Now, Michigan

“You and your wife—”

“We’re not legally married. I’d say common-law, but does that even exist anymore?”

“Er… yeah, maybe, maybe not, but anyways. You and your… partner… just travel the land solving problems?”

“Trying.”

“In your flying RV…”

“It was in the sky,” Cal agreed.

Sadiiq regarded the man seated on the other side of the desk.

Cal stared back mildly.

“Seems like that’d be a good cover if you wanted to do bad things. For all I know you’re one of those cannibals. Sweep into town. Eat a few people while pretending to search for the perpetrators. Bounce when people start to figure it out.”

“Then it’s pretty brave of you to be alone with me in here,” Cal said flatly.

He shrugged. “I’ve got guys one shout away. You try anything and you’ll be hit with so many bullets, arrows and spells.”

“For the record, you’ve got nothing to worry about from me. You seem like a good guy. No abuses of power from what I can tell.”

“You’ve been checking our city out?” he narrowed his eyes.

“A cursory examination. You can’t fault me for wanting to know what I’m getting into. It’s nice to find a community that is generally good to everyone in it regardless of differences. It’s sad that’s not the norm these days.”

“Like it was the norm back in the old days,” he snorted. “Regardless, it’s hard for me to believe that you’re some kind of knight errant wandering the land looking to do good deeds and slay evil.”

“Not quite so romantic, but close enough.”

“Eh, so why here?”

“I’m on the trail of some really bad people.”

“You going to specify? Cause we haven’t had any problems like that.” Sadiiq stifled the urge to swallow the lump in his throat. He was and had never been a good liar.

“No missing people? Robed cultists? An impossibly tall humanoid?”

Sadiiq blinked and cursed. “Are you shitting me?” he scowled.

“Absolutely not,” Cal said.

Sincerity oozed out of the man.

Sadiiq wanted to discount it but couldn’t. “There’s been an uptick in deaths from monsters or mutant animals in the last few months. You can investigate it if you want, but understand we aren’t paying you or owe you anything. It’s tragic but people are just being careless. They shouldn’t be out after sundown anyways. We do our best to patrol, but our fighters can’t be everywhere all the time.”

“How are you sure that monsters or mutants are the cause?”

“We find people in alleys or in parks all cut up. What else could it be?”

“I’m a little surprised that you aren’t more concerned about this.”

“Oh no,” he shook his head. “We are very concerned, but…” he sighed, “one body every few weeks isn’t that bad compared to how it used to be, so…” he shrugged.

Cal regarded him with a flat expression.

Somehow, he knew that he was being judged.

“We’ve increased patrols around the housing area,” he said a touch defensively.

“Must be difficult juggling that with that carnival thing you’re setting up.”

“Yeah, well… it’s important. First bit of fun and maybe normalcy we’re going to have in over a decade. We’ve worked hard to clear the city and the surrounding area of the worst things. Thought we were finally getting some time to breathe, until the killings started.”

“What about the lake?”

“Minus the lake,” he amended, “can’t really dive down to kill the stuff in there. We learned our lesson when a giant fish overturned a thirty-foot boat and ate everyone on board. We keep our distance from the lake. You can fish the streams though. Nothing too big in those.”

“Well, in that case, I think we can be helpful to you. We’ll look into these killings and it won’t even cost you anything, aside from some cooperation.”

“Wait a second. What was that about a cult?”

Cal told him the long story.

A fucking torture elf of all things.

“God damn it. Of course the elves are bad guys. Why can’t it ever be something good and friendly?”

“The spires promote conflict,” Cal said.

The man spoke with the matter of fact tone that one used when describing the weather.

Sadiiq nodded along.

It made sense and he had conversations with others over the years that speculated the same.

“We haven’t seen a Vitiator or cultists. Although, I don’t think they’d be stupid enough to announce themselves by walking around in robes or walking around at all in regards to the elf. Plus, we haven’t had any missing people. We find everyone. The only problem is we find them dead and sliced up.”

“Then you won’t mind if we do some looking around?”

“Sure, but to be clear, we don’t owe you anything.”

“Agreed,” Cal said. “I’d like to start with what you’ve already discovered in your investigation. May I speak to the people you have conducting said investigation.”

