Siren's Bask

Pop music goes artificial.

The Noble's Bask Hotel, a decent R&R kind of place, found somewhere in the heart of the advanced technological Elustrio City. Formerly a place of extravagance, where celebrities found themselves stretching up their legs beside the infinity pool. It was where the affluent fellows clinked wineglasses, listened to torch singers, even volunteers from the table crowd. The luxury used to be unrivaled. Ever since the founder went bankrupt, the hotel has dropped over a hundred places down on the top list.

 

This was not good news for the regular stage singer, Valerie Taylor. A young woman possessing great beauty in both physicality and her voice. Talented and somewhat desperate, she is the only one left in the roster of the hotel. Singing for the great crowd of empty seats. Her pay has not come in for what seemed an eternity, her apartment is prepared to lock her out if this month's pay doesn't arrive fast.

 

Valerie stood on stage tonight, ready to deliver her song. She was dressed in her usual performance attire, a white long ballroom dress. She attached her microphone to her chest, a small pod with a hook. Her earpiece was covered up by her curling dark blonde hair.

 

The curtains rolled up, Valerie had the heat of the spotlights directed at her. A slow beat of smooth jazz played through the bar area's surround system.

 

She took a small breath, before quickly taking a long pause. Valerie stood frozen on stage. Not the first time it happened. She exhaled deeply and shook her head. "Stop. Stop the music, please." The young singer stared at rows and rows of empty tables.

 

Her silence was only broken by Jan, the resident bartender of the hotel. He's also a longtime friend of Valerie. Jan is usually wearing his black and white waistcoat while occasionally serving up drinks, or cheering his friend on stage.

 

Jan wasn't the quiet type, as he was always applauding excessively loud, given that he's the only audience at the time of day. "Aw come on! I was waitin' for that!" He expressed himself from a distance, sitting on one of the many empty tables.

 

"Shut up." Valerie walked down from the stage. "Get me some coffee. Eyes are getting heavier by the minute." She rubbed the makeup from her light bluish eyes. She took a small porcelain cup, warm from the sugarless coffee. "Who is supposed to listen at two in the morning? No one."

 

"I'm here." Jan had a large enthusiastic grin on his face. "And she's there too." He pointed at the reception desk lady.

 

"Yeah... I suppose." She sipped the bitter coffee.

 

 

Little over an hour later, she went straight to her apartment home. Valerie would travel by one of the many autonomous cabs, following a magnetic trail on the road. The sky was dark and it was drizzling lightly, but the city was bright and alive. No one slept in Elustrio, the progressive lifestyle demanded 'round-the-clock shifts. The paper-thin screens decorate the many buildings in the city, their brightness was reminiscent of daylight.

 

She swiped her card in some device of the cab and the payment was received. There it was, her apartment home. Small and inexpensive, standing on bars and pillars attached to a metal arch. Built under a day, the building was part of the city's affordable residential expansion project.

 

Inside were doors upon doors, sealed by magnetic locks. She stopped by at hers which had a small screen that read: "407 - Taylor, Valerie Lisle" with a bright red "OVERDUE" flashed below her name, accompanied by a beeping noise.

 

"Whatever." She whispered upon touching the screen. It activated some bio-metric scanner which released the locks.

 

Her room was well lit and had all the tools for a small studio. A foldable bed and lots of different microphones stored in some glass shelf. Some old-fashioned acoustic guitars laid under her bed.

 

Beside her bed was a small desk, which had a small picture frame. It was a little girl in a dress, held by a man in a tailcoat. "Mornin' pa." She uttered upon flinging herself to the bed.

 

As she closed her heavy eyes with a yawn, a gentle sound of a doorbell echoed throughout her room. "Who is it?" Valerie yelled with an irritated voice.

 

"Your savio- I mean... just a business guy." It was the voice of a young male.

 

Valerie opened the door with a grumpy look in her eyes. It revealed a short young man with a wrinkled suit and a tilted fedora. He was fresh faced with dark eyes and hair.

 

"Robin Gerhardt Henson. Sirens Production." He offered his hands for a shake. "Or just R. Henson for short." He winked at the red-eyed hotel singer.

 

"No thank..." Valerie turned around to close the door.

 

"W-wait! Wait!" Henson snapped his fingers and his secretary appeared. A lady with massive eyeglasses and formal wear. "We can get you out of this place." His secretary held a digital paper that showed their certification as a talent agency.

 

"You're a producer?"

 

"Yes you are absolutely... hey..." He paused to grab something from his pockets. "You haven't earned your pay in months right? Here." He handed Valerie a cheque with large value numbers written on it.

