Metal Heart

A collection of science fiction short stories by H. T. De Klerk. Habana Taverna - For a quarter of a century Xavier has been tending the bar at the Habana Taverna, waiting for customers who will never come. One uneventful night he learns news that calls his mortality into question. The Last Tinkerer - Cho Ji-hun is a respectable blacksmith in a village that only has one rule - Don't ask questions about robots.
For years he has kept a secret. And when that secret walks into the forge where his apprentice Jason Jones is finishing up for lunch, it sends them on an unpredictable adventure. Funeral Smile - Jocinda's family must come to terms with the fact that she is the same, but very different from what she was before. Row of Ravens - Zisandile Mkhize lives in a world where everybody is happy. And that makes her upset.
Her work is killing her soul. The closest thing she has to friends are three obstinate pensioners who barely speak to her - but at least they aren't always smiling. She attempts to find a way to function in a society that controls everything that she thinks and feels without losing herself. And she must avoid the screaming black birds. Song of a Silver Bird - Thomas Fortescue is the last living creature left on earth.
He sets his mind to a special task in an effort to keep the ever-lurking madness at bay. All the time, a small silver bird stands bravely as his shield against the silence.