She wasn’t sure if she liked the artificial magic smell of the thing; she was relatively sure she didn’t. She hadn't understood anything Teddy was explaining, as if silence would kill him.

  “Gosh, preserve me. Ye are not listening. I say again, it hasn’t got one. It’s not alive. They’re not even made of steel anymore. It’s a machination made mostly of carbon zeptofiber interlaid with magite and arcanillum for flexibility.”

  “But the thing is called a steelhead. Where is the head?” The girl demanded dramatically, draping herself over the contraption. Like the other Callians, she spoke dramatically and used her whole body to make points.

  “Here’s a spare SGHUD to protect your eyes. Just sit here in the hack today. We’re going to head down the road, and supposedly, there is a town with a bridge a few days ahead. We’ve got a large distance to cover and don’t have time or energy to arm you properly or to watch over you,” Teddy replied, ignoring the girl's question.

  She asked the same question again in a slightly different manner. Ed wasn't there for the other iterations, but he psychically knew Teddy only attempted to answer the girl's demanding inquisition every five or six iterations. They were both trying to annoy the other at this point. Both were succeeding.

  “The hack has some rather inspired Acog shield and barrier generation modules to protect you from harm. Plus, some other defensive and offensive mechanisms, I won’t get into at the moment. If sha’dew attacks, stay in the hack. If CRA attacks, stay in the hack. If monsters attack, stay in the hack,” Teddy plainly stated as he continued the pattern with seemingly every situation that could occur. Her ears back, Bunny still wasn’t sure how the nerd made opinions sound like facts and commands sound like predictions.

  She got in the hack and put on the goggles as the steelhead roared to life. “So, I should get out of the hack when something happens?” Bunny teased with a saucy grin, her ears perking up suddenly. The vehicle purred softly, and she snuggled down into the seat. Bunny could feel the power of Sul and the magicite engine in the hack, bringing peace to her troubled soul. The change was immediate and profound, hitting Ed like the soft lapping of the tide against a sandy beach on a calm evening. He hadn't even realized he had been tense until his body relaxed.

  “That’s not amusing,” Teddy returned,d kicking a lever. After the initial roar, the steelhead’s volume turned down to a low rhythmic humming noise that spoke to Bunny’s heart. She barely heard his response, so complete was her enrapture with the steelhead, which she was now gently caressing like it was a pet.

  In that moment, as Teddy drove the rumbling machine out of the amanofuchigoma, Bunny fell in love with the steelhead. Unable to wait to testify for the superior quality of the steelhead, Bunny reached out to touch Bugaboo’s leg and gave him a bright smile of joy. He glanced down at her with a nod. Jealousy caught in Ed's throat like a too-large bite of tough dwarven bread.

  Even as Teddy dismounted to shrink and retrieve their traveling quarters, Bunny didn’t feel alone inside the hack. Regretting her earlier judgments, she apologized to the steelhead for disrespecting it. She vowed to send anyone who dared call the hack a sidecar to Sul’s judgment while praying to Lune to argue against mercy. The steelhead’s smooth rumble spoke to her soul, forgiving her with the grace of Lune. The blue knight dropped the amanofuchigoma next to Bunny’s feet in the hack.

  The steelhead was a soothing beast, and its even rumble drowned out the cries of her pursuers but gave Bunny new and unsettling regrets. Never before had Bunny wanted to learn about something nerdy and not culturally accepted. At that moment, Bunny would have given anything to learn more about the steelhead and its beautiful pipes, singing a warm and loving song. Regret filled her heart, but Bunny found comfort in knowing Teddy was the sort who would explain it again. A vague wonder about how much she had missed being willfully ignorant struck Bunny as they traveled. She saw how wrong Kitty had been about everything; Bunny finally understood the importance of intelligence. Unlike Kitty, Bunny vowed learn and understand everything she could.

  What Bunny didn’t understand was how Teddy could wear the goggles all day. Her head hurt from the fuz,z making her world look out of focus. There was so much blurry information being presented, overlaying and blocking the world, that it gave her a headache. Her vision included a blurry map with a compass telling her the direction she was facing, wind speed and direction, blurry green writing over the heads of people and objects, a blinking display reminding her she hadn’t calibrated her non-existent weapon, and several other features she didn’t know the meaning of. The goggles may protect her eyes, but they hurt her head. She pulled them off and sank low in her seat, her long silver hair blowing in the wind.