“Yeah, that’s fine. Just… uh… Well, I don’t know what your background is, but if you’re expecting like police detectives… um… we don’t have that here. The cops were assholes back when the spires showed up. They decided to embrace the whole thin blue line thing and take off the masks. It was them standing on the line and everyone else could go fuck themselves. They openly became the gang they always pretended they weren’t.”

“I remember a similar experience,” Cal nodded sympathetically.

“Eh, it didn’t last long. There were dark times, but the gangs killed each other, then the monsters killed the gangs. We survivors managed to keep our heads down long enough to pick up the pieces and get strong enough to become what we are today.”

“That is commendable.”

“Anyways, what I’m trying to say is that our investigative team isn’t what you’d call traditional,” he sighed.

“That won’t be a problem,” Cal smiled.

“Okay, just warning you. I’ll have my assistant, Bailey, take you to them.”

“Great. The quicker we can get started the sooner we can stop the killings.”

The not-Mayor’s assistant was a young man. Bailey was his name. He was the smiling gregarious sort. Genuinely so. Which was good as far as Cal was concerned. It might be an over-exaggeration but there was nothing worse than a fake.

“Er… sorry,” Bailey shrugged as he led Cal into a mostly empty office building. “This is sorta like our police station, but not, cause we don’t have that anymore. We’ve been trying to come up with a better name, but no one can agree on it. I personally like Protectors. Some people like Guardians, but that’s too video game-y, you know?”

“The former sounds like something out of a comic book,” he replied.

“I know, right?” Bailey grinned.

“So? I take it there are usually more people in here?” he regarded the perplexed look on the young woman manning the front counter.

The open concept floor space was filled with empty desks. Not empty in the sense that they were vacant. There was plenty of evidence that people used them.

“Yeah… let me find out what’s going on.” Bailey rushed to the young woman while Cal waited near the front door.

He listened in with ease despite the hushed tones.

“Hi, Charlotte… where is everybody?” Bailey said.

“Um… you didn’t hear,” she sighed. “They never do what they’re supposed to do and then I get in trouble. But, if I do it then I also get in trouble. They found another body.”

Bailey gasped.

“I know… it’s getting scary. Holly had one of her vision things,” Charlotte scribbled something on a piece of paper, “here’s the address. Everyone’s over there right now.”

“Thanks. Can you call the Mayor and let him know? I have to take that guy over there.”

Charlotte leaned her head to one side to look at Cal. He gave her a smile and a wave which she returned with a slight blush.

“Who is he?” she whispered back to Bailey.

“I don’t know. Has a flying RV. Mayor said he’s going to try to help,” Bailey shrugged.

Charlotte’s eyes grew wide like saucers. “Flying—”

“I know. I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t seen it myself. Anyways, thanks. We’ve got to go,” Bailey waved goodbye.

“Problem?” Cal said as the young man approached.

“Yeah, there’s been another killing.” Bailey’s thoughts were a turbulent mess of uncertainty dominated by the fear that this victim might be someone he knew, which was likely considering the relatively small size of the community. One might not know everyone directly but it was likely that the degrees of separation were a lot smaller than six.

He pulled the door open and ushered the taller young man through. “Let’s not waste time then. Tell me where we need to go.”

“Huh? Oh my god!” Bailey yelped as they floated into the sky.

Less than a minute to cover a handful of miles.

“Sorry about that,” he said.

Bailey had screwed his eyes tight and screamed for much of the quick flight.

“I should’ve warned you.”

“No no… that’s okay,” Bailey collapsed to his knees as soon as Cal lowered him to the sidewalk. “You were right. Saved time. Just— give me a second.”

To his credit the young man rallied after only a handful of deep breaths.

“This way,” Bailey led him toward a dance studio of all things.

He reached out with his mind.

There was a good chance that the murder site held the imprint of the act. Both murderer and victim. Violence tended to leave strong memories… or not. He had seen it work both ways. To date he hadn’t figured out the why.

What he wasn’t expecting was to find something like a blank spot in the dance studio.

He sensed the handful of people investigating the body. A light touch on their thoughts cleared them as suspects. They were all a mixture of anger, worry and disgust at what they were looking at.

The sight of which assaulted him as soon as he reached the large floor to ceiling window frontage.

