War Beast

Book One: Chapter 19

Jenny and her friends rode over the dunes, and they stopped at the top of a hill. What they saw shocked them.

A giant diamond-shaped stone object hovered over the desert landscape with a flat top, almost like two pyramids placed together.

"What is that thing?" Jenny asked.

Huntar beamed his eyes at it. "That must be Horde's secret weapon!"

"We better stop him before he attacks a village," said Zena.

Jenny turned to Zena. "But how can we stop him? He is already flying his weapon."

Zena looked around and pointed her finger at a tall, rocky mountain. "His weapon will move past that mount. We can climb up and jump off to land onto the weapon."

"Torag!" Torag shouted.

Huntar pointed his thumb up. "Valorous plan, Zena!"

Zena rode her mount down the slope first and dashed across the plain. Jenny and the others followed her across the plain.

Horde's weapon drifted slowly, giving them enough time to race toward the mountain. It will be a lot easier to stop the weapon on top.

*****

While Horde rested his hands on the flight ball, he looked down, spotting four black spots charging across the desert plain.

He beamed his eyes and slowly smiled. "Good..... Time to test the power of my weapon."

He pushed a yellow circle on the panel, which lighted up. A roar tumbled below the panel.

Horde laughed.

Since it might take a while to reach the closet village, Horde might as well test the Doombringer on a few targets. With limitless power, his powerful attack won't be a waste.

*****

Jenny stopped and turned around when a loud noise roared from the weapon. It sounded like an angry whale.

Below the weapon, the bottom opened, and then a giant light beam blasted down. It hit the ground and moved toward Jenny and her friends.

Jenny dropped her mouth. "Look out! It is coming straight for us!"

Huntar, Zena, and Torag turned around. The blast drifted toward them.

"Run!" Huntar shouted.

Jenny and her friends dashed away from the moving beam. The ground rumbled as the beam moved toward them.

"We will be burned into a crust if we don't move fast!" Zena shouted.

"No! It will vaporize us!" Jenny corrected.

"Torag!" the rhino man cried.

Jenny looked back. The giant beam grew closer and closer.

"Almost there!" Huntar shouted.

Below the mountain, their mounts charged into a canyon. The beam passed them, leaving a trail of black glass.

Jenny and her friends got off their mounts and looked back.

"We must climb up this mountain now!" Huntar shouted.

Jenny got on Huntar's back and he climbed up the mountain first. The others followed him.

*****

Horde looked around. "Where did those damn Beastmen go?"

Nothing could have escaped from the blast. However, the Doombringer did move slowly while firing the blast. One flaw that Horde didn't predict.

He stared at the panel and shrugged. "Perhaps they have met their fates."

Horde pushed the yellow circle and everything at the bottom turned quiet. He focused his eyes forward.

"I should save my weapon's power until I approach a clan," he said to himself. "I cannot be sure how much power I have left in this thing. But I am pleased it surely works. Nobody will ever see me coming."

He chuckled and placed his hands back on the panel.

*****

At the top of the mountain, Jenny and her friends were relieved the weapon still hovered close near the mountain. But there was no time to waste.

"Quick! We must jump!" Huntar shouted.

Jenny held tight on his back as Huntar jumped off the ledge first. He landed at the center of the pyramid structure.

Zena and Torag landed near him, but Torag lost his footing and rolled down the stone steps.

"Torag!" Jenny shouted after she got off Huntar.

Zena dashed down the steps and grabbed Torag's hand before his body fell off the edge of the weapon.

She pulled him up, but he was too heavy. Huntar approached behind Zena and grabbed Torag's other hand. With both of their strength, they pulled Torag up from the edge.

Torag landed on the step. "Torag!"

"You need to lose weight, Torag," said Huntar with a chuckle.

Torag shrugged. "Torag."

"Come on, you guys!" Jenny shouted from above them. "We have to stop him!"

Jenny raced up the steps, reaching the top first, and then her friends joined her.

They found Chief Horde standing at the center in front of the panel, controlling the weapon.

Horde turned around and glared. "So you escaped from my beam of judgment. How unfortunate for me."

Huntar raised his brows. "How did you know it was us?"

Horde laughed. "I didn't know, foolish one. In fact, I never expected you to come here."

"You misjudged our clan!" Zena shouted. "Because you didn't kill us all, we have returned for vengeance!"

"You will pay for what you did to my father!" Jenny shouted in a haste tone.

Horde laughed. "None of you will have a chance against me. I am the strongest ape-man, among my clan! I have conquered many clans since my father's passing. And now I will continue to crush more clans with the Doombringer!"

Jenny let her lips dropped open. "The Doombringer?"

"Yes. It belonged to my father before your father killed him. He built it to protect our tribe, but I found it more useful to wipe out every single clan across the world. I needed the Star Crystal to fuel its power. Now it is working, I will succeed in my destiny."

"But why are you doing this? This is crazy!"

Horde glared at Jenny. "Because in this world, my clan will never live in peace. We were hunted, enslaved, and forced to flee from our previous homes like rodents. None of our enemies gave us the satisfaction of peace and harmony. But I realize to survive in this world, all of our enemies must be slain. That is why I am using the Doombringer for a better purpose. The purpose to lead my tribe into a better world. An ape world without wars and torture! You Beastmen are the diseases of this world, and I am the cure!"

"Even if you kill everyone, your clan will fight among yourselves after you calm this world," said Zena. "It is in our blood to fight, no matter how much we don't like it."

"I will see about that after I fulfill my destiny!" Horde picked up his hammer and marched forward. "But first, you will die!"