Devastation

10. The Rat

I am awoken from my sleep, by an intense vibration. As I open my eyes, I feel myself lift up. My heart feels like it'll explode as the deep rumble of something shakes me to the core. Wind gushes past me and I can barely see the ground and movement all around me.

There is loud screeches and the flapping of wings. One is roaring and is moving around and I feel her cupping her paw over me as to not drop me from suddenly standing. Through the gushing of wind, I feel something slam against Ones paw that was shielding me. I hear quick cracking noises and multiple screeches can be heard. Next thing I know I feel myself get pulled aggressively from Ones grasp.

I force my eyes open, despite the painful sting of tears being forced out of my eyes by the wind and I see One reaching for me.

If she isn't carrying me, than who or what is?!

I snap my head around to look behind me and see a bird, not the Dove, carrying me away. I start hitting its claws in hopes of making it let go so I can be free. I follow the short training session I had with the Dove, punching the joints of the claws as hard as I can.

All I have to do is get on its back and it won't be able to keep me immobilized!

As I struggle, One roars in anger and I see her squat down. With surprising strength, she pushes off of the ground, a jump that sends her flying past us. The bird screeches with fear as it tries to turn around, but One grabs it with one paw and carefully grabs me with the other. A moment later, I feel myself being pulled from the the bird, the birds legs coming with me. The bird lets out a agonizing screech of pain and I watch in horror as we fall back down fast.

One comes crashing down hard onto a building, obliterating it and sending a big cloud of dust and debris erupting from beneath her feet. I feel like I'm going to throw up, but there is nothing to throw up since I haven't eaten yet.

Next thing I see is me being held out of reach of the bird as One starts to tighten her hand holding the bird. The bird makes a painful screeching sound and I see it start to cough up blood. It's glowing yellow eyes met with mine. They were laced with hunger and fear.

One lets out a growl with anger as she begins to talk in a language I don't know. The bird responds back with a trembling voice and screeches of pain. I watch, trying to understand what is happening when One growls out something that feels like she is ending their conversation, the bird starts to panic and then it screeches again.

This screech was different, this scream sounds like air being squeezed from a balloon, pain and anguish are all I can hear and feel as I also begin to hear cracking noises from this far away. One has a straight face, her eyes looking straight at the bird with malice. With a slow raise, One lifts the bird up in to the air. The bird stares back down weakly into her eyes as it accepts its fate.

One speaks one last time, a quick word that made the birds eyes widen. Then with lightening speed, her arm shoots down and the bird slams into the ground with debris and One picks up her foot, needing only to stomp once to kill it.

I turn my face away. The scene below me is ugly. More birds liter the ground, blood pools all around their mangled bodies. Other mutants, maybe the groundhogs from before, begin crawling out of the ground and start to dismember the birds bodies and bring them underground.

One sighs a deep sigh and sits down, knees to her chest. She places me down on her left knee as humongous mutant rats begin to crawl onto her. They start to pick at the pieces of flesh and feathers on One and promptly remove them. One looks at me without a word. One mutant rat comes up behind me and tries to clean me too, but One growls lightly and it stops with a small series of squeaks as it slinks away.