Kimberley was the middle-aged woman’s name.

She was naked. Posed in a mockery of a graceful dance through the use of ropes tied to the ceiling. There was nothing artful about the way her head lolled, nor the dozens of bloody slices covering her.

“Oh—”

Bailey was immediately sick all over the sidewalk.

“You can stay out here,” he patted the young man on the back.

He scanned the studio again.

No imprinted memories.

However, the absence of such was different from what he had experienced before.

There was a deliberate feel to it. As if someone or something had draped a curtain over everything and was holding it down even as he tried to peek underneath.

He opened the door to be greeted by pointed weapons and hands.

“Who the hell are you?” an Asian man regarded him coolly.

The man was built like a wrestler. Thick-necked, muscular, even moreso than Cal. The cauliflower ears were a dead giveaway that the man practiced. Unlike Cal, who had last done so back in high school.

He smiled and extended a hand. “My name is Cal and I’m here to help. Just talked to Sadiiq. Bailey can give you confirmation once he’s done—” he tipped his head toward the window where Bailey threw a quick thumbs up before continuing to throw up his breakfast.

“I’m Min. I lead the combat elements here.”

The man took Cal’s hand and bore down.

He returned the strength exactly. Not one bit weaker or stronger.

The man had an enhanced strength passive.

“Well… I’m assuming you’ve got some kind of law enforcement background if Sadiiq thought you could help… so do your thing,” Min said.

The man didn’t bother to introduce the handful of people standing around the body and the pool of dried blood on the floor.

Truth be told, Cal had been counting on getting everything he needed to know from the psychic imprint. Without it he was going to rely on what he had learned from the occasional episode of Law and Order from over two decades ago. It was a terrible idea.

He regarded the body— no… that wasn’t right.

Kimberley.

The woman had a name.

“I’m assuming you didn’t touch her.”

“No shit, Sherlock,” a young-looking woman eyed him with crossed arms and a scowl. Her mail vest left her muscled upper arms bare.

A fighter type.

He forced himself to look at the slashes on Kimberley’s body as he circled around to her back giving the blood pool a wide berth. He had seen the damage claws did. Had experienced them on his own body over the years. He reviewed those memories in perfect detail in the span between seconds. It wasn’t a pleasant thing.

“Not claws,” he said.

The others remained silent.

“It was a straight blade or two,” he eyed a puncture wound in Kimberley’s lower back. There was a handful of similar ones in her stomach. “Stabbed to murder. Most of the others were done after.” He tracked the bloody footprints that led into the back of the studio. “This place has showers?”

“She was obviously coming out of the showers when she was attacked,” the young woman snorted.

“Who claimed this building?”

“Kimberley did,” Min gestured toward the woman.

“How powerful was she?”

Min looked like he was chewing on a lemon for a long moment. “Level 32 Mage and a handful in Dancer. She’s in the top tier here. There aren’t any monsters or mutant animals that can breach her ownership. Something strong enough would just attack. It wouldn’t do all… this,” he thrust a finger toward Kimberley.

“The situation isn’t static. We can’t assume that.”

“You said it was a knife?” a chubby, black-haired man with a styled undercut said.

“I’m not a forensic expert,” he admitted, “but I’ve seen many wounds done by claws, teeth and blades. These look more like the latter.”

“How’d you miss that, Nando? You’ve got the class,” the young woman glared at the third man.

The young man, Nando, sighed. “Cause I just got it, like, a month ago. Plus, it’s only a student and Level 1.”

“Quiet!” Min snapped.

“Opsec,” Cal nodded sympathetically. “Someone, I guess that’ll be you,” he nodded at Nando, “will need to examine the wounds. You can determine the nature of the weapon used.”

“Why? You already said it was a blade, knife, whatever. It’s all the same,” Nando said.

“No it isn’t,” Min said. “Do you need to do anything else? She’s been up like that for too long,” his face twisted.

“Yeah, go ahead. I’ll check out the rest of this place while you take care of her,” he said.

They hastily cut Kimberley’s body free and quickly carried her to the truck parked out front.

The pain writ in their expressions and body language conveyed the depths of their emotions. They had known and liked Kimberley. He didn’t need to scan their thoughts to see that.

