Dry Turtle stretched before Erin as she helped Mari jump down from the small ship''s deck. Mari landed beside her in the dirt, only stumbling and grabbing onto Erin''s green cloak slightly before regaining her balance. Erin made sure Mari was standing before she looked at the city around her.


    Tall wooden buildings painted various colors, each one several stories high, occupied the streets around her, and a sea of people who looked plucked from across all of the Erth filled the streets. Normally, she would only see so many people in one place if it was a major city in the Twelve Kingdoms.


    Hrrm.


    "So, we need to solve the food problem first," Alex said as the shuttle rose back into the sky. "We eat, see off Kali on a ship, and then figure out what to do about our financial troubles."


    "If I can find a bank, I can cash in on my bounty and chip in some," Wen said, her eyes constantly roving the streets around them as she spoke. "It wouldn''t cover everything, but it can help defer the cost."


    "I do have this as well." Sayed drew a golden gauntlet from his belt. "I found it on the island."


    "Crap," Alex said, his eyes on the gauntlet.


    "What?" Erin raised an eyebrow.


    "I dropped the scepter I picked up." Alex sighed. "That would have helped a lot."


    "Am I the only one that didn''t steal something from the island?" Erin sighed.


    "I think Jean had a jeweled circlet when he returned from his tower," Sayed said, a smile cracking his beard.


    Grumble.


    Several stomachs shouted for sustenance simultaneously. Erin''s ears turned red, and she put one hand on her stomach to calm it down. None of them were in any position to argue. The only question was where they should eat.


    Mari grabbed onto her hand, pointing down the street.


    "Let''s go there!"


    Everyone turned to look down the street at the nearest corner, where a large green sign stuck out from the side of the tall building. ''Cat''s Cradle!'' was written across the sign in bright yellow text, and a few groups of people sat outside at wooden tables with food on their plates.


    "Why that one?" Alex asked, stepping beside Erin.


    "It looks fun," Mari said, putting one finger on her lips as she looked at Alex.


    "Alright," Alex said, shrugging his shoulders at the rest of them. "I should be able to handle one meal without breaking the bank. Let''s go."


    Together, they set off toward the restaurant, Alex leading the way with Wen holding the rear of the group. Erin kept her grip on Mari''s hand tight as they folded into the milling crowds. Again, she had to be impressed by how many people were in Dry Turtle.


    Bang!


    Erin jumped, dropping to one knee and wrapping her arm around Mari as she scanned the area around them. Alex had his hands out to his side, and she knew he had already opened his gate while Wen and Sayed took positions to her left and right.


    Click.


    Beside Erin, Kali had already pulled out her camera and was snapping photos as best she could. Her camera''s lens was pointed across the street, and Erin followed it to see what was happening.


    "Get out of our way!"


    The crowd on the other side of the street fell away from the sidewalks and out into the wider paths. Some people fell over themselves, and some cried out in pain as heavy boots trampled them. Erin kept her head down, but they were safe from whatever was happening for the moment.


    "Where''s the ship?"


    A man wearing a white bandana across his face and a wide-brimmed black cap exploded into the street with two other men dressed similarly. Erin''s eyes traced between the large burlap sacks in their hands and the sign on the building. ''Bank.'' They were bank robbers.


    "I don''t know, but we better get moving. The Cleaners will be here soon!" the tallest said to the shortest.


    "What''re you saying, Brian? Where''s the driver at? He''d be here right now!" the second tallest yelled.


    "Hey, don''t use your real names!" The shortest among them pulled down his bandana, throwing spittle at the second tallest.


    "Hey, don''t reveal your face!" the tallest reached down and slapped the shortest across the back of his head.


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    "What is this, a comedy act?" Alex asked.


    "Should we not intervene?" Sayed cracked his knuckles.


    "Don''t get caught up with it," Wen said. "We don''t want to get tangled with the Port Authority."


    Erin stayed down next to Mari as the men fought among themselves. The crowd around them pushed and shoved to maximize the distance between themselves and the men, and soon, it was like they were standing in the eye of a storm. Eventually, the men caught on to the change.


    The three men went silent as they began to scan the crowd around them. For a moment, no one spoke, but a faint whisper of mumbling came from the crowd. Erin had to focus just to pick up on what everyone was whispering.


    "Are they stupid?"


    "Don''t get close!"


    "Any second now."


    "What in tarnation are they talking about?" the shortest robber asked.


    "Ha! Ha! Ha!"


    Click.


    Kali snapped another photo, though she pointed her camera to the sky this time.


    A voice rang out from the rooftops, and Erin''s eyes shot up to catch a man in an orange long-sleeved jumpsuit standing on the roof. Beside him were several men dressed in similar suits. All of them wore differently-adorned white masks. Each one looked like it had a silly face scrawled across it with a brush. The central figure''s mask appeared to be two pitted eyes and a large, cackling, sharp-toothed mouth.