  Her heart calm, Bunny closed her eyes and listened to the engine. The rumble wasn’t loud but was constant. Sleep came easily as they drove down the road at a relaxing 200 kilometers an hour. She didn't wake when they stopped to fight sha'dew. She didn't wake when they stopped to ask directions. She didn't even wake when Teddy began driving erratically, trying to wake her. Ed yelled at his friend to let the poor, exhausted girl rest. Some things never changed. Teddy was still a jerk just to be a jerk.

  Bunny next awoke at a steam while the sun dipped low. They'd stopped to set up camp in a small clearing that looked as if it were a popular camping area. The vehicle was parke,d and the horses grazed happily nearby. Callian grass and clover grew dense, and both creatures practically pranced at the treat. Ed found a comfortable spot on the soft clover and pulled a zither from a storage gem. It was perfect for the hauntingly sweet melody he'd been thinking about since the girl had first relaxed, thinking only of the purring engine of the unknown machine.

  “Have a pleasant sleep, love?” Teddy asked as he handed her a canteen and an item Bunny didn’t recognize. She noticed Stone unwrapping his and eating the contents, so she did the same. It was a foreign bread, sliced open and filled with a meat-based spread and weird, gooey cheese. Bunny had never had such a thing, but she enjoyed eating her third filling meal in as many days. Ed closed his eyes and let the music flow through his fingers. The sound of caution and the delight of the unknown picked up, like a wave relentlessly hitting the beach as the tide rolled in.

  “How can Bugaboo wear the goggles all day? Goggles make the world foggy, and there is so much going on. So busy and filled with blurry words. Goggles make Bunny’s head hurt,” Bunny asked, rubbing her tired eyes. In a less than dignified manner, Teddy ate the last of his food in one overlarge bite. He walked back to the steelhead without addressing the girl who stood there, her face a mix of confusion and hurt. This too became notes in the melody that moved Ed's fingers. How long had it been since he'd heard the music in his soul so clearly?

  “Put the SGHUD back on and let me examine it right quick,” Teddy instructed, brushing his hands off. Bunny did as he told her, still wondering how he made his commands and requests sound like facts that would happen, not because he said so, but because that was how things worked.

  Deftly, Teddy reached into a pouch on his belt and pulled out a small silver square, which he pulled on two corners to make larger. He pulled a small piece away to form a cable, which he plugged into the silver, now-rectangle, and the other end into the goggles Bunny wore. He placed the screen, now filled with streaming data, in the air as one would do with an enchanted cup at a party.

  Fingers subtly brushing her cheek, Teddy plugged the wire into the goggles and examined the readout on the tablet he’d connected. The sound Ed played changed. It was calm and confident, but with an amused and confused undertone. I need an orchestra to play this properly, Ed realized as he began writing the pieces in his head.

  “The data on the slate is fascinating. Werefolk eyes in general have many deviations from standard human eyes, but ye are farther removed than most. No wonder ye vision blurs so. Ye should have said something earlier. Allow me to tinker but a moment,” Bunny looked over at Teddy as he made various hand motions on the slate. His deft fingers moved quickly, and the words changed before Bunny could even recognize a single block as text or visualization.

  It was several minutes of standing around while her vision blurred, cleared, shifted, faded, and flickered while Teddy hummed and clicked. She couldn’t see what he was doing, and he didn’t ask her any questions, so she stood there looking foolish while he mumbled to himself. The music played a flighty melody of anticipation.

  The world shifted focus several times before Bunny could see with perfect clarity. She squealed with delight as her vision popped into focus, now with added overlays that she found fascinating.

  “How’s that?” Bugaboo asked without looking up from the slate as if he didn’t know.

  “Sir Theodore Locke Acogson, KBET3CA,” Bunny read aloud from the label above Teddy’s head. Teddy clapped his hand over her mouth. If his face weren’t so still, Bunny would have thought he was panicked. The music quickened with fear.

  “Oi! Shush now. Someone could bloody hear ye. Remember when Eddy told ye about the blasted false name? People know I work for him, so if me name gets out, they’ll find him. No peace. No investigation into the people responsible for capturing Kitsune. Understand?”

