Minh lowered his head like a charging bull. In panic, the KG around Neville struggled to free their weapons from their holsters in time.
The last guard standing gaped up at Minh as he swung about, towering over him.
‘Stop,’ the man managed, his lip quivering. ‘Or I’ll …’
Minh grunted with contempt and gave the guard a meaty backhand that sent him screaming through the air to hit the side of a house.
‘Don’t just stand there, you fools!’ bellowed Aiken. ‘Take him d—’
Minh locked his burning gaze upon her, and Aiken’s voice choked in her throat. It took her a moment to suppress her fear.
‘Set to maximum stun!’ she commanded. ‘Take him down!’
Hornets drew stingers as they ran for cover behind houses and haystacks.
Minh narrowed his eyes, then began to thump along the road towards the first jeep in the line. Like an oncoming steam train, he built momentum slowly but surely, his heavy footsteps shaking the ground. The driver flung his door open just as Minh slammed into the front.
The wheels spun as Minh forced the jeep into reverse, metal screaming as the brakes gave out. As the jeep slammed into the one behind, Minh continued on without breaking pace, his massive legs pumping up and down. Jeep after jeep smashed together as he powered forward, pushing a growing line of mangled vehicles ahead of him.
‘Why is nobody shooting?!’ shouted Aiken, just before her jeep lurched from under her and she spilled off the side.
Stinger bolts began to zzz! past Minh. One smacked him in the side and sent electric lines crackling over his torso. He jerked his horns free of the jeep, spraying twisted metal into the air. He lifted what remained of the vehicle and held it up to shield himself. Bolt after bolt burst against it, until it rippled electric in his hands.
Kelly burst from between two houses, her hair streaming wildly around her. She moved so fast the grass barely flattened beneath her feet. It felt good to work her legs, to burn the energy built up from days in hiding. She sped past a row of Hornets, smacking their stingers out of their hands.
‘I’ve sighted the Golden Unicorn,’ cried a guard at the end of the row, as he raised his comstick to his mouth. Kelly smashed it up into his face, knocking him out cold.
‘Sight that,’ she said.
Kelly spun to see Minh flinging a jeep undercarriage like the world’s deadliest frisbee. As Hornets dived to the ground, it slammed through a pumpkin patch behind them and decapitated a scarecrow.
Minh began to tromp again along the line, swinging his arms left and right to knock jeeps out of his way. Metal carcasses hurtled through the air in all directions, sending groups of KG scattering.
Aiken appeared out of the jeeps in front of him, dropped to her knee and raised her tri-burst rifle.
‘Watch out!’ Kelly called, too late. Aiken fired and whump whump whump, three bolts drilled Minh right in the chest.
He staggered backwards as electric strands rippled over him, and his flailing hand closed over a rear-view mirror. He wrenched it free and flung it right at Aiken. It cracked against her shoulder and ripped off a piece of body armour, the force of the impact slamming her sideways. Within seconds, her Elites closed ranks around her.
Minh shook himself like a dog, and the electricity frazzled away, leaving him smoking in patches. Everywhere around him Hornets were getting up, retrieving their guns, closing in. He scraped one foot along the ground, kicking up earth and readying to charge once more. He was getting too mad to judge the situation – if Kelly didn’t do something, he would surely be overwhelmed.
She tore towards Minh and leapt into the air, landing on his back and hooking an arm around his neck to hold on. As he reached back to fling her free, thinking she was an attacker, she hauled herself up to shout in his ear.
‘Minh, it’s Kelly! Are you still you? Can you hear me?’
Minh paused, his huge fingers twitching. He spoke in a deep, gravelly voice. ‘Of course I’m still me.’
‘We have to get out of here,’ Kelly said urgently. ‘You caught them by surprise, but there are too many. If we run, we can lead them away from the Hub!’
Minh seemed to weigh his options. Meanwhile, Aiken, somewhat recovered, shakily raised her rifle again. Kelly noticed an Elite beside her, with red hair sticking out from his helmet, make a little gesture no one else could see. She frowned. He was flicking his fingers at Kelly, as if to say shoo, shoo.
‘We need to go now,’ said Kelly.
Aiken fired. Kelly swung herself around Minh’s neck and hauled him out of the path of the bolts. As the bolts sizzled by, they both sprawled behind a mound of metal. Kelly was flung clear, but was on her feet and back to Minh in no time, as he sat up rubbing his neck.
‘Ow,’ he said.
‘You’re welcome,’ said Kelly. ‘Now, we have to run, okay? Run! Do you understand, you big lunk?’
‘No need for name-calling,’ grouched Minh.
Kelly took off, sprinting back towards the hill. She prayed that Minh would follow. She was relieved when, a moment later, she felt the ground quaking with his footfalls behind her.
‘After them!’ screamed Aiken.
Kelly wove up the hill as passing bolts set the hair of her arms on end. They sank into the slope ahead as she zigged and zagged, leaving patches of smoking grass. She heard Minh bellow as he was hit, and glanced back to make sure he wasn’t slowing.He stumbled as electricity corded his legs, but kept on.
Kelly ran full pelt into the stalks. They whipped her face, and she flung up a hand to protect herself. A Hornet charged in blindly from her left, and they collided with stunning force. As Kelly lay dazed on the ground, she heard the voices of other Hornets calling to each other. They seemed to come from all directions, steadily closing in. She felt dizzy, as though she was close to blacking out.
Minh roared past, leaving a trail of crushed wheat behind him, and Kelly wondered if he had even noticed her lying there. Then, somewhere off in the direction he had gone, Hornets cried out as they were trampled. A moment later, Minh reappeared, rushing in a new direction. Kelly heard more shouts go up.
By the time she managed to clear her head …
Wind blasted them, and they looked up to see a helicopter descending.
‘Make for the woods,’ shouted Minh, pointing towards a row of trees.
‘Are you coming?’
‘I’ll be right behind you.’
As Kelly staggered into a run, Minh headed away. The helicopter turned after him, a Hornet manning a massive electrical cannon on the side. He began to shoot large bolts, sending up clumps of grass in Minh’s path.
Minh reached a tractor that stood by itself in the middle of a field. He clamped his enormous hands down on it as the helicopter lined him up. His muscles bulged.
He couldn’t possibly lift that, Kelly thought. Oh wow. He just did!
Kelly reached the trees, and Minh came thumping up to join her. He squeezed in between two trunks, shaking them so much that leaves rained down.
‘Now what?’ he said.
‘I told Stanley to prepare that boat,’ she said. ‘But you won’t be able to make it without knocking down half the forest.’
Minh frowned for a moment, and seemed to concentrate.
Be calm, she heard him tell himself. They won’t hurt Mum and Dad now. They’ll be too busy hunting us, as long as we lead them away.
She sensed the boiling surface of his mind grow still. The red in his eyes flickered and waned like a doused flame. He was shrinking in size. As his curved horns wound back into his head, he shot Kelly an embarrassed look.
‘No one’s ever seen me change before,’ he said.
‘Don’t worry,’ she said. ‘I know how you feel.’
Do you? came his thought.
‘Let’s keep going,’ she said. ‘There may still be others on our trail.’
They jogged through the woods together until they heard the sound of running water. A moment later, they arrived by a river, where Stanley was holding a boat ready to go.
‘I’m glad to see you’ve returned to normal size,’ said Stanley, as they piled in. ‘Otherwise this thing would sink.’
