"I no longer care what they think," she says bluntly. "They are largely irrelevant, and those who are not will not care. And we are being hunted by a bone construct of great size and weight. A rapier is not the appropriate weapon for such a thing."

She opens the door to the forge. "I want to live through this. And that means a cavalier who is functioning at her peak capability, not behind what she calls a 'metal toothpick.'"