Charles didn't know how long he had been standing there. Just as he'd almost lost all feeling in his legs, he saw the Mud Man move.
It stood before the Rope People's large net, bellowing, "OOH! HAH!"
The Rope People started moving too. Taking advantage of the humans' blinks, they released the tied-up crew, went into the nearby graveyard, and began to rebury the dirt Charles and his team had just dug up. The small Mud Man followed to help.
The crisis was over. The Rope People completely ignored Charles and the others.
The crew exchanged odd glances and slowly put away their weapons.
No one needed an explanation; they all understood that the Rope People had just saved them.
"Tuba," Charles called his navigator.
"I'm here," Tuba, a newly sprouted tuft of white hair on his head, hopped cheerfully in front of him.
Charles stared at the old madman, his expression complex. The man's mind was unreliable, and Charles was no longer sure if he should listen to the lunatic.
