Birkensnake 4

I am a robot. I live in the sea. My skin is metal yellow, though the seaweed makes this difficult to see. It covers me.

I am inactive during the daytime. At night, when the night swimmers step into the sea, my electrocells swell with electricity.

The night swimmers swim close to the shore. On occasion, one of them swims further out, out of sight of the others. This is when I rise up from the sand at the bottom of the sea.

I approach the swimmer. He is generally unaware of me.

My heart chamber slides open, drawing in seawater, and the swimmer.

My heart chamber slides shut, and expels only water.

The button on my chest turns from green to red.

There is no suffering.

*

When dawn comes, I move towards the shore. My heart chamber once again slides open. Seaweed emerges. A glistening new tissue of seaweed, that spreads over the skin of the water. In the early sun, the weeds shine as if berried with green crystals.

When the hotel doors open, I retreat. I glide back into deep waters.

I sink into the sand at the bottom of the sea.

The button on my chest turns from red to green.