It was...
Laura's brain came to a screeching halt.
It had taken a long, long time to discover the masking agents Malcanthet used to hide the drugs in her sleepers' systems. Before that, there was no way to tell who could be one. In the end, the numbers were nowhere near as bad as anyone expected, but the fear nearly broke the city in the meantime.
But they hadn't tested any of the new sleepers for the masking agent. They'd checked for some, of course, but not Malcanthet's specifically. It was a complicated process, which was the point. It was difficult to detect even if you knew it was there.
But if it was...
They might know the identity of the Composer after all.
And she didn't think Necessarius would be able to just carpet bomb her skyscraper this time.
Chapter 38: AUXILIUM
LING
“Thanks for coming on such short notice,” Lizzy said. “Laura ran off the second we grabbed Derek's present. I don't know what's up with her.”
“No problem,” Ling said honestly. “It's the least I can do after all that with Turgay. Besides, I also need to get Derek something.”
“Anything specific in mind?” Lizzy asked. She held a yellow t-shirt up to her, checking for size. It was weird hanging out with her, and not just because they hadn't done it before. She was a lot taller than Ling, and she still wasn't quite used to it.
“I dunno... clothes?”
Her golden eyes twinkled. “For you or for him?”
Ling blinked. “What?”
She grinned mischievously. “Weeell... there are lingerie stores around her, so maybe...”
Ling was honestly surprised. Lizzy hadn't struck her as someone who would notice that. Maybe there was more to her than met the eye. On the other hand, it would be nearly impossible for there not to be.
“I doubt it would work,” Ling said. “He's not exactly tuned into that channel.”
She chuckled. “Yeah, something like that.”
“Anyway, I'm not sure I can pay for much. I barely have enough for food.”
She waved her hand. “Don't worry about that. I'll pay for everything.”
Ling frowned up at her. “You don't have to do that. I would prefer not getting anything rather than owing you more.”
“Oh, don't worry about it,” she said with a grin. “I think friends can afford to owe each other a few favors.”
Ling shrugged uncomfortably. “I... guess, but I mean... after all that with Turgay—”
Lizzy gave her a level stare. “Ling,” she said. “That was not a favor. That was just doing the right thing. You don't owe me for that.”
Ling raised an eyebrow. “Becoming complicit in grand theft is doing the right thing?”
“More like spreading the toy box around is the right thing.” She licked her lips in an exaggerated way. “Can you imagine the implications?”
“Not really,” Ling admitted. “Cheaper healing and more anthros?”
Lizzy smiled. “A little more than that.” She opened her mouth to continue, but then bit her lip, reconsidering. “I don't really understand it all. My agent is the one who's really excited. She keeps going on about how it needs to be open sourced and so on, how it will completely reinvent society.”
“The toy maker already did that,” Ling pointed out. She indicated a nearby fel. “Or did you miss the memo?”
Lizzy just rolled her eyes and held up another shirt to her, green this time. “I mean beyond that. You saw the toy box, right? Didn't you feel its potential?” She turned to grab another shirt.
Ling just stared at her. “Uh, no. No, I didn't. I saw a shiny metal coffin.”
She turned back and blinked. “Really? Interesting. I wonder if it's just a coincidence...”
Ling rubbed her forehead. “What?”
“Sorry, sorry,” she said. “It's just that all my people who helped out mentioned a sort of power in the box. A feeling of infinity.” She shrugged. “Probably just all in their heads. They thought it was important, so it was.”
“I suppose,” Ling mused. She took the newest shirt from Lizzy. It was a floral print, mostly with light colors. It looked nice, but she wasn't sure how it would work with her skin tone. At least it matched her hair.
“Changing room is right over here,” Lizzy said as she dragged her to the corner of the boutique. “Let's see how that looks.”
After Ling finished changing and was looking at herself in the mirror, a thought occurred to her. “Your people... the ones who got Turgay in touch with Soaring Eagle. They're trustworthy, right?”
