The Captured Cell

A pair of notched silver terminals crowned the top of a dense, black-and-gold power cell resting on the desk. I closed the distance with heavy, measured steps. Raising my foreclaw, I struck its metal flank, toppling the heavy block onto the smooth oak with a sharp clatter. I planted my hind foot squarely across its casing, pinning the dormant energy source beneath my weight. When the tip of my talon grazed the dual metal caps, a faint shock of cold static bit sharply into my scale. Satisfied with its stored charge, I shoved the heavy brick into the shadow beneath the monitor, claiming it for my hoard.