I Won't Save You
Sybil sat through another appalling act, listening to the ear-ringing tones of the supposed 'artist' stood opposite, before adorning a falsified smile and politely clapping, as the singer faded their chalkboard voice. At least they understood the subtle command to stop.
How the people of Cloudbank even considered this style of singing popular was beyond her.
"A wonderful performance, Facsimile! I've no doubt you'll be hearing from me in time, hopefully to sign on a label if all goes well! I'll speak to my colleagues and let you know via Terminal. For now though, could you kindly tell Red I'll see her now on your way out?"
She had to repress the urge to roll her eyes as the energetic twenty-two year old practically glowed with happiness at her empty promises and silent plea to go away.
"Thank you, Ms. Reisz, of course!"
As the door slammed shut her smile faded and she allowed herself to relax into the chair, even if only for a moment, massaging her temples in an attempt to relieve the headache she had found herself gaining all evening. As the headache began to clear, she thought on her next guest: Red.
A small smile worked its way onto her face at the thought of the 'upcoming' artist, for she was anything but upcoming, in reality. Red had made waves among the people with her controversial music, and already had a dedicated fan-base taking up over half of Cloudbank who loved her music, Sybil included.
Yet Sybil had never found the opportunity to meet her, until now.
As she thought of finally meeting her favourite artist, she subconsciously allowed herself to begin lowly singing a song she had memorized from Red's latest album.
"Maybe you're looking for someone to blame, fighting for air while you circle the drain… Never be sorry for your little time, It's not when you get there, It's always the climb… But I won't save you…"
A quiet almost imperceptible cough made her head snap to the door as a light colour flushed her skin at being caught. So much for being professional. She opened her mouth to speak in greeting, but stopped short as she finally laid eyes on Red up close.
It was then she realized that aside from loving the music, she loved the artist, as she stared at the woman before her. Red looked as good as she sounded, if not better.
"Sorry, I should've knocked…is it alright to come in now?"
Another bout of silence overcame Sybil as Red spoke, slightly in shock at the soft voice that she heard, before the stupor wore off.
"Yes…yes of course! Sorry about that, just a lot on my mind recently, with the program planning taking centre stage. The manager of the Empty Set is being a bit…difficult, this time round."
A soft laugh that reminded her of tinkling glass sounded from the woman now walking towards the microphone before she responded.
"I can imagine! He always has been an unreliable man even at the best of times."
The openness of her words piqued an interest in Sybil as Red prepared and began to sing her chosen piece. As she listened, she began to glean what she could from Red's simple words and what she already knew. It was her job after all, as part of the Camerata, to gather information on potential high-value targets. In Red's case though she was slightly put out. Her music and words indicated a kind of confidence she had never encountered before, yet there was certainly something else, something she couldn't quite figure out. She had an air of mystery around her, which only served to amplify her image as a reclusive musician.
She was inscrutable.
As the song drew to a close Sybil noticed with no small amount of embarrassment that she had been humming along the entire time, and looked up to meet the sparkling eyes of Red, who stood patiently waiting for her verdict.
"I hope it was alright, I didn't really have chance to practice much before I came…"
"Don't worry about it! If this was without much practice, then I'm even more impressed than I was! I have a feeling you'll be the main act at our little event next month, so make sure to dazzle the crowd!"
If possible, Red's eyes lit up even more, giving her what Sybil thought was she most adorable look she had ever seen, making her smile truthfully for the first time in a long while, and also momentarily forget for a split second about a public group of secret 'murderers' she was a part of.
"Tell you what, I'll close up here, and we can talk on the way back to Highrise? I'll even get a flatbread from Junction Jan's. Your choice!"
It was an offer Red couldn't resist, but sooner than Sybil would've liked she found herself at the entrance to Red's apartment saying her goodbyes as a mysterious man took Red inside, while narrowing his eyes towards her in the dark. Sybil responded in kind, before returning to her own home.