 

"Huh?" She was unsure of what to do with the cheque on her hand.

 

"There's more of that if you sign our contract." He handed the digital paper and a stylus. "Your singing voice, confetti, parties, fireworks. You're gonna be a star!" He said really fast.

 

Without really having much to lose, Valerie signed the contract with a single swift stroke of the stylus.

 

"Perfecto! You've made the right choice." He gave the signed paper to his secretary. "Now then, I assume you need some rest."

 

"Y-yeah..." Valerie yawned.

 

"You can have it, later. You'll be heading to your new office and home!"

 

 

They ride another autonomous cab, owned by Henson, voiced activated by Henson. It took them around the busy streets, taking them right at the heart of the city. The Sirens Production building was small but elaborate. A massive glass screen displayed their name, followed by flashes of animation and footage of other contract talents.

 

Henson directed his cab to park in front of the entrance. He was trotting quite happily as Valerie disembarked the vehicle.

 

Siren's Production, a house of many young talents. It was owned by the Henson family for generations, hosting small shows, inviting musically gifted children. After the years, they moved on to producing big name talents and their albums. Seems like Valerie was going to be their latest hit.

 

Inside the building was a lounge with an indoor fountain. The ambient lighting gave the place a sort of calm atmosphere, matched only by the quiet music playing in the background, courtesy of the other talents.

 

The young producer was excited to introduce Valerie to his abode. "Welcome, to paradise!" He said, stretching his arms outward. "It's yours now... well technically it's mine but y-you get the idea."

 

Valerie gazed at the lounge with awe, but her drowsiness was kicking in. "Where do I sleep though?"

 

"Hah! Right, right. This way." Henson led the way to an elevator, enclosed by a glass capsule.

 

At the top floor were a few doors with named labels for each. Valerie's room had none at the moment. They were old fashioned doors, using a knob and a simple lock system, uncommon for the city's architecture.

 

"Here." Henson opened the door to the would-be quarters for Valerie. "Sweet dreams." He said upon leaving Valerie behind the door. "Someone get Miss Taylor her new label!" His voice resonated from the other side of the shut door.

 

The room was only modest in size. One huge bed occupied most of the room's space, styled after a luxury home. Her closet were glass doors, activated by a simple touch function. A holographic glass television was mounted on the wall. All of that lit by hidden lamps, as well as the natural light from the large window which overlooked the city streets.

 

She immediately collapsed on the bed without removing the covers. She did so with a smile on her face. Valerie felt that the hardship will finally be a thing of the past, leaving behind her hotel singing days. There was almost nothing for her to lose or worry about upon joining the production, it was her stepping stone to stardom. Although, sleep wasn't exactly on Henson's priority list.

 

Late on the following morning, Valerie received knocks as she was taking a shower. "Delivery for Miss Taylor!" A voice of a woman echoed from outside.

 

The delivery was a box of everything she had in the apartment. She quickly grabs the picture frame and places it beside her bed on some dresser.

 

Right on top of the other items she had was a printed memo, stating that her door will lock her out permanently. This was standard procedure for non-paying residents, as the apartment was completely automated, relying on a system of electronic transactions. It never loses track and it never judges its residents. She crumpled the memo and placed it back inside the box.

 

I promise to make this work pa. Valerie stared at the picture frame. She was getting dressed for the day. It was her usual casual get-up, a jacket and some jeans.

 

"Hey how's my new star!" Henson greeted her with his usual hyper energy.

 

"I'm great, thank you." She said with a smile.

 

"Guess what, today is the day. Your day." He held his fedora with one hand and waved the other in the air. "I can see it. The crowd cheering for you, hearing your voice. Are you ready?"

 

"S-sure."

 

"Excellent! The live audience is already waiting for you."

 

"What?" She was surprised to hear the announcement.

 

"Grab your work day clothes and let's get outta here." Henson hurried outside.

 

Valerie did not expect the young producer to be serious with the whole crowd thing. She quickly rummaged through her stuff and took out whatever long dress she could find.

 

She was escorted by Henson's secretary inside the autonomous cab. This was it, thought Valerie. Since it was so long ago, she was not used to having live audiences anymore. Valerie could feel her heart pounding again, to sing in front of a crowd of a few hundred, it was what she loved.

 

They arrived at Elustrio's premiere concert hall, known as The Pearl House. It was packed with people, waiting for the next talent to stand on stage. This was where world tours and special celebrity events are held.

 

Sirens Production was holding an event for the day called: "Pop's Next Sirens". They were featuring young talent from all over the city, funded by Henson himself. Valerie was the next talent to be called on stage.

