The clinking of glass mugs, filled to the brim with bubbly amber liquid, echoed throughout the dim lighted room. Hordes of blackened, soot covered men, lined the bar and surrounded the circular tables. A heavy layer of smoke hung in the air following the incoming draft from the shattered window.

The lively atmosphere was interrupted by the “squeaky” “creak” of the batwing doors as they were swung open by a mysterious newcomer. All eyes covered the intruder. And moonlight spewed in through the opening , outlining the figure, creating a silhouette, adding to the riddle who stood before them. The shadow took three agonizingly slow steps, heavy and lagging then stopped as light poured over him when he stepped into the illumination of candlelight.

The man was decorated with a lengthy auburn beard and hair to match. His tanned skin indicating continuous hours under the sun, and his piercing cobalt eyes brought color and youth to his aging face. He donned a dusty brown overcoat and dark wide brimmed hat. A worn holster hung, slightly hidden at his side sporting a rusty colt revolver. The other men’s faces quickly resolved to sneers and the anger was evident as faces reddened and fists clenched.

The man barely continued foreword on the creaky floorboards before the bartender sat down the glass, previously in his hand and swung the towel over his shoulder before he moved towards the man. The visitor seemed strangely calm at the sudden burst of attention from throughout the room as he stepped to intercept the bartender. The two looked as though they were sizing each other up. The bartender was a muscled, bald man but relatively short compared to the man before him.

Out of range from the rest on the men the bartender quietly uttered something to the man, whose face remained unfazed and he simply brushed past the obstacle. The man continued, directly cutting through the room and making his way to the staircase on the other side of the river of angry miners. The men spat on him and cursed as he passed them, dismissing the actions of the simple.

Once reaching the staircase the man did not stop to acknowledge a single thing and ascended upwards on the rickety case of stairs to the hotel lodged above the saloon.