  Bunny nodded, and Teddy released her. He looked over her shoulder at what Bunny assumed was Eddy or Stone. It was Eddy, but the drunk prince wasn't listening to the words. He was translating the feelings into music, his every fiber focused on what mattered. Right now, what mattered was a danger that no one could talk about. A threat that existed beyond himself and lurked in a giant floating castle on the edge of space. If he knew, then the threat would undoubtedly find out. This was a quiet danger beneath an attractive veneer, translated into an eerie tune.

  “Do not let Eddy know ye know. He’ll be bloody cross with you and I. Mostly me, but he has to send ye away. Nay, he'd have to make me kill ye. Even better, forget ye know that name, eh? It’s better if ye don’t know. I’ll turn that feature off so we don’t have any further incidents, shall I?”

  “Acogson, they made the iggy-m thing, the disguise maker, right?” Bunny whispered, proud of herself for remembering, but also fearful. Teddy paused to take a deep breath before speaking to her.

  “Acog is the manufacturer. Me sister is Lady Acog. I’m Acogson until I marry and take me wife’s family name,” Teddy stated flatly, “But ye mustn't worry or even think about that.”

  Joyfully Bunny squealed in a hushed tone, “Engaged? Is my fiancé pretty? Is the child a boy or a girl?”

  “No, I’m not engaged. No one even thinks of marriage until they’re between 28 and 32. We want to be a proper B-class nob family before I reach the old man age of 33. Then Acog will receive a substantially grander dowry for me. If we can’t hold out long enough, me marriage will not allow for the family to reach a higher class and for my sister to marry. I suppose my sister may still be able to afford a cheaper husband, but the family company would have to stay C class, and the cheaper husband would degrade our family’s genetics. We’ve worked so hard to build it up to the level it’s at now that it would be a shame,” Teddy stated lifelessly, unable to help himself from over-explaining.

  “Bunny doesn’t understand. How does your getting married to someone you love help your sister get married?”

  “Gosh knows it doesn’t. Why would I marry someone for love? I’m going to marry someone filthy rich who will pay a large dowry in cash and patents to obtain me. Perhaps they’ll make me a house husband. Or even better, a trophy husband. I’ve heard some of the more modern ladies allow their husbands to be their lab assistants. That would be choice indeed. I’d have to lose a lot of weight and look much better to be a trophy husband or attract a nice, forward-thinking lady. If I’m unlucky or my qualifications slip, I’ll have to marry down and do housework. Most likely I’m to be a house husband for a perfectly nice lass and manage a household. Perhaps when we return to High-Mountain, I’ll take some correspondence courses in Household Economics and Husbandly Studies. It’s not like I went to finishing school,” Teddy stated matter-of-factly, “Though my connections to Ed certainly will allow me to fetch a decent price.”

  Stolen story; please report.

  “Bunny hopes a rich and smart lady chooses Bugaboo because of love,” Bunny smiled the best she could. It wasn’t much. Wishing for someone rich to come along and marry you seemed pathetic. The music reflected her poor opinion of the man's simple dream.

  “Ta. I appreciate ye support. Remember, keep this information on the quiet. Let’s not go riling up Eddy because of a small mistake. Shall we get on with less…personal matters? I’ve removed the personnel identification feature and set the SGHUD to run a quick tutorial to help you learn the HUD, also known as the heads-up display. I’m going to fetch a weapon for ye. Our stock is fairly limited, but I’ll see what we have. Do ye have a preference?”

  “Preference?” the girl asked as her mind raced. She thought of heavy weapons and close-quarters fighting. It sent a chill down her spine. Before the man could speak, she answered both their questions, “Prey-were use distance weapons. A longbow?”

  Her mind was also wrestling with another question. This one is much less straightforward. Would she tell Ed? Bunny didn’t want to keep secrets from Eddy, but she also wanted him to like her. She didn't want to leave, and she needed help to save Kitsune. It wasn't much of a match. Honesty hadn’t done Kitty any favors and would do Bunny even less.

  “We have a compound bow, which should be close enough. I’ve been trying to figure out how to get the wicked thing away from Eddy for ages. He shot me in the knee not long ago, before we became adventurers with ye. An accident at the dining table, of course. Me knee wouldn’t have been hit had Eddy been aiming for it. It’ll be wonderful not go chasing after arrows. Ye do know what ye are doing, yes? I’m not trading one evil for another, am I?”

  Bunny assured him she was a trained and certified berserker as Teddy detached the cable and went off to find the bow.

