Erin leaned on the counter as she placed her few coins on the wood. The shopkeeper eyed her as she counted the coins, but she already knew she would be short. His beard bristled as she tapped through each coin, and she knew that kindness wouldn''t win the day.


    "I''m a little short." She smiled at the man.


    "That''s a little bit of an understatement." The shopkeeper put his hands inside his robe''s pockets, narrowing his eyes at her as she tapped the counter. "What in the supplies list are you willing to part with then?"


    The problem was that they needed the supplies and also needed to save as much as possible for repairs. She knew how hard it was to supply a ship, even her own small one that had gone back to the People''s Revolution headquarters after it was picked up. Supplying one for six people was an entirely larger undertaking.


    "How about a bulk discount?" Erin asked.


    "Bulk is for supplies in the hundreds," the shopkeeper said, curling his lips. "Not for this meager amount."


    "There has to be something we can work out," Erin said, trying to wink at the man.


    "If I gave away supplies for free, I wouldn''t have a shop for long," the shopkeeper said.


    "Oof."


    Crack.


    Mari, who had been working her way through the shelves in the small shop, fell, knocking over something that sounded incredibly expensive. Erin winced, afraid to look over and see what the automaton had broken. Beside her on the ground was a shattered blue and white vase. The remains of a green stalk with a few green leaves lay on the ground in the dirt.


    She didn''t recognize the plant, but she focused on making sure Mari was alright. She pulled Mari up from the ground by her arm and held onto her hand. She couldn''t afford any more mistakes. The shopkeeper came around the corner, his robe flowing behind him as he knelt by the plant.


    "That was my nicotiana plant. It''s one of a kind!" he said as he ran his hand over the green leaves. "Just one alone costs a fortune!"


    Erin bit back a curse as he scooped up the plant, the glass forgotten as he rushed back behind the counter. He mumbled to himself the entire way, and Erin picked up on a few of his words as he pulled out another pot and attempted to replant the green stalk.


    "You''ll have to pay for damages, of course," he whispered as he tried to shove the roots into a new pot. "It will be very expensive. This plant is a rare procurement from a mysterious island. I''d never seen anything like it before. It is one-of-a-kind."


    He emphasized the last few words, but Erin wasn''t worried. In those words, she saw an opportunity. Her curse was the power to control growth in living things, and the plant was rare. She stood up, taking Mari back to the counter as she leaned over it.


    "Excuse me," she said, keeping her voice low.


    "What do you want now?" The man turned on her, holding the limp plant in a new pot.


    "I have an offer," she said as she extended her hand.


    She opened her gate, giving into the power of growth that rested inside her. Energy twined through her body like long roots, growing across her arms and legs as she tapped into her gate. Her hand began to glow green as she held it toward the plant and willed it to grow.


    The nicotiana plant''s stalk grew longer out of its new pot as its leaves expanded wider. The plant nearly reached the ceiling in moments, with several new growths sprouting off it. The merchant gasped, glancing between her hand and the plant.


    "You''re cursed," he whispered.


    "I am," Erin said.


    "You made the plant grow!"


    "I did." Erin nodded.


    "I bought this plant from a traveling trader, and he said there were so few of it. I could create my own supply if I could make more of them. I could make my own empire selling the plants. I thought cultivation of it would take forever, so I had just thought to sell it outright."


    "Now, you don''t have to," Erin said, eyeing him. "How much would a few extra pots of that plant be worth to you? Enough for our supplies? Enough to ignore your broken pot?"


    The merchant looked back to the floor, where the broken pot still lay with scattered dirt. When he returned his gaze to her, he had a smirk on his face. Erin returned the smile. Now, she had something that she could work with.


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    "I will give you the supplies for free and ignore the cost of the pot if you grow me at least five pots," he said.


    "Pull out five seeds and put them in their own pots," Erin said. "I''ll give you five in exchange for the supplies. I need them delivered as well."


    "Gladly, for my new favorite customer." The merchant smiled, digging around for more pots and soil.


    Erin smiled. She gripped Mari''s hand a little tighter and glanced down at her. Mari had just given Erin the leverage she needed but looked none the wiser. Erin sometimes wondered how much Mari knew when she did things. Had she guessed that breaking the plant would lead to the conversation, or did she really break it by accident? Erin didn''t know.


    "Alright!" the merchant returned with his pots, each filled to the brim with newly scooped dirt. "Let''s get to work!"


    Ding.


    As Erin raised her hand, someone came through the door behind her. She was so focused on working with her curse that she didn''t notice the large looming shadow until it had completely covered her. By then, it was too late.


    "I thought I recognized you, ''Thorn Queen.''"


