Chapter 55: Metacraft Cybernetics (2)
Metacraft Cybernetics (2)
A black pupil within a yellow iris quietly looked down at the ground below. As it scanned the earth in search of prey, its pupil expanded and contracted repeatedly, like a camera lens.
The road it was watching was a small two-lane path, with fields on either side long abandoned. Though the ground was dotted with only sparse, withered straw and weeds, a small ecosystem still thrived here.
A commotion erupted in one part of the field. Two rats were engaged in a chase—both the pursued and the pursuer were rats. However, while the pursued was a small, unimpressive field mouse, the pursuer was twice its size and had a snout resembling that of a crocodile.
The distance between them rapidly closed, and just as the large rat's gaping jaws were about to bite down on the field mouse… A sharp cry pierced the air as a black shadow descended from the sky. It was a goshawk, the ruler of the skies.
“Kreeee!”
The bird of prey’s talon-like blades ruthlessly sank into the head and chest of the monstrous rat. It blocked the dangerous jaws with one foot while delivering a killing blow to its vital organs with the other. The field mouse, saved by a stroke of luck, scurried away in an instant, while the monster rat, struck on the head, flailed briefly before falling still.
The goshawk seemed accustomed to hunting these grotesque rats. Once it confirmed the kill, it gripped the rat in its talons and soared back into the sky. These strange rats, which had suddenly appeared after the world grew chaotic, were threatening with their jaws but slow to react and full of meat, making them ideal prey for the goshawk. Its younglings particularly loved the taste.
A single drone watched the goshawk's return, carrying its prize. The 13th drone, one of the dozens sent from the shelter, transmitted everything it saw and heard back to headquarters.