Horse's voice coming suddenly over their private channel broke Aidan's reverie. "The bridges are in sight, and the forces on Robyn's Crossing have fired on the Twelfth Falcon Cluster. The battle is engaged, sir."

The Twelfth had won the honor of leading the assault on the bridge. Knowing that it had been Mar Helmer's Cluster when he was a Star Colonel, Aidan concluded that politics must have been involved in the choice. That made him angry, for he believed the position should have been open to bidding among all the Jade Falcon contingents, including the Falcon Guards. Another Cluster, the Seventh Falcons, was assigned the other bridge, Plough Bridge. According to Horse, the Seventh had just reached its objective, and no battle had yet begun there.

Until now, both bridges had been out of sight of the oncoming Jade Falcons because they were in a valley. The access to each was down a rocky slope. Recon had established that BattleMechs could not descend without becoming sitting ducks for the bridge forces, so jumpcapable 'Mechs had taken the forefront. They leaped into the valley and returned the fusillades of the ComStar 'Mechs.

Aidan monitored some of the fighting at Robyn's Crossing on his primary screen, the visuals rendered pale by the intense light of Tukayyid's sun. For a moment the combat was at a stalemate. At Robyn's Crossing, a fierce defense by the ComStar 'Mechs in front of and on the bridge itself pressed the Twelfth back. Missile fire exploded one Jade Falcon BattleMech, then another was severely damaged, leaving half its right hip detached and hanging. Aidan cursed as he watched the commander of the Twelfth order a retreat back to the foot of the slope to cover the descent of the BattleMechs without jump capacity.

"Bad move, huh?" Horse said. "I agree."

"She has them bunched together so much that she is practically offering the Com Guards target practice."

"We are lucky this is a private channel."

"I would say that to Khan Chistu himself."

Horse sighed. "Yes, you would."

They continued to watch, all the while proceeding toward the battle site. Then Aidan spoke. "Well, it is time."

"What do you mean?"

"Time for us to follow our orders. Once the battle is joined, we are to break through, remember? We are going to help the Twelfth take that bridge."

"You have my enthusiastic approval."

Aidan opened the commline and ordered the Falcon Guards to press forward at the best unit speed. As the unit passed up two other Clusters, they maintained a precision formation that must have been the envy of their fellow Jade Falcons even as many of them were probably cursing every Falcon Guard who had ever existed and the sibkos that spawned them.

* * *

As befitted a Clan commander, Aidan Pryde led the way in his Timber Wolfto the crest of the slope leading down to Robyn's Crossing. He slowed his BattleMech when he saw the crest, the edge of this particular world, then paced his 'Mech into a graceful, loping walk. Back in the DropShip he had ordered his techs to equip his Timber Wolfwith jump jet modules. That meant sacrificing his machine guns and some lasers normally mounted in his torso, but he was too used to jumping in the Summoner,his former 'Mech. He could not give it up now just because jump jets were not a standard feature on a Timber Wolf.

The 'Mechs of Horse and Margo, another of his Falcon Guard Command MechWarriors, also had jump ability. They stayed with their commander, a couple of 'Mech paces behind, as he pushed his Timber Wolfforward. At the very crest of the hill Aidan engaged his jump jets and glided upward, reaching a quick zenith, then coming down, ahead of the BattleMechs of the Twelfth Falcon Cluster, and closer to Robyn's Crossing than any Jade Falcon BattleMech had yet come.

Descending, Aidan blasted away at the Com Guard 'Mechs defending the head of the bridge. They had not been expecting a BattleMech assault from the sky, which gave Aidan and his pair of cohorts an immediate and significant advantage. An edge at the edge of the world, Aidan thought.

He used his angle to blast away at the head of a heavy BattleMech that his secondary screen identified as a type called a Thug.Targeting his large lasers, he made a direct and fatal hit against the head of the Thug,no doubt ending the life of its pilot. He did not have time to watch the 'Mech stagger backward against a bridge stanchion, then plunge into the deep waters of the churning Prezno River. The splash it made was impressive, the waters rising up onto the bridge surface leaving puddles along its roadway.

Aidan's attention was on another ComStar 'Mech, a sleek, bigfooted Sentinelthat was just swinging its autocannon upward to fire at the Timber Wolf.Firing over the shoulders of Aidan's 'Mech, MechWarrior Margo, in a light Mist Lynx,got a lock onto the center torso of the Sentinel,then destroyed it with a set of sleek-arcing missiles. The enemy 'Mech fell to the ground, flames shooting from its chest.

Horse managed to take out a pair of ComStar 'Mechs during his descent, while Aidan gave a ComStar Riflemana limp.

By the time the trio of Clan BattleMechs had landed, the bridge defense was in disarray. Aidan ordered his group forward, the action prodding the Jade Falcons back at the slope to charge forward.

The ComStar commander apparently decided that the Clan had won this phase, for the surviving enemy 'Mechs began a retreat. They traversed Robyn's Crossing quickly, with only the limping Riflemanlagging behind. The bridge was soon clear, an inviting pathway with a few puddles gleaming on its surface, leading to that side of the river where the Jade Falcon Clan objectives awaited.

"There are reports of heavy fighting at Plough Bridge," Horse said. "We are apparently taking the day there."

"Fine. Let us take a little stroll to the other side of Robyn's Crossing, quiaff,Horse?"

"Hold it there one minute, Star Colonel Aidan Pryde," said a new voice on the open channel. Aidan recognized the voice immediately from the council in the grove. It was Star Colonel Senza Oriega, the one who had complained that it was inappropriate for the tainted Falcon Guards to lead the entire Jade Falcon army into battle.

She came forward in her savage-looking Executioner.Close behind followed a pair of her Command Star 'Mechs, like a pair of thugs backing up a bandit leader.

"You cannot be first onto Robyn's Crossing, Aidan Pryde. That is the right of the Twelfth Falcon Cluster. It is myright."

Aidan took a deep breath. In his mind he could see Senza Oriega, with her pale ghostlike complexion, sitting smugly in her pilot seat, throwing her weight around as if it had 'Mech tonnage.

"Your right, you say?"

"Aff. Ourright, actually."

"Did you down the four ComStar BattleMechs and send the rest into a retreat? Did the Twelfth Falcon Cluster down anyComStar BattleMechs? Did Senza Oriega and her Twelfth Falcon Cluster take Robyn's Crossing?"

"None of that, none of your boasting has any effect on the order of march across the bridge. It is an honor the Twelfth Falcon Cluster has earned by its entirecombat history. It is for us to lead the way across the bridge and into the next phase of battle on the other side of the bridge."

Aidan was seething with anger at Senza Onega's disparaging tone. "What kind of freebirth stupidity is this?" he screamed into his mike. "Do you dare—"

"Star Colonel, ease up on—" It was Horse cutting in on the transmission.

"I am sorry about the epithet, Horse. I am just so—"