Embers and Icicles

Chapter Four

Jenny walked out the door without looking back. That was the way they operated–no goodbyes meant you knew you were going to see each other again. Normally, protecting some celebrity would be safe enough that they didn't even need to consider the other option.

But with a synth in the mix, things got less predictable. If Silver's tech was as advanced as they suspected, the synth would be able to much more than just shut off a few batteries. Jenny would be strategizing even now, as she walked down the hall.

They already had a plan, but it wasn't uncommon for Jenny to change it as she went. "Drop-dead and a genius," she would often say about herself.

The Shadow Slate switched through channels to keep an eye on her through hacked security cams, while simultaneously trying to spot the synth through the more blurry cameras monitoring the main floor on the hotel, where fans were now gathering in wait for Helium.

Slate checked his watch. Still about an hour before Helium–or Søl Gunner, the real name friends and family called her by–made her appearances. The hustling and bustling of overzealous fans had a warmth to it. A group of people gathering to celebrate something they were all passionate about was such a lovely thing to watch.

Throughout the room, there were a few strategically placed cameras displaying only static throughout the vast room. Coincidence?–possibly. But it was likely the tampering of Silver's synthetic assassin. They had a few tricks up their sleeve after all.

A face caught Slate's eye. Among all the smiles and animated gestures, a man was furiously tapping at the power button on his phone. His battery must have died. Unfortunate, but if he was willing to give up his spot in the crowd, he would be able to recharge it before Helium began her presentation.

If not, the whole event would be livestreamed by hundreds of attention hungry fan-accounts. He didn't have to film the whole thing himself.

The man seemed to realize that too. He slid the dead device into his pocket, opened his mouth as if to say something. Instead of speaking, he looked around, eyes wide and jaw still open, ready for the words to leave it.

Whoever he was talking to must have wandered off. Slate shook off the distraction and continued his perusal of the room. Still nothing in sight, and no more cameras had been shut off.

He switched from the main cameras to the ones backstage. The room where Helium had been chatting with the convention director–Marcus–still looked secure, though now the director had left the room.

The fawn Corporeal was likely preparing to announce the main attraction. The hallway camera showed him talking to a little kid in a black cloak, red tape wrapped up both their arms to match the red "X" across their back. It was a cool costume. The large hood shadowing their face added to the mysterious vibe of the outfit, and some very realistic knives were strapped onto them in various places.

Jenny's voice crackled through her earpiece as the child began to lead Marcus through the hall. "I'm backstage now," Slate saw her on his monitor, a tiny form going from frame to frame as she moved.

He glanced back at the kid and the fawn, only to see that they had disappeared. He clicked through a few angles, switched which cameras he was viewing–it didn't make a difference. They had vanished.

"Hey, Jenny, I think somethings–"

A door crashing open cut him off. He wasn't hearing it on his floor, so the sound must have been coming from–

"Fuck," Jenny's voice was so quiet the microphone hardly picked it up, even with the high-tech earpieces they both wore. Slate's eyes flicked back to her.