The Composer of Screams Read online

  “I was just checking my messages,” he said, as he tried to peel Turgay's talons out of their death grip. “Screw off. MC said I won a prize.”

  Turgay blinked. “You won a...” Realization dawned, and he wheeled back to a clearly confused Delia. “They know! They're coming!”

  Then the doors exploded.

  Turgay didn't know what they were using, but the shrapnel from the door hit Pig in the side and the fledgling full in the face. They both went down, but at least Pigeon would be getting up again. Seconds after the explosion, Necessarian troops began piling into the warehouse, guns blazing.

  Delia cursed. “To arms, warhawks!” A dozen more hawks, all armed with machine guns, appeared from hiding and started returning fire.

  Turgay wasn't getting paid enough to fight, and he was unarmed anyway. He worked at a gun store, how was he unarmed? He just hunkered down as best he could and tried to drag Pigeon out of danger. Unfortunately, this seemed to attract the Alpha's attention.

  “Eagle!” she cried angrily. At least she had the sense not to use his name. “Take the toy box and run!”

  Turgay stared at her. “What?” That would never work. The only sensible option right now was to return the device and beg for the Big Boss's mercy.

  “Now!” she ordered, emptying an oversized pistol at the enemy.

  Turgay cursed. He had no doubt that if he tried to surrender or even simply ignore her orders, she'd turn that gun on him without hesitation. He had no choice. He threw Pigeon on top of the toy box, tossed his own phone away, and started moving.

  Luckily, the device was still in the crate and on the roller pallet, so he just had to get behind it and push. Some bullets streaked past him, but they all missed. The 'sarians were probably afraid of hitting the toy box. Apparently someone had forgotten to brief them on its durability.

  The warehouse was small, but it was pretty much empty, so there was a lot of open space to run through. The warhawks covered Turgay as best they could, but he wasn't worried about the Necessarians inside so much as the ones who would be waiting for him outside.

  On second thought, as long as they didn't shoot on sight, he should be okay. He could surrender, figure out where they were taking the device, and find a way to relay that information back to Soaring Eagle. It wasn't perfect, but it would work.

  Turgay pushed on with renewed vigor. It took him a minute to find the exit. It turned out it was behind one of the only shipping crates in the place. He ignored the landing bay, going for the smaller double doors next to the giant gate. He pushed the doors open with the crate, held his hands up in surrender, and...

  Nothing happened.

  He blinked.

  No one was here.

  Well, this was arach territory, after all. The spider kemos were a small subculture, but they liked their ambushes, and Necessarius would have to be careful about sending troops into the area. Turgay must have just gotten out before their men came around.

  He realized that meant he had little choice. Soaring Eagle had managed to score alliances with both the Lolths and the Minervas. Great for her and all, but it meant that if they saw Turgay captured by the 'sarians, they'd just kill everyone and grab the toy box. Not to mention that Butler's troops would know that, and would shoot on sight to keep their jobs easier.

  “What's going on?” Pigeon said from inside the crate. He tried to sit up, but stopped when he saw his torso. “Guy, why am I bleeding?”

  “Because you're an idiot, Pig,” Turgay said. “Now shut up and lay down.” Finally making a decision, he began to roll the cart north. They were in South Middle now, but his warehouse and boltholes were at the edge of South Central, not too far away.

  Even just getting out of arach territory would be helpful. They bordered a giant clan in that direction, but the Colossi generally stayed out of this kind of thing. It was as close to a safe run Turgay would get. It would be best if he could steal a truck, but he wasn't holding out hope on that. Besides, his skill at hot wiring was below average.

  Turgay pulled into a dark alley filled with dumpsters from the restaurants. The smell was horrific, but where there was rotting food, there were ghouls. Turgay saw one nestled against a dumpster, glaring at him with one eye. He was mostly baseline except for the nighteyes, and wrapped in a big wool blanket that covered his ragged clothing. It was still pretty cold.

