Fog-covered streets made it nearly impossible to navigate the town. In the night, there didn't seem to be anyone walking the street at all either. Erin looked up at the sky but couldn't see a single star or even the moon through the thick cloud bank.

The city's homes and buildings stretched down in lines for each street, all of them leading toward the coast and what she assumed to be the port. The doors for every home and business were shut, and the windows were shuttered. Only a few had a faint orange light in their windows that glowed out into the night.

"For a place this size, I'd imagine that there would be at least a few people out in the street," Alex said.

"We are on the outskirts," Erin whispered, her eyes roving between the buildings.

The fog was like a close blanket around them. They could only see a few meters away down the cobblestone streets. Shapes of every variety filled the fog, but the entire town was eerily silent.

"The taverns might still be active, and they'll be closer to the docks," Alex said. "What kind of outpost is here anyways?"

"Listen," Sayed interrupted, holding up a finger to his lips. "Something is out there."

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.

A shadow darted through the fog cloud before disappearing down the two long shadows of an alleyway's entrance. A shiver ran down Erin's spine. She didn't like not being able to see what was around her.

"I didn't sense anything from that," Alex whispered, looking over to Erin with a raised eyebrow.

"Let's just get down to the docks," Erin said a little too quickly. "We'll figure out everything else from there."

"Lead the way, then," Alex said. "Keep an eye on our backs, Sayed. I'll watch the front. I don't like anything about this."

"Understood, brother," Sayed said, drawing his gauntlet from his belt and strapping it to his hand.

Erin hoped it wouldn't be necessary, but everything about the fog was digging into her gut. She put her hand on the black dagger on her belt. Was there a reason that everyone the revolution had sent to Cragg Hollow disappeared? Every time the revolution tried to implant a spy in the area, they just disappeared.

Aroo!

Erin quickened her pace down the road. She chanced a look back and saw Alex moving after her, his eyes searching all around him and his fists clenched. Sayed turned every few steps to check behind them before rushing to catch up. She was glad she wasn't the only one who felt like the entire situation was off.

Lamplight began to appear in the fog as they approached the coast and, presumably, the docks. They rose as shining beacons in the night, their lights barely pushing away the fog in a radius around them. However, there was still not a single person on the streets.

"Wait." Alex grabbed Erin's shoulder, and she slowed. "There's something weird ahead."

Pant. Pant. Pant.

A shadowy, four-legged creature stood out in the fog, panting as it stood before them. At first, Erin thought it was a wolf, but it was too big to be one. It was almost as tall as Erin was, and that was on all fours.

"That is no normal creature," Sayed said, drawing his sword from his back.

"Agree on that," Alex said, drawing a coin from his pocket and holding it in his fingers.

Aroo!

The wolf-like creature howled and tore off into the fog, jumping twice before it was up above and over the roofs of the houses around them. It hadn't been there for a fight, but Erin couldn't even begin to guess why it was out in the fog.

"What's its game?" Alex whispered, walking forward into the fog. "Erin, get in the middle, be ready to respond. Sayed, keep an eye out behind. Let's keep going."

Shuffle. Scratch.

Several times as they walked down the road, something moved in the fog around them. Every time, it didn't rush into sight or attack them. It merely remained on the periphery, never coming through the mist and into plain sight.

"I would say it was playing with us, but I don't get it," Alex said as they approached a set of brighter lights in the distance.

They peeled back the fog as they walked into the radius of their light. Sound seemed to burst out from the fog as it was dispersed by that light. A low horn played from a man in the street, his body dressed in a festive garb of many colors inlaid and stitched together with a feathered cap on his head.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Several people stood around him on the corner, clapping their hands together as he played. A child ran through the night between the lights, laughing a chilling laugh as he disappeared into the shadows.

It was like they had walked into an oasis in the night.

"What the hell?" Alex whispered as Erin stopped next to him, looking over his shoulder.

"What in sha-om?" Erin repeated the feeling as she looked over the people.

"In the name of God, what is this?" Sayed said the same, much louder.

Everyone in the crowd was dressed in similar bright colors, stitched in patterns across their shirts and pants. Women wore dresses of similar style, stitched with bright colors in patches across their clothes. However, that wasn't what was unusual. Everyone in the crowd wore a white porcelain mask that hid their entire face, with a forced grin on each, both in the mouth and the eyes.

"Every one of them," Alex said, looking between each crowd member.

"I don't like this at all," Erin whispered. "Look at their skin."

She had noticed that each person's skin was dry and cracked around the mask. Wrinkles ran down their necks and beneath their clothes. She had never seen anything like it, even in her days back in the Coven on Erys.