He found more blood in the connecting hallway and in the showers, but nothing else that led him to even an inkling of an answer.

Bailey waited for him out front when he emerged a few minutes later.

The young man was ashen.

“They went ahead?”

“They’re taking Kimbe— the body to the grocery store. The morgue’s downtown and that’s a no go. Too close to the water,” Bailey said. “Min wants you back at the office.”

“I do need to talk to him.”

“Can we… walk? I mean, cause they have to drive to the store first and get it— her situated. I figure the timing will work if we walk.”

“Sure.”

Fifteen minutes later, Cal sat across from Min’s flint-eyed stare.

“You know the mechanics of claimed structures,” Min said.

He nodded.

“Then you’re seeing my people as suspects.”

“Why wouldn’t I?” he said. “You own a building and you can set who is allowed access. All sorts of restrictions or permissions, depending on how one looks at them. One simply can’t enter a building owned by another unless they are significantly more powerful otherwise.”

“I know all that. Someone close can challenge for ownership, but that wouldn’t explain any of what happened to Kimberley. She was murdered inside her own space. Could someone have a Skill that let’s them bypass restrictions without alerting the owner?”

“I think the most straightforward course of action is to question the people that she had given access to. I understand that you’d find that… unpleasant, but—”

“I know,” Min waved it away, “however, I know— knew Kimberley and that studio was her space. You understand? She’s a professional. Always cordial and polite, but not one to make close friends. I’m almost positive that no one else had access to her studio.”

Cal didn’t detect any deliberate falsehoods in the man’s words and surface level thoughts.

“But you aren’t certain and you can’t be until you ask everyone.”

“The festival is a week away. I need all hands to keep it safe.”

“Then wait till after… with the knowledge that you risk other murders. A big festival sounds like a hunting ground with all the chaos of people moving about, drinking, dining. Their guards down.”

“Or it’ll be easier to protect them since most everyone will be in a relatively small area. Kimberley was isolated. Blocks from anyone else.”

“I think it’d be best if we could clear anyone that might’ve had access to the studio. Then we’d know that the murderer is either ridiculously powerful or can bypass ownership protections in a way that is new and different. In either case, it means that none of your people are safe.”

“How are you even going to help? Why would Sadiiq allow a rando flying out of the sky in a fucking RV of all things to get in on this? What can you do?”

“My goals potentially align with catching the murderer or murderers and ultimately, I can do something about it, which means I have an obligation to try.”

“Alright, I don’t like it and I don’t trust you, but I have my orders. However, you and your wife and kid can’t just walk around the city unattended. I’m putting people on you.”

“Acceptable… I’m assuming you aren’t going to count the privacy of our RV?”

Min nodded.

“Good. Now, I understand that there have been several of these murderers over the past year.”

“Less than a year, but yeah. Although, we were operating on the assumption that it was monsters or mutant animals. Kimberley was the first we found inside a claimed place.”

“You didn’t realize that the wounds were inflicted by a blade?”

Min glared, but spoke after a moment. “Nando mentioned something about it a while back, but he didn’t get his Forensic Student Class until after he had examined a few… bodies. He said he was studying to become a forensic scientist back before the spires. I guess doing the job kicked it in. Too low level to matter though. Besides, the others were in a lot rougher shape owing to being outdoors. Other… things… got to them before we found them.”

“I heard a name earlier, Holly, I didn’t quite catch it, but it sounded like she pointed you toward Kimberley.”

Min’s eyes narrowed. “It’s bullshit… she’s some kind of fortune teller with the carnival. I don’t know if it’s a class or just that cold reading stuff. She’s been right about a few things, but also wrong just as much. She’s been giving us warnings for a few months, but nothing that panned out. This was the first.”

“That sounds like something that needs investigating.”

“We’re building the festival grounds around the carnival’s permanent tents. Since most of my people are around the area you can do your thing. That’ll make things quicker for you. Just don’t go around accusing my guys. Tia and Carlos are your minders. They’re waiting out front.”

Cal recognized the dismissal. He departed without further word.

The festival grounds were awash with chaotic activity.

Tents and booths were in the process of being set up within a tall, stout wooden wall topped with barbed wire and well-spaced watchtowers.