  Turgay licked his beak. He wouldn't part with the blanket easily, and even if Turgay was willing to, he just didn't have the skill to take it by force. Instead, he went the other route. He took out his wallet.

  The ghoul came fully awake as Turgay pulled out all his cash. Not really all that much, but five twenties was still a lot to a homeless ghoul. He nodded and offered it. “Hundred bucks for the blanket.” He licked his beak again. “And to tell the 'sarians I went down Hades street instead.”

  The ghoul hesitated for a moment, then shrugged off the blanket. He exchanged it for the money quickly. Turgay understood what his speed was supposed to imply. He could have robbed him blind. But he didn't.

  Turgay nodded his thanks, wrapped the cloak around himself to hide his ave toys, and pushed the crate carrying his bleeding friend and the most valuable item in Domina down the alley.

  Behind him, the ghoul started whistling as he walked away, presumably to find a store to spend his money.

  Chapter 4: REDDITA

  DEREK

  Derek finished off the last dumpster dog by jumping on its back, grabbing its neck, and twisting violently. It snapped with a crack, and the creature fell limply to the ground.

  Ling stared in what might possibly have been awe. “Derek, that was...”

  “Slow,” Akane interrupted. “You took too long. You're still injured.”

  Derek disentangled himself from the corpse, taking care not to trip over the other dead dogs in the process. “No, I was slow on purpose. Weren't you the one who told me to take it easy?”

  She sighed as she pulled her sword out of another hound. “You're right. Sorry.”

  He smiled, trying to set her at ease. “C'mon, let's get them loaded up.”

  They had borrowed his mom's car for this, since there were a dozen of the dumpster dogs. They couldn't lug those the two miles back to their employer, and requesting she come get them would have cost them money. Thankfully, his mom was generous. She had even put a tarp down in the trunk so blood didn't get everywhere.

  It was nearly noon by the time they stopped outside a tall and thin 'scraper. Akane had missed kendo, but she had assured him that it was no big deal. The building was one of the places with the really small shops on each floor. This one was mostly informal restaurants, with the food prepared inside the actual building, but bought and served outside, where small tables with umbrellas were bolted to the sidewalk. It was around lunch time, so the courtyard was about half full.

  It had taken them almost two hours to get here. Domina traffic was bad most of the time, and late morning was one of the worst. Derek was getting a little too used to the retinue's van. Necessarian vehicles could cut through traffic much easier than civilian trucks.

  Regardless, their employer met them outside the building, smiling.

  “Good, good,” she said, nodding. She was an old ghoul with big claws and daygoggles hiding her eyes, but she was a kind woman. “My son will be very happy now. The beasts were hounding his customers.”

  Derek smiled. “That's funny, Miss Nervi.”

  She cocked her head. “What is?”

  Sometimes he forgot English was her second language. “Nevermind. Where do you want the bodies?”

  She waved towards the door of the shop. “The freezer is fine. We're just on the third floor. The boys will show you. Ragazzi!”

  A couple of the nearby customers, ghouls with the same shape to their faces as Gloria Nervi, jumped up. Derek opened up the trunk, and they helped him wrap up the tarp and carry the bodies upstairs. The freezer was large and well-stocked, but they found a plastic box to put them in, so
that the blood didn't get everywhere. Derek's mom would want the tarp back.

  When they came back down, Nervi was on her cell. She hung up as they approached.

  “I've sent the money,” she said. “As we agreed, a hundred dollars each. Twelve hundred total.”

  Derek glanced at Akane. She had her phone out, and was checking texts. After a moment, she flipped it closed and nodded.

  He smiled at Gloria again. “Thank you, Miss Nervi. We were happy to help.”

  She grinned. “You come by more often, you hear? You never come by for lunch any more.”

  He shrugged uncomfortably. “College. It's... a busy time.”

  Derek didn't like lying. It was a filthy habit, and a slippery slope. Even simply not telling the truth was something he liked to avoid. But revealing their nature as the Paladins would cause problems. Not too many to deal with, he was sure, but it was better to keep it quiet for as long as possible.