"We'll come back for it," Alex said, nodding toward the water at the edge of the crowd. "Looks like we found the boardwalk. The docks can't be that far off."

Erin pulled her hood tight over her head as they walked together into the crowd. She could feel the smiling eyes of the masks watching her as the people of Cragg Hollow went about their activities. None of them said a word as the trio skirted past them. They merely continued to clap to the sound of the horn as the masked blower played his tune.

"This cursed fog," Sayed said as they made their way down the boardwalk. "How do these people see at night?"

"They don't seem to go out into the outskirts," Alex said, tapping his chin as he walked in front of them. "And whatever that thing was in the fog, it hasn't come out since we got close to the water."

"Mysterious," Sayed said in his deep, booming voice. "A great beginning to a mysterious tale."

"Look over there," Erin said, pointing down the boardwalk.

Several ships sat in the docks ahead of them. Most were just regular ships, used in local fishing to provide the city with food, Erin had no doubt. However, there was one ship that didn't match the rest.

Instead of a wooden construction, it was grey and made from metal. Instead of massive light sails across its length, there were smaller ones that stuck out from its back to gather the light. Six massive lodestones ran the length of the ship, three to each side, but they didn't seem to be active because the ship merely floated in the water of the dock.

Beside it was a wrecked ship, held to the docks by several ropes as men in red and black uniforms worked it over. Erin didn't need to look twice to know who they were. Military Police. She resisted the urge to duck down a nearby alley to avoid being seen.

"That's it then," Alex said, nodding to the ship. "You think that ship was the one carrying the logbook?"

"It was attacked." Sayed squinted. "You can see a hole with burn marks around it on its hole."

"No one just attacks Empyrean vessels," Erin said, shaking her head. "The retaliation makes it suicide."

"You said that logbook was valuable, though," Alex said, looking back at her. "Maybe valuable enough to risk that."

Erin didn't like this entire situation. She was out, essentially on her own, and the thing she had been sent to take back could be less than fifty meters away from her. The only thing stopping her from getting it was the Military Police, who manned the larger ship. She needed a plan. She needed leverage, and she knew she didn't have a lot of time.

"We don't know they have the logbook," she said.

"But we can assume they do." Alex raised a finger. "It's a gamble. The question is what we can do to up our odds."

"Can we simply rush the guard there now, search the hold, and take the logbook if it is there?" Sayed asked.

"Outposts will have a captain and a lieutenant, at least." Erin shook her head. "They also have all the men needed to operate that ship, so a small regiment. You two are strong, but I don't think you're that strong."

"Hey, the three of us are strong." Alex laughed. "But you might be right. I've never faced off with a captain or lieutenant before."

Erin didn't outwardly disagree, but she wasn't one for combat. She didn't know how well she would do if it weren't a simple in-and-out mission. Her abilities just never felt good for offense.

"So, what do we do?" she asked, looking at Alex. "You're the one that always has a plan."

"Two thoughts," Alex said. "I don't think we're in danger of them moving anything anytime soon. That ship is powered down, and I don't see any way they could get that book out of here fast if it is here. I think we can assume it will be here for a while."

He paused, and he looked back the way they had come.

"Second thought, I don't like whatever is up with this town. Those masks are something we should look into. It might be a curse, or it might be something else. It might even have to do with why the Military Police are here."

"So, what's the plan?" Erin asked again.

"We split up," Alex said. "Sayed keeps watch on the ship because he sticks out. No offense, buddy."

"None taken, brother." Sayed laughed. "But I must say that doesn't sound like an act worthy of a grand tale."

"I think that part will come later." Alex shook his head with a smile. "Don't count out a fight yet. While you watch the ship, keep an eye out for anyone who looks different or is acting strange. While you're doing that, we'll check out the townspeople and ask some questions. We might even be able to ask the guards a few questions if we can find them in a tavern in town. Catch them off guard."

"I have one request if I am to do this," Sayed said, a frown curving his beard as he looked down at Alex. "I request that you bring me some food from the tavern for the night. Even now, I feel it has been too long since we have eaten."

"Before the end of the night," Alex promised, crossing his heart with a finger.

"We'll meet back here then?" Erin asked as she looked back in the fog.

"Yeah." Alex nodded. "Don't take any risks you don't need to. We'll meet back here in a few hours to compare notes. Then we can figure out what we want to do."

All in all, Erin thought it was a solid enough plan. There were sure to be holes in it, but there were limits to what they could do if they didn't want to cause havoc near the ships. She nodded and turned to walk back toward the crowd of people they left behind, and she could hear Alex following after her after he said goodbye to Sayed.

They had limited time and a lot of work to do, but Erin was ready to get started.