Chapter 7

The minotaur charged into the room. At first, it seemed like only Perry and Shane had the prerogative to move, but as the minotaur came within range, the others darted back too. Perry held two spears, one in each hand, and he kept himself light and ready to pounce, the same way he would prepare for a tennis serve, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. The bonfire they had prepared provided the light they needed, the flames growing steadily, allowing them to concentrate solely on the battle.

The minotaur swung its axe, nearly taking out Katie and Priya, they both tumbled flat onto the ground. Big mistake. They weren’t hit by the axe, but now they were laying ducks, ready to be crushed.

“Hey! Over here!” screamed Heather, waving her arms frantically.

“Move, move, move!” Perry shouted at the two on the ground as they tried to scramble to their feet.

The beast took a huge step forward, almost crushing Katie. Then it swept with its free arm, aiming at the two girls. Heather took the stance from the track and field javelin throw and sent one of her spears flying. She aimed well, but it seemed to just bounce off the minotaur’s arm. The arm missed Katie but hit Priya, sending her up in the air, and landing near Shane. It must have been four meters, Perry thought, she’s probably out for the count.

Perry noticed Shane, he moved to get a good angle on the minotaur. While distracted, focusing on Katie, Shane positioned himself behind the minotaur.

Katie scrambled up again. Perry saw the axe coming about, it’s weight carrying it in a predictable arc. The axe was huge and must have been made of some heavy material like iron. That meant it had large angular momentum, making it hard to redirect, especially considering the minotaur tried to wield it with a single-hand. Perry put his spears back in pants. He leapt forward, into the fray, three large running steps to Katie, just then standing up, with the axe barrelling down upon her.

Perry grabbed her and pulled her to the side. The axe crashed against the ground, barely missing her. “Just run, I’ll distract it.” She ran in a straight line away from the minotaur. Perry turned to face the minotaur, hands empty. He knew he’d only be relying on his agility here.

The minotaur’s hand came at him for another swipe and it was easy enough for him to predict and dodge it. Perry’s confidence grew, this animal had raw strength, he knew it should have a massive advantage, but it’s movements were too predictable. Really, what it should have done was just charge at him, that might not have killed everyone, but it probably would have killed one of them, and scattered the rest. Instead, it seemed to move like a boss in a video game, telegraphing its movements to easily be dodged. It didn’t try to move forward.

Perry could see Shane, moving around, trying to get close safely. The minotaur didn’t seem to notice him as he stabbed his spear in and out. Then the minotaur’s elbow came too close to him and he backed off.

The one advantage it took from its movement pattern, was keeping the doorway blocked. After all, that spear just seemed to bounce off it. Maybe their weapons were completely ineffective? Maybe it didn’t care that they could dodge it? They would get tired eventually, then become lambs to the slaughters, as long as it could keep them trapped. If that were the case, Perry and Shane had made a terrible mistake that cost them all their lives. The dark thoughts crept into the back of Perry’s mind as he continued to dodge each swing. He couldn’t keep this up forever, his breathing was already becoming strained. He realized how long it must have been since he had a drink of water, his throat was dry. The build-up of lactic acid in his side was already noticeable.

“Get back Perry!” shouted Katie.

“Yeah! We need to take turns!” shouted Heather.