Lizzy just laughed. “Oh, yes, I can guarantee that. They wouldn't rat you out if their lives depended on it.”
That made Ling distinctly uncomfortable. She really didn't know how to handle that sort of devotion. She didn't even know these people, and they were willing to die for her? “That's good, I guess. How are you so sure?”
“I select my agents and other support staff by loyalty,” she said. She gently grabbed Ling's shoulders and turned her a little, so she could see a better angle. “There's so much I can't do, I need people I can rely on.”
It really was a nice shirt. Tight too, emphasizing her chest, such as it was. “Like what? What can't you do?”
“Can't drive,” she said. “Never got the hang of it, although in Domina it's not as big a deal as it would be elsewhere. I'm horrific with computers. They make no sense. And medicine. I need help in that area. A trustworthy doctor and someone to remind me to take the right pills. I always forget otherwise.” She shrugged. “Those are the big three.”
“How'd you even get into voice acting in the first place?” Ling took off the shirt and pulled on the next one. She was pretty sure she was going to get the floral one, but she wanted to check all her options first.
“Same way anyone gets into anything,” Lizzy said. “Did an audition, got chosen. I mean, isn't that basically how you got your scholarship?”
Ling winced. “Not... quite. There was a lot more begging involved.” The second shirt wasn't anywhere near as good. Purple just wasn't her color. “AU doesn't really have an big soccer program.”
Lizzy nodded. “I know how that is. You think you've found something big, and it turns out that you're the only one who cares.”
That reminded her. “I asked before, but you never answered. What kind of things have you voiced?”
“Not much you would be interested in. Kids shows, mostly.”
“Laura said something about My Little Pony...”
“Yeah, exactly. Stuff like that.”
“Hm.” Ling selected another shirt from the pile. “Any anime?”
“A few. I was Amane in the new Gundam. And I played a minor side character in the new Lain movie.”
Ling blinked. “Huh, I saw Gundam. Didn't recognize your voice.”
Lizzy cocked her head. “Really?”
“Well, now it sounds familiar,” Ling said. “I just didn't make the connection until you pointed it out.”
“Well, you know how it is. Everyone sounds a little different in-character.”
“Not really,” Ling said. “At least, not for you. I just hadn't thought about it.”
“It's not really important,” Lizzy declared. “You know what is?” She grinned wickedly. “Getting you some lingerie.”
Chapter 39: APSURDUS
AKANE
“Akane?”
She froze at the sound of her name, and turned very, very slowly.
“Flynn,” she said, with what she thought was an admirable veneer of calm. “It's been a while.”
“Yeah, it sure feels like that, huh? You only went to what... one class since—”
“Yes, well,” she interrupted, before he could finish. “Very busy. Don't really have time for kendo.”
“Uh... yeah. I can imagine.” He fell silent.
She shifted on her feet, unable to look at him.
He had been helpful with the skins, both before the attack and aft
er, of that there was no doubt. And that kiss... but she still wasn't sure how she felt about him.
She shouldn't be having this many problems. This was not supposed to be complicated. Derek—
She needed to stop bringing Derek into this. He was irrelevant. He had absolutely nothing to do with her love life. Never had.
“If you want to...” Flynn trailed off.
She tried to finish for him. “...come to class more?”
He blinked. “What? No, I was going to ask if you wanted to go get coffee or something, but that's a stupid idea...”
She shifted more. “Yeah, I don't drink coffee...”
“Well, I know, that's why I said it's stupid.”
“Oh, I forgot I told you.”
“No, that's understandable. I mean—”
“I can't remember everything I say.”
“Right. Yeah.”
An awkward silence fell. It was debatable whether it was better or worse.
“Akane?”
Oh, thank Musashi himself. She turned to see Ling and Lizzy walking towards them, shopping bags under their shoulders.
Ling smiled. “I thought that was you. What's up?”
Akane waved her hand in what she hoped was a nonchalant manner. “Oh... nothing. You?”
