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From THE DAEDALUS FILES
Iron-girt, tight as a rivet’s grip,
they stand between walls
and barricades.
Someone has taken care
to sculpt the eyes
with a hard gaze.
Once these were inlaid with gems.
Lashes in fine silver
lifted with the dawn. Torsos
shone in muscle and limb as if
nourished by ambrosia and nectar
in the ichor of the gods.
Robotically, they will dismantle
bombs, find survivors in wreckage,
or they may overthrow
human constraints, wipe out
systems, abolish structures, free
monsters from caves.
Mandy Pannett
Illustration: Claire Palmer