“They think they’re going to use this place like an emergency fort in case a really bad monster attacks,” Carlos said.

Cal had already made the chubby man’s acquaintance in the dance studio.

“Waste of time. We should just wall off the city,” Tia, the fighter type, said.

“What that!” the toddler squealed at the giant gray animal inside a fenced enclosure.

“That’s an elephant!” Nila said.

The little guy drummed on her head with delight as he pointed and urged her toward it. “I go!”

“Where did you get an elephant?” Cal said.

“Carnival was in the area when the spires showed up. Rufus was a baby back then. He was one of the lucky survivors,” Carlos said.

“We’re going to say hi to Rufus,” Nila said.

“Uh…” Carlos said.

She strode off with the delighted little guy on her shoulders.

“You go with them,” Tia sighed.

Carlos hurried after the two.

“Guess I’m stuck with you. You going to interrogate all of Kimberley’s friends?”

“I’m just going to ask questions.”

“Well, you can save it. There’s no chance any of us did that,” Tia spat, crossed her arms and challenged him to suggest otherwise.

“You didn’t have access to her studio?”

Tia shot him a rude gesture.

“No?”

“No!” she snapped. “I didn’t know her that well. We didn’t hang out or anything. I think she mostly kept to herself outside of duties.”

“Thank you for answering,” he said mildly. “I think I’d like to speak to Holly first. Do you know where I can find her?”

Tia didn’t as it turned out, but a few questions led them to the right place.

“The carnies have nice tents,” Tia said.

“I think it’s a yurt.”

“A what?”

“A tent, but nicer, more permanent.”

“That’s what I said.”

“There’s a difference.”

“Whatever,” Tia snorted.

Cal knocked on the yurt’s entrance flap. He felt many thoughts focusing on him, but Tia’s presence kept them from challenging his presence.

A pretty young blond peeked her head out. “What?”

“Hi, are you Holly? My name is Cal and I’ve got a few questions if you don’t mind.”

“Um…” she eyed Tia.

“Hey, Holly. What’s up? It’s about Kimberley,” Tia said.

The young woman’s eyes widened in alarm. “It was her— I mean you found— is she—”

Tia shook her head. “We were too late.”

“I— wow— that’s— sorry— sure, I mean give me a second.”

Holly disappeared back into her yurt.

Cal didn’t detect any purposeful falsehoods on the surface of the young woman’s thoughts.

She emerged a few minutes later in a thick winter coat with the hood up. “Sorry, it’s been getting cold out here lately.”

He eyed the people milling about. Most of them wore jackets or thick sweaters and sweatshirts. Belatedly, he realized that being in jeans and a t-shirt looked odd. Perhaps that had contributed to the looks he had received.

He regarded Holly for a moment. The young woman was waif-ish, which made her look much younger than she was. She looked like a teenager, but was in her early twenties from what he had picked up.

“What happened to your hand?” Holly said.

Cal opened and closed his skeletal left hand with an application of telekinesis. The blend of steel and composite materials moved smoothly. He had been practicing. There was nothing magical or high tech about the prosthetic, but he let everyone think otherwise.

“What the fuck?” Tia snapped. “How’d I miss that?”

“You must’ve not been paying attention,” he said mildly.

“I’m a very attentive person. You get dead if you aren’t,” Tia narrowed her eyes.

“Well, understandably, you had other things to occupy your attention this morning,” he turned to Holly. “You tried to warn them about Kimberley’s murder.”

“A murder?” Holly whispered. “I mean— you mean that it wasn’t a monster?”

“Yeah, it appears that she was murdered with a blade. How exactly did you know that it had happened?”

“I didn’t… know, I mean… I have a class that sometimes, maybe lets me see the future, but it doesn’t work all the time or it works, but I don’t know until after it’s already happened.” Holly took a deep breath. “Last night I had a dream, but it wasn’t a dream and I didn’t realize until this morning. I saw the street and there was a red blackbird. It flew across and dripped red over the buildings. Then it wasn’t a bird. It was a bird puppet on strings. Then it did a dance… then I woke up.”

“Fuck! No offense, but your class sucks,” Tia said.

Holly shrank into her over-sized coat.

“How did you know to send them to that specific dance studio?” he said.

