Dawn broke.
With the howling wind, an unidentified predatory bird swept over the horizon. It plunged down, its rough, sharp talons penetrated the frozen crust of the earth. As the ground crumbled and sand descended, a wriggling, oddly-shaped bug head was pulled from the surface by the claws.
The red-eyed predator let out a piercing screech, beating its wings to rise. The ground split and collapsed with it, revealing several zhangs of the bug's segmented body writhing from beneath the earth. Suddenly, the insect opened its mouth and roared, its sharp sting fast as a flying snake's tongue, aiming for the bird!
