Inspector Dalton Kingston, Earth Ward, stood in the back of Jake Melkins’ stealthed shuttle. The Earth Ward was the unofficial ruling body on Earth, and they were mostly comprised of nonhumans. Dalton relished being an inspector for them, and every now and then, he intervened when a friend requested his help, which they had in this situation.

Isaac Barret, a traveling companion of Evaran and M, the cosmic duo who had saved Dalton long ago, had asked that he check out a situation in New Chicago, an Earth Ward refugee city. It was in northwestern New York, northwest of the WildHaven Institute. Isaac was a middle-aged dark-skinned male and was a universal conduit, which granted him super strength, something Dalton had witnessed firsthand.

They were high above a patch of forest outside New Chicago, waiting to see if the rogue weremoose who had been described would appear. Evot stood silently as she projected a top-down view with a thermal enhancement of the forest edge.

Seated next to Isaac was Michael O’Donnel, mayor of New Chicago, and Li Young, the chief of police. They had come from a parallel Earth that had suffered from a zombie-like viral infection. Thanks to Isaac and Dr. Kate Minter, another member of Evaran’s gang, their survivor group had a second chance on Dalton’s Earth.

Michael was an older fair-skinned male, and despite being the mayor, he still wore his boots, jeans, and camouflage-patterned jacket and hat. Li was younger and of Asian descent, and his outgoing personality made it easy to get along with him. Dalton had enjoyed interacting with them, and they had proven to be excellent leaders for their group.

Michael shook his head. “This damn weremoose better show. He always appears at this time, trying to break into some house.”

“I’m sure he’ll come,” said Dalton. “It’s unusual that he would raid an Earth Ward refugee town.”

Li smiled. “Man, I’m just glad we got people like you who can help out. As you know, we asked the Earth Ward for help, and to be fair, they did send a team out to scour the area, but nothing was found. I mean, we had footage, but it didn’t extend into the forest.”

“We’ll get him,” said Isaac. “Once he appears, Dalton and I will catch him, then we can ask why he’s raiding these empty houses.”

New Chicago had started to grow, and this was a newly built subdivision. It had to be carved out of a forest, and part of Dalton wondered if that caused the weremoose to raid the houses. They were being prepped for habitation, so food and drink had been stocked. He could see why it would be tempting to steal those things, but doing it against the Earth Ward was irrational.

“Also, love that Evot can show us this view,” said Li.

Evot beamed. “I’m quite capable.”

Michael adjusted his cap. “Damn straight you are.”

Dalton loved seeing Evot take praise. She had a rough outing when they traveled with Evaran and M before this event. Her servbots and nanoswarm had been damaged, and it had caused her to consider her mortality.

It was good to have things back to normal, as far as such things could be considered. She and Kate were best friends, and he was glad Evot had another outlet outside of him and Brad Washington, her boyfriend. She had also spent more time with M.

A red dot appeared on the holographic view.

“I think that’s him,” said Isaac.

Dalton turned his head to the front. “Jake, stay ahead of the weremoose.”

“Got it!” said Jake.

Dalton never took for granted that Jake had a ship that could remain undetected. He had also traveled with the first form of Evaran and the gang and was close with Evaran and M. He was the only one Dalton knew who had interacted with U4 and V, M’s predecessors.

As Jake had spent most of his life in an advanced alien society, he was uniquely equipped to use one of their craft on Earth, something that was usually prohibited. Jake was also an excellent mechanic. He filled a special role in the Earth Ward as a transport pilot and always made time for situations like this when Dalton requested it.

Dalton didn’t want to fight the weremoose and hoped it would stand down when challenged. Weremoose in general could be stubborn. While that was a sweeping generalization, he found it to be true more often than not.

He was confident he and Isaac could match a weremoose in strength, but hopefully, that wouldn’t be needed. Michael, Li, and Jake would stay on board, but one of Evot’s servbots would relay the view from Dalton’s chest for them.

“He’s paused at the property edge,” said Li.

“Probably trying to figure out if he’s in the clear,” said Michael.

Dalton nodded. “Isaac will be dropped at the forest’s edge once the weremoose begins to move so he can cover any retreat. The trees should provide some cover, but it’ll be hard to mask his universal energy. I’ll drop down just outside the back porch.”

As if on cue, the weremoose advanced.

Isaac slapped Dalton on the back. “Let’s go meet a weremoose.”

Dalton and Isaac moved to the side.

Jake had positioned the ship to hover over the forest’s edge.

Dalton opened the door so Isaac could jump out.

The weremoose stopped and turned around to scan the forest’s edge.

Jake moved his ship to outside the back porch of the house the weremoose had moved toward.