  As he left, Bunny’s vision went dark for a moment before an inviting screen came up. “Welcome to your new SG-5920C-76HUD.94 model, Safety Goggles with Heads Up Display (SGHUD) capabilities brought to you by Steel Mechmologies, Information How You Need It Most,” said a happy and excited voice that seemed to be both male and female. The voice had a strange, not-quite-human quality. Bunny was delighted. Maybe not all Mechmians were emotionless.

  “Welcome, to ensure the SGHUD unit works at maximum efficiency, please follow all directions exactly! Failure to supply truthful data may interfere with this equipment’s functionality! Please state your given name!” The voice chirped each sentence happily. She was cautious, but more so, Bunny wanted the goggles to work correctly.

  “Primadonna,” Bunny whispered. Given names were private to werefolk as they held the power to control people. Only the closest people in a Callian’s life would know it: mother, father, and spouse. Still, it was only a machine, and Bunny wanted it to work correctly.

  “Please state your second given name!”

  “Um,” Bunny wasn’t entirely sure what to say if she didn’t have one.

  As if understanding what gave her pause, the machine continued, “Please state your surname!”

  “Howl,” Bunny still wasn’t sure what was going on.

  “Please state any titles you possess!”

  “Callie-beta-beta, Berserker,”

  “You’ve entered Callie-beta-beta Berserker Primadonna Um Howell. This name will be displayed to other SGHUD users. Is this name correct?”

  “NO!” Bunny yelled a bit too loudly. She looked around to see if the others had noticed. On the grass, Eddy was still playing the zither, stopping occasionally to sip from a flask or take out a slate and make notes. He made a poor effort to hide the slate but happily drank openly. Stone had already taken the horses inside the amanofuchigoma and was nowhere to be seen.

  “I am sorry to hear that. Let’s try again!” the voice said merrily. It flashed and restarted itself. “Welcome, please state your given name.”

  “Bunny”

  “Please state your second given name!”

  “of”

  “Please state your surname!”

  “Callie”

  “Please state any titles you possess!”

  “berserker”

  “You’ve entered, 'Berserker Bunny of Callie'. This name will be displayed to other SGHUD users. Is this name correct?”

  “Yes,” Bunny said emphatically. She didn’t deserve to be who she used to be; she didn’t deserve to have a real name of her own. The music seemed to echo this painful realization.

  The rest of the tutorial went smoothly, and Bunny enjoyed the too-happy voice explaining the functions of her goggles. A toggle on the right side of the goggles let her rearrange the display features, though she noticed several options were missing. The left side of the googles featured a switch to switch to various “modes”: Night, thermal, ultramarine, ultraviolet, infrared, arcanic, barometric, psionic, sonar, and radar. There was a separate dial for telescopic and microscopic.

  Bunny was playing with thermal detection when Teddy returned, Stone at his heels. Rising, Ed gave her a wicked smile as he approached, giving Bunny a confidence boost. This boost quickly faded as Bunny remembered how much physical beauty had ever helped her before; that is not at all so far as she could see. All it ever did was cause people to fight for her attention. It was amusing, but not useful. Having the knights argue was more likely to do harm than good, Bunny lamented with a sad smile.

  “That's my bow! Look at her. There is no way she is going to be better than me with a bow!” Eddy taunted in almost a whiny voice as he nonchalantly hit the blue knight in the chest. Bunny’s confidence in her marksmanship immediately took a nosedive. If Eddy didn’t think she’d be good with it, then there was no way she’d be able to use the compound bow.

  “Nonsense. I still can’t believe ye haven’t learned your lesson. Never bet against a Mechmian. I say she’ll be fine. She’s a trained berserker, and this is as simple a weapon as one can get. That self-doubt trick gets ye far mate, but I’ve enough experience to know when I shall win,” Teddy challenged apathetically. Behind him, the white knight nodded in agreement.

  “10 gees I beat her,” the prince demanded, “Money where your mouth is, idiot.” The white knight snorted his disapproval.”

  “Done,” Teddy declared before taking a slap to the back of the head from Sir Enots. “It's just a tiny bet. Barely counts as gambling.” His head was knocked a second time, this time flinging the man to the ground. The blue knight popped back up like a spring-loaded toy and declared the bet worth it.

  “You bet on me?” Bunny asked quietly, her voice wavering. Someone depended on her skill and trusted her ability. Her heart skipped a beat, too bad it was the rude Mechmian.

  “Hear that, Ted? That’s the sound of my victory,” Eddy taunted, laughing.

