[Black Dragon]

Snek snorted to himself slightly, carefully moving about the decaying remnants of clothing with the barrel of his gun. It seemed he was too late: something had gotten to the thief before he had. Picked eerily clean and bleaching white in the sun, the remains of the middle-aged Mudokon were barely recognizable. Bending down onto one mechanical knee, the albino Slig carefully searched the carcass with his hand, not disgusted in any way by the rotting corpse. Suddenly, his blood-colored eyes lit up and he quickly snatched something from among the pile of bones. An object was now revealed where the Mud's pocket would have been: a strange silver charm in the shape of a reptilian creature on a light chain. It shone strangely, as if some force has possessed it, but Snek chuckled happily as he pulled it around his neck once more, letting the peculiar ornament hit against the center of his chest.
"Poor bastard..." Snek muttered as he rose to his full height again, glaring at the gaping, empty eye sockets of the skull.
Slinging his gun across his back again, the Slig turned his back and headed to the west, leaving the bones to continue their decaying process.

Along the edge of the clearing Snek walked, his eyes narrowed to help combat the glare of the sun. Keeping up his pace, he reached into the gray pouch that was hanging from the belt 'round his waist and produced a small, rectangular computer-like structure. Flipping the top, he turned the tiny machine on which in turn displayed a grid map on it's clear screen with a flashing red dot.
A look of puzzlement crossed Snek's face as he scratched his middle facial tentacle thoughtfully, " Weird... that's the same spot where I left Kragg..."
Putting the device back in his bag, Snek broke out into a run and once again readied his gun, eyes darting about. Not wishing to take any chances in the dimming rays of evening, he reached behind his head to where his facial mask was hanging securely and pulled it over his head, it's red eye strip now glowing a brilliant crimson.
With his vision enhanced, the Slig now made out the old willow tree that was just to the east of where he had stationed his traveling partner in their attempt to find the Mudokon bandit. He came to an abrupt halt, swiftly taking refuge in the shadow of a large oak. He had heard something move.
"Kragg?" he called out, his breathing now a heavy pant as he held his shotgun close to his pounding chest.
No answer.
"Odd damnit," he whispered to himself and turned around quickly, carefully peering around the tree's immense trunk. A dark streak suddenly passed his line of vision and, startled, Snek aimed his weapon. However, whatever it was had gone. When he had concluded it safe, the Slig stealthily made his way to where his partner's tracking device had positioned him.
A few meters from his destination, Snek halted in his tracks. The infrared sensors within his mask detected fresh spots of warm blood on the ground, seeming to follow the path in which the black streak had gone.
"Oh sweet Creator... KRAGG?!"
Heart racing and mechanical legs pumping, he raced forward, the world around him a blur. Kragg had been the only friend in the world to him now, and to lose him at such a time like this was unthinkable in Snek's mind.
Stopping short, he fell to his knees, the lifeless body of Kragg lying in an unnatural position 'pon the ground. The Slig tracker's mechanical legs lay on their side with the legs mirroring each other as if someone were still standing in them. Gripping at his companion’s lifeless body, Snek noticed various slash wounds and a very distinct bite mark of which a very small trickle of blood was oozing. The Slig's corpse was an eerie gray and felt very light, as if every ounce of bodily fluid had been drained from him. Fighting tears and holding the deceased creature with shaking arms, Snek lifted his head to the sky and screamed loudly in anguish, his voice ringing loudly in the cooling dusk air.