Dalton leaped out, then faced the weremoose in the distance. It wore a formfitting gray suit that had tufts of brown fur sticking out in various places. It stood around seven and a half feet tall with a very lean and athletic build. Its pointy antlers were almost a foot and a half long. The weremoose had the power to gore a human with ease.

Its heartbeat surged, and its nostrils flared as it stopped in its tracks.

“There’s no need to run or fight,” shouted Dalton. “We just want to talk.”

The weremoose bolted toward the forest.

Dalton sighed and formed his remote stun gun, or RSG, and gave chase. The weremoose moved surprisingly fast for its size.

It barreled directly toward Isaac. “I don’t want to hurt you. Move!”

Isaac smirked. “Yeah, I don’t think so.”

He sidestepped the charge, then grabbed the weremoose as it passed by. With a pivot, he flung it back toward Dalton, where it crashed to the ground.

Dalton was not surprised Isaac grabbed a charging weremoose and tossed it with ease. The footage of what he did to some powerful monsters on the parallel Earth spoke volumes about what he was capable of. The weremoose wouldn’t know it, but it should be thankful Isaac restrained himself.

Dalton stood before the weremoose, his RSG aimed forward. “Stay down! We just want to talk.”

The weremoose panted hard. “Fine. What do you want?”

“A name would be a good start. I’m Inspector Dalton Kingston, Earth Ward, and you already met Isaac Barret.”

“Nate Reiner.”

He stood and morphed into his human form. His gray suit contracted to fit him, but it cut off at his ankles.

“Now we’re getting somewhere,” said Dalton. He beckoned at Isaac, then indicated for Jake to land his ship. “First things first. Why are you raiding these new houses of food and drink?”

“Isn’t it obvious? Because I’m hungry and thirsty.”

Dalton pointed out. “There’s plenty in the forest. As a weremoose, you would know how to get it.”

Isaac, Michael, Li, Evot, and Jake joined Dalton.

“If you just want food and drink, all you need to do is ask,” said Michael.

Nate snorted. “And you’d help me?”

Li chuckled. “Of course. Why wouldn’t we?”

Nate eyed them. “My last encounter of asking for help was met with a beating from the Earth Ward.”

Dalton squinted. “Which unit did that?”

“Well, I don’t know if they’re a unit. Blooded vamps.”

“So not an official unit, then?”

“I didn’t see a uniform. I went to one of their clubs and asked for assistance, and they kicked the shit out of me.”

Dalton grimaced. “That would be an expected reaction toward an Outsider in one of their clubs. Why didn’t you contact the Earth Ward?”

“And how do I do that? I thought Blooded were Earth Ward.”

Dalton sometimes forgot that not everyone knew of the multiple ways to contact the Earth Ward. There were websites, phone numbers, and regional offices to help with that. It also didn’t help that it wasn’t always clear who was affiliated. He made a note to look into the outreach program.

“We can go over that in a bit. How did you get into a position where you had no access to food or drink?” asked Dalton.

Nate grunted. “I ran a small gas station about fifty miles north of here. I lived in the back of it. Faith Militia blew it up, then almost killed me. I escaped into the forest and have been scavenging ever since. Every time I asked other nonhumans for help, they ran or fought me. And that’s in my human form. I didn’t have any friends to go to, and the few humans I asked for help didn’t want anything to do with me. I didn’t go to the police because I knew some Faith Militia were there. What could I do?”

Michael adjusted his cap. “This is an Earth Ward refugee town. If you need somewhere to stay to get on your feet, this is the place to be. Assuming, of course, you pass a background check.”

Evot tilted her head. “Nate has no criminal record.”

“That’s right.” Nate addressed Michael. “You…you’d help me? Even after breaking into these houses?”

Michael shrugged. “You were desperate. Trust me. Li and I know what that’s like.”

Nate licked his lips. “I…I don’t know what to say.”

“Say you’ll accept,” said Isaac, grinning.

“All right. I accept.”

Jake raised a finger. “Why don’t we order some pizza and drinks while we discuss things?”

Nate rubbed his stomach. “I’d love some pizza.”

Everyone laughed.

“I have placed an order,” said Evot.

Nate stared at her. “What are you? I only get a buzz from you. And how did you do my background check so fast?”

“I’m an artificial intelligence who can control nanoswarms. I’m connected to the Earth Ward systems.”

Nate’s eyes widened. “Oh. You’re the first one I’ve ever met.” He glanced at Isaac, then Dalton. “You both have energies I’m not familiar with.”

“We can go over all that when dinner arrives. Why don’t you get cleaned up in the meantime,” said Dalton.

Nate puffed his cheeks. “Yeah, I can do that.” He gestured at the house. “In there, right?”

“Yeah.”

“There should be some clothing in the closets that’ll fit you,” said Michael.