  “Best two of three. The usual bet with added previsions. I win, you hand over the bow. You win, the bow stays in the armory,” Teddy stated levelly. Bunny scoffed. There was no way Ed would agree to that. He'd lose no matter the outcome.

  “Of course,” Eddy replied dismissively, his choice confusing Bunny. There had to be a reason he’d agreed to the unfair options. Eddy seemed so intelligent; there was no way this was the end of it. Unless... No... Could it be?

  “Could Bunny have help for a practice shot?” the girl asked softly while Teddy sent out mechanical floating targets.

  “I’d love to help you,” Eddy offered chivalrously.

  “Not Ed. Bugaboo. Since we are competing, it wouldn’t be fair if you did it,” Bunny said, biting her lip. She didn’t deserve help from someone as great as Eddy. Bugaboo was closer to her level. Her lack of self-confidence distracted Ed and made him feel a bit guilty about what he was about to do. However, he wanted to beat the sanctimonious blue knight more. Perhaps he'd graciously gift her the bow after he defeated her in the shooting contest.

  “It’s getting late. If ye won’t agree to the practice arrows, then please by all means fire first,” Teddy declared passively.

  “Please, Bunny hasn’t used a bow in a few years. Just one practice shot,” Bunny all but begged, wanting to get a feel for the bow before the test. It was a practice fib, Lunday was bow practice day every week and had been since she was small.

  “Why would I agree to that?” Eddy asked, laughing. It was a waste of time in his mind.

  Bunny loved the sound of Eddy’s laugh, but she still worried about letting Bugaboo down after he bet on her. It must be challenging to be second in everything. No one could beat Ed, the most handsome man in the universe. She bet even the royal family wouldn't be as perfect as he.

  Scoffing, Eddy drew and loosed, completely missing the target. As surprised as Bunny was, Bugaboo was unsurprised. Staring at the landing tree in the distance, Ed first wondered if Ted had somehow tampered with the arrows. Then he remembered he'd started his evening heavy drinking and cursed himself. That must have been why Teddy was so confident. Still, it was an embarrassing shot. The usually stoic Stone had given a little snort.

  Nodding his head and relinquishing the bow to Bunny, Eddy declared gallantly, “That was my test shot. You can take yours now. Teddy, why don’t you show her how to use a bow?”

  Bunny was enthralled at Eddy’s generosity. He’d even missed his shot to make her feel more confident and make it feel more equal. What a copesetic fellow!

  Heart skipping a beat, Bunny smiled as she took the bow from Eddy. Too late to catch herself from briefly touching his hand.

  “How does Bunny do this?” Bunny asked, looking over at Teddy, who seemed to have all the answers. Bunny questioned herself with each move she made until finally Teddy came close and moved her arms into position. His steady breath was on her neck as he stood beside her.

  “Just remember ye berserker training. Do ye best. Remember, he is the worst bowman on planet Uusa, nay, worst in the galaxy, probably not in the universe though. Fexians don’t even have arms. I digress. Even if ye miss all three shots, it’ll be a draw. I can’t possibly lose,” Bugaboo whispered softly, and Bunny loosed. The arrow hit its mark with a satisfying ding. It wasn’t center, but it wasn’t too far off.

  With palpable joy, Bunny cheered and hugged Bugaboo, who stood motionless.

  “Again. With confidence, if ye please. I’ve matters to attend to elsewhere.”

  “Is Bugaboo sure Bugaboo doesn’t want to help Bunny again?” Bunny smiled enticingly over her shoulder; the nerd was starting to grow on her. A prang of jealousy hit Eddy in the gut. He wished he'd been smart enough to just give her the bow. It wasn't like it was his daily carry.

  “Oi! Let’s not be foolish. Anyone can see ye know exactly what ye is doing. I say again, with confidence, hit the target. Go on, lass. I’ve projects to work on.”

  Bunny drew and loosed without thinking too much about it. The arrow hit its mark dead center.

  “Once again, so we can get this farce over with,” Teddy wasted no time. Bunny loosed two more arrows in rapid succession, both of which hit the target.

  “I did it!” Bunny cheered happily, years of training every Lunday since she’d been large enough for a child’s bow had paid off. A hug for her instructor, a dance of victor, and a dance of gratitude before hugging Teddy again and bounding over to hug Ed. With a smile and a few words of encouragement, she handed him the bow. She didn’t know why she’d been so worried. She was mostly happy she could still fight as she’d been able to before. The relief she felt simply looking at the targets gave her a measure of peace. Win or lose, she wasn’t as useless as she’d feared.

