Free Blackhand by Matt Hiebert

craftsmanship, hung from its hip.
    Gasps and protective blessings hissed through the rows of guests. Several of the warriors grabbed the hilts of their swords. All who were standing took several steps away from the thing as it entered.
    “What is it?” Quintel whispered.
    “I believe it is Huk's new weapon,” Siyer answered.
    The creature stared back at the guests then stepped in front of the Abanshi prisoners, who cowered and shook at its feet, their pride and defiance gone. Huk stood and raised his arms. He was pleased with the effect of his presentation.
    “Do not be afraid,” he shouted above the din of the frightened guests. “The creature is a gift from Ru. It is the key to our victory.”
    Huk stepped down from the throne and stood beside the beast. With a gentle motion he caressed its solid arm. The top of his head barely came to its chest.
    “It is called a Thog,” he said. “Ru named it this. I do not know the meaning of the word, but it seems appropriate for such an animal.”
    “Is it an animal, then?” A visiting landowner asked, fear cracking his voice.
    Huk shrugged.  “My meeting with the god was brief, and I ventured no questions. But I saw much. The god has created thousands of these creatures!”
    Again a mumbling roar rose from the guests. The shock of the Thog's presence had not subsided. Picturing thousands of such creatures made many of the visitors nervous.
    “This is far worse than I imagined,” Siyer said, but Quintel already knew it.
    Huk continued. “The creatures are here to do our bidding. Ru created them specifically for war. One of them is worth twenty trained soldiers. Their axes are battering rams. Their arrows are ballistae. They can travel faster than a man and are more ferocious than a wild beast in battle.”
    “Can it be controlled?” Taln said, letting the grip on his sword hilt relax.
    “The Thog obeys without question or hesitation... also unlike human warriors,” Huk answered.
    “Prove it,” Taln said crossing his arms and sitting deeper in his chair.
    Huk knew what Taln wanted. He walked back to his throne and sat down.
    “Kill the prisoners,” Huk said.
    The monster roared so loudly Quintel felt the rumble in his chest. Some guests covered their ears.
    With stunning speed the Thog jerked the nearest Abanshi prisoner up from the floor and held him at arm’s length. The man struggled like a gigged fish as the Thog brought him closer. The creature snarled, widening its twin rows of fangs. Then it bit the man’s head off with a snap of its jaws.
    The headless body slipped from the gold shackles, and the Thog tossed it across the room with the neck shooting jets of blood in rhythm with the still-beating heart.
    The Thog chewed and crunched on the head for a moment and then stopped. Puckering its lips, it spat. The prisoner's scalp hurled across the room and landed next to the twitching body. The creature swallowed the rest.
    Trying instinctively to escape, the remaining prisoners scooted across the floor still chained together at the throat, tripping over each other in their panic. Many of the guests laughed at the sight.
    The Thog stepped on the empty collar at the end of the chain, pinning the Abanshi captives. It clenched a fist and brought it down like a hammer on the next prisoner's skull. The fist flattened the man's head to the shoulder.
    Then the creature grabbed the ax at its hip, and with its great muscles quivering, raised the weapon above its head. Again, the beast let loose a cry that split the air like a lightning strike. It swung. The single blow passed through both the remaining Abanshi prisoners, cutting Rand, the boy who did not like to hunt, in half. Gray-blue guts and bright red blood splashed to the stone floor.
    Without bending the Thog scooped up a handful of the entrails and sucked them down whole. It hooked the ax back at its hip and stepped away. Silence hung in the air.
    After an uneasy moment, Taln started to laugh. The generals and