Dalton appreciated that the encounter had become civil. Then again, Nate’s getting tossed like a paperweight might have had something to do with that. He wished Isaac could join him on his cases, but this was a rare event in general. It was good to have Michael and Li around, and their empathy had been on full display. They were good people.

Dalton made a note to check on the Faith Militia up north. They had become unusually aggressive nationwide as of late, and he wasn’t sure why. This event was one of the casualties.

Thankfully, no one was hurt, and he was beginning to see that New Chicago was going to grow quickly. He’d check on Nate in a few days, but Dalton was eager to get back to his team’s compound. There had been an alert for a new case, and he was itching to get started on it tomorrow.

Evot, in cat form, trotted down the upper level of the team’s compound. She preferred this form since it made her a part of the environment in most cases. Sometimes she would go into Columbus, Ohio, and lounge around the streets, listening and watching people.

Brad had mentioned that could be construed as creepy, but she found it to be a valuable learning tool. She made a point not to share any personal details of what she learned, but it did inform her organic interaction library, or OIL, as M called it.

It was May 2, 2014, 8:30 a.m., the day after she and Dalton had gone to New Chicago to assist Isaac. Helping out had been the highlight of her day, and she wished Kate had come, but she had other things going on.

It pleased Evot to observe Isaac and Kate’s relationship. They were powerful beings, and she applied what she learned to her relationship where applicable. She often ran simulations on how to improve her relationship with Brad, but he claimed he liked where it was. She wasn’t sure what the next step was if not improvement.

She sniffed outside Rick’s room. A strong odor permeated the air, and it sounded like Valerie was being beaten. Valerie preferred violent intimacy, and she had guffawed when Evot said Brad preferred soft intimacy. Evot didn’t fully understand the comedic moment until Valerie asked if pillows were used. She had been teasing, which Evot understood as an organic bonding technique. Valerie was her close friend.

She wiggled her nose outside Todd’s room. Ranasa, Todd’s girlfriend, had come up to see him, and it sounded like he was also busy with some physical interaction. She ran a quick scan to ensure there wasn’t a gas of some type in the compound.

Perhaps the activities were due to the last case being physically rough, and this was the downtime between cases for everyone to rest up. It wasn’t unusual for the team’s significant others to stop in when they could. That put a premium on time spent together.

The next room she peeked into was Brad’s. Her other servbot was in human form and lay on its side while Brad slept with his arms around her. A pulse swept through her. She savored physical contact with him, and despite it being her other servbot, she could sense it in her current form.

She created an alert to initiate fun activities when he awoke. She moved away so as not to wake anyone, especially Gizmo, Brad’s hunter drone prototype. He resembled a ball with legs and hung out in a charger pad.

She went downstairs to the front lounge, where Dalton sat in silence. He had a fruit cup and some coffee and gazed out the glass walls. She couldn’t see what he was viewing in his augmented reality interface, or ARI, but she knew he was studying something.

He was in his usual Earth Ward outfit, and he smelled like he had taken a shower. She had thought he might sleep in, but perhaps the excitement of a new case was too much to pass up.

She hopped up next to him and curled against his leg.

Dalton scratched behind her ears. “Morning.”

“Good morning,” she said. “Are you reviewing the new case?”

“I am, actually. Once everyone is up and has had breakfast, we can go over it. I figured you might be out in crow form.”

She wiggled her ears. “I did a morning sweep already. I calculate a 98.4 percent chance that there is no threat. The new activity detectors around the compound perimeter also inform me if there’s something to investigate.”

Dalton eased back. “Yeah, those were a good investment. I’m usually skeptical of motion detectors, but the AI on those is impressive. It’s not your level of AI, but it’s decent enough for what it’s meant to do.”

This Earth now used large language models, or LLMs, and generally called it AI. It was technically classified as artificial narrow intelligence, or ANI, and didn’t possess human-level understanding or learning on topics.

She was categorized as an artificial general intelligence, or AGI, but she was far beyond that. Humans didn’t have a classification for her level yet, but they did on Fredoria and also in the future. Like M, she also had cosmic energy as a part of her being. She was more of a cybernetic being with an energy aspect.

The activity detectors had been installed as part of a new security setup. One aspect she had found intriguing was the ongoing work of building a bunker underneath the compound. It would have multiple routes to it and essentially function as a hub. She could see holding sensitive meetings there, and it would not be visible to anything scanning the property.

The elevation of the team’s profile had made them a higher percentage target, and this was a natural evolution of that. She also liked that the underground bunker would have a carport and garage with a concealed door, allowing a quick escape if need be.

For the next hour and a half, she lay on a ledge by the cafeteria’s lone glass wall. The sun warmed her, and she soaked in the free energy. Todd and Ranasa ate before he saw her off. Rick and Valerie were in good moods and devoured an especially heavy breakfast.