“Dance studio? I didn’t see that. I just recognized the street from before when I was younger when we first came here before the spires.”

He continued to detect truth in the waif’s thoughts. “Okay. Thank you for your time.”

“Um… I guess…” Holly eyed Tia. “I’m sorry— if I had told you sooner—”

“You couldn’t know. We probably wouldn’t have believed you right away anyways. We’d have been too late,” Tia scowled.

“Still—”

“Forget it!” Tia snapped.

Holly shrank back.

“Fuck… sorry. Not your fault.” Tia eyed Cal like it was his. “You done here?”

“Yeah,” he regarded Holly, “if you have any other strange dreams or visions—”

“I’ll tell them right away,” Holly nodded fervently.

Tia led Cal back out of the carnival living area only to be met by a large group of people.

Four stepped forward, along with a grizzly bear.

“Why are you bothering Holly?” a young Hapa-looking man crossed massive arms over a barrel-like chest as he loomed over Cal.

“I’m sorry… you are?”

“Outsiders don’t get our names,” the young man growled.

“Fuck off, Quinn,” Tia said flatly.

“Damn it, Tia! He might be a Witch!” Quinn snapped.

“That is bullshit! It’s never happened,” Tia gestured toward the leading foursome. “Just cause they’re like the most powerful carnies or some bullshit they think they’re the shit. Muscle head’s the strongman, I don’t know if that’s also a class.”

“I take it he’s strong.”

“Strongest guy around here,” Tia nodded. “The midget is Ash, she does flips and shit.”

“Oh that’s nice, you bigot,” Ash rolled her eyes.

The young woman was merely short. She reminded Cal of an Olympic gymnast with her powerful and compact build.

“You shouldn’t use that term,” he warned.

Tia shrugged. “The bear is Pooh and her human is Val.”

The young man shrugged. “That’s a pretty accurate description. Although, to be entirely accurate I train several different animals in our meager menagerie. Predators mostly,” he stared at Cal with unblinking eyes. A look mirrored by Pooh.

“Beastmaster?”

Val didn’t respond.

“Kamila over there, throws things,” Tia gestured toward the dark-skinned young woman with closely cropped hair.

The young woman stood with the bear’s bulk between her and Cal. She waved at him with a smile and flicked her wrist. He almost didn’t catch the throwing knives come out of her sleeve to settle in her fingers.

“Okay… now that the intros are done… what were you bothering Holly for?” Quinn growled.

“Tia will explain,” he replied.

“Official investigation into a murder. That’s all you’re getting,” Tia crossed her arms.

“Why are you bothering Holly?”

Cal detected a very bulldog-like mindset in Quinn. Stubborn and protective. He really hoped that he wouldn’t need to flex on them. They were just looking out for one of their own.

“You deaf?” Tia glared.

He stifled a sigh. She needed to work on her conflict de-escalation.

He stepped forward to look up into Quinn’s eyes. “It’s as Tia said. Holly had information about a murder and I needed to ask her about it.

“You trying to put it on her?” Val said.

Pooh growled a deep rumble like the sound of an engine.

He really didn’t want to hurt the bear.

“No. Actually, maybe you guys can help us out in this. Holly might’ve predicted the murder. It means that she might be in danger.”

“We take care of our own,” Ash said.

“Good, but I think,” he eyed Tia, “that Holly needs extra protection. Not to mention that it’s a good idea that if she has another vision someone is there to get it right away.”

“Yeah, that probably makes sense. I’ll tell Min,” Tia said.

“Hold on,” Quinn raised a meaty paw, “you can’t just have your guys in here. We have a deal.”

“Above my level,” Tia shrugged. “You guys can argue with Min… or Sadiiq.”

“Anyways, I have more people to question and it seems that you guys are very busy getting ready for the festival,” he pushed a bit of calm into the gathered minds. Light as a feather.

They parted after a moment and let him and Tia pass without another word.

“That was a little tense.”

“Nah, I thought for sure you’d have to brawl a bit. That’s what usually happens when the carnies think people are trying to screw with them,” Tia said.

“Well, hopefully your fellow fighters are a bit more reasonable.”

“You start accusing any of us of doing that to Kimberley then I’ll be first to take you out,” Tia grunted.