Relaxing on her couch with her personal Terminal, Sybil kept thinking back to the mystery man she had seen Red with. The jacket he wore with the glowing triangle had narrowed him down to one person. One who had been seen with Red at nearly every location and every concert since her early career. There were just too many sightings to suggest a casual friendship, and for some reason that struck a chord with her. As part of the Camerata, she had her colleagues that was for certain, but no real interaction outside of that, which meant she had previous lovers to claim. Creating small talk at charity events was one thing, but having a relationship was another.
Talking to Red on the way home had been somewhat of an eye opener for her, with the more casual topics being discussed over flatbread rather than big plans over process and encrypted Terminals, and left her feeling more vulnerable than she would've liked. Yet, she had come to enjoy the time with Red who, despite having the same quality education as herself, seemed equally as refined yet less in some cases.
Sybil sighed. Her colleagues wouldn't be happy with her forming outside relationships though, it was strictly against their wishes, and became a rule to protect their shared interests…but perhaps they could overlook that agreement just this once.
Just this once.
She would send Red a message tomorrow and see how things progressed first, and idly wondered if her 'lover' would become an issue.
Her fingers rapidly tapped against the screen as she typed on her private Terminal. It had been a while since she had sent a message to Red with no response, and her tension had built to a high degree. She had met up with her a few times since their first encounter, but was frustrated to find Red closing her off more and more. At first she put it down to her reclusive nature, but she had made brief eye contact with her at an event last night which said more than she had wanted to know.
The dull look the narrowed eyes held as they passed over her had momentarily shocked her, but she recovered and followed Red's gaze, which coincidentally landed on the triangle-clad male once more, who gave a slight nod to his companion.
From that point Sybil's mind had become a calculating process.
Did Red's mysterious companion know about the Camerata's actions? Had he told her about them? Was he turning Red against them?
Had he turned Red against her?
She knew she wasn't thinking rationally as she typed, adding Red's name to the list of potential targets, but the aloof character had to go. Several scenarios had come into her head, depicting the outcomes of her actions...and none of them looked overwhelmingly positive, but at least Red's companion would be out of the picture. She loved people, yes, but Red was much more than just people.
Her hands shook slightly as she put her Terminal down. Truth be told she had grown tired of the Camerata and the big plans they had laid out. Running the city's events was one thing, but luring in targets to 'kill' was another. She had no doubt they would be eventually found out, and when they were, the sentences would be severe. If her plan failed in any way, it would just be the equivalent of a... early sentence, so to speak.
Red's boxer had certainly come to be an issue, but that would all be sorted in a few days' time.
Her screen lit up with a message. Grant.
Red? What are your reasons? - Kendrell, G
Sybil paused. She hadn't really thought this far. She never was a schemer, just eyes and ears for the schemers. The game had changed though.
She has a... Unique... Set of selections which would be useful to our cause. Not to mention her growing influence and popularity among the people. She isn't so popular though that her disappearance couldn't be explained. - Reisz
She sat down heavily on her bed. In the past she wouldn't have even thought of attempting to deceive her allies. They had been her path to high society. Stepping stones, if you will. Yet she was also a stepping stone to them. It was a two way street, so to speak.
I suppose. When will she be alone? - Kendrell, G
After the musical event at the Empty Set. I promise you she will be alone. She is the last act. - Reisz
Alone. A slight laugh escaped her as she thought. If everything went to plan Red would be anything but alone. The Camerata would be furious at her for inaccurate information, yes, but she could handle that. Then it was just a case of containing Red long enough to bring her way of thinking into line with the Camerata, which was highly doubtful... Or they could move out to country. Red had confided in her how much the longed to see the beach...
Yourself, Asher, and I will confront her. - Kendrell, G
'The beach will have to wait' Sybil thought as her breathing rate increased. If she was seen with the Camerata while they attacked Red, the trust between them would have to be rebuilt…if it was even there anymore. If she wasn't there then at least she could feign innocence and hopefully integrate with Red more while she mourned, eventually bringing her to leave the city. However, she knew better than to question Grant. He knew an excuse when he saw one, better than anyone.
The Terminal shut down while she finally laid back and let sleep overcome her frayed nerves.
This was much more than running the city's events.