Her other servbot had pleased Brad, and she had synced with it when it went to breakfast with him. Running parallel processes took some energy, and syncing triggered a rush of sensations in her.

Thirty minutes later, she was merged with her other servbot and in the conference room. The crescent-shaped room was cozy, with platforms and seating along the curved part of the room. The base had a large open area with a podium and a desk. The wall also had a projection screen, but they most often used a holographic display for meetings.

Dalton went to the podium. “All right. Hope everyone had a good rest because we have a new case.”

“Bring it on,” said Rick.

“That’s the spirit,” said Dalton. “Let me show you what it’s about.”

He interacted with the podium interface.

A holographic image emerged from projectors in the ceiling, floor, and side wall next to the podium. A pedestal with an ancient vase on it was displayed. A glass container surrounded it, and the area around it was cordoned off.

Two guards patrolled the area in the background. The location showed this was a museum in Atlanta, Georgia. The event was from two months ago, and it was 11:24 p.m., so no visitors roamed around.

A light disturbance materialized near the container, then a glowing dagger struck the glass and cut out a circle. Once it fell off, a pair of arms covered in light armor grabbed the vase, then pulled it out. A moment later, the light disturbance was gone, and an alarm had been sounded. The confused guards rushed over and searched the area.

“What was that?” asked Todd.

“Looked like a portal,” said Valerie.

Dalton’s eyes narrowed. “That’s the thing. Nobody knows what it was. The museum doesn’t have advanced detectors, and I don’t think the camera this footage is from showed what was truly there.”

Brad rubbed his chin. “That’s disturbing if a portal can be opened with that level of accuracy. I assume that vase has some importance.”

“It does,” said Evot. “It’s a rare one from the Han Dynasty and is valued at sixteen million dollars.”

“Damn,” said Rick.

“This is but one incident involving rare valuables being stolen,” said Dalton.

The holographic display changed to show a list of items, their value, their location, and when they had been stolen.

“Great.” Valerie smirked. “We’re dealing with thieves who can use portal technology.”

“It would seem so,” said Dalton. “The reason we’re being contacted now is because there’s another rare Han vase being put up for display in Miami. Except this time, we’re going to be there.”

“We just going to wait around down there?” asked Rick.

Dalton drew his lips flat. “Not quite. We’re going to use a hologram, and Evot will be inside it. When someone reaches out, she’ll grab them and yank them through. Assuming the portal is large enough for that. If not, it can at least hold them until I can get the portal’s signature.”

“That’s ingenious,” said Brad. “Even if we can’t pull them through, maybe we could put a tracking device on them. Although I guess maybe that’s not as valuable if the portal leads to another reality.”

“We have time to brainstorm on this, as we won’t head down there for another two days. For today, we’re going to visit Dozanga.”

Valerie sat up in her seat. “The redcap?”

“You got it.”

Evot had encountered redcaps before, and they were always nasty toward her. She didn’t assign that as a trait of their kind, but they had more than enough members with that personality. They had a tortured past and were often victims of other nonhumans.

The redcaps had a strong society now and were condescending to others. It wasn’t a coincidence that they preferred professions that kept them in the shadows. In this case, a shadow network of information was a perfect fit.

Valerie huffed. “He’s a damn good shadow broker, probably the best, but you just don’t set up a meeting with him. I’ve heard it takes years to cultivate any type of relationship with him, but he provides the best information. Well, his network does.”

Dalton stretched his neck. “That’s true, but they owe a favor to Evaran. I don’t know the details of that, but on my last outing with Evaran and M, we discussed ways of getting information for these cases. Evaran mentioned he had established a relationship with the redcaps, Dozanga in particular. He arranged for one free case session with no favors required and no waiting whenever we want. Outside of that, we have to pay and wait.”

Valerie shook her head. “Yeah, you definitely don’t want to deal with what they expect in return. They have exotic tastes, and depending on who you are, they won’t take money or anything else except what they want.”

“Like what would they expect if not money?” asked Brad.

“Well, if it was someone like me, it’d probably be a week in a cage for their pleasure. Someone like Rick, maybe his hand.”

Rick scoffed. “Yeah, fuck that.”

“You’d be amazed at what people will give for information. Usually, a lot of who-murdered-who-type stuff, at least from what I knew in my assassin days,” said Valerie.

“She’s right,” said Dalton. “Thankfully, we won’t need to deal with that. I’ve already done the dead drop to set up the meeting, and we’re meeting at 4:00 p.m. on top of a building in Tempe, Arizona. Get geared up for a traveling case. Evot has already secured where we’ll stay while in Miami.”

The team’s body and facial cues suggested everyone was excited. It seemed to be that way when starting any new case. Each one was unique, and that unpredictability was not something Evot preferred. But the team craved it, and she was happy if they were.