She rolled her eyes. “Well, I was at soccer practice, but Laura apparently ran out on Lizzy before they finished shopping, so I had to step in to get the job done.”
“We got some stuff for you too,” Lizzy said in her usual flawless Japanese. “Another sharpening kit—don't look at me like that, this one is specifically for knives. We also found some coupons you might be interested in. But mostly, we got you lingerie.”
Akane nearly choked. “Lingerie?”
Ling brightened. “I understood that! Yeah, we got you lots of lingerie.” To Akane's horror, she started rooting around in her bag. “Here's some black lace, a see-through set, white lace—”
Akane rushed forward to try and stop her. At the very least, she shouldn't be pulling these out in the middle of the sidewalk. It wasn't busy, but still.
Flynn tried to step in. “Uh... maybe we should do this somewhere else...”
Before Ling could react, Akane activated her speed, grabbed the bag, and ran towards the nearest alley. It was a stupid thing to do, with everyone around, but no one noticed. At least, no one started screaming in panic, so good enough.
“What the hell are you doing?” Ling hissed, glancing around as she followed her. “Are you crazy?”
“Me?” Akane demanded. “You two...” She shook her head, unable to find the words.
“Don't be mad, Ken-chan,” Lizzy said soothingly. “It's all right if you're not at that stage yet. Everyone's relationships advance differently.”
Akane sputtered. “What are you—no. No, no, no!”
Ling rolled her eyes, catching her tone well enough. “Here,” she declared, handing her another bag. “All yours.” She nodded at Flynn. “I'm sure you two will be very happy.” Then she grabbed Lizzy by the arm, turned on her heel, and walked away.
Flynn blinked at Akane. “Uh...”
She looked in the second bag with some trepidation.
Ah. Right. “Relationships.”
Chapter 40: PRAETERITAE
KELLY
Alex ticked the names off on his fingers. “Barachiel, the Messenger. Domiel, the Mercy-Bringer. Erathoal the Seer, Pistis Sophia the Ascetic, Raziel the Crusader, and Sealtiel the Defender. And last is Zaphkiel, the Watcher.” He wiggled his fingers. “Those are the seven Arch-Saints. I'm not sure where you're confused.”
George rubbed his forehead and lay back in the van. “Titan's testes... I'm not an angel, and I'm not a vampire. Why would I care about your warlords?”
“Because it's important?” Alex shook his head. “Look, not being to name all of them and their respective Heavens is understandable. But how could you ever mistake Lilith for one of them?”
“She doesn't like being called that,” Sax said absently from the driver's seat.
Kelly rolled her eyes. “She doesn't like being called anything, it seems.”
“That's not what I meant,” George said. “I thought she was a former angel. A fallen angel, you know? I wasn't really paying attention back when everything was starting, so...” He shrugged. “I'm still a little behind the times.”
Kelly frowned. “I thought you were at Bloody Thirteen.”
George shuddered, making the entire van tremble. “Don't remind me of that, please.” He took a deep breath. “But at the time, it seemed like just a new gang that was a bit crazier than usual. And besides, I wasn't even with Necessarius back then. I was just a minor member of the Kongeegen party, working with the man who became Odin.”
Alex cocked his head to the side. “I thought you were more of an Iluvatar.”
“Sure, now. But the Kongs used to sound like a good idea.”
Well, this was getting interesting. “You know Odin?”
“Barely. Knew his sons a little better, but not by much. I never even talked to him after he became a giant. I got the package and everything, but I kinda went off on my own.”
“Oh yeah,” Kelly said, nodding. “Gordok and all that, you mentioned...” She trailed off.
The van was surrounded by Belians.
How had they not seen them walk up?
It was high noon, but none of them were wearing daygoggles. They were all wincing at least a little, and were probably completely blinded by the sun. A normal vampire could adapt to even bright light over time, although they would still have headaches, but Belians had it worse. A lot of the drugs they took increased their light sensitivity.
Sax glanced around very carefully, trying not to move anything but his eyes. “I count six out front. Alex?”
