Before she could answer, Kell cut in with one last comment. "Trust me, Sarah, this'll beat anything else Pacifica has to offer in the way of nightlife."

* * *

The Kiken'spilot brought the OverlordClass DropShip to a soft landing beyond the night-cloaked hills where the main body of the Kell Hounds waited hidden. Storm clouds boiled up and quickly filled the hole burned through them by the DropShip's ion engines. Thin threads of argent lightning crackled through the clouds as the energy released into the atmosphere built and flowed through the storm system.

The egg-shaped DropShip settled down on the moist ground in an artificial fog. Its weapons turrets revolved like bug-eyes on stalks as the gunners sought out any hostile targets. Air hissed from within the pressurized ship as the crew blew the hatches. Ramps descended from the 'Mech bays, allowing the 'Mechs to troop slowly from their steel cocoons. As the Kurita spies had reported, the Kell Hounds had no fighter cover up. As nearly as the Kuritans could tell, the Hounds did not know that their ships had landed.

Daniel Allard glanced over at his ops board for the fiftieth time to reassure himself that the "land-line" indicator remained lit. While it burned its cool blue, Allard's communications came and went without fear of interception on a slender optic fiber stretched out behind his Valkyrie.On the other end, Colonel Kell waited in his Thunderbolt.

"We have confirmation, Patrick. This is part of the 2nd Sword of Light. I've got a company of Panthers,a mixed medium lance of SHD-2K Shadow Hawkswith PPCs, and Griffins—twoof each."

Kell's voice crackled back into Dan's ears. "What else do they have, Dan? They should be unloading the heavy stuff now."

Dan studied his scanner displays again and swallowed hard. He toggled between the two reports the battle computer offered him on the scanner screen. "Here's the bad news, Patrick. I've got a Dragon,perhaps one of the new Grand Dragondesigns."

Dan ordered up magnification on his main monitor and keyed the reference number—0-931787-84-Xp-74d—into his battle computer. The cursor blinked down at the bottom of the screen, then the computer redrew the complete scanner diagram and added the stored information from that file. "I've got a match. It isa Grand Dragon,so it's sporting a PPC in the right arm and a third medium laser in the right torso." Dan looked up at a light flashing on the scanner display. "This is odd ..."

"What, Dan?" Patrick Kell's voice remained even, despite the commanding urgency in his words.

"The Panthersare forming up into a spearhead, with the medium lance on the west flank and the Grand Dragonin the middle. They're coming right at you, but the Dragon'snot moving. It seems to be waiting for something."

Kell's light laugh traveled to Dan ungarbled and brought with it the assurance of victory. "Perfect. The lighter 'Mechs are drifting out to establish a perimeter without the Dragon'sfirepower. Remember the plan, Dan. The Kuritans consider 'five' to be a lucky number and things in fives to be an omen. Let's take five 'Mechs out in the initial ambush, and it'll spook them. Coordinates transmitting .. . Now. Good luck."

"And to you, Patrick. Severing land line and returning to command of my lance." Dan punched the blue land-line button and it died. He radioed a tightbeam broadcast back to Brand, and his Lieutenant replayed it for Meg Lang and Eddie Baker. It provided them with targets for their initial attacks, and secondary targets after that. Dan quickly reviewed the assignments and shook his head. It would not be pretty.

The eastern wing of the Pantherformation came up over the hills surrounding the landing site. One Panther,which Dan's computer labeled "Able"—the last one in the wedge—stood atop the hillock, only a hundred meters from where Dan's Valkyrielay beneath a scanner baffle. The Panther'shead swung slowly from side to side as though the MechWarrior inside imagined himself the lord of all he surveyed.

Dan trained his medium laser's targeting crosshairs on "Able," but brought his LRM sight to rest and lock-on to the next Panther—"Bravo"—in line. He kept both target icons following the appropriate 'Mechs almost automatically as he focused his attention on the spearhead's lead Panther.It had stopped short and brought up the PPC on its right arm.

A light flared in Dan's cockpit, signaling the attack. "Fire!" Dan stabbed his thumb down on the left-hand joystick and launched a flight of LRMs at the further of the two Panthers.Six missiles struck their target. Five smashed into the left side of the 'Mech's chest and succeeded in chipping away armor in a glowing metal rain. The sixth missile exploded against the other side of "Bravo's" chest, but failed to check the involuntary rotation the other missiles had imparted to the Panther.

Dan's medium laser lanced into "Able" and seared an ugly scar into the armor of its right arm. SRMs, launched by Brand's Commandoand Lang's Wasppeppered the "Able" from head to toe. Medium laser fire pierced the smoke and flames left behind by the missile, and shredded the armor on the 'Mech's right leg. Dan saw myomer-fiber muscles corded around titanium 'Mech bones. Abie's doomed. That leg won't take much more damage.

He brushed the fingers of his right hand across the toggle switch, and his scanner immediately reported "Bravo's" condition. Laser fire from Baker's Jennerhad added to the damage his LRMs had done. All the armor from the Panther'sleft torso had been blown or lazed away to expose the 'Mech's circuitry and other vital parts to the murderous fire from the ambush. Hanging in tatters, the armor on the right leg and right torso showed further damage from the Jenner'sbattery of medium lasers.

Dan looked up and saw Cat Wilson's black and red Marauderstep from ambush. The hunched-over 'Mech thrust its right claw at the wedge's lead Panther.The Marauder'sright PPC spat a jagged bolt of man-made lighting. The blue fire licked greedily at the Panther'schest and instantly vaporized all the armor it touched. The Marauder'stwin medium lasers slashed surgically at the Panther'sleft arm and stripped it of armor as though it were so much bark off a tree. The Marauder'sautocannon blasted the Pantherand gouged massive craters in the armor over the 'Mech's right thigh.

Bethany Connor's Crusader,moving up through the jungle behind Wilson's Marauder,similarly targeted the lead Panther.Panels flicked open on the Crusader'sforearms. Two flights of LRMs burned into the night sky. The missiles spiraled down into the Panther,and one complete flight crushed the 'Mech's chest like a hammer-blow. Fragments of armor, frozen in mid-flight by the strobing explosions, filled the air like a flight of frightened birds. The rest of the Crusader'smissiles tore at the Panther'sright leg, denting and blasting away armor.

Fire from Ward's Assault Lance ripped mercilessly into the Pantherdesignated "Echo." Diane McWilliams's Riflemanand Mary Lasker's Trebuchetcombined their fire to strip armor off their target. The Trebuchet'stwin LRMs flights bracketed the Pantherand blasted every shred of armor from either arm. Four of the LRMs smashed into the Panther'shead and ripped away part of its armor, giving the 'Mech a torn lip and a scorched face. The Rifleman'sautocannon fire easily peeled off the Panther'schest armor, while its pair of medium lasers melted all but the last of the enemy 'Mech's right leg.