    "There is no need to fear, citizens and patrons of Dry Turtle!" the man yelled, his broad chest thrusting out as he stood leaning forward over the street. "For the mighty Cleaners are on the case!"


    Erin gulped as the masked man looked down on the robbers, shading his mask with his hand before resting his hands on his hips. In what might have been an attempt to strike a heroic pose, he again puffed his chest out and held his head high.


    "Three of you have decided to mar the peace of our fair city!" the man yelled. "And three of you will have to pay the price! My ropes of justice shall bind you to your crimes!"


    "What in the abyss is he talking about?"


    "What''s that matter? Shoot him, boys!"


    Bang. Bang. Bang.


    The robbers shot at the man on the roof as he jumped down toward them. Beside him, the other men in orange also jumped, holding their arms close to the bodies as they descended. Bullets flew this way and that, but none seemed to hit their mark. The central man in orange yelled out as he fell, throwing his arms open wide.


    "Rope Trick!"


    Thump.


    Long lengths of white rope shot out from his hands, twirling into spirals as he landed on the ground in front of the men. Erin thought he would stumble, but instead, he caught himself on his hands and knees. When he stood, he pulled his ropes tight, and two of the robbers slammed together at the end of the ropes.


    "He''s got a curse." The final robber dropped his gun, darting toward the crowd as the other orange-suited men landed.


    "Lock Down!"


    Thump. Clink.


    Another orange-jumpsuited man appeared from the crowd, catching the robber with one arm across his chest. The final member of the Port Authority''s arm bent, his orange sleeve turning black as his arm filled and wrapped around the robber''s chest. With one hard shove, the man pushed through the robber''s chest, his arm going through the robber''s back as he completed the swing. A long black bar was left behind, holding the robber''s arms closed as he fell to the ground on his face.


    Thump.


    "No one escapes from the Port Authority!" the newcomer yelled, holding one fist up.


    He was wider than the other members of the Port Authority, and his mask had a large frowning face drawn across it. Where the first man was muscular, the second one was a lot more rotund, though his arms were also unnaturally long. His fists were easily at his knees as he let down his hand and dropped it to his side.


    "Another job done by the Cleaners!" the first man approached the second, and they clapped their hands together.


    Slap.


    Click.


    The crowd erupted into a cheer as the two men congratulated each other, and the other members of the group began to pick up the robbers. In moments, they had carried the robbers down the street and out of sight, the two masked men following after as people cheered after them.


    "That''s why we shouldn''t cause any trouble," Wen said as the crowd returned to its milling motion through the streets. "We don''t have enough luck to survive an encounter with them."


    "You know who they are?"


    "A little." Wen frowned.


    "They made for some great shots," Kali said, resting her camera on its strap. "I just wish I could see how they turned out right now."


    "They''re part of the Port Authority," Wen said. "They''re called the Cleaners, and their job is to hit anyone who violates the peace so fast that they''re swept away before anything worse can happen. You don''t break the peace in Dry Turtle and walk away."


    "You don''t know their names?" Erin asked.


    "I don''t know everything," Wen said, side-eyeing Erin. "I know certain things, but there''s too much for everyone to know everything on Erth. Just don''t go around starting fights, and we won''t have to worry about what they''re called. The best way to survive out here is to keep your head down."


    "Noted," Alex said, his eyes locked down the street in the direction they had gone in. "I''m not planning to start a fight. So long as we don''t run into those slavers again, we should stay out of trouble."


    "But why do they wear the masks?" Sayed asked. "Surely there is a story behind the practice."


    "No idea." Wen shrugged. "If you ever get caught by them, I''m sure you could ask. Or you could ask around town, but I doubt you''d hear the definitive story."


    "Rumors spread far and wide. It takes work to dig into the truth," Kali said, putting her hands in her pockets.


    "Now that sounds like journalism." Wen laughed, shaking her head.


    Grumble.


    Erin''s stomach ached as it reminded her that she needed to eat. Mari looked up at her with wide eyes, but then a quick smile spread across her face. Erin''s ears burned again, but she did her best to ignore it.


    "Alright," Alex said. "Let''s go eat, and we''ll figure out everything else from there. Don''t let me forget to grab something to bring back to Jean."


    "Last time, you forgot to bring one to me," Sayed said, starting toward the restaurant. "I will not let you forget for our brother."


    "Are you still holding a grudge over that?" Alex asked. "That was all the way back on Cragg Hollow, and Erin didn''t get you one either."


    "Erin is not the leader," Sayed said.


    "I wasn''t the leader back then," Alex grumbled. "We just kind of made it up as we went along."


    "But you did make the promise," Sayed said as they continued arguing back and forth.


    Considering the events of the last few hours, let alone the last few days, Erin couldn''t help but smile a little. While they had gotten off on a shaky foot at Dry Turtle, there was at least a chance they could get out of the town in one piece and start their journey toward the core.


    She gripped Mari''s hand tight as she followed after the rest of the group.