 

"For our next featured Siren, we have our newest and most beautiful, Miss Valerie Taylor!" The announcer's voice echoed throughout the dome concert hall. All of the crowd cheered wildly upon the announcement.

 

"You ready?" Said Henson's secretary. "It's pop music."

"Y-yeah!" Valerie rushed towards backstage.

 

The once hotel singer now stood on stage of the city's greatest events hall. She stood on stage with her usual ballroom dress, her work clothes. Valerie smiled with both worry and excitement, she held her earpiece with a shaking hand as she waited for the music to come on.

 

It was all impromptu for her, she didn't have time to prepare for everything, but today was her day, her moment. The wild cheers of the crowd reminded her of what it used to be before the hotel went bankrupt, before she had overdue bills. They cheered even louder when they saw an image of Valerie popup from a massive holographic screen behind her. Henson's production team took pictures of her way back when she performed in the hotel, she was in her prime with a shining dress.

 

Suddenly, The Pearl House began blasting a fast upbeat electronic-pop. It was one of her guilty pleasure genres which she sang over from time to time. From the moment she moved her lips, she would become the new face of pop for the entirety of Elustrio.

 

Her voice would raise a new generation of youngsters, with her theme as the sweet candy pop singer, or "that sugary siren". Over a year later into her success, Henson made her room the biggest among all the other talents. She'd make appearances around the world as online concerts. The Pearl House would feature her countless times as the fan favorite.

 

It was everything that Valerie could have hoped for, until one day. She was resting on her bed, preparing to have her very first world tour the next day. Jan was on the line talking to her.

 

"You sure you're okay Val?" His voice echoed throughout the room.

 

"Yeah Jan..." She inhaled deeply. "I may need to... see umm... a doc-doctor." Valerie did not have her usual silvery singing voice. She was having chills and her body was in serious pain.

 

"I'll come visit you."

 

"N-no, don't. You're on a... a busy schedule."

 

She heard the door open which made her cut the communication line in an instant. It was Henson, wearing the same wrinkled suit and fedora. Clothes just weren't part of his concern.

 

"Hello there superstar!" He was very jumpy and excited. "We better get moving if we don' wanna be late."

 

"Sure... Mr. … Mr. Henson."

 

Henson proudly left with a smile on his face. He was certain that this was going to be their biggest hit yet. If Valerie has a successful world tour, it would mean a whole different competition for her. That and Sirens Production will rise up the charts in terms of financial gain.

 

 

Valerie never did leave her bedroom. Henson just returned from a conference that night, prepared to arrange their flight tickets. He could not believe what happened to his greatest siren.

 

Henson went down on his knees, he held his face with his greasy hands. "No... no..." He shook the cold wrists of Valerie. "Valerie baby? My sugary siren?" He shook them harder. "No-no-no-no. No! No!" In disbelief, he kept on patting her pale white cheeks. "No! No! No! This cannot! I repeat, cannot! Be! Happening!"

 

His secretary followed him inside the bedroom, worried of what might be happening. She nervously stood behind Henson, observing at the lifeless body of Valerie.

 

"How did this...!? Ugh! C-curse... Curse it!" Henson just walked around the room in circles, rambling to himself. "Damn damn damn it! I forgot to hire a doctor!" He exhaled heavily. "Or at the very least a physician."

 

"What do we do now sir?" His secretary inquired.

 

"I... I don't know. I fired the other sirens to cut costs and now she dies. What a mistake I've made." He rapidly tapped on his forehead. "Guess we'll just have to bring her back to life."

 

"Necromancy sir?"

 

"No no! Not magic. Technology." He kept tapping his forehead. "Get my cab ready. I'll pay an old friend a visit."

 

Henson's secretary hurriedly went out of the room. While Henson, mad as his idea sounded, was no longer far-fetched in Elustrio, for a price of course.

 

They took the body with them as a passenger, in the hopes that she might still have a chance to be reanimated. The autonomous cab drove straight for the outskirts of the city, near large industrial labs.

 

One of those labs was the Archon Advanced Anatomical Research Facility. A great and sleek black vertical monstrosity. Owned, maintained, and used by Archon researchers. Its purpose was just as the name of the place implied, a facility to study and enhance the capabilities of the human body. Since its establishment, their services contributed to bio-mechanical augmentation of limbs and various organs.

 

It was the place Henson was certain is capable of bringing back his most precious superstar. He knew the risks of involving himself with the Archon. The shady organization was the center of conspiracy theories, but their record tells only of a successful tech and medical group.

 

Inside the facility was like any typical corporate office. It wasn't much different to the Sirens Production lounge, complete with the ambient lighting. Henson and his secretary carried Valerie's body through the elevators, its high speed ascent gave the view of the rest of the city, so far away.

