Cognitive Deviance

58. Delirium

June 7, 2045 - 12:40 PM

The attack on Margo's senses was unending, unable to resist. In her right ear, a low hum obstructed the sounds of her headquarters, blurring them like running ink. In her left, a shrill whistle pierced into the eardrum like a needle through fabric. A dazzling light filled her view, fighting to pry her eyes open and force itself upon her already-vulnerable senses.

She heard a voice. Several. Or maybe just one, broken down into countless doppelgängers, all intending to distort her perception of the world around her. She felt something underneath her. A cushion, hard as rock, hovering above the rest of the floor on a metal frame. But the rest of the world hid behind the blinding light floating several feet before her face. She felt cold.

A metallic taste filled her mouth, creeping down the back of her throat. Her teeth ached, and as she scanned the roof of her mouth with her tongue, she'd discovered that the copper flavor grew stronger around the right side of her mouth. Too strong.

A tooth's missing, she thought.

She coughed, a sensation of sand pouring down her throat. Blood sprayed from her mouth, drizzling around her face and her neck. The voices around her spoke faster, louder, restless. She felt a napkin dabble her chin and her cheeks, and she winced, a piercing pain flaring with each touch.

One voice called her out from the distance. She didn't know who or their intentions, but she knew they awaited her response. A silhouette eclipsed the light, enshrouding Margo in shadow. A person towered above her, a medic, face hidden behind a surgical mask and hair tied up in a bun. Suddenly gloved fingers spread her eyelids apart, but she didn't know why. What were they looking for?

"Margo, wake up," she heard her sister say. It was unmistakable. Too clear, even over the tinnitus.

"Margo," another voice said, the nurse hovering above her, "can you hear me?"

What the..., Margo thought, and she flinched. But the clenching of her eyes only brought more pain, as if her skin of her face was being forcefully stretched apart.

"Shit, she needs another one," the medic continued, and with a snap of her fingers, she declared, "Apath. Now."

Margo sunk her nails into the cushion beneath her as everything above her waist ascended forward, halting once she was at a forty-five-degree angle. Tinnitus continued to plague her ears, but the world before her cleared up, made itself known to the remaining shreds of her sanity. She was on an exam table, and the door out of the room stood four feet away. Splashes of blue and green light coated her surroundings like soap down a car's windshield, fluid transitions from one hue to the other.

"Take this," said the nurse, and she presented Margo a medicine cup, a neon blue pill glowing inside.

"What is that?" Margo croaked, her voice raspy and harsh.

"An Apath for the pain. We thought one would be enough, but I can tell you're still feeling the sting of those contusions on your face. However, you're doing great despite the possibility of a grade 3 concussion."

The words brought a chuckle out of Margo. What is this lady talking about? she thought. And why do I find this amusing?

"Ma'am?" the nurse asked, snapping her fingers. "Did you hear me? You're gonna need one of these. Then I'll have to ask you some questions to jog your memory in case you're having any troubles with that. Typical concussion shit."

Margo chuckled again. She said "shit"...Did I seriously just laugh at that? What's wrong with me?

She took the cup and downed the pill, cringing at the feel of the Apath's plastic-like texture as it plunged down her throat. With an exhale, she sank back into the inclined mattress beneath her, eyes glued to the door.