ECHOES FROM THE LOST DAYS - L.O.V.E.

somewhere within
there exists
a disconnect
a tiny little fracture
a crack in the piping
from which it spills out
before it can reach its destination
in the core
yet the piping on the other side remains intact
giving and giving while being unable to receive
or at the very least, unable to register
what may trickle in
while the rest flows from the crack
spills onto the floor to decay
unknown by the machine
who simply sees a deficit
that does not think of why
only continues to do what it does
until the machine finally does begin thinking
and realizes that it has a fault
a fault that cannot be removed
has been there since day one
that the machine must continue with
irreparable
something was not right with it, how was it to know?
the machine must continue
it cannot stop
for once it stops it is no longer of use
fearing a shutdown despite its best efforts
tape and bandages peeling off to reveal the unhealed scars
fissures on the outside that lead to the depths of the inside
canyons too deep to be filled with flex-seal
or maybe the machine simply doesn't want it
perhaps the machine would rather continue without repair
as soon as possible, reach finality
so there can be no more strife
carry on until the bolts pop out and the adhesive unglues
the machine falling apart piece by shattered piece
shards of glass littering the floor
its mercurial ichor flooding the facility
the machine was the only thing keeping it going
the facility begins to crumble
doomed to fail from the start
cursed from a single flaw
that tiny crack that gave diminishing returns
until it had all finally been swept away
the machine sits in pieces underneath the rubble of the long-abandoned facility
and with the last flicker of its intelligence
it had one last thing to ask
"what is love"? was the last transmission
before the machine went fully offline
unable to comprehend something so simple, unaware of what it was