    Sayed sat outside on a patio about a building away from where Erin had entered, his eyes roving the streets as he waited for Erin to return. His gate remained open as he imbued the box in his hands with the heat of his blessing to keep it warm.


    "I do not see why I could not be inside," he said as he looked down at the wooden box. "I promised I would not break anything, did I not?"


    However, God commanded all to be patient, even in the most trying times, so Sayed would be patient. He would wait for Erin to return, and they would take the meal back to Jean on the Nighthawk together. That was his lot in life.


    As he waited for a long time, he began to get used to the pace of the street. People would walk by, avoiding eye contact with him as they went about their day. Very few would greet each other. Most kept their eyes down as they went on their way.


    It was very unlike Hajh. In Hajh, people would greet each other in the street like they were brothers because, in reality, they were all brothers. Everyone who lived in Hajh was part of it, and everyone knew that meant being kind first and foremost. Even the smallest and weakest deserved the kindness of a greeting.


    Sayed sighed, keeping his hands on his box.


    He was a stranger in a strange land, bereft of a home that he missed dearly. Though he would never bring himself to say it to the others, there were days when he wished his adventure was over and that he could retire to rest at home in Hajh. Chances were he would never make it back, but that did not mean he would not dream of returning to that place on lonely nights.


    "But that is not the way to live one''s life," Sayed whispered. "One should live looking forward, not looking back. If I cannot have Hajh as it was, I will make this world more like my home."


    He looked up and caught the eye of a woman walking down the street. She wore dark black robes and had a lot of jewelry on her neck. She was an older woman with short, curly white hair that dominated her features. Sayed smiled at her, showing his teeth with the ferocity of his joy.


    "Hello!" he said.


    She looked at him for one harrowing moment before turning and running away as fast as she could.


    "Well." Sayed shook his head, standing up with the box in hand as he watched her push through the crowd to escape him. "You cannot say I did not try."


    "Stop!"


    A yell in the street caught Sayed''s attention further down the road, where Erin had gone into the shop. A large man, Sayed thought he recognized, burst through the door, carrying something in his arms as he ran down the street, along with a large black rounded object. Sayed looked past him as a second man came out of his shop, waving his arms.


    "I need her! My plants!"


    He fell to the ground, crying as he buried his hands in his face. Sayed was not one to leave a man lying in the street crying. He made his way over to the man, bending down to check on him. The man didn''t react as Sayed loomed over from behind, but Sayed held the box with one hand to tap him on the shoulder.


    "What is wrong, my friend," Sayed said. "Tell me what has happened."


    "He took her." The man sobbed. "That woman would have made me a fortune for just a few supplies!"


    Sayed had no idea what was going on, and as he looked up the man who had run was already gone. A second figure approached from the shadows of the story, and Sayed recognized Mari''s red hooded cloak. Sayed smiled, walking over to her as he held the box steady.


    "What has happened, Mari?" he asked. "Where is Erin?"


    "That man took her." Mari pointed down the street.


    Sayed frowned, looking toward where the man had run. He paused, putting the pieces together and making decisions very quickly. Of course, he would chase the man, but two other problems needed to be dealt with in the meantime. He handed the box to Mari.


    "Hold onto this," he said, turning away to talk to the man in the street. "Hello, may I speak with you?"


    "What?" the merchant looked up, tears streaming down his eyes.


    "That woman was my friend," Sayed said, kneeling beside him. "I will go and get her, but there is something else. Will you watch over Mari for me while I find her. I cannot carry Mari around while I am chasing after him."


    "I," the merchant said, pausing as he took Sayed in. "Yes, I will watch over the child while you find the woman."


    "Second, and this is most important. You said she made a deal with you for supplies?"


    "She did."


    Sayed nodded. "If you honor that deal in advance, we will stick to it. Our ship is in great need of supplies, and you have my word as ''Sword Saint'' Sayed that I will ensure we fulfill the deal she made."


    The man looked between Sayed and Mari for a moment like he was at a loss for words. Finally, he pulled himself together.


    "I''ll do more than honor it. I''ll send your ship a month''s worth of supplies!"


    Sayed stood, not wanting to waste more time. He started in the direction the man had run, dodging through the people around him to follow the kidnapper. He knew Erin was strong and that she could look after herself, but if she had been taken by surprise, well, even he could be taken by surprise, and he was strong.


    The biggest problem was he recognized the man who had taken her. Though he had only seen the large man''s back, he was sure it was the same person. They met on the shuttle from the repair docks to Dry Turtle proper earlier that day. It was Roy, one of the slavers, who had taken Erin.


    Sayed could not let him get away.