“I’m not sure the Changelings would be happy with you killing us so fast,” Chax said.
“They sent me here to track you down and that’s just what I’ve done,” he said. “If they wanted more of an interesting match, they shouldn’t have hired me to come find you.”
I picked up a stone and hurled it at the figure. It struck him between the eyes.
“We’re not afraid of you!” I said pathetically.
“Oh, but you should be,” the creature said. “The name’s Iron Hoof and I’m here to be your end. Prepare yourself. Hope is over now that Iron Hoof has come.”
He held the war hammer between both hands and pawed at the ground with a hoof, tearing up the moist soil and tossing it up behind him. He bolted forward and ran at us.
Chax grabbed me by the hand and led me back behind the barn. The ground shook and thundered beneath Iron Hoof’s heavy feet.
“What the hell is that thing?” I said.
“Our worst nightmare,” Chax said. “Come on!”
We came to a stop behind the barn.
“He’s big and heavy,” I said. “I think we can outrun him!”
“No, we can’t,” Chax said. “He’s bigger and stronger than us. And a hell of a lot faster. When he builds up speed, he’s unstoppable. The only way to survive is to injure him, slow him down, and stay out of his way. Keep close.”
Chax scooped up the pitchfork that leaned against the wall. I grabbed a digging fork. It was surprisingly light. Even I could handle it.
The ground shook as Iron Hoof drew closer.
Chax drew his pitchfork back and prepared to thrust it at the creature when it barreled around the corner. I gripped the fork as tightly as I could.
We’d have to be fast. We needed to strike and immediately dive out of the way. We might only get one chance. Once he was on us, there would be no escape.
For a moment, the heavy thunder of the creature’s hoof steps disappeared.
Had he gone in a different direction?
But no. The hoof steps hadn’t disappeared.
Their sound had only been blocked.
By what?
Farmyard animals in the barn crowed in surprise. It lasted only a split second. Just long enough for Chax to grab me by my suit and yank me aside, hurling me around the barn’s corner.
For a moment, I thought he was sacrificing me, using me as a distraction to get the creature’s attention.
CRASH!
The entire rear wall of the barn exploded as the creature came thundering through it. Shards of wood and debris rained from the sky as Chax, off-balance from shoving me to safety, was struck on the back by a thick length of timber.
Iron Hoof swung his mighty hammer around and caught Chax across the chest. The cracking sound of his ribs being pulverized to smithereens wrung a scream from my throat.
“Chax!” I bellowed. “No!”
Iron Hoof drew up to Chax and raised his war hammer above his head.
“I must be setting a new record with you,” he said, placing his foot on his chest. “I thank you for your sacrifice.”
Chax floundered, barely able to move his limbs, never mind coordinate them.
Iron Hoof tensed his muscles and brought the war hammer back and up in a huge arc.
He was going to crush Chax into the mud.
I had to do something.
I felt numb. I didn’t notice I still had the fork in my hands until I glanced down. I sprung to my feet and moved without thought of what I would do or how I would feel if I failed to carry it out.
I pulled the fork back with a single arm and hurled it at the giant creature.
It sailed straight and true, the sharp spikes pointing outwards.
Iron Hoof was at the apex of his swing. A handful of seconds and Chax’s fate would be sealed.
The fork slammed into the creature’s upper thigh on his right leg.
He was shocked and hadn’t even noticed its approach. He bellowed a wail of pain and fell back, his hammer slipping from his hands and thudding heavily to the ground beside his head.
Damn! Just a few inches the other way and we would have been rid of the creature’s menace for good.
But it didn’t matter.
I wouldn’t survive out here without Chax to protect me.
I ran over and tapped him on the face.
“Get up!” I said. “Come on! We need to get moving!”
His eyes fluttered in and out of consciousness. He wasn’t going anywhere.
Iron Hoof braced himself on his war hammer and attempted to stand. He yanked the fork from his thigh. It shuddered under his weight and he collapsed back down.
It was only a matter of time before he succeeded.
I slapped Chax across the face hard.
“Wake up!” I screamed at him. “Time to get up!”
His eyes flickered. He managed to blink, but little more.
“Arjath,” he muttered under his breath. “Arjath.”
“Arjath?” I said. “What’s that?”
He turned his head toward the barn. He would have pointed but he wasn’t capable of such a complex movement.
I wondered if he’d hit his head as well as had his chest crushed by the war hammer.
“Arjath?” I said. “I don’t know what that is!”
Farmyard animals wandered to and fro across the fields, taking their chance to bolt and make a run for it now they were free.
“Arjath,” a sweet voice said behind me.
It was the little green kid from the farmhouse window. He held a harness in his tiny hand and handed it to me. Attached to the other end was a big fluffy creature with hair that hung over its eyes. It was grey with age and its hair was matted. It might have been a handsome creature in its day but it looked worn-out and tired now. It had tall front legs and shorter back ones. It reminded me of a horse, but no horse had such a docile look about it.
“Thank you,” I said to the little green boy. “I need to get him into the saddle. How do
