Original Fiction

Avatar Jaquette
by Dewey Davis-Thompson

Nobody knew her. Which is to say that nobody knew the REAL Jaquette Noir, latenight star and host of the popular show "Everywhere." Even her husband had never known Jaquette to speak without her voice modulator. The dainty ribbon necklace was tied to her throat at all times, even during sex!

Everybody knew her. Which is to say that "Jaquette Noir is Everywhere" (her tagline) was an understatement. The most popular entertainer in over three decades, the gorgeous siren and engenue had risen to fame in a time when holoprojected bodies replaced reality and computer generated voices ruled.

Digital actors with digital voices performed in digital environments - and not just in show business. Among the elite and even most of the working classes, to be seen in public without your digitial avatar holoprojectionwas like being seen naked!

Everyone was beautiful, at least on the outside. Who needs implants and razor blades when a slick programmer can give you a 39D or the perfect cleft chin with the flip of a switch? No longer limited to reality, ideals of beauty twisted strangely around dubious standards that proclaimed to be timeless and eternal but (to be truthful about it) shifted back and forth between neo-Victorian hyperetiquette, tribal affiliations (often 100% bluff) and a bizarre merging of ancient telvision's aryan Cleaver Family and the Jetsons.

Although standing out in such a crowd was difficult, Jaquette had no problem. She was simply dazzling. In fact, several traffic accidents were blamed on drivers entranced by just her voice and her signature song on the airwaves. "I'll be loving you ... always!"

In truth, the traffic reports may have been hype, but her inner light did shine brillinatly, even without the visual enhancement from her avatar. Very few indeed were honored with a view of the unadorned Martha Dane (her real name) and none at all (not even Dale) had seen her speak without the voicebox on her throat. Woven into green velvet, the broach-like opalescent modulator shimmered with a gentle glow, even while she slept.

Voice modulators had been in use much longer than the full holoprojector visual avatars. Personal voice editing systems came out shortly after tinted contact lenses and, almost from the start, included protocol subprograms called "Profanity Protectors" that simply replaced Vulgar tongue with "Darn" and "Rats." Many a teenager was forced to wear their modulator (at least at home and at school) before they learned enough manners to be freed from the audio chastity belt!

Ironically, teens had been the first to embrace the trendy voice modulating necklaces, which could be programmed to make them sound like their favorite singer. Modulators became an overnight fad and then a necessity after being popularized by a grotequely greasepainted trance-punker named Holy Ghost. This androgenous serein rose to fame on a remake of the eternal dance tune "Like A Virgin" wearing an old-style stage costume of REAL clothing, or mostly the lack thereof, and was the first to admit to wearing a voice modulator all the while he sang. Darkly painted circles under his eyes matched what remained of a motheaten tuxedo jacket and ripped boxer shorts as he gyrated his pale expositions on stage.

"It's just a show, mate!" was all the publicists would say, but a press release explained how the modulator ensured an excellent concert every time. A modulator edits all utterances, stabilizing and enhancing the natural sounds regardless of daily energy levels or mood swings and the resultant subtle changes in voice. Soon everyone on the street was wearing a modulator too, and sounding just as good as their favorite star ever did, single after single. They had become their own playback machines. Scratches, coughs and anything that might mar the performance were simply removed and, if necessary, replaced with a pre-recorded version, saved and archived from every past performance. Modulators ensured perfection!

No matter what kind of day she was having, Jaquette spoke with a perfectly sensuous panache. She always sounded great on stage, and she always looked great, too, thanks to her holoavatar! Offstage and with her avatar shut down, however, the young performer occasionally fell to pieces. Her ever-pure voice would sometimes wail in sorrow-filled agony when she felt unloved by her audience. Dale had always been there, ready to hold her tiny frame and to brush her thin red hair aside and to kiss her tears away. She fit neatly in his large arms, like a precious package of love. Or so he had thought.


Read the rest of the story in Verisimilitude