COMPRIMO

The COMPOSER

The Composer killed the new conductor very quickly, reaching under his rib cage and ripping out his heart. It wasn't anywhere near as much fun as torturing him to death, but the Composer had limited time here.

The problem was that when the new conductors were granted their songs, there was no way to know which song and instrument they'd manifest until they actually had it, and it couldn't be taken back. Well, not without killing them, so it wasn't all bad.

Take the corpse on the floor. His song was Immunity, and his instrument immunity to hypnotism. That was bad. Very bad. Of course, he didn't start immune, just resistant, but that was beside the point. He would throw off the Composer's hypnotism too quickly, maybe even start to remember things. And it wouldn't take long for his instrument to evolve to the point where it would be impossible to control him at all. Hence the killing.

Oh well. There were plenty more where he came from. That was the great thing about this city. So many people, all stuffed together on one big island. It was the perfect target.

Unfortunately, the Composer's plans were stifled a bit now that the stupid Paladins knew that killing the conductors would cure the chorus. Everything had been reset, so now that wouldn't work. With the changed connections, they'd have to kill the Composer in order to cure anyone. It did limit the usefulness of the conductors, but it was a small price to pay.

It was about time to activate a new conductor, but that meant deciding which one. They had to be used sparingly, so it was best to choose one with an instrument that would help spread the Score as quickly as possible.

There were too many variables. The biters had no ranged capabilities, so they were easily dispatched. The bats did pretty well, but the angels incapacitated them too quickly. Fliers would be less than useless. They'd just be sitting ducks, waiting to be netted and captured.

And that reminded the Composer of another annoyance: Those stupid Paladins still hadn't recruited the fifth member. They had to know who she was. If nothing else, she had to know who they were. That was the entire reason any of them were made in the first place. They were close together, and would find each other quickly.

But the Composer didn't have to keep this up for much longer. Just a few more, large attacks, and then...

Something.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Crap, what was the plan again? It didn't involve mass slaughter, so it was hard to remember.

No, wait, that was the plan. Attack as much as possible, do as much damage as possible, while killing as few as possible. That's what the Nine said, anyway, and it wasn't like the Composer had much of a choice. The Nine were stronger even as individuals, and as a group it was no contest.

But they had promised this would work out. The Composer didn't trust them, of course, but went along anyway. This would all come together in the end.

Back to the matter at hand. A conductor with a strong instrument was needed, something that would naturally lend itself to infecting others. The Composer could take control of any of the created conductors or chorus directly, of course, but that was difficult. Far easier to just guide them, and let their instincts do the rest.

Without a decent instrument, though, direct control would be the only choice. The Composer had a number of good combat conductors ready. Their instruments weren't suited for infection, but with careful control, they could be used to spread the Score.

But the Paladins weren't fools. They'd notice the discrepancy quickly, and go hunting for conductors. And if they killed them before the chorus' connections were reset, then the chorus would be cured. The fix wasn't instant. And then there would be a horde of angry directors, immune to the Score and baying for the Composer's blood.

Actually, that might be fun.

No, no, that wasn't an option. The Nine were very clear on that. Avoid making directors if at all possible, except for the Paladins.

But that meant...

The Composer held up a finger and licked it, tasting the blood from the conductor who had just been killed.

Yes... that meant killing the little changeling was an option. More than that—a requirement. Who would miss him? He was a changeling. Well, his clan might get mad. But that was even better. More blood, more killing. And just the logical result of following orders, of defending from attack... yes, this could work beautifully.

The Composer still needed a distraction. A new batch of chorus. And remote control definitely wouldn't be an option. They'd need to have an instrument that could infect people on their own.

The Composer mentally paged through the options. There were a few telepaths and detectors, useless for combat. Lots of kineticists, and creators, those were always popular. Healers... maybe. The internalized ones, who healed themselves, might work... swarm the enemy, bleed on them, infect them...

Blood.

Of course.

This would be fun indeed.

The Composer thrust out with a mental effort and found the conductor. He was awake, though drunk, and stumbling down a street about a mile south of AU. The street was pretty crowded. It was only one in the morning, which was midday for half the population of the city.

The Composer whispered a command into his mind, and he began to sing...