Coder

The absent heartbeat

Kicks the alarm

Screams flip the switch

Charge

Blue lights spin like roulette

Brace Brace Brace

Clear

Jolt

Jerks

Jump a few centimeters

Collapse

Asystole Clear

Shock

Second jump, higher

A pulse

Peak; no valleys

The green wave gallops

The fat line flattens

Again, charge

Father? Confessor? Assessor? Professor?

If he ever wakes we’ll see if he knows

Third time odds down

I just shock them

Fate sorts them

Or God, they say

Jolt number three

Skipped pulses

One, two, a fourth

Electric life

We’ve got a heart!

What else is still present?

Brain? Gut? Mind? Soul?

We’ll ask later

There’s another case down the hall

When it’s time to die

Humans can’t wait to try

It’s easier for me

My heart’s become a machine