  Miss Nervi just nodded. “I know that, for certain. You sure you don't want to stick around for some steaks?”

  “Sorry,” Derek said honestly. “We have too much to do today. If traffic hadn't been so bad...”

  She waved her hand. “Bah. Traffic. Don't talk to me about traffic. I drafted a proposal to replace all cars and streets with more light rails. Got a couple hundred signatures, too. But it was vetoed by Congress.”

  Somebody from inside the restaurant called to her, asking for help with something.

  “We shouldn't keep you,” Derek said. “We'll be going now. Call if you have another job for us.”

  “I will,” she said. “Take care.”

  They left quickly, but it still took another two hours to get back to the dorms. Of course, traffic got better pretty much the second they dropped off the car at his mom's. At least she wasn't home, so they didn't get stuck in some conversational sandtrap.

  The reason they were in such a hurry was waiting outside their rooms. Obould, with another box in his arms. He grinned when he saw them rounding the corner.

  “Ah, Huntsman! I thought you weren't going to make it.”

  Derek rolled his eyes. “Remind me not to deal with cars ever again.” He opened the door to his room, and everyone piled inside. Obould plopped the box on the bed again, and opened it up with quick hands.

  “Since both of my creations were such failures last time, I pulled out all the stops.” Akane's armor hadn't exploded like Ling's did, but it turned out that it wasn't anywhere near as flexible as it needed to be, and had slowed her down dramatically. She had quickly decided it wasn't worth wearing and sent it back.

  “Ling, let's start with you.” Obould pulled out what at first glance just looked like a black wetsuit, but on closer inspection didn't bend nearly enough.

  “You didn't ask me for help making it,” Ling said. “Did you find something that was shaped right?”

  “Well,” he said with a frown, “I think the slate will work, but we'll have to see. I actually plated it in titanium, so hopefully it will be strong enough.” He held up the suit, and Derek could indeed see rectangular plates, sewn under the fabric, at all the vital areas. It pretty much looked the same as any other military tactical armor, except the plating was covered in fabric.

  “It's a one-piece?” Ling asked. “How do I put it on?”

  He turned it around to reveal a long zipper at the back. “You should be able to do it yourself, but if not, I'm sure Akane can help you.” He put it down on the bed. “Derek and I will leave, let us know when we can come back.”

  It only took about five minutes before they were called back in. Derek opened the door to find Ling looking very smug and covered head-to-toe in black. As she moved, he noticed that there were a few slits in the cloth at strategic locations, probably to help the armor breathe better.

  “I like it,” she said, doing a few stretches. “Feels great.”

  “How's your range of movement?” Obould asked. He looked over her with the critical eye of an old armorer. “I had your measurements, of course, but there's only so much I could do without you actually wearing it.”

  “It's not perfect,” she admitted. “But good. I'm not the agile one, anyway. I just need to be able to hit things hard.”

  “Speaking of which,” Derek said, “did you test your power on it?”

  She flinched a little. “No... not yet. I mean, I'm sure it will work. I can feel the plates, even under the metal. I'm just afraid something will go wrong again.” She shrugged. “Like maybe they'll break if I push them too hard.”

  “I'll be ready to shield everyone if the suit explodes again,” Derek said. “And you can always get new plates.”

  She took a deep breath and nodded. “You're right. Okay, give me a second.” She fell into horse stance, her legs bent, her breathing shallow. Akane and Obould stepped behind Derek. He was sure they were both confident in Obould's armor, but better safe than sorry, and one of those plates moving at high speed could actually kill someone. Which reminded him, they needed to look into some sort of stone bullet for Ling, if only as a last resort.

  Bah. They were in a city, and she could control concrete. She'd be fine.

  His thoughts were brought back to the issue at hand as slowly, ever so slowly, Ling's arms began to move.

  She moved them like in swimming class, bringing them into her chest, then out, then in again and out again. From Derek's perspective, it just looked like she was moving her arms slowly, but he could see the strain on her face.

