ger, he launched himself from his high The four remaining bullies crowded around Eric, who was

who was still

knot of overseers. Opening fire with on his hands and knees amid the ruin of the person he’d landed
on. He rose to one knee as they arrived, but he couldn’t bring his
about, but he didn’t need the pistol’s
gun to bear on any of them in time. They snapped their glass-
ring the box of ammunition with him, tipped whips in unison, coiling the ends around Eric’s pistol and
cluster of converging overseers, driving forearm. The pain was intense, but Eric didn’t lose his grip on his
ne who’d bloodied the dwarf. The thug weapon. Bracing his foot beneath him to haul himself upright, he
and two others fell to either side. The jerked his gun arm around in a huge arc, pulling the attackers off
them in shock for a moment then, as balance as he stood. He clotheslined the first one to fall with the
barrel of his gun, and that one’s head knocked into the head of
own onto the groggy humans’ heads. The
the man behind him. Eric crushed the third guy with a punch in
the chest that sent him crashing backward into a half-full rock-
collection tray. Finally, he cracked the fourth man’s skull with
the weighted handles of the whips the other three had lost.
When the space nearest him was clear, Eric shook all four
whips into a pile at his feet and looked around. None of the
other overseers on this level were still standing, even across
the central excavation from him. Those who hadn’t been
paying attention had been pulled down by the dwarves that
surrounded them and buried under the stones the workers
had been forced to carry. Others fled for the stone ladders,
rushing toward waiting dwarves with stones or hammers in
their hands. Before Eric could even speak, a handful of
overseers were hurled screaming back to the floor. Dwarves
on the higher levels cheered, and the ones around Eric at
the bottom returned that cheer.
“There’s still more in the tunnels up there,” the dwarf
with the bleeding forehead said. He stood supported
between two younger dwarves.
“Don’t worry, though,” one of the two supporting their
wounded friend said. “We can handle them.”
“You sure?” Eric asked.
“Oh yeah, you betcha,” the wounded one said. “Brok’s
been telling us to be ready for this since he saw you over at
Skirnir’s. Truth to tell, we’ve been ready a lot longer.”
“Brok, huh?” Eric murmured. At the edges of the
room, the dwarves had begun to scale the stone ladders
en masse.
“So you’ll be looking for Jared then.”
und Eric, who was still on his hands and knees Eric nodded.
n. He rose to one knee as they arrived, but he “He’s down there,” the wounded dwarf said. “Don’t
them in time. They snapped their glass-tipped know what he’s doing, but he hasn’t come up since we
ric’s pistol and forearm. The pain was intense, broke through this morning.”
on. Bracing his foot beneath him to haul himself “I’ll deal with him,” Eric said. The crowd around
n a huge arc, pulling the attackers off balance him had thinned considerably.
ne to fall with the barrel of his gun, and that “Okay,” the wounded dwarf said. “Bye.”