Han Chen propped himself up, and the gravel rolled down from his body. The cold metal slag rubbed against his skin, and a fishy smell penetrated his nose. The wrench in his hand was covered with rust, and the handle was so rough that it hurt.
There was a sharp contraction in the stomach, and an empty cramping feeling spread. How long has it been since he's eaten? The memory is blurry, only the instinct of the body urges me. The sky began to darken, and the scrapped "worker bee" exoskeleton not far away was his only hope.
The exoskeleton lay next to a pile of discarded energy cells, its surface pitted and uneven. It was once the city's scavenger, but now it's just a cold iron shell. Han Chen approached and tapped the wrench, making a dull sound.
Two black shadows suddenly emerged from the depths of the scrap metal pile at extremely fast speeds. They were not big in size, but they were covered with sharp metal hairs, and their mouthparts were sharp, aiming straight at Han Chen's wrist. Gold-eating rat. These mutated creatures feed on metal and have a sickly sense of smell for power sources.
Han Chen moved faster. He had noticed them long ago.
He tapped his toes and leaned back to avoid a pounce. Another gold-eating rat came to bite from the side. He predicted it in advance and swiped the wrench, hitting the rat's head. With a sharp hiss, the gold-eating rat was sent flying, hit a pile of discarded gears, twitched a few times, and became motionless.
