The Monster

I am so glad I can copy paste this

          When they docked, Joel left Etho, his first mate, in charge of the ship. To the crew, he gave scheduled times to go to town in the case that they wanted to, and arranged them in groups of two, so that most of them would be on the ship at all times. They also set up an emergency signal to inform the ones still in town if they had to leave quickly, although Joel hoped they didn't have to use it, as it involved a lot of rockets. 

          Beside his captain, Scar was bouncing with energy and excitement. He had donned his old, pointed wizard hat, and had the list of materials on a scroll of paper in his bag.

          Meanwhile, Joel was dressed down to blend into the environment. His captain's outfit had been exchanged for dark brown trousers with a dull green top. There were no feathers for the wind to ruffle on his hat now, as he had exchanged his green shaded captain's hat for Etho's white bandanna.

          As he talked to Etho, Joel's hand went to pat his right hip again to check for the knife there. Swords were reliable, but if his were taken away from him in a deal gone wrong, he would need something else to rely on.

          However, it appeared that Scar had tired of waiting for him, since he grabbed Joel's hand as the captain reached back and yanked him towards the ladder.

          "Joel, the people won't wait around to be scammed!" he cried as he dragged Joel after him. Etho's mask wrinkled to indicate he was smiling at Scar's antics, and Joel raised an eyebrow at him before he tripped over his own feet and had to look to where Scar was going.

          At least when they got to the ladder, Scar released his hand to climb, and Joel took the opportunity to adjust his bandanna to where it actually kept a bit of his overgrown hair back. A tug on his boot and a glare from Scar that said I will pull you down with me had him hurrying to take his hands away from the bandanna and start climbing down the ladder.

          With each step he took down, the ladder swayed, matching the waves lapping at the dock. He kept his eyes watching Scar, making sure he didn't step on the wizard's hands. It wasn't only because it would hurt him that he was so careful. There was this magical substance Scar used sometimes in his experiments that would blow up if it experienced a lot of pressure, and it lingered on his hands. And Joel did not want to get blown up today, thank you.

          A clatter of boots signaled Scar's arrival on the wooden boards of the dock, and he took a few steps forward to clear it for Joel to jump down as well.

          Once he was on the docks, Joel paced forward slowly, taking in the town. Though it was small, they used their space wisely. What could be an alley was taken up by storage units, and the buildings had smaller buildings in succession on top of themselves. They certainly didn't waste any materials, either. While some houses had a clear color scheme, others were infused with fuchsia wood, white streaked shutters, blue doors and entryways, and a hodgepodge of other materials.

          A vendor selling fish shouted from his stand, "Fresh fish, a bundle deal it is!" 

          Joel grimaced. After life as a seaman for so long, fish just reminded him of drinking sea water.

          Looking around for Scar, Joel realized he had disappeared. He must have run off already, but Joel couldn't see him in the crowd, nor could he hear him. Which, considering the business voice that Scar had used earlier while demonstrating how to scam people, if Scar were around, he would have heard the distinct tones of his voice already. So he must be far away already.

           Which was fine. After all, Scar knew his way around, he could get materials himself. It's not as though he reminded Joel of a puppy that needed to be protected. No worry here at all.  And besides, Joel had to go do his own business!