  “Well done. We are all proud of you, Bunny,” Teddy stated as she danced the traditional dance to honor worthy opponents.

  Getting a vague feeling that Ed was waiting for her to finish, Bunny hurried back over to lean politely against Bugaboo to watch. Looking dashing, Eddy drew and loosed, missing the target by less than a meter.

  “It’s alright, mate. Fix your fingers. The elbow and arm are parallel to the marching surface. There’s a good lad,” Teddy stated helpfully to his friend, “Oh, and perhaps less drink?”

  Frustrated, Ed transferred his drunkenness to Teddy. Winning the competition would be much easier sober. The blue knight fell back against the hack, but managed to cross his legs and make it look purposeful. Beside him, Bunny stood leaning against nothing for a couple of seconds before moving to lean on the hack as he had. She likely didn't realize Teddy was not the one drunk.

  “Eddy will get it next time!” Bunny encouraged with a cheer. They hadn’t alternated as was tradition, so she already knew she’d won. Eddy hit the target for his next two shots, though not in a kill zone.

  “I don’t get it. I should be good at this,” Eddy whined, looking at Teddy, “I practice every day.”

  “We seem to define ‘every’ day differently. Ye don’t practice most days. On the days ye do, ye don’t practice proper marksmanship. As I’ve said many times before, practice incorrect marksmanship, and ye will learn incorrect marksmanship. Ye are not channeling our skill as archers properly because deep down inside ye want to learn the skill for -” Teddy stopped abruptly, “I’ll help ye find the arrow. Bunny, why don’t ye stay here and synchronize the SGHUD with the bow? We’ll only be a moment, I’m sure.”

  Growing up without mechnology, Bunny had no idea how to synchronize the bow with the SGHUD, but her new friends had already scuttled off to find the arrows. “SGHUD, can SGHUD synchronize with bow?” Bunny asked the air experimentally.

  “Yes! We here at Steel Mechmologies are committed to ensuring you get the most out of this SGHUD device! Easily sync the SGHUD with all your weapons, armaments, and other devices!”

  “Help menu. How to sync a weapon with the SGHUD,” Bunny was proud of herself for remembering the help menu from the tutorial. The newness of the disembodied voice soon wore off as Bunny attempted to scroll through numerous menus and options. She was yelling at the voice when the boys returned.

  “The markings on the bow say bow is an LB67 dash 90 dot 1474! 1474! Sul-damned prude of a nerd!” Bunny yelled, frustrated; her fists clenched with Sul’s fury. The grace of Lune failed to temper her rage.

  “I understand! Berserker Callie would like to sync AOD57DS9OPT14841284LDP-RD! This model is not found in the directory! Please check the model and try again, connect to the network to update the database, or say manual input for a custom weapon!”

  “No! That is even more wrong! Bunny will turn voice into a snowboard and slide down the double diamond drop on Mount Hurtlo while wearing Voice’s entrails as a scarf!”

  “I’m sorry, but I failed to understand! Do you want me to open up the help menu and display a list of options?” the voice chirped, unfazed. This made Bunny even more angry. If the voice were a person, Bunny would have hit it. It did not occur to Bunny to take off the SGHUD.

  “That was a wonderfully creative threat, but I’m afraid it is wasted on machinations. That SGHUD unit has a terrible voice menu, better to use a slate, which I failed to provide you with. I’ve got some spares in the hack somewhere that I use for maintenance. Just a tick,” Teddy said with a slight slurring at the end of his words, waving to Eddy, who was already headed back to the amanofuchigoma in a huff. Soon, he had finished synchronizing the weapon and had tweaked the slate to make it easier for Bunny.

  “Here, this is for you. I suspended a great deal of the functionality. Still, as long as you are in range of my commsphere, you will have access to my library and information database, as well as comms services for other connected devices. I’ve got a fair bit of work to accomplish tonight. We should head in,” Teddy stated, already pushing the steelhead towards the tent, properly known as the amanofuchigoma.

  Bunny grabbed his arm and walked beside him. It was comforting to have someone so steady beside her. His unwavering voice kept spouting nerd words. Although Bunny didn’t understand what they meant, they did mask the screams.