Tarin-Gazin : Mad Dwarf of Walants

Long, long ago, the dragons had nearly killed all of his people and stolen all their hard earned dwarven wealth. That was long before Mankind had taken over the land, when they were just weak tribes of scavengers and thieves. And even now, after so many years, the dwarven race was still not ready to come out of hiding and reclaim their lost glories. But here was a chance at last, to take back something of what had been stolen. And nothing, NOTHING, would get in his way.

Sword clanged against armor, and sweat mingled with blood. Blow after blow thundered down upon the mighty dwarf, but he did not yield. His axe swung and slashed through his enemies and their death cries filled his ears. His heart pounded and his arms trembled, but he did not stop. Rift needed time to escape with their captives. And Tarin could not allow any of these men to live and tell their tale.

Suddenly a silence filled Tarin's ears and his body shook with heavy breathing. The blood lust that had overcome him cleared from his eyes and he looked about. Bodies and parts of bodies lay scattered about the floor. The golden hay glistened a bright red. To his dismay he realized he had killed everyone, including Rift's men. Well, almost everyone. Staring at him from the corner of the stables was a wide-eyed bearded man, a cold pipe frozen between his lips. "Uh...I think you got everyone...sir," Lester whispered, his eye suddenly twitching. Tarin counted the bodies one more time. Then he looked at Lester again, a cold frown on his lips.

The dwarf sighed heavily and strode over to the trembling bandit. He hefted his axe and Lester's twitch broke into a spasm. Tarin reached out and grabbed his pipe. "Not everyone," the dwarf breathed and lit the tobacco bowl. He gently shoved it back into Lester's mouth and smiled. "You didn't happen to see where the lawyer went?" Tarin asked. Lester's head bobbed up and down and his arm lifted up and pointed north, down the street. "Thank you," Tarin nodded, "and remember, you didn't see anything." With that the dwarf turned and left and headed after Notch.

1. So Notch did survive! But Tarin was hunting him down. Where can the lawyer hide? And what of Roddy and the rest of the Paine Gang?

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