The elf had said he could cripple the outer electronic defenses of Warlord Han’s enclave, and he was as good as his word. As for Striper, her skills at physical penetration had proven to be as good as her boasts about them—even better than his own. Neko’s most likely scenario hadn’t involved reaching the missile base without at least a minor confrontation with the warlord’s forces. But they had. Of course, the brush fire that had sprung up at the far end of the valley was attracting much of the facility personnel’s attention. He might have thought the fortuitous blaze a good omen, if he believed in such things.