by Kram

The lone stranger dismounted from his mammoth hordax, shaking the heavy drops from his cloak. The cave he had entered was small, its capacity barely providing shelter for his beast from the deluge that poured from the angry sky outside. He ventured deeper into the cavern to find room enough to remove his rain soaked garments. Stepping through a stony portal, he found himself suddenly bathed in the warm glow of a tallow fed lantern. Upon his entry into the cave seven pairs of shocked eyes turned in his direction.

'Argh! A thief is here to take our gems!' cried one of the little men as he thrust his shovel in the stranger's direction. 'You try it, and I'll cut your eyes out and feed them to the snails!' 'Hold your blade, you grumpy old fool!' called one of the others, 'this nice man might be here to help us.' 'Nice man?' retorted the other, 'If you were not such a dopey twit you would recognize him as a ShadowLander. He helps no one but himself.' 'What shall we do, Doc?' call one of the others, too bashful to show his face in the light. The small man who appeared to be in charge stepped forward to size up the stranger. 'Well, judging from all that trouble we had with that female a while back, I'd say we could save ourselves a pack of trouble and just put a pick up side his head right now!'

Suddenly, six shadowy figures leapt forwards. In a flash, the lone stranger's dark blade appeared in his hands. Quietly, it whistled through calm air, practicing its deadly craft. In the blink of an eye, six small heads fell cleft from six small frames. The last midget, the one slowest in wit, made a tasty morsel for the stranger's hordax...