“Six more in the back. We might be able to handle twelve blind chem-heads.”
“There will be six more, watching at a distance,” Kelly said, resisting the urge to scratch her fixer. “Probably armed with the remotes to the bombs these ones are carrying.”
“Titans...” George cursed. “They're suicide bombers?”
“Depends on your definition. Suicide bombers usually know they have a bomb strapped to their chest. These guys probably didn't even notice.” It was a popular tactic of the Belian warlords. Since their underlings were hooked on chems, that meant they were stupid and easily replaceable. Just kidnap some poor bastard off the street, give him a few chem-producing glands, and he'd be yours forever.
Alex glanced at Kelly. They both knew what they wanted. Sax would too, but he couldn't turn his head, in case it set them off.
“Once they're distracted, drive off,” Kelly said. “I'll catch up.”
Sax grimaced. “No. They'll—”
“They'll do nothing.” She got out of the van and walked up to the first Belian.
She was a thin little slip of a girl, though Kelly couldn't tell if that was a side effect of the drugs or if she was just skinny. Other than the nighteyes and the fangs, she seemed normal. Kelly did notice that blood stained her teeth, probably from biting her tongue or lips. Clearly, this was a newly-made vampire.
“Take me to your Noble,” she ordered, without showing any hesitation on her face.
The girl swayed a little, then nodded, and slowly turned around and headed away from the van. Kelly was pleased to see the others following at a similar pace, freeing her friends.
She was still careful not to provoke the Belians. They might not be violent at the moment, but if she riled their blood, they'd tear her to pieces.
They only had to walk for a few minutes. It was an abandoned skyscraper, slated to be renovated tomorrow. Right now, however, it was completely empty, stripped down to the studs and concrete. Kelly could see from one end to the other, since even the walls were gone. It looked like nothing so much as an empty parking garage.
A man sat in the very center of the first floor, far from any of the open windows, waiting patiently for his minion
s to bring Kelly to him. He appeared as a white-haired middle-aged man, though it was impossible to determine his true age. He had blood-red skin, darkening to blue on his clawed hands, and wore loose black clothes with a high stand-up collar.
He smiled as she approached, standing to greet her. “Hello, hello... Kelly, is it?” His voice was smooth as silk, and only had the slightest trace of an accent.
She scowled. “No games, Chamo.”
He tutted softly and wagged a finger back and forth. “Don't be so rude, my cel mic. You changed your name. I was just being polite.”
Kelly hated his little pet names. Her mother had been the only one allowed to call her cel mic. But she could endure his attentions for however long it took for the others to escape. “Let's get down to the point. Why are you here?”
He sat down again with a sigh, wincing almost imperceptibly at the cheap folding chair he was using. “Noapte, you have no sense of decorum. Fine, right to the point.” He spread his hands wide. “Phlegethos is dying. With Belial dead, the Throne of Abriymoch is empty, and we cannot afford to have anyone fighting over it. Honored Naome is gone, suspected to be dead as well.”
Kelly narrowed her eyes. “This has nothing to do with me, legate.”
He frowned. “Please, do not be obtuse. Your defection to Necessarius does not change who you are. We need every able fang we can find—and you are ever so able.”
“You don't need me,” Kelly said calmly. She indicated the Belians surrounding them. “You clearly have enough men. The court chemists are doing their job well enough.”
Chamo snorted in derision. “Men? These are not men, and you know it. They are sclavi, mindless slaves, nothing more. Zeabos and Zapan are...” He rubbed his forehead. “They are doing their best. But there is only one person who has ever been able to enjoy the benefits of both the physical chems and the mental ones at the same time.” His eyes met her own. “You.”
And things began to click into place once more. “You want a lab rat. I should have known.”
To Kelly's surprise, he waved his hand angrily. “Hardly, hardly. A list of your toys should be enough. We haven't been able to find it at the domain, but at the very least the Nobles thought you might remember.”
The Composer of Screams Page 24