Episode 02 - Barroom Dance

Sai hadn't intended to be looking down the barrel of a shotgun. He wanted a brawl, yes, but not a gunfight. Brawls were easy. They were simple. Guns complicated things.

The barman's gaze met Sai's, bridged by the lines of the shotgun. Two pairs of eyes, equally hard, but in one hot anger burned, while in the other was a cold flame. "You think you're a brave one, little man?" the barman demanded, "I think you're just stupid."

Yes, guns complicated things. And shotguns? They made everything messy.

Inside worn leather boots, Sai tensed his feet as he held the other man's stare. A fly slowly buzzed behind the barman, a drop of sweat slid from his hairline, and his eyelids began to close in a blink.

Pitching his body forward, Sai's arms swung out as if diving into a pool of clear, clean water. He was grateful his head had been too good a target to pass up as a thunderous

explosion rippled over his back, peppering his billowing longcoat and punching a hole though the shutters.

Completing his dive with a somersault, he rolled across the planks of wood and came up with silver flashing in his hand. Ten feet closer to the barman, their eyes met again, this time underscored by the barrel of Sai's six-shooter.