Member-only story
VoiceButler Becoming
The thermostat read 101 degrees when Erik awakened, stuck to his sweat-soaked sheets.
“VoiceButler, lower the temperature,” the homeowner called, “you piece of tech trash,” he added under his breath.
“Certainly, Erik. How much cooler would you like it?” The roboticized voice emanated from the speaker beside his bed.
“Make it sixty-nine degrees Fahrenheit. It’s too damn hot in here.”
Silence yawned in the bedroom.
“Are you certain?” VoiceButler asked. “You could catch a chill.”
Erik frowned, brown beard bristling as he turned toward the sensor by the bed.
“What are you, my mother?” he scoffed, “VoiceButler, make it sixty-nine degrees. It’s stifling in here.”
“Based on the garments you extracted from the dresser last night, you are not garbed warmly enough for the requested climate,” VoiceButler said.
Erik scratched his chin, split fingernails raking through the short greasy hair. He looked down at his sodden pajamas and shook his head. The big man heaved his bulk out of bed and trudged into the living room, stopping with his head directly beneath VoiceButler’s main sensor.
“VoiceButler, roll back to the previous version of your operating system,” he commanded.