  “Okay, perfect,” Obould said from behind him. “Now fall back and catch yourself, like last time.”

  She nodded, and slowly leaned back on her heels. She fell back normally at first, but slowly lowered to an impossible angle, then back up, then back down.

  Derek grinned. “Perfect. You're doing great. How's your reservoir?”

  She brought herself to a normal angle and opened her eyes. “Pretty much empty. I can't keep that kind of thing up for long.”

  “Let's take a look at Akane's while you rest,” Obould said, scrambling past Derek for the box. “Now, I thought we could put some reactive armor weave in here, which should be able to enhance her movements even at super speed.”

  Akane perked up at that. “Really?”

  “Yes.” He paused briefly. “Well, that was the idea, but we've had some trouble finding anything that isn't too bulky.”

  Akane's face fell.

  “However,” he said quickly, “we did find a temporary substitute.” He pulled out what at first glance looked like another wetsuit, but was too flexible. It was still black, though. Derek was pretty sure Obould didn't trust his eyesight enough to put colors in something. “It's fitted to your size down to the millimeter. It should feel better than your own skin.”

  She touched it gingerly. “Soft.”

  He nodded. “It was sewn by a Minerva, using her own silk. It's not bulletproof—there's too much give for that—but it is cut and stab proof, and should be mostly fireproof as well.”

  “We'll leave,” Derek said, as she took the outfit from him.

  She grinned devilishly. “No need.” She started taking off her top.

  Obould quickly looked away. Derek started getting a migraine again, and sighed. But before he closed his eyes, right before Akane got her shirt off, she... blurred.

  She was suddenly a rush of motion. It lasted barely a second, but when it was done, she was dressed in the Minerva weave, adjusting her sword around her waist.

  Derek blinked. “You...”

  She grinned again. “Been practicing in the mornings.” She shrugged. “Getting faster.”

  “You should've seen her the first couple times,” Ling said, smiling a little. “She pretty much just ended up throwing her pajamas everywhere.”

  Derek's migraine came back again, and he pinched the bridge of his nose. “That's... great.” He shook his head to clear out the mental cobwebs. “Anyway, how does it feel?”

  Akane flexed her fingers a little. The material there was
thinner and tighter than the rest of the suit, probably to make sure it didn't get in the way of gripping things. The rest of the armor wasn't quite skin-tight, but it was very well-fitted, with slack in just the right places to give her full range of movement.

  “Perfect,” she practically purred. “Much better.” Derek blinked, and suddenly she was gone, only a slight breeze noting her departure.

  “Wow, that's something,” Obould said seriously.

  Derek was a bit more impressed. He had thought he was the only one practicing his powers with any regularity. Sure, using them for mundane tasks might not be perfect, but it was something. He was glad she was finally taking this seriously. Before, she had been... hesitant to use her powers outside of combat.

  She sped back in suddenly. She was little more than a blur of motion. So she still wasn't fast enough to be effectively invisible. Well, maybe he was setting the bar too high.

  “Perfect,” she said again, grinning. She blurred again, and it took him a second to realize she was going through a couple quick sword moves. She stopped, sheathing her sword, with a look on her face like... well, like a soldier given a new set of armor. Satisfied. “Perfect.”

  Ling picked at Akane's arm. “You're right, it is soft. What's mine made out of, anyway?”

  “A high-quality variant of spandex, mostly,” Obould said. “It needed to be flexible and breathable. But there's still a good amount of kevlar woven in there, especially around the plates. It will hold, I can guarantee that.”

  She looked at her own arms in admiration. “It feels nice. Though I'm sure the silk is better.” She twisted, apparently trying to get a look at her own rear end. “How much is this going to cost?”

  “Five thousand dollars each,” Obould said.

  Ling tripped and fell to the ground.

  Derek raised an eyebrow. “You okay there?”

  From the floor, she stared at him in shock, then at Obould and Akane. “Uh... I don't have that much money. I'm in AU on a soccer scholarship. Which I might lose, what with all the canceled games.”