The night had gone without a fault, aside from Facsimile's grating tones which the people still seemed to enjoy. This was the last event she would ever get invited to, that was for certain.
Now though, the seats were empty, the stage lights dimmed, and the speakers off.
Sybil inwardly cringed as Grant and Asher approached her, the former carrying Royce's Transistor. She had always thought Asher as the loyal type, but seeing it with Grant was another thing entirely.
"Ah, Sybil. I was wondering where you were. I trust the evening went without any complications?"
Her senses were on high alert. The administrator always was a subtle man. If he suspected anything, he wouldn't say it outright. It would be between his words.
"Of course, you know how I plan my events, Grant."
"That I do, Sybil… that I do. Now, would you care to introduce me to your most esteemed guest? I must say I'm curious as to what Red is actually like. The woman behind all the posters..."
She knew she had one shot at this...
"She's just to the left of the stage, practicing her latest song. Would you prefer the doors locked for this meeting?"
...only for it to fail.
"I'm sure that won't be necessary. The Empty Set is a rather deserted place inside and out after hours. And here I considered you an expert..."
"Just precaution, is all."
"Ah, thinking one step ahead. I'm impressed. Come now though, we haven't all evening."
Her face fell as she walked ahead of Grant and Asher. She would have to see how the confrontation went. Hopefully Red would forgive her, and they could move forward together… No distractions.
Soon enough Red came into view, and as they approached Sybil turned to see a slight glint in Grant's eye. It seemed he had already calculated the singer's value. He wasted no time in attempting to gain Red's trace, summoning the Transistor to take another life, but what happened was in excruciatingly slow motion for Sybil.
As Red turned from her position to face the oncoming Transistor she immediately stumbled backwards, which let the Transistor graze her arm instead of its original target. It was stopped though as the recurring aloof character stepped out of the shadows, and stood in its way.
Sybil watched Grant's eyes double in size as the man fell back, before running towards the Transistor with a desperate look, only to see Red grasp it and with a wild look of panic, and vanish.
It was then she finally noticed Asher, staring at her less than two feet away, face passive as usual.
"You failed." he said "Now we all share the same sentence."
A look of disbelief overcame Sybil's face as she looked at her colleague.
"I have Grant, Royce has the Process. It was only time until you found someone. I just wish you had gone about it differently. We would've understood."
He paused as the information sank in.
"I have to go now. Grant needs me."
With that, Asher walked away, leaving Sybil on her own as she walked to the centre stage and sank to the floor.
What was their left now? The Camerata wouldn't trust her again, that was certain. She had lost her colleagues. Red...well... She didn't even know where Red was.
She thought back to Asher's words. Could she have handled it differently? Begrudgingly Sybil admitted a yes. Instead of handling things the typical Camerata way, she could've just been direct and asked Red why she was distant, or even spoken to her enigmatic companion. It wouldn't have been hard at all. That was what a relationship was about. Being open. Not at all similar to the game her secret life played, simply removing obstacles by any means possible. That game had been played too long, and her emotions had clouded judgement, costing her everything.
She looked around and with bleary eyes noticed stray processes appearing from all corners of the room.
The Transistor, it had changed ownership as it grazed Red. Another testament to how much she had left to chance in her plan. Like she said... she never was a schemer.
Now the entire city shared the same sentence.
She could only hope her brief friendship with Red was enough to make her come back. Why wouldn't she? She had questions, Sybil had answers. The rest would come after.
Sybil shut her eyes, softly smiled as she noticed a Creep approach her, and began singing.
"When you speak, I hear silence..."
Red would be back. She knew it. She would save her from the process.
After all, the boxer was gone now. Red was hers. Who else did she have?
"Every word a defiance. I can hear, oh I can hear..."
Alright...so I tried to portray Sybil as a kind of obsessive (but not openly) person, denying it subconsciously herself, but also giving a slight backstory to why she was like that. Out of all the Camerata, I'd say she was the most underdeveloped, so it was a bit hard. Hopefully my original intentions came through though! It's the first time I've written in a while, so let me know if it's up to scratch!