 

They arrive in some quaint laboratory hall with capsules of humanoid-shaped robots hanging by the walls. There were countless glass screens monitoring the different units present in the lab. There was no excess noise, and the temperature was just enough to make one uncomfortably cold.

 

A man wearing a blue and white lab coat stood from the distance. He was gazing outside the massive window in the lab.

 

"Hey Crius my friend! I need your help!" Yelled Henson, leaving behind his secretary to carry Valerie's body.

 

Crius, the designated name given by the Archon to the facility's top researcher and director. He had almost no hair left and had wrinkles on his cheeks and forehead. His right hand was a machine attachment with skeletal fingers, clicking into every motion. "What do you need Robin?" He spoke with a gravelly voice.

 

"I need you and your skills..." Henson pointed at his secretary, carrying the young singer. "To bring her back... to life."

 

Henson's secretary placed Valerie's body on a clean white table.

 

"Death..." uttered Crius. “A minor setback they said." He giggled.

 

"Can you do it old man? She's the only one keeping my production on its feet." He held his tilted fedora. "I really don't want to lose everything now. I don't wanna be like uncle, stupid uncle." He mumbled to himself.

 

"Yes. It might be slightly... different."

 

"What do you mean different?" He raised his hand to gesture air quotations.

 

"Well..." Crius cleared his throat. "I already have a solution. Just leave her vessel there."

 

"Vessel?"

 

"Her body." Crius took a good look at Valerie's face. Opening her eyelids one by one. He also inspected her hair, looking at them closely through his mechanical hand.

 

"Okay. Okay! Surprise me then." Henson prepared to take his leave.

 

"As you wish Robin." Crius got to work with his machines and computers.

 

 

A week later, Henson cancelled the scheduled world tour of "that Sugary Siren". He told his secretary to put up ads for their talent search. Sirens Production was open for new talent. He did not inform the loyal fans of Valerie of her recent fate, fearing the backlash might worsen his current gains.

 

Someone knocked at his office while he was browsing online in search of new sources of talented youngsters. Henson opened his door to reveal Valerie, healthy and beautiful as ever. "Miss Taylor?" He was dumbfounded.

 

Valerie wore her usual brightly colored dress, in theme of her candy pop singer image. With a few blinks of her gleaming blue eyes, she finally spoke. "Hello Mr. Henson. I have returned for my duties, courtesy of:" She paused for a few seconds, while holding her expression. "Archon Labs." Her last two words sounded very monotonous and unnatural.

 

"Crius you did it..." Henson stood frozen, surprised at what he was seeing.

 

"Please wait while I install my singing-voice module." Valerie walked around inside the office a bit. She still moved like a person. She was still breathing and blinking as anyone would. "Installation complete. I am ready for my world tour, Mr. Henson." Valerie clarified.

 

"Very well then... Valerie." Henson clasped and breathed deeply. He quickly put on his wrinkled coat and fedora, prepped to advice his personnel for the reschedule. "Come on my superstar! Let's tell the world that you're back for more!"

 

The new Valerie was no different from the old one in terms of singing voice. She was just as great and what's better is that she does not stutter. The new her was never nervous or sick, she was always on time, always obedient. It was the dream of any profit-driven production, like the one Henson owns.

 

Months later, Sirens Production bathed in wealth, or at least the owner. Henson would build many more offices, adorned with the theme of Valerie, his star that made him one of the richest men alive.

 

Valerie may now be a machine at heart and soul, but her father would certainly be proud of what she has accomplished. Perhaps she will seek a greater purpose in the coming days, maybe something to bring back a piece of the old Valerie.

Author's Note

Recently entered a competition at a local bookstore and online group.

Only mentioned as honorable submission.

Reviews

[Pete]

I enjoyed this. I've always loved Sci-Fi and the fictitious worlds you can lose yourself in.
It's difficult to create such worlds in a short story but you've managed it well.
The story is good too. It runs at a nice pace.

My only real negative is the occasional use of the present tense, which feels a bit out of place.

[Ian Chris]

I really enjoyed reading a story which has elements of sci-fi that involves a singer who has hopes and dreams. A brilliant ending.
Good luck.
Ian Chris.

[yeti]

i liked it a lot. i'm huge fan of stories about ordinary people in extraordinary worlds.

[LeviUtopia]

I really liked what your wrote, very well done. It is better than some of the stuff that I have written.

[Lars Raviena]

Hi there, I enjoyed reading it. Keep up the good work. I think you did well in describing enough of the scenes to give the impression of the world, and left enough out to let the imagination paint it.