“Sure is a nice day, huh?”

Jake and Reyna were off the ship that day, heading into town for a quick break from the clean, surgical aesthetics of the Fenton. The engine problem was going to take a few weeks, so the crew was allowed some time off. They were docked in Faratora, a desert planet in Federation space. It was initially uninhabited by any sapients until humans decided that it would be a good outpost for their military. Other species soon followed and developed a large merchant city where Reyna and Jake were headed.

“Yeah, it’s not too hot either,” Reyna replied. She was dressed in a tan t-shirt and matching shorts, the clean look disturbed only by a dog tag around her neck. Only a pair of aviators protected her from the sun.

“Do you know anything to do around here?” Jake usually didn’t go farther than the docks when they arrive at a planet or station. He was dressed similarly to Reyna, but was wearing pants instead. He also had flip flops on, while she opted for her boots.

“Nope, but it’ll be fun to look around!” She grabbed his hand and dragged him down the street.

There was a lot to see. On their left were rows of houses and apartments. Each side street was completely straight and revealed countless more residences. People of all species lived there. In a blue house, a human mother was watching over her children playing with the clood kids next door. Another clood family was standing on their front yard getting ready to head out somewhere, all dressed to the nines. A pair of farakohs, a bird-like species, were preening themselves on their porch as they people-watched.

On the other side of the street were the businesses. A bodega at the corner was packed with people all suspiciously speaking in a New York accent. A restaurant stood next to it, with an outdoor patio that spilled onto the street. Only one table was seated, a couple who were enjoying a shared meal. Farther down, they encountered a bar called The Dick Ranger. Reyna and Jake both laughed at it.

Finally, they arrived at what looked like an outdoor market of some sort. Colorful tarps and tents lined the street, bringing shade to the merchants and their customers. They walked up to a produce stand, where terran tomatoes, onions, and apples were sold. Jake pulled out his wallet and bought a couple apples for the two to munch on while they looked around more. Just across the street was a busy stand where a crowd had gathered. They went to take a look but it was hard to see over the alien species who had about 20cm over the two humans. Eventually, they pushed and shoved people and made it to the front.

“Oh, I’m so sorry! It was actually this cup!” A clood was sitting in the middle of the crowd at a makeshift table. He was lifting a cup to show a holographic ball, presumably the object that the plaun sitting across from him was trying to find. The plaun was irate, saying some naughty words in their native language as they walked away. The clood was still grinning really hard.

“Ah there’s always next time!” He called to the swindled. Turning to the crowd, he asked, “Who wants to try their luck next? Ten people have tried today, and ten people have not found the ball. Maybe you’ll be the one!” Standing up, he pointed at Reyna. “How about you, you lovely human lady? How about a shot at some great fortune?”

Reyna took a step back and raised her hands defensively. She was already uncomfortable with the situation. “No thanks, I’m…”

“I can tell you’re really smart! I think you got the knack for this!” The clood had made his way next to her and put his arms around her shoulders. He was practically pushing Reyna to the table.

“No, I don’t…”

“Alright, now let’s give a round of applause for our friend here!” The crowd started cheering. “How about a 5 credit bet, does that sound alright?” he said, putting down some money on the table.

She patted her back pockets. “Hey wait, that’s my wallet!” The clood raised his hand, holding a black leather wallet with her name on it. He smiled.

The crowd was getting more and more rowdy. Reyna looked back and saw everyone with their fists up in the air hooting and hollering. Some were holding mugs of some suspicious liquid, perhaps exacerbating the situation somewhat. Jake offered a look of sympathy to her but made no moves to save her from the situation.

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Reyna sighed, and turned back to face the clood. He was grinning wide, which was more impressive since clood faces are one of the biggest of all known sapients. He lifted up the cups.

“Alright, in one of these cups is the ball…”

“Which is holographic, and cheating.” Reyna interjected.

“It’s just for economical purposes!” He responded, clearly having rehearsed the response. “Basically, the goal is to find the ball! If you win, you get twice your money back. Otherwise, I keep it. Simple enough?”

Reyna sighed. “Yeah, whatever. It’s just five credits.”

The clood smiled again, and placed a cup over the holographic ball in the middle. After placing all three cups down, he started to move them around. It was insultingly slow, as if he was trying to ensure that even a kid would be able to follow his movements. The cup in the middle was swapped with the one on the left, then moved across the table and weaved around. Reyna followed it to its final resting place on the left.

“Where’s the ball?” The clood asked.

“It’s on the left.” She said matter-of-factly.

“Ooooooo, sorry!” He picked up the left cup, but of course it was empty. He picked up all three, showing that the hologram was in the middle.

Reyna wasn’t too upset about losing the money, but she thought about how the clood was going to continue to scam other people. It made her a little mad. She stared at the hologram and got an idea.

“Okay, how about another?” Reyna asked.

“Sure! Double or nothing!”

“Just one thing.” She picked up a rock from the ground and placed it in front of the clood. “You have to use this rock this time.”

His eyes opened wide in surprise. It must’ve been the first time that someone dared challenge him to use a physical rock. Which, considering the ten different people that he saw today and the countless others on previous ones, was surprising to Reyna.

He cleared his throat. “Ahem, alrighty then, that’s no problem for the great Frodd!” He snatched the rock from the table and placed it under the middle cup. He began his dance again, this time with more vigor and speed. As soon as he finished, Reyna put her hand on his left.

“It’s this one.”

Frodd stared at Reyna, then clicked his tongue. He sucked in through his teeth and tilted his head. “Sorry, my human friend. That’s not the right one.”

He tried to be sly about his movements, but Reyna was too quick for him. The clood quickly flicked his wrist towards him, throwing the rock towards him with the cup. Right after, he showed her the empty cup. Despite all the gasps from the crowd, she knew better.

“Hey! I saw that!” She yelled, pointing at him.

“What do you mean?” He asked, feigning ignorance.

“You know what you did. You flicked the rock towards you so it looked like it disappeared!”

Another gasp from the crowd. It felt like a movie with all these reactions.

Frodd sat there for a while, staring at her. His eyebrows were crossed and his hands were clenching the table. Then, he snatched the money on the table and bolted.

Reyna was slow to stand up, but Jake was already on it. He threw his half-eaten apple at the clood, stunning him for a split second. It was all he needed. He took two steps, then dove, wrapping his arms around the scammer’s waist. They both went down hard. Out of Frodd’s pockets came a bunch of money, the credits that he swindled from other people. Reyna’s black wallet fell out as well, which she walked over and picked up.

Jake was kneeling on Frodd, whispering close to his ear. “Don’t think about doing that again, alright? I won’t be so nice next time.”

Reyna scoffed. Doing the tough guy routine again. It was never cool when he did that, but Jake wouldn’t listen to her. Both he and Frodd stood up and stared at each other. The clood was the first to blink and ran off, sans cash. A couple people, who Reyna assumed had gotten scammed before her, had come to pick up some of the credits on the ground. Waiting a minute to see if anyone else would claim their money, Jake grabbed the rest and pocketed it. The crowd had disappeared.

Reyna walked up to Jake. “Wait until our CO hears that you threatened a civilian.”

“I’d say it was more of a suggestion.”

“And took his money.” Reyna crossed her arms in mock disappointment.

“What do you mean?” Jake was grinning with his hands behind his back. Reyna couldn’t see behind him, but she could guess what he was holding. “By using something like a holographic ball, he was misleading his customers, a fineable offense. I’m merely enforcing the law here.”

They both laughed. Jake did have a guilty look on his face, but Reyna knew the money would’ve blown in the wind or ended up in the dirt.

“Come on, let’s go buy some candy.”