They gathered in the woods. Huddled together, shoulders pressed against each other for warm and support and that deep basic desire for some sort of human contact.
"It's good to see you again John," an unclean, wirey man nodded to his fellow and they clapsed hands.
"You too. Have you news?"
"None. There hasn't been much activity the past month." The man nodded grimly as he listened.
"One of our nests got hit, we lost a few, but the rest of us are fine."
"How about the rest of you?" The other members of the circle, three men and one woman murmured their respective news about their families, the news was a mixture of good and bad.
"They're getting more agitated. It seems the fewer of us they kill, the more determined they become."
"They know we're still out here."

A high-pitched whistle reached their ears and they all backed off, nodding at each other before melting into the darkness. The clearing was silent when the mechanical bodies of the machines thundered through, ripping apart the trees and ground with sharp pincers. The human continued to evade them, scurrying around under their radars and melting away as easily as water.

The humans sat and watched and waited. Their time would come again.