12.17.2015
He brought up the Smokestack app, and made his way to the customer service page, which connected him to the call center somewhere on the planet. Voice modulation software masked accents and inflections, so that all workers had the same neutral sound. Corporate identity. Consistency.
“How may I help you?”
“I’ve had some issues that I suspect are related to my Extra Subconscious Leasing.”
“What are these issues?”
“Hallucinations, loss of sight and hearing, as well as fainting.”
“Have you ever experienced these before?”
“No, I have not.”
“Do you have a medical history of these symptoms in your family?”
“Not to my knowledge.”
“Let me run a quick scan of your medical history data. Please hold.”
A tinny drum set to synth atmospherics filled his small room. His neck was still stiff, so he massaged his heck and shoulders with a hand as he waited.
The person came back to the call with a pop. “I didn’t see any apparent markers of concern. Have you tried consulting the clinician you were assigned?”
“That’s what I am trying to do now.”
“But may I ask why you haven’t reached out to the clinician?”
“I don’t have the number for this person, so I’m trying to get some help reaching them.”
“Okay, sir. I was asking just so that we might improve our service in the future. Your call would be best directed to your clinician.”
“I understand that as well. But if I don’t know who to reach or how to reach them, how can I be expected to reach them?”
“I’ll connect you right now.”
More synth atmospherics and then a ringing tone. A man answered and said, “Hello?”
“Hi, I was put through to you by Smokestack regarding my ESL.”
“Ahh, hello, this is Doctor Parabinzhval. How may I help?” The sound of a carbonated beverage being opened came across the line.
“I’ve had hallucinations the last day or so, and I think they are related to the ESL chip.”
“Can you tell me about it?”
Tern related his experience with the blinking lights, how they became more animated, and the episode at the park.
“That certainly sounds serious. Could you come in some time tomorrow? We’ll be able to run some tests and see what might be going on.”
“Sure, I could get there by the early afternoon,” Tern said